Ford hasn’t lost its focus

Every once in a while, a car is launched that instantly makes all of its rivals look stupid and old. Ford pulled that particular trick back in 1998, when it launched the Mk1 Focus.

The way it drove was a revelation. Volkswagen had launched its fourth generation Golf the year before and realised that compared to the lithe Focus, here was a car that rode and handled like a supermarket trolley with a caster on the fritz.

Volkswagen promptly hired many of the staff who designed the Focus suspension and put a barely disguised copy under its fifth generation car in 2004.

Since then, Ford has launched a second generation Focus in 2005 and a third generation car in 2011.

Revenge must have felt sweet for Volkswagen when it launched the Golf Mk 7 in 2013, for here was a car that turned the tables on the Ford, offering sharper dynamics and a classier interior. Ford’s response? You’re looking at it here.

The engine range has also been much revised. Let’s start with petrol power.

Though at the foot of the range, it’s still possible to get the old-tech 1.6-litre Ti-VCT unit in 85, 105 and 125PS guises, the mainstream petrol line-up is these days primarily based around the brand’s clever one-litre three cylinder turbo EcoBoost unit, offered with either 100 or 125PS. Above that now sits a 1.5-litre EcoBoost unit, offered with either 150 or 182PS. In both 95 and 120PS guises, a 1.5-litre TDCi Focus will return 74.3mpg on the combined cycle and 98g/km of CO2.

EcoBoost technology is also used in the hot hatch models, with a two-litre 250PS unit used in the Focus ST and a 2.3-litre 320PS powerplant used in the top Focus RS.

Ford’s objective was to take this car closer to its arch-rival Volkswagen’s Golf in terms of visual sophistication and make switching to a Focus a little easier for those afflicted with badge snobbery.

This car no longer depends solely on handling supremacy to justify its position at the top of the sales charts.

Picture: Newspress. The Ford Focus.