Ford focuses on fun with hot new hatch
Ford Focus ST Hatchback Price: To be announced
Ford’s all-new Focus ST hot hatch is out to prove that practical family cars can also be fun. The freshly unveiled ST will be the fastest and most powerful model in the fourth-generation Focus line-up.
It borrows tech from Ford’s iconic Mustang muscle car and even the Ford GT hypercar to produce performance that was the preserve of sports cars until recently.
Yet it all comes packaged in a sensible five-door hatchback body. And the ST will challenge those who say diesel is doomed by offering the most powerful oil-burner ever fitted to a Focus as an option.
You’ll even be able to order your ST with both the 187bhp diesel engine and a practical estate body later in the year.
But keen drivers will be drawn to the petrol-powered ST. Its four-cylinder, 2.3-litre engine produces a prodigious 276bhp, enough to put 60mph on its GT-inspired dials less than six seconds after an F1-style, launch-control start. The turbocharged engine uses a sophisticated ‘anti-lag’ system borrowed from the GT hypercar and more commonly associated with World Rally cars to maintain turbo boost.
From the Mustang, the ST takes clever ‘rev-matching’ technology which blips the throttle like a racing driver as you change down a gear, perfectly matching the revs to the road speed. And with ‘sport’ and ‘track’ modes turning up the exhaust volume, you’ll be able to hear it all clearly.
Inside, there are Recaro sports seats, a flat-bottomed sports steering wheel and aluminium trim. But outside, the visual clues to the ST’s performance are kept subtle to avoid the wide-boy image that blighted the original crop of hot hatches. Launched in the 1970s, the original Golf GTi was the first hot hatch. But they became notorious in the 1980s with cars such as the Peugeot 205GTi and Ford’s own Escort XR3i. They were fast, fun and affordable. But they were also easy to crash and to steal, and soaring insurance premiums killed off the first hot hatch boom.
Those cars are now classics, but finding one that hasn’t been crashed and repaired is tricky.
The hot hatch has seen a recent resurgence. Clogged roads make it hard to exploit the full performance of sports and supercars, and high fuel prices make it expensive when you do. Radical improvements in safety, security and refinement mean hot hatches have grown up. They now make practical daily transport for families, but also allow drivers to enjoy an unexpected blast on a rare deserted Broad. And with average economy of about 40mpg, their fuel bills won’t break the bank.
The new ST will face some stiff competition. The eighth generation of the original hot hatch, the Volkswagen Golf GTi, arrives later this year, boasting up to 300bhp. Until then, the Honda Civic Type R is the hot hatch to beat, with its 315bhp and sensational driving dynamics. But its aggressive looks will split opinions. The more subtle Renault Megane RS makes a better choice for buyers who want performance without the attention.
Hyundai’s i30N is the left-field choice. Unlike Ford, Volkswagen and Renault, the Korean car-maker didn’t produce a hot hatch the first time around, but its new ‘N’ badged performance cars are winning rave reviews.
And Ford is set to produce an inhouse rival for the Focus ST with the arrival of the more powerful Focus RS in 2020. With over 400bhp, it will be the most extreme and expensive Focus ever: too much for most family buyers.
Prices for the new ST haven’t been announced but are likely to match the Renault and Hyundai at about €27,000.