The current generation Ford Focus hatchback, first launched in early 2011, was given a facelift and other updates near the end of last year. As mid-life upgrades go this is a notably thorough one.
The body shell is the same as before, which doesn't particularly work in the car's favour because it means that rear passenger room, luggage space and especially rear visibility are all quite limited. But the restyling work is quite successful, and makes the Focus, with its Aston Martin-like front grille, look considerably more upmarket than it used to.
Customer demand was quite specific when it came to the interior. "More storage space! Fewer buttons!" was the cry from the proletariat, so the new Focus has both.
There are, for example, what might be described as two cup holders in the centre console, but they are created from a single space with a movable divider, so you can securely store one small object and one substantially larger object as well as two of similar size.
The rest of the interior is indeed less cluttered than before, and on higher-spec models it includes a central touchscreen with a satellite navigation whose graphics are unusually attractive by Ford standards. The visual instructions are clear but the spoken ones are vague - it's not always clear whether or not you will have priority at the next junction, and phrases like "continue to the right" could mean almost anything.
Noise levels are very low (a great deal of work has been done on this) and the ride quality is excellent on smooth surfaces, if a little uncertain when there are bumps to deal with. You can have 18-inch wheels as an extra-cost option, but please don't. They look good, but they have a catastrophic effect on the driving experience.
There's a wide range of engines, but two of them are predicted to make up 90 per cent of UK sales. These are the now familiar 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol EcoBoost (available in 99bhp and 123bhp forms) and the new-to-the-range 1.5-litre TDCi turbo diesel (94bhp or 118bhp). The 118bhp diesel is excellent. It's adequately powerful and, like the less powerful version, has official CO2 emissions of 98g/km, so you don't have to worry about Vehicle Excise Duty.
You can also have the new 1.5-litre EcoBoost engine, but it's harder work than the diesel. The 1.5 EcoBoost doesn't fully get up steam below 4,000rpm, and that's not the sort of engine speed most of us are likely to bother with in a mainstream car.
The entry price is £13,995, for which you get the Studio. This isn't likely to be popular, because it's being offered only with a 94bhp 1.6-litre petrol engine. It has alloy wheels, air-conditioning and the MyKey system intended to curb the excesses of younger drivers. However, you have to wind down the rear windows manually, and this is the only Focus not supplied with DAB digital radio as standard.
The Style trim has steel wheels but is otherwise better equipped than the Studio, with a Thatcham category 1 alarm and a TFT digital instrument display. The mid-range Zetec is expected to account for more than half of UK sales.
Key items of equipment here are a heated windscreen, heated and electrically operated door mirrors, front fog lights, sports seats (with lumbar adjustment for the driver) and a leather-trimmed steering wheel. This is also the cheapest Focus to have a centre console and armrest. The Zetec S has sports suspension, LED daytime running lights, keyless start and a body styling kit.
Titanium, which Ford believes will be the second most popular trim level, includes the central touchscreen mentioned earlier. It also offers dual-zone air-conditioning, Active City Stop, rear parking sensors, automatic headlights and wipers and cruise control.
The Titanium X includes Ford's full range of parking aids (it will steer itself into and out of parking spaces) plus a reversing camera (available as an optional extra on all other versions). Also featured is heated front seats, part-leather upholstery, adaptive bi-xenon headlights with eight beam shapes according to speed and steering input, folding door mirrors and front and rear carpet mats.
