New Ford Focus – for those who like to drive TEST

New Ford Focus – a crossover instead of a sedan

Up to now, the Focus has been proposed in three body variants. Now that will change – the fourth edition will be available as: a five-door sedan or a more practical car. The four-door version will not move to Poland because of the low interest in the current sedan

. Ford wants to convince Europeans of something else, namely: many model series, different body styles, interior trim and suspensions. We can choose from: the standard version (available in equipment levels: Trend, Trend Edition and Titanium), the sporty ST-Line, the luxury Vignale and Active Active with 30mm ground clearance and bodywork ( will join later). At the first outings with the new Focus I had the opportunity to drive a sedan in different editions: sporty and solid, stylish and comfortable.

New Ford Focus – more space for passengers, but not for luggage

The blue colored car, with wide graphite rims and red brake calipers, stood out from the crowd. Another Focus on the airport parking. I came in and felt like … in the new Fiesta, which has an almost identical cockpit with a "hooked" touch screen.

In Focus, however, is much more spacious. The fourth generation of the compact Ford has up to 50 mm longer wheelbase, which translates to a more spacious cabin. The most satisfied will be the passengers sitting on the back of the sofa. However, this does not apply to the hatchback. The capacity of 375 liters with a repair kit is the average size in this class. The optional access wheel will reduce it significantly – up to less than 300 liters – so the builder will not rent it.

The black interior of the ST-Line has a sporty atmosphere. We find imitations of carbon fiber, red stitching and upholstery leather mid-leather. These have a good lateral support, but they are far from tight "buckets", so the passenger "summer" in the corners negotiated quickly. I start the engine. Of course, this is done by pressing the button, which, however, has been placed uncomfortably, under a strange angle.

New Ford Focus – on three or two cylinders

What under the hood? 1.5 liter engine, supplemented by a turbocharger of 182 hp. The similar engine currently has a Honda Civic, but Ford's design is three-cylinder! In practice, however, it does not bother anything. The engine does not vibrate, has a powerful "bottom" (240 Nm generates 1600 turns), and at the same time runs with eagerness at higher speeds, and also sounds very good (do not bother with an unpleasant whirring). It must be added that the interior of the car was very well soundproofed.

Interestingly, one of the three cylinders is automatically turned off when full power is not needed, for example downhill or rolling. The same system debuted in the single unit EcoBoost unit

The fleshy steering wheel is very much in the hands. The steering system makes it possible to correctly detect what is happening with the front wheels. From the first gearshift, I liked the six-speed manual gearbox. There is no alternative to the strongest gasoline, but nobody should worry about it. The jack jumps are short and tight, so a quick change of gear is a pleasure.

The ST-Line Focus is not a real ST, but it has been entrusted with the important task of providing the greatest joy of the race. And he succeeds! The weather is 8.3 to 100 km / h, it's a good result. In addition, the multi-link liftgate, lowered in this case by 10 mm, is just great. The mountain, winding road has positively verified the builder's assurances. The car efficiently and without success has overcome the successive streamers. We were also surprised by the burning. Unit of power exhausted under such conditions (mountain and local roads and motorway section) satisfied with 8 liters of gas per 100 km

New Ford Focus – two types of rear suspension

With lighter and lighter engines, the car is offered with a torsion beam. Speech of a fuel engine EcoBoost 1.0 (100 or 125 HP) and 1.5 EcoBlue diesel (95 or 120 HP). The other – EcoBoost 1.5 and 2.0 EcoBlue 150 hp – is equipped with a multi-link suspension and adaptive rear shock absorbers. This rule does not apply to a break that always has a boom system. Such a practice is used, for example, by Skoda in the Octavia model

How is Focus in this "poorer" version? I will surprise you – so very good. I could check in a well equipped version of the Titanium, but with a reasonable engine, because with a turbo diesel engine of 120 horses. Here too, overcoming was a demanding route north of Nice via the Maritime Alps. This suspension compared to the sporty ST-Line proves more comfortable, but does not significantly affect the driving dynamics. The car is stable. This is due to Ford's patented variable-direction springs technique, which has been used successfully in the 200 horsepower FIE ST. I think the average driver will not realize that he is driving a car with a torsion beam.

New Ford Focus – a dual clutch automatic gearbox

For all engines except the weakest diesel and the most resistant petrol speed. This is an unusual situation in the era of domination of double clutch chests. The gearbox is operated by a button – as in Jaguarach or Land Rover. The absence of a traditional lever means more space in the interior of the center console and easier access to the shelf for portable devices where the charger is located without smartphone wire

The "automatic" eight-step reacts quickly to the accelerator pedal. There is also no problem with an effective reduction. In principle, shovels for manual movement are not needed here. In practice, the chest makes a good impression, but the best is always missing. Why? Just look at the technical data to notice that it slightly increases the performance and slowly increases the combustion. Light, but always. Perhaps partly for this reason, in Focus with a 1.5 HP 120 HP EcoBlue engine, the fuel consumption was 7.0 l / 100 km. It's a lot, but the dynamic race on the rugged terrain has also done its job, so it's not a reliable result.

A novelty in the Focus is the selection of driving modes (standard: Normal, Eco and Sport) that change the character of the car. engine response to gas, steering, automatic transmission and the damping force of active dampers.)

Finishing materials are of good quality, but not everywhere. The items below are not so nice to touch. This is also the stuffing of the seats, even in the Titanium version. In addition, the seats are too soft, so after a long walk they were uncomfortable.

Ford Focus – packed with electronics

Ford has equipped the new Focus with all new multimedia and communication systems. Instead, it was decided to have an extended display with a translucent display, showing, among other things, the current speed and its limitation on a given stretch of road or navigation directions (on the sliding window , not on the windshield). The data is also visible in polarizing glasses. The FordPass Connect system provides on-board Wi-Fi, updated road information for navigation and mobile vehicle access features via a smartphone application.

The list of driver support systems is also impressive. Replace them, without explanation, would take the whole page, so let me mention the more advanced, such as the adaptive spotlight system based on the recognition of road signs, the fully automated parking (hold the button and the car finds the right place ,, braked, accelerated and changed gears), emergency braking with the function of recognizing motorcyclists and bypassing the obstacle. The car will also warn against the attempt to enter the one-way street against the current (currently Germany, Austria and Switzerland)

The new Ford Focus – summary [19659007] Focus will still satisfy drivers who like to drive. It is the most important information. You can see that Ford engineers have worked hard to create a modern and refined car with a great interior (but not a boot!) And many configuration options. The competition in the popular C segment is so strong that the new Focus will not be easy. Here, much depends on individual preferences and sympathies for a particular brand. In addition, the paid equipment makes impression, but in Poland the situation is specific, because the company's fleets, which buy every year the most Focus, generally choose the basic versions.

You can place orders on the car. The price list opens PLN 63 900 (1.0 EcoBoost 100 HP). The model fitted with a 150 horsepower EcoBoost 1.5 engine has a minimum of 76,400 PLN. The cheapest diesel (1.5 EcoBlue 95 HP) costs 73,000 PLN, and a two-liter diesel engine with 150 hp – from 91,800 PLN. The automatic transmission requires a salty supplement – nearly 10,000 zł. The prices of the tested versions are at the bottom of the table.

New Ford Focus – Technical Data