They are a good car. If it's an auto make sure it is not the dual clutch type. Look at service history, kilometres, city or country travel, how it has been looked after, general appearance, tyres, rust and any evidence of accident damage. They ride well, are quite in town and on the highway, economical, light steering effort and have a reasonable sound system if you are not under 25. There can be unwanted surprises with any secondhand car, buying from a dealer may be a better bet than a private sale. Depends on price and if you have mechanical knowledge or a good honest mechanic. The blinker switch may be on the left and windscreen wipers on the right, the 2011 WT model is.

I have the 2009 WS Zetec auto. Make sure the services are up to date, the timing belt change is expensive. Check the front rotors and pads. They're not a big job, but make sure you're supplied the correct rotors as I was sold WT rotors which have a smaller PCD (wheel stud spacing) and had to stuff around and pay more for TRW which are OEM and have no coating and so rust. Depending on driving style and place (country vs city) they could need changing at 140-160k kms. I've found the auto box is a rather abrupt changer, and the power is hardly exciting. Nor is the fuel economy because they have to work so hard. The blinkers are indeed on the left, which was no drama for me as my SUV also has them on the left. If the blinkers stop working, check the mirror wire. I changed the blinker stalk assembly and that wasn't the problem. I find it a bit rattly with cheap-sounding doors and the stereo makes the exterior chrome trims vibrate, which is really annoying. The stereo pumps out pretty reasonable sound, but I've had issues with reading USB sticks. I occasionally get an error "line busy" which if it persists, requires a battery reset. Otherwise it's comfortable and surprising roomy for such a tiddler (I am quite tall). The ride and handling is superb for such a little car. It really does feel like a bigger car once you're under way, and it swallows up bends with aplomb. As long as they're not uphill bends, that is. The Zetec is by far the best choice, more airbags, better stereo, cruise control an upgraded interior and suspension. Be aware that the 16" Zetec wheels are often knocked about with gutter rash, and they are really expensive to replace, even second-hand, as in around $300 depending on condition and whether fitted with a decent tyre.

The cam timing could be out. Normally the cams are held in position whilst the belt is being changed. Have you looked up the P061C code? It seems it's related to an engine monitoring system for engine RPM which could point to the cam timing being out. I don't know why the cams seals were replaced unless they were leaking or if your vehicle has high kilometres. If the WS air cleaner is the same as the WT it is a good idea to clean our the rubbish at the bottom. Leaves, paper, plastic etc can gather there. A light sheet of paper or plastic could be sucked up under the element and partially block it, a long shot, I know.

Thanks, Stevo. The first thing that came to mind was the cam timing. I drove the car for several hundred kms before the belt change so have some comparison before and after. The error code points to the cam sensor or the crank angle sensor. It's booked back into the workshop. I did a 100km+ drive after the cam belt change and it was woeful: even worse, when I checked under the bonnet, the ancillary belt was beginning to fall apart. It seems that as a stretch belt it didn't like being reused. The cam seals were changed because they came with the kit. I've asked the kit retailer to look into why they put cam seals in even if they might not be needed, but if they are changed, the sprocket has to come off and so new bolts are required. Catch 22.

It was the cam timing. The belt kit came with three different bolts to "lock" the crankshaft and they used the wrong one.

The person at Repco probably checked the recommended oil for the Fiesta so would have gone with that information. Penrite seems to be an oil that is recommended by spare parts shops. 5w 40 would be OK in Australia, especially with summer approaching & if it was a full synthetic oil they gave you. I once bought a Valvoline oil recommended by the label on the container for our Fiesta & when filling the engine noted it was an SL API rated oil. I have since used the SN rating fully synthetic oil in Fuchs, Nulon and Valvoline. It's also an idea to look at the ACEA rating A3/B4. Buy your oil when on special & save 25% to 50% at Autobarn, Repco or Supercheap!

I specified 5W-20 when the workshop did my service. They sell and use Penrite brand. The manual recommends Castrol, and next time around I may use Edge 0W-30. I wouldn't use 5W-40 if I had other choices.