The latest version of Ford’s new Focus has just gone on sale this week. Priced from €20,295, the range comprises four series from the entry-level Focus, Focus Style, Zetec and top of the range Titanium.
The range is available in a three-model line-up of sporty and stylish five-door hatchback, four-door saloon, and five-door estate.
The new Focus has a lower, wider stance, with a new bonnet, front fascia, and grille. The bonnet is sculpted with a dynamic shape from the front pillar to the corners of the upper part of the inverted trapezoidal grille to deliver a strong, proud look.
Slimmer, chiselled front headlamps and elongated fog-lamps add to the bolder front end. Subtle chrome details add to the feeling of elegance while the rear of the car also is sleeker with a new fascia and tailgate arrangement, as well as thinner tail lamps.
Powertrains for the new Focus will include Ford’s well-proven 1.6 litre (95PS and 115PS ) and 2.0 litre diesels (150PS ). Ford’s acclaimed 1.0 litre EcoBoost petrol (100 & 125PS ) - uniquely named International Engine of the Year for three years in a row - will also be available.
The entry level Focus features ESP with Hill-Launch Assist; MyKey Gen 2; body colour bumpers and spoiler (on the five-door ); electric front windows; tyre pressure monitoring system; power door mirrors with indicators; remote power locking with flip key; anti-allergic interior; and capless refuelling.
When it was introduced in 1999, the original Ford Focus brought new levels of great handling and drivability to the C segment. Focus has also been a leader in terms of bringing technology to C segment drivers, the largest cohort of drivers on Ireland’s roads. Ford reminds us that among the firsts for Focus were technologies like Electronic Stability Control (ESP ); Active City Stop which prevents slow speed collisions; and Active Park Assist, the first real ‘handsfree’ parallel parking aid.
This latest version of Focus continues to blaze a trail with cutting edge technologies within the C segment. The new Focus is the first model in the sector to offer the optional extra of advanced ‘perpendicular parking’ park assist, a new hands-free parking technology that helps drivers reverse into spaces alongside other cars. The extra sensors associated with this system also enable Ford to offer technologies that help drivers as they manoeuvre out of parking spaces for the first time in Europe.
Other options include Cross Traffic Alert, which warns drivers reversing out of a parking space of vehicles that may soon be crossing behind them. Operating with radar at a range of up to 40 metres (131 feet ), the system will issue three distinct warning signals if it detects a vehicle approaching from either side
A third new technology available in the new Focus as an option is Park-Out Assist, which helps drivers as they exit a parallel parking space. After the driver has chosen either the left- or right-hand side the system operates the steering while the driver operates the accelerator and brake.
“With its sleek new look, this new Focus is a real head-turner and as you would expect, it has the same fun driving appeal that we have come to associate with Focus,” comments Ciaran McMahon, chairman and managing director, Ford Ireland. “With sales in excess of 115,000 units since it arrived here in 1999, the Ford Focus has been Ireland’s favourite car and I am sure that this new model with its up to the minute technology and highly efficient engines will again find favour with Ireland’s value-conscious motorists.”
With enhanced handling and steering, Ford tells us that the new Focus takes the model’s class-leading driving dynamics and acclaimed fun-to-drive DNA to a new level. Ford engineers have delivered a more solid, responsive and connected-to-the-road feel by increasing the structural stiffness at the front, revising the suspension geometry, increasing lateral stiffness of “steering-relevant” suspension bushes, and retuning the shock absorbers.
The Electric Power Assisted Steering has been retuned to make the driver feel even more connected to the road. Ford’s industry-first Enhanced Transitional Stability system monitors vehicle speed and the driver’s steering input to predict a loss of traction before it actually happens and triggers Electronic Stability Control sooner to enhance safety and help deliver smoother journeys.
The highly acclaimed driving experience is further refined with improvements to noise, vibration, and harshness that help deliver claimed best-in-class levels of interior quietness in the Focus, and contribute to a more relaxing and stress-free environment.
One of Ireland’s most popular cars just got better!
