FORD PUTS FOCUS ON STYLE

The Ford Focus fivedoor Hatchback Titanium offers excellent fuel economy, a variety of key safety features and a truly enjoyable ride.

The 2017 Focus has a sharp-looking exterior. It all starts with a clean front grille that contrasts nicely with its Ruby Red tintcoat paint job. The exterior also frames the 18-inch premium painted aluminum wheels nicely and allows them to sparkle. This Focus also sports a rear spoiler, which gives it a sleek look.

Inside, there’s a touch of luxury in the form of charcoal black leather, which extends to the heated steering wheel, heated seats and even the shift knob. The power seats adjust eight different ways, are really comfortable and offer decent lumbar support.

And though there’s also a rich-sounding Sony audio system with 10 speakers, the luxury ends there — the interior is by no means spacious. The rear seats are cramped and the trunk, hampered by a poorly placed subwoofer, isn’t much help in the space department.

But although there’s not a lot of space, safety features are an obvious focus in the design of the Titanium hatchback. It’s equipped with myriad airbags, lane-keeping assistance, cross-traffic warning and parking assistance. It also has remote start and intelligent access, which automatically opens the driver’s door when the handle is touched.

The Focus’ 160-hp, 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine is loud and makes a ruckus, but it doesn’t exactly blow back your hair. The automatic transmission shifts nicely and allows for manual override.

The end result of the loud, tiny engine coupled with the 6-speed automatic transmission is 26 miles per gallon in the city and 38 on the highway for an average of 30 mpg.

The powertrain is adequate, especially for this price point, though it would be nice to see a version with a beefier engine and all-wheel-drive.

Around town, the handling is quite nice.

Although the Focus corners well in the city, it bounces around a bit on the highway due to its light weight.

In the end, I found the new Focus to be an enjoyable vehicle to drive that offers great mileage at the expense of cargo and passenger space.

STAFF PHOTO BY MATT WEST SHARP OUTSIDE: The 2017 Ford Focus Hatchback Titanium is one of the best-looking cars in its class.

STAFF PHOTOS BY MATT WEST CROWDED INSIDE: While the 2017 Focus offers a lot of modern amenities, like heated leather seats and a 10-speaker stereo system, the interior is cramped for both passenger and trunk space.