Ford Focus

 Ford Focus 2009

General information
As a part of Ford’s effort to fight the good fight, the Ford Focus lineup boasts a mind-boggling 17 variants with 10 hatchbacks and 7 sedans. These models include engines powered by either petrol or diesel and boast of technology like the ‘Active Park Assist’ that is an automated system for parallel parking. Both sub-ranges – the hatchbacks and sedans – have similar offerings in terms of engine power and performance.
Staying in line with their central strategy, the new Focus displays their design philosophy with the ‘Kinetic Design’. With Ambiente being the entry model, and Titanium the top end one, there are Trend and Sport to fill in the gaps.

Interior
The Focus showcases the new interior design that is being seen as a somewhat central theme to all new Ford makes. This effort by the company has been branded as 1Ford whereby it isn’t just the looks but also the quality offered that promises to be consistent.
Across the range, a rake and reach adjustable steering wheel with various easy-control buttons are featured, with extra trimming applied to the Sports and Titanium models.
High quality graphics are offered in the dashboard gauges with good finishes. The steering wheel also features some basic controls for the screen. The rear passengers have plenty of room to stretch their legs (keeping in mind the segment) with the top two models also having a rear center console.
The finish quality has been maintained in the soft touch feel of the switchgear, dashboard, handles, center consoles, and instruments.
The boot space offered ranges from an impressive 421 litres in the sedans to a massive 1101 litres in the hatchbacks (with the rear seats collapsed).

Specifications
With the large range of models up on offer, Ford has divided their engine offerings into three sets. Starting from the entry level models to the top end ones, they range from a petrol based 1.6 litre, 4 cylinder Duratec Ti VCT engine to a new 2.0 litre GDi Ti VCT engine.
For the entry level engines, fuel consumption is the brightest spot with 6.2 litres per 100 kms. The engine offers 92 kW at 6300 RPM, with the torque peaking at 159 Nm at 4000 RPM. The GDi engine on the other hand is among the technologically best engines by Ford with a naturally aspirated engine.
The diesel engines see a similar improvement with the Duratorq 2.0 litre turbo diesel engine. The emphasis has been on improved driving experiences with these changes.
Though the sedans and the Titanium hatchback are sold with just the auto transmission, manual drives are available in the other models with a 5 speed manual transmission.

Driving experience
The balance and grip offered by the Focus is of very high caliber. Even on surfaces that don’t offer the best grip, be it due to slick roads or gravel, the car manages to hold on.
One of the better areas of improvement by Ford has been in the noise department. With a quieter engine and lesser noise penetrating through, it definitely shows. Starting from the Ambiente, working our way up to the Titanium, every single car offers improvements (albeit minor in some cases), with the Titanium clearly standing on top with its leather trimmings and assisted parking features.

Ups and Downs
With a very difficult job at hand to match the Mazda and VW entrants in the battle for this segment, the Focus manages to keep up with competition. Barring a pricey Titanium diesel, not much is left to point fingers at. The reworked interior, the great engine improvements, and the tech add-ons make work in Focus’ favor.