EURO STYLE:
Ford scores big with Focus
I’ve been getting that strangerin-a-strange-land feeling about Ford. Seemingly everyone has lauded the company for everything from financial success to its product offensive, its lineup, if the hype is to be believed, a combination of Toyota reliability, Mazda sprightliness and Hyundai parsimony. Truly, if the headlines be right, the Blue Oval can do no wrong.
The only problem is that whenever I’ve tested its recent efforts I have been left nonplussed. I could never pin any specific debilitating complaint on the company’s efforts, but they all reeked of the same mediocrity that makes McDonald’s hamburgers so popular and beige the most popular colour for our parents’ cars.
However, I may be changing my tune. The new Focus is the first of what may be some forthcoming standouts (the new Fusion, judging by its styling, may be another).
A cynic — and, yes, that would be me — might state that’s because the new Focus was engineered largely in Germany and, unlike the previous version, which Ford’s U.S. engineering department decided to improve, the Yanks this time have wisely decided to leave well enough alone.
This means that along with racy styling — man, can you see rally racing written all over this one — there’s a decidedly European flavour to the ride, handling, comportment and finish of the entire car
The suspension, for instance, has a decidedly European flavour (as did the original until the Yanks futzed with it) that favours handling somewhat over-ride.
There’s a certain gravitas to the way the Focus hugs the road that the admittedly much improved Koreans and Japanese can’t emulate. And compared with the Chevrolet Cruze, which feels equally competent but aimed at a more staid clientele, the Focus seems targeted to a younger — or younger at heart — audience.
The same applies to the Focus’s interior. Not only is the new Focus interior far more dramatically styled, but the materials are top rank. Big points then for the build quality.
Ditto for the styling. Perhaps not the most ergonomic choice of buttonry, the centre dash’s audio/car setting/climate control switchgear is stylishly laid out.
A larger, more expansive onboard computer/lcd screen is available, but it’s powered by Mi- crosoft, the master of the complicated mouse, so buyer beware.
As it is, the simpler base Sync system has its own wobbles and, truthfully, it’s the part of the SEL interior that appears to have been chosen by the accounting department. That said, the SEL does come standard with voice activation.
The hatchback design, besides being, again, more stylish than the sedan, is also plenty roomy. Indeed, there’s room for four average-sized adults in the cabin.
Like a motorcycle, the Focus’s 2.0-litre four likes to rev. Mated to the optional six-speed dual-clutch manumatic, it’s fairly easy to keep on the boil and yet remain relatively frugal.
Ford claims 7.8/5.5 litres per 100 kilometres in the city and on the highway, respectively, and I managed an entirely estimable 8.2 L/100 km overall despite spending more time lugging around town than cruising the highways and byways.
Although one can get a Focus for just $15,999 (the manufacturer’s suggested list price for the S sedan), my SEL tester started at $22,399, and its price ended up at $26,529 (within spitting distance of a full-sized Camry Hybrid, by the way) once Ford added in a sunroof and 17-inch alloys.
An even pricier $25,099 Titanium version of the hatchback is also available.
Price notwithstanding, the new Focus finally lets me understand some of the hype surrounding the Ford brand.