Purchased the car from an online auction. My dad was a dealer at the time, so I was browsing for an ST or SVT. I found this gem with the SAP and told him to immediately jump on it. He did. Picked it up for $6600 after auction fees. No I didn't personally purchase it (But I'm saving to purchase it off him as we speak. He doesn't know about it.).

It had 73XXX miles and was bone stock. I immediately began conjuring up a plan for what I would do with it. I ended up throwing in a sound system I had laying around. Well apparently the battery had a dead cell. I didn't know that. So on top of all the bells and whistles I was pulling 50A of current from a bad battery. Replaced the battery and about a week later killed the alternator in the middle of rush hour. That sucked. I replaced the alternator and ultimately took out the sound sytem. I don't have pics of that, but it wasn't too bad. I was still in High School at the time and didn't have a job, so all the money I had saved went straight towards gas. So mods were few and far in between, but to start the list:

1. Plastiderp- Plastidipped the interior bits red.



2. The Wheel Deal- First "real" mod would be the EAPs I picked up. $300 with tires.




3. In Wheel Time- I then painted the EAPs sort of a bronzish metallic color. Was happy at the time but quickly grew old to me. Also picked up some extended aluminum lug nuts so I wouldn't have to scratch my freshly painted wheels. Figured I'd go ahead and grab some red ones while I'm at it.





4. Shine Bright like a Diamond- Polished out the headlights. This is sort of a before and after.



5. Oops!- Had a bit of an incident. I was completely at fault, but nothing major.



6. Plastiderp #2- Patched and resprayed the front bumper. The paint on the wheels began chipping in places because of my poor prep, so I went through a short plastidip phase. Also painted calipers red and the headlight housings black, but had many, many problems with them sealing. They dried up and don't collect moisture anymore, but that's a future mod I'll have to improve.




7. What Even is it?- Also shaved the rear ford logo.



8. Still Slow Though- And as I was in the process of painting the front bumper, I did the stealth CAI mod. Grabbed me a K&N filter from the parts store since I had easy access to remove the original filter.



9. Tainted Paint- The plastidipped wheels didn't last long. So they went bronze.



10. Craigslist Got me Again- Then browsing the ole interwebs, came across a set of SVT Contour wheels. Picked them up for $200. Also did a major detailing including claybar, compound, polish, sealant, and wax. My alternator pooped out on me again at this time. I purchased my first one from O'Reilly's so I have the lifetime warranty. Well ended up going through two bad remans until they upgraded me to a new unit. Appreciate their cooperation there.



11. Needs moar low- And then the lows with FRPP springs I had purchased in the Spring. Not much but atleast less rally car. Also some yellow fog light tint.




12. This is what Car Guys do on their Birthdays- Then began some extensive paint work.





13. Slipstreamin'- And the results, including spoiler delete. Also some 35% window tint.





14. #dailydriven- Put the EAPs on as the SVTCs were awaiting tires and a refurbishment. Also did another detail after the repairs. I then decided to upgraded the charging wire and grounds with some 4ga wire I had laying around.




15. All about that Bass- The trunk got used by a box I picked up for pretty much free. For a blown Kicker 12 this things slams.



16. HanDelivereds- Tires came for the SVTCs. $300 from TireRack. Hankooks.



17. Wrapped and Slapped- Painted them with a quart of Rustoleum Aluminum paint from Home Depot. Worked surprisingly well.



18. One Guy, One Horn, Flying Focus, Tire Eater- Back on the car and taken to the alignment shop.




19. Errordynamics- Made a repair on the rear valence. I had hit a tire that broke it and the side mount for the rear bumper.




19. Back to Black- Used some Duplicolor trim paint on the cowl panel and window trim.




20. Shorty & Sporty- Installed a shorty antenna.



21. Portable Music Box- Installed my new Head Unit: Pioneer AVH-X3700BHS. Has the works. Also bypassed the parking brake with a relay and installed a controller for my steering wheel controls.

 

Wingless SAP Love

 

Nice progress so far for a limited budget.

Not a fan of the spoiler delete but that's just me. I would of kept the EAP over the contour wheels given the larger diameter...

What's next on your list to take care of?

 

Thanks! I haven't gotten rid of the EAPs they're currently in the garage awaiting treatment. 3 of the wheels have suffered atleast a minor bend before I had of hold of them, one of those wheels suffered 3 bends. They hold air, but I'd like to get them fixed. So basically I'd like to fix the bends, strip them, paint them, and then wrap them in some decent tires for new dailies.

As for what's next on the list, at this point, not much. A few things need taking care of. The large majority of my money is going into savings right now. I'm working 60 hrs a week so a decent amount is building up. I'm hoping I can start college in May, but if I don't make it I'll spend a little bit on the Focus and continue saving until the next program starts.

