Planning to buy a Ford Lynx Ghis 2003 MT 41TKms

[niky]

Ganoon ba ang maintenance ng Ford Lynx at a very low mileage? Are you talking thru experience?
Grabe pala ang mahal at rupok nito.
Kasi comparing to Nissan Sentra before I change the bushings, etc. ay mga 120,000 kms., brake pads at 115,000 kms, manual tranny.
Toyota Altis AT at 80,000 kms is also very simple and cheap maintenance, both are serviced in casa.
Nakakadalawang-isip pala ang Ford. Baka ganoon din ka-grabe ang ibang Ford, di ko na itutuloy ang plans ko. Thanks for the info.
Dahil may warranty pa nga kamo yan till 2009, wala ka ng problem, so be very vigilant lang sa mga tunog, sa handling, sa noise, sa performance at ipasok mo agad sa warranty if anything is abnormal to your feelings. Dapat up to the last day of warranty ay parang brand new ang performance, di ko masabi ang comfort kasi sabi nila stiff daw ang suspension nyan. Para sa akin stiff na ang suspension ng Altis, e di lalo na pala yan, para kang AUV o SUV.
Good luck.

It depends on usage and traffic met. You either drive on the NLEX at 40 km/h, or you live really close to your house and see no traffic.

I replaced almost everything underneath one Sentra at 40k kms, including busted shocks. We replaced the clutch inside of 20k kms, courtesy of a drag-racing brother.

Our other Sentra lost a rear bushing... a real pain because the casa insisted they had to destroy the torsion beam and replace it for the job... 25k for one f***ing bushing! That other Sentra also had brake refacing and disc replacement before 50k kms, due to traffic. Oh, and the alternator went south, too... because of the electrical drain from the accessories.

My cousin had to replace front springs and shocks on his Toyota Altis. Corollas are notorious for having soft shocks, too.

On our Ford Lynx, I only replaced the front tie rod and bushings because I hit a wheel-destroying pothole. I haven't had any other suspension issues or kalampag, so far... and I drive fast and hard, and the SLEX is so bumpy that the trim on our Crosswind is falling off and the screws on the Lynx's interior panels are starting to come loose. And despite driving on the racetrack often, at 68k kms, I'm still on my original brake discs. Only other change is the clutch, at 50k kms... but then, I race the car, and I don't expect the clutch to last long in those conditions. Those who don't race see the clutch last for 100k kms or more (our 626 is holding up fine in that regard). The Crosswind gets driven in the same traffic, but is not raced, and the clutch only lasted 40k kms.

The Ford Lynx is not a horrible car. It has some sensor issues, yes, but it's no worse than Nissan (Nissan's MAF sensors are a pain in the butt) or Mitsubishi (oh... cousin's Lancer IACV replaced at 38,000 kms... aircon problems, too), though not completely painless like a Corolla or Civic (although there's news now about circa-2001 Civics having sensor issues similar to the Lynx).

In Protege form, the Lynx received a "Recommended" grade from Consumer Reports. This is over the current Corolla Altis and the previous Honda Civic. And Consumer Reports' idea of a great car is the Corolla... they worship good reliability.

Except for heat-fried sensors (which more often than not happens to modified cars which are raced, and are relatively cheap to replace at 3k to 5k depending on the sensor), most of the problems Protege owners see on the boards are from hard use and racing.

Like Orly said... avoid abused or poorly maintained automatics, and the Lynx will serve you well.

[niky]

1. mga sir, anong papers po ba ang kelangan ko para malipat sa name ko yung insurance at yung warranty nung lynx?

2. totoo bang hindi maganda ang quality ng ford? ng lynx?

3. totoo bang mas mahal ang oem parts at mas mahirap maghanap ng piyesa ng ford lynx compared to other brands ng car?

4. for 300T petot, would i be better of with, say a 1998 honda city, or a 1998 galant shark, a 2000 exalta, a 200 lancer mx instead of a 2003 ford lynx ghia?

5. Saan po ang the best na casa ng ford? is the service of ford libis any good? rizal pa po kase ang bahay ko e, so if ever me ipapagawa, sa pinakamalapit na casa na sana as much as possible...

6. pwede ko po bang itawag sa TMG ang plate number ng auto just to check kung hot car ito? pano ko malalaman kung me problems sa papers ng sasakyan?

thanks po ulit sa mga magrereply....

1. Just renew the insurance in your name... I think it's transferable.

2. It's a Japanese car. (Mazda Protege) It's no worse than any other Japanese car. As for Ford trucks... the Expedition and Explorer are American-made cars... I can't vouch for them...

