Time To Ditch My 2002 Focus CL Sedan?

[ramondo]

Hello all,

In 2004 I bought a 2002 CL Auto Sedan from Col Crawford in Brookvale in Sydney, with about 35,000kms on the clock.

It's now up to 115,000kms, and the only major expenses so far have been new tyres, a new alternator and battery, and more-frequent-than-I-would-like replacement of brake pads, along with the usual expense of servicing.

A few years ago I moved up to Berowra and I decided I didn't want to travel to the Ford dealer in Pittwater for servicing, so for the last few years I've taken it to 2 local mechanics - the first guy was pretty good in pointing out that the in the previous ford dealer service the spark plugs were replaced with ones that were older, and he was reasonably-priced, but overall I wasn't convinced he knew enough about new-ish model fords to do a proper job - and he couldn't fix squealing back brakes.

Another guy I've taken it to for servicing has also been unable to fix the squealing and I get the impression that while he too is reasonably-priced, this is mainly to do with the fact he doesn't do very much with it.

So as I paid off the loan a couple of years ago, I'd like to keep the car a bit longer as I think it's potentially got another few years.

However, some issues:
- the coolant warning light has come on on long-ish journeys, and this co-incides with it revving very high before second gear kicks in. (This sometimes happens anyway.) The warning light usually disappears when it has cooled down. If this is as simple as replacing the coolant then it would appear it has not been done for a long time. The manual suggests getting it looked at - preferably by someone who knows what they're doing.
- there is a low whirring noise from the back that appears to be getting louder. I'm worried it may be a bearing problem.
- sometimes a knocking noise from the back when turning corners, especially with passengers in the back. This may be related to above - though I think it's always been there.
- back brakes still squealing when cold.

I guess what I'm looking for is someone who could do a proper diagnostic and give me an idea of how much it would cost me to keep it on the road and be reasonably confident of it being able to handle medium journeys - say Sydney to Canberra.

I'd be prepared to travel to a dealer anywhere in Sydney if there was a recommendation someone could give me - though in my experience this is very hit and miss. Peter Warren seems to get a mention a bit - can anyone share their experiences?

Sorry for all the info, I just need to decide what to do with the car.

Thanks,

Ramondo.