Ford Focus - Initial Statement

The latest car will have a very tough act to follow, as I had developed mainly fond of the MPV, which was a vastly capable all-round family car. But as our spaced-up seven-seated have a high pay for price of £31,530, there are obviously more reasonably priced options out there that might establish them to be a completely suitable replacement. This is where the axis of attention comes in. The information positively stacks up. A price of £19,750 and claimed economy of 47.1mpg immediately make more enjoyable reading for families annoying to cut their bills.

Getting familiar to the concentrated practicality will be the initial task. Clearly, the Focus is not planned to compete with the S-MAX here, but its boot space struggles to equal rivals in its own class – as I found out on the day of our photo shoot. This is a severe defect for a car that will be used as family car transport by hundreds of thousands of people transversely the country. Only 277 liters of weight space with the possible full-size spare wheel is barely adequate. Inside, I’ve been instantaneously frightened with the standard-fit Sony DAB radio. In topic 1,167, our columnist Andrew English quoted an advertising friend as saying: “Once you have had DAB, you not at all go back,” and I totally have the same opinion with this logic. I’d be the majority put out to have to pay attention to sport on crackly old medium wave Radio 5 Live again. Ford deserves credit for appropriate DAB as normal on all the latest models in its variety so that it’s prepared to deal with the big analogue switch-off in 2015.

But I’m not so eager on the dashboard plan. While there’s little to fault quality-wise, it’s all a bit haphazard and there’s too a large amount going on for it to be a truly sensitive experience. A smaller amount would be more in my eyes. Of route, the Focus has actually earned its standing over the years as a car that delivers on the road, and the good information is this latest description doesn’t dissatisfy. Direct steering, huge grip, an accurate six-speed manual gearbox and pleasing treatment ensure owners can enjoy every drive. You can’t say the similar about many cars in this class. The only small disapproval so far would fear the ride, which can be rather firm around town.

The celebrity of the show, however, is the engine. The latest 148bhp 1.6-litre EcoBoost unit is happy to rev and blends polite pace with strong modification. It turns an attractive put together into a really strong one. Our car has a number of attractive additions to the generous Titanium specification, such as Candy Red metallic paint, sat-nave and, the majority particularly, the Driver support Pack. The later won the Special Award for Ford in our New Car Awards 2011, and comprises lane exit technology, traffic sign credit and a unsighted spot information system.