firstly welcome to the site and i'm glad to see another fellow 2000 mk1 focus owner (though i've got the 2l zetec )

what trim level have you got as the zetecs handle really well as standard?

also, as your still learning to drive and i assume you are 17 unless you have several thousand to spend on insurance then i wouldnt botha looking at mods till at least a year down the line when you've got a years no claims as otherwise you will find you are limited to a few companies who will charge you silly money, unless you can find a cheap company before you do the mods.

suspension wise on the road coilovers are a bit too back creaking for daily use. you can go 30-40mm lower with just springs on standard shocks and if you do that the best springs to go for are the eibachs as they make ford racing springs.

if you want shocks aswell then i'd go for the koni street kit as under £300 and come with a lifetime guarantee. wouldnt bother with Pi or G-max as they dont seem to be any good on fords from what i've heard.

the other thing is that in a years time you may want (and be able to afford) something faster as the 1.4 is unfortunatly pathetic as the focus weighs sooo much. so, anything you spend on mods now you will not get the money you paid for them back and is basically throwing it away.

i know exactly where your coming from though wanting to get modding straight away but trust me if you start off slow and gain some experiance driving and just generally maintaining your car then when you've got more money down the line and insurance is cheaper you'll be in the perfect possition to do a decent job.

i learnt to drive on my mum's 1.8 focus and had to use that for the first 2 years i was on the road as i was a named tdriver and couldnt afford my own car and my bro was on it so had to contend with 2 others for use!!! then when i got my escort insurance was decent and i could finally mod....till i crashed it a year later, luckily i'd done very little by then which was all cheap so didnt lose out and accident was never reported and no claim was made (as 3rd pf&t and noone else involved). now i've got my 2l focus and am making a dam good job of it and insurance is only £660 a year fully comp all mods declaired and with 3 points for speeding and i'm 22 with 2 years ncb.

hope this helps and doesnt disapoint too much.