I can see where you are coming from bud, somehow the mk1 (mk 1.5 particularly) were sort of ahead of their time. Plenty of soft touch materials and an entertaining drive.

Mk2 was ok, but bland in the looks dept in anything other than ST form and the facelift improved that, thought there is acres of Asian car style grey plastic. They were however great fun to chuck through bends, probably the best handling family car that size.

The mk3 is far more funky, you sit right in the cockpit, but they seemed to have dropped insulation and thicker materials, possibly for weight and it shows the rattles.

They also have a really heavy arse, so coupled with the EPAS gives a feeling of lag. In a car that already feels a bit underpowered in anything other than Turbo form, it's a bit of a shame as the focus it replaced was a better drive, if plastic fantastic, and the mk1 seemed more durable.

It is however a decent car, if that's all you want from a motor. The seats are also very comfy in everything Zetec trim and above.