This was truly a breakthrough. And, as usually happens with everything new, the reaction to the car was mixed. Some were ready to worship it, while others couldn't accept it. For example, in Germany, sales were slow at first — local conservatives couldn't comprehend such bold design and kept choosing the familiar rounded models. They can be understood, in general: against the backdrop of the eternal Escort, which seemed to have been produced for an eternity, the Focus looked like an iMac in Stalin's office.
The updated Focus now has turn signals in the mirrors. A small detail, but a pleasant one.
When the first generation retired, that very "faceted" individuality disappeared with it. The second Focus, which appeared in 2005, turned out to be... a quite solid car in its class, but somewhat faceless. Then, as we all remember, a new chapter began at the "blue oval" company — the era of kinetic design. First, James Bond represented it, then the new Mondeo generation. But here's the trouble: against the backdrop of such a bright older brother, the younger Focus got completely lost and lost its appeal. And now, for its anniversary, the Focus has received a new look. Trendy! In this form, it appeared before us in St. Petersburg.
A true restyling! All body panels, except the roof, have been modified in one way or another. Has it become better? Absolutely! And interestingly, it's the Focus's interpretation of the kinetic style that I liked the most. However, the rear let it down. It was boring and remains "Miss Inexpressiveness." And no tricks like LEDs in the headlights (on some versions), a chrome trim, or a more sculpted bumper help.
From the rear, the new model can boast a more complex bumper shape and a chrome strip above the license plate. Versions with xenon and swiveling headlights will get LEDs in the taillights.
My connection to the Focus and Petersburg isn't just the plant in Vsevolozhsk. When this car first appeared, I took it for a test and rushed to the Northern capital for the weekend. It was a sedan with a two-liter engine and an automatic. The Focus then generously forgave the road services of Torzhok and Novgorod for their numerous sins. And it didn't let me stress behind the wheel either. The conclusion then was: the second-generation Focus is a friend and brother to the Russian car enthusiast.
And what do you know — at Pulkovo airport, I got the keys to the same sedan with a two-liter engine and automatic transmission. Moreover, the car was the only one! Fate?
Kinetic design perfectly suited the Focus's front end. Though, why "suited"?
The Ghia trim greeted me with familiar "wood" inserts. But this isn't the wood from which Papa Carlo carved Buratino. It's not wood at all! I wonder how the person responsible for interior trim sleeps at night? How can you show people such terrible imitation wood, and even install it on production cars? True, there's consolation for aesthetes, and it will appear soon — Titanium versions will get a metallic-style interior.
Ahead — 30 kilometers on the St. Petersburg ring road. And from the first meters, I recognize an old acquaintance! The torquey engine confidently pulls the black sedan from the very bottom. But closer to the red zone, its fervor fades. Boring? Yes. But such settings are understandable — a solid family man who wants to buy a Focus sedan is unlikely to be pleased with an empty bottom and wild pickup at the top. And he's unlikely to like it if the automatic starts downshifting without reason during calm driving. So the gearbox prefers to think first. To bring it out of its thoughts, you need to press the gas confidently. Then the automatic wakes up, and the long-awaited acceleration begins. But its shifts are smooth — it takes care of both the mother-in-law and the seedlings.
From this angle, only a prepared person will recognize the updated car. The rear was boring, and it remains so.
On the smooth asphalt of the ring road, the car literally glides — the suspension works excellently. There are almost no body rolls, lane changes are easy — everything is precise and clear. The brakes grip with a death grip, and the pedal effort is easy to modulate. Noise insulation is also in perfect order. I'm not exaggerating — under such "greenhouse" conditions, the Focus truly behaves beautifully. But dozens of other modern cars will behave the same way. So — quickly to freedom! That is, onto the broken forest roads along the Gulf of Finland, beyond that very Komarovo.
Along the way, you can relax a bit and observe the sometimes strange manners of St. Petersburg drivers. They brake without reason, change lanes illogically, and don't let each other in on empty roads. And some race like mad, as if they're late for a flight. But we're driving away from the airport! And here's the embodiment of calm: a driver stopped in the left lane of a high-speed highway and calmly refuels his car from a canister. Apparently, he came to his senses only when the fuel ran out.
Finally, the landscape outside the windows changes. Behind the flashing trees, a view of the bay opens up from time to time. The water is white to the horizon, and real ice waves are frozen near the shore. The road turned from straight and smooth to winding and, in places, badly broken. I asked my partner to give up the driver's seat and pressed the gas!
The profile has become lighter and more dynamic thanks to new stampings on the sides.
Fortunately, by that time, the black sedan had already been handed over to another pair of testers, and we switched to a blue hatchback with a 5-speed manual and the same two-liter Duratec. It was time to talk to the suspension about forbidden topics... The roads were sometimes similar to those I encountered in the Kaluga region. Ford people later admitted that they deliberately chose such a route because they were confident in the indestructibility of their car. Especially since the Focus is one of the few foreign cars sold here without suspension adaptation. Moreover, during the restyling, the suspension and all other technical aspects weren't touched at all. They said, "It's all good as is." Well, let's check...