I do have an aftermarket alarm system on it's way. That's next on the list, possibly this weekend, due to the new radio. I keep a few things in my car so definitely want to make sure I'm secure.

 

I actually kinda like the CSVT wheels on there more than the EAP's. But I'm a fan of meat

 

Exactly! When I do get around to wrapping the EAPs, they're getting some beefy tires. I'm thinking a 225/45.

 

I love the shaved ford emblem on the trunk lid. That's also on my to do list for my car.

 

Lol. I do too. Cleans up the rear end. But BEWARE. If you do this mod you will be mistaken for a Jetta, 3 out of 5 times.

 

Those EAP's did not fit that car at all. The Contour wheels look especially good.

Get rid of that god awful painted interior and you'll have a great looking car.

- Drew

 

The wheels 5 spokes for sure....I'd miss the wing, kinda what makes that model. Ohh and yeah I've never been a fan of painted interior plastics....Starfury on here does some KILLER carbon fiber wrap!

 

Updated some photos and added to the build timeline. Don't mind the cheesy subtitles.

I appreciate everyone's feedback! I promise there's plenty more to come from this build.

 

I like the trunk with the ford emblem delete. That looks good.

 

Quick little update as to what will happen over the weekend.

Got in some goodies.

Also got my LEDs to finish the interior conversion. I'm gonna do demon eye projectors. Hadn't decided if I want to wire the demon eyes to illuminate when the alarm is armed and disarmed or if they'll just be manual toggle.

The only thing I'm waiting on to finish the retrofit is the headlamps which should be at my front doorstep tomorrow. Can't wait!!

 

For me, the #1 priority would be returning your entire interior to stock and giving it another shot with an upholstered box and different (or stock) paint. Otherwise, I think your car looks very good.

 

Agreed. That's something I was planning to do nearing summer, but I guess that secrets out now. [emoji53]

 

All parts have arrived! Let the games begin!

 

So much room for retrofit activities! Going to epoxy the FX-Rs in?

 

Who do those projector lenses look like 5" lenses? I'd be careful with demon eyes. If you want the look I'd suggest painting the side of the cutoff shield that faces the lens. If you do that MAKE SURE you run the projectors open (not sealed in the headlights) for a few mins to heat up and expel the gases from the paint.

Here's an example of painted cutoff shields on my car.


-Matt

 

Because they're 3" projectors. Gonna be a tight squeeze but I'm gonna make them fit. I opted for them over the 2.5" because I've seen retrofits with the smaller projector and it just looks out of place. I want this to look as factory as possible.

 

They look absolutely massive, not 3". Maybe it's the angle or Iris shrouds, but they looks like monstrosities.

-Mattchew

 

They're probably a good 4.5-5" with the shrouds. It's gonna be snug. But it ain't right if it ain't tight.

 

One step closer!! Tomorrow evening I plan on aiming and mounting the projectors, let it cure overnight and finish through the week. Absolutely ecstatic I went with the 3" projectors over the 2.5". These look more natural in comparison to the turn signal reflector housing.

Almost there!

 

How about dem apples?

 

Retrofit looks fantastic. Light output is outstanding.

- Drew

 

Finally finished this god forsaken project. 12 weeks later project retrofit is complete. A few kinks to work out, but we are there.

 

I like them except for the halos. Just my $.02

 

To each his own. I debated them for a long time, but decided to go with them. The cool thing is not only are they aesthetic, but also functional as turn signals.

Nice job smoothing the housings.

Thank you mayn!

 

Nice job smoothing the housings.

 

Headlights look and perform great. The halos completely ruin the nice work, but everything else looks good.

If you get a chance to ever pull those out, do so, they look cheap, tacky and otherwise awful on what would be a nicely sorted retrofit.

- Drew

 

I appreciate your input with all do respect. What I do not appreciate is how you just basically called my project trash because of a decision I made.

Thank you Matt and Mike for not flat out telling me it looks like garbage because of halos. I appreciate the criticism and support respectfully.

With that said, I will admit I've had second thoughts about the halos. Am I dissatisfied with them? No. I actually enjoy them, but that probably has something to do with my best friend who has a Mazda 3 with aftermarket halos. I dig the style.
I am with you, though. I believe halos do not look natural on the Focus. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind the criticism. In fact, I will take your opinions and further modify them to find a better appearance and style that better suits the car.

So with that in mind, I am going to ask for your guys opinions and advice on what I could do to run a DRL to add just a simple touch of style during the dimmer hours of the day. I do not plan to waste the $80 I spent on the LED Ropes for the halos, so please help me brainstorm a better and more suitable use for them.

Thank you guys for your input.

Personally I really like the style with the halos off. It blends really well and doesn't stand out.

 

I use switchback LED's in my car, but they aren't DRL's, I just always have my parking lights/fog lights on when driving.

Old pic, but -