What's wrong with my 2003 Ford Focus ZX3?

Asked by TomWolfeRock Jan 25, 2016 at 10:33 AM about the 2003 Ford Focus ZX3

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I am not a knowledgable car person, so I'm
afraid I can only describe symptoms. My
car is a 2003 Ford Focus ZX3, and today I
noticed a new problem. The whole car will
shake violently at around 45+ mph. I drive
a manual transmission, so the problem
definitely happens at speed, instead of
RPM.

Other details about the car that may be
related, or maybe not

Steering wheel makes noise when turned
(probably need to change power steering
fluid?)
Engine gets very warm in very specific
places (towards the outside edges) to the
point where it will heat up the hood and
melt ice and evaporate rain much faster in
that spot than the rest of the car, even
though check engine light is off and temp
gauge is reading normally.
The car has had pretty regular
maintenance and oil changes while in my
care, but I believe I'm a little overdue.
Have had repairs done to radiator and
clutch, but nothing in the past year.

Have pictures of engine bay, for anyone
who would take a look. Just looking for
ideas of what could be wrong and how
hard it is to fix so I don't get screwed over
at the garage.

Thank you for your feedback

2 Answers

221,015

All the other things you have described are normal. I don't see a problem. Now the steering shaking may be bad tires or some loose front end parts. Have the front end and tires checked at an alignment shop, they should be able to fix you right up. Oh the serpentine belt may need replacing for the steering.

2 people found this helpful.

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