3. Mas mahirap compared to Toyotas, yes, because you can buy Toyota parts from sidewalk vendors in Tawi-Tawi... ...but there are a whole bunch of stores in Banaue that carry suspension parts, transmission parts and engine sensors. Heck, I've had a harder time looking for sensors for my Nissan than my friends have had with their Fords.

4. 300k -

1998 Honda City... way over-priced. Try to get it down near 200k. And check for rust... first gen City sedans are notorious for rust.

1998 Galant - suspension issues... not sure about the engine. Suspension parts also cost more than the Lynx.

2000 Exalta - at this point, it's seven years old. At three years, electrical glitches start appearing (power windows, alarm, CD Changer, alternator, etcetera). At four to five years, interior trim starts to fall off, and you might need to overhaul the aircon (expensive compressor). Watch for MAF issues, too. The automatic might be going out, too, if it's not well-cared-for. If you can find one pristine, try to get it down to 200-250k. 250k is fair.

2000 Lancer MX - Check for IACV issues, MAF issues and aircon blower issues. Check the automatic very carefully... Lancer ATs are damn expensive to fix.

On all of the cars above, check the suspension carefully... by this time, some of these cars will be needing new shocks and bushings, wheel bearings and CV Joints.

2003 Lynx Ghia - AT or MT? The AT sucks gas like drunk at Oktoberfest. The MT is somewhat decent. 2003 models don't have the same sensor issues as older Lynxes. Check for any "kalampag" if you're unsure of where the car's been driven. Interior toys are about the same level as the Exalta STA. Check that the CD Changer still plays well, there are reports of problems if you use it too often.

5. Don't know about Libis. Just don't go to Global City... never heard much good about the service there.

6. Yup. On the sale or right before, you should go with the owner to the TMG to have them check the car, then over to the LTO to check the registration. Bring the original documents with you. Also, try to assess if the seller is on the level... it's hard to trust LTO records nowadays, as these can be faked, too... I know someone who bought a car whose VIN and Plate Number didn't match, even if there was no alarm on either. The case is still under investigation, as the exact nature of the racket is unclear.

[1D4LV]

my answers below in bold...

1. mga sir, anong papers po ba ang kelangan ko para malipat sa name ko yung insurance at yung warranty nung lynx?
deed of sale lang tsaka kung nailipat mo na sa pangalan mo yung OR/CR, pati yun.

2. totoo bang hindi maganda ang quality ng ford? ng lynx?
maganda naman... check out niky's opinions.... imho, ang quality din kasi ng oto eh depende sa gumagamit, kung pano ginagamit and pano maintenance.

3. totoo bang mas mahal ang oem parts at mas mahirap maghanap ng piyesa ng ford lynx compared to other brands ng car?

mas mahal ang oem parts, pero, mas quality sya. i really dunno about the availability of parts, but there are ford casas which you can look into.

4. for 300T petot, would i be better of with, say a 1998 honda city, or a 1998 galant shark, a 2000 exalta, a 200 lancer mx instead of a 2003 ford lynx ghia?

dun ako sa 2000 exalta o kaya sa 2000 lancer. among the two choices, i would go for the lancer... invecs na kasi ang transmission nya.

5. Saan po ang the best na casa ng ford? is the service of ford libis any good? rizal pa po kase ang bahay ko e, so if ever me ipapagawa, sa pinakamalapit na casa na sana as much as possible...

rizal? dun ka na sa malapit.... pwede naming sabihin sa iyo na ang best casa is ang ford alabang, pero i doubt kung you would be willing to make the road trip.

6. pwede ko po bang itawag sa TMG ang plate number ng auto just to check kung hot car ito? pano ko malalaman kung me problems sa papers ng sasakyan?

hindi... you have to go through their usual clearance processes.

thanks po ulit sa mga magrereply....
hth..

[jpjawili]

Thanks very much for your inputs Sir Niky and Sir Happy_Gilmore. Your inputs were very helpful indeed, and they are much appreciated by a newbie like me. Well, i hope to get the car today or tomorrow, hopefully all goes well esp the transfer of ownership and the tmg records. Again, maraming maraming salamat po sa inyo and mabuhay po kayo. Magandang umaga po!

[jpjawili]

finally, got my first car today. me auto na ko pauwi. hehehehe. joined fordclubph pero di pa activated ang username ko. thanks po ulit sa lahat ng nagbigay ng inputs nila.