Reconditioned Ford Focus Gearbox

11 engine variants over 17 years: what daily use of the Focus reveals about its gearboxes

The Ford Focus is above all an everyday car, used intensively in town, on the motorway and in mixed driving conditions. This reality takes a direct toll on the gearbox: clutches under strain in traffic jams, repeated gear changes on the sporting variants, and constant load on high-mileage diesels. Between 2004 and 2021, Ford offered the Focus with 11 distinct engine variants, all fitted with manual gearboxes — 5 or 6 speeds depending on the engine — and catalogued under 30 different engine codes. Identifying yours precisely is essential before taking any further steps.

5-speed or 6-speed gearbox: what your engine determines

The versions with a 5-speed gearbox cover three engine variants only: the 1.4 TDCi (code KVJA), the 1.8 TDCi (code KKDA) and the 1.8 petrol (codes CSDA, CSDB, QQDA, QQDB). All other engine variants — from the naturally aspirated 1.0 to the 2.3 EcoBoost, including the 1.5 TDCi, 1.6 TDCi, 1.6 petrol, 2.0 EcoBoost and 2.5 Turbo — are fitted with a 6-speed gearbox. A 5-speed gearbox cannot be substituted for a 6-speed, even if the mountings appear compatible.

Identification pitfalls to be aware of by engine variant

Several engine codes appear across more than one engine variant in the Focus range: M1DA and M2DA are shared between the 1.0 EcoBoost and the naturally aspirated 1.0 — two distinct engines despite the identical capacity. The 1.5 TDCi spans five codes (XWDA to XWDE) which may correspond to different gear ratios or gearbox outputs depending on the power output and year. On the sporting variants, the distinction is critical: the 2.5 Turbo carries two very different codes, HYDA (ST 225 hp) and JZDA (RS/RS500), whose gearboxes are not interchangeable. The engine code stamped on the block remains the only reliable reference; the vehicle's model year or the power output shown on the registration document alone are not sufficient to select the correct reference.

EDEN BOITES offers these gearboxes in two ways: on an exchange basis, where the customer returns their own worn unit, or as a rebuild on the customer's own unit, which is returned to them after reconditioning. The choice between these two options depends on the condition of the original gearbox and the acceptable downtime for the vehicle.