I drove onto "our roads" and after a few dozen kilometers caught that very state of automotive trance when it's just you, the road, and the car. And then a flashback hit me — of that very trip to Petersburg three years ago. Old Focus remained true to itself! It's still that excellent suspension cocktail of three ingredients — comfort, resilience, and handling. None dominates, but together they give a clear feeling that you're driving a Focus. There's no audacity of the Mazda3 or the phlegmatic smoothness of the Renault Megane. But this balance suits both active driving and calm cruising. Moreover, through the onboard computer menu, you can adjust the electric power steering — some like it heavier, some lighter. The gear lever fits comfortably in hand and works just as precisely.
The interior, especially with leather trim, makes a pleasant impression. The dashboard plastic is resilient, and the climate and audio control unit has changed.
In general, I have no complaints about the driving qualities of the two-liter versions. But I do have some about the interior. They concern build quality. On some cars, you can notice uneven gaps between panels, and on our hatchback with the manual, the gear lever boot "sported" paper clips at the bottom (take a closer look at the photo). However, I never heard any squeaks, creaks, or "crickets." The updated interior looks richer than before. Ford people worked on the center console and dashboard. The front seats are separated by a new tunnel with an adjustable armrest. I also felt the plastic on the door panels. Yes, indeed, it has become more pleasant.
The soft seats (in both variants) lack a bit of lateral support. If you can't do without it and need a Focus — check out the ST.
Of course, all these upgrades could not but affect the price tag. However, I believe that the extra 10–20 thousand rubles (depending on the trim level) is a completely adequate price for a fresh look and improved execution. The only thing that upsets me is the absence in Russian Focuses of those innovations available to Europeans. I mean diesel engines of 1.6 and 2 liters, as well as the latest robotic PowerShift gearbox with two clutches (similar to DSG). But we should not forget that in our market the FF2 is positioned primarily as a budget segment car. And even without the fancy transmission and diesels, at its price it remains maximally modern and, in a sense, stylish. Company representatives claim that savings are not limited to the moment of purchase. Engineers meticulously calculated the cost of owning a second-generation Focus over 120 thousand kilometers. The result was impressive: in this indicator, the car surpasses not only its direct rivals in the golf class, but also a number of cheaper models, for example, Renault Logan.
Thus, it turns out that in the tenth year of its existence, the updated Focus quietly made another revolution. And it's not about design, but about a revolution in our local market. The Ford Focus is the embodiment of the "price-quality" principle in its best form at the moment. Try to find a more affordable car in the golf class with the same set of options, appearance, and level of execution. If you find one, let us know. We will definitely arrange a comparison with the Focus, and if it turns out to be weaker, we will take back our words.
Technical specifications
| Specifications | Ford Focus 2.0 (5-door hatchback) | Ford Focus 2.0 (sedan) |
|---|---|---|
| Body | ||
| Number of doors/seats | 5(5) | 4(5) |
| Length, mm | 4337 | 4481 |
| Width, mm | 1839 | 1839 |
| Height, mm | 1500 | 1497 |
| Curb weight, kg | 1307 | 1362 |
| Gross weight, kg | 1895 | 1905 |
| Trunk volume, l | 396 (1258) | 537 |
| Engine | ||
| Type | Petrol, with electronic fuel injection (EFI) | Petrol, with electronic fuel injection (EFI) |
| Location | Front, transverse | Front, transverse |
| Number and arrangement of cylinders | 4, in-line | 4, in-line |
| Number of valves | 16 | 16 |
| Displacement, cm3 | 1999 | 1999 |
| Max. power, hp/rpm-1 | 145/6000 | 145/6000 |
| Max. torque, Nm/rpm-1 | 185/4500 | 185/4500 |
| Transmission | ||
| Gearbox | Manual, five-speed | Automatic, five-speed |
| Drive | Front | Front |
| Chassis | ||
| Front suspension | McPherson type | McPherson type |
| Rear suspension | Independent, multi-link (Control Blade) | Independent, multi-link (Control Blade) |
| Front brakes | Disc, ventilated | Disc, ventilated |
| Rear brakes | Disc | Disc |
| Performance characteristics | ||
| Maximum speed, km/h | 206 | 198 |
| Acceleration time from 0 to 100 km/h, s | 9.2 | 10.8 |
| Fuel consumption, l/100 km | ||
| urban cycle | 9.8 | 11.2 |
| extra-urban cycle | 5.4 | 6.1 |
| combined cycle | 7.1 | 8 |
| Emission standard | Euro-4 | Euro-4 |
| Fuel tank capacity, l | 55 | 55 |
| Fuel | AI-95 | AI-95 |
Ford Focus trim levels
Trim level table
Safety
Was — became
Behind the scenes
The test drive of the new Focus took place under the slogan "Nobody notices a new car." There is nothing surprising about this — long before this event, fresh Focuses were already driving all over the country. The organizers also planned a visit to the plant in Vsevolozhsk, but due to a terrible traffic jam in front of the cable-stayed bridge on the St. Petersburg ring road (I haven't seen such a congestion for a long time even in Moscow — about ten kilometers!) the trip had to be canceled. Okay, we'll wait for the launch of the domestic Mondeo.