The Focus Cosworth

Background:

With three- and five-door Focuses on sale now - saloon and estate versions to follow - Ford is offering the Focus in four trim levels: CL, Zetec, LX and Ghia. The five-door Zetec is likely to be the best seller, but not the best looking. That honour goes to the three-door design. The five-door model looks cluttered from the rear three-quarter view, whereas the three-door is clean, sharp and aggressive.

The most popular engine is likely to be the 99bhp 1.6 Zetec-SE, which will be included in the line-up along with the existing Fiesta/Puma 74bhp 1.4 and a revised 118bhp 1.8 Zetec-E. A 2.0 Zetec E will follow, along with a direct-injection diesel. Ford is making claims of fuel economy improvements of up to 25 per cent across the range.

Whether or not these claims will stand up remains to be seen. What we can say, though, is that the new 1.6-litre sounds good. Rev it hard and there's a real sporting note to it. Ease off the accelerator at 70mph and engine noise falls away almost completely.

Ford claims a 0-60mph time of 11.2 seconds, but if you're not in the mood for squeezing the last drop of performance out of the engine it always seems willing to accept a higher gear quite early in the rev range and doesn't feel at all short of pulling power.

Changing gear in the Focus can be all too tempting. The shift is so good that it encourages you to race up and down the 'box as much as possible. It's essentially the same gearbox as fitted to the Escort but changed to cable operation - and the resulting smooth, ultra-precise change feels better than anything else in its class.

Escort drivers won't recognise the feel of the Focus brake pedal. Quite unlike the horrible, wooden sensation of the brakes in the old car, feedback from the pedal is near-perfect, and retardation is strong. Anti-lock is not, however, standard across the range, as it is with the new VW Golf.

Ford's engineers are, of course, convinced that the Focus is the best thing since sliced bread with slicks and wings attached. The new chassis, says Ford, is not only 100 per cent stiffer than the Escort's but also 15 per cent stiffer than the Focus's nearest rival.



On Ford's track the Focus convincingly outhandles the Golf and Astra. The Peugeot 306 is currently top of the class for handling, and whether the Focus can beat the 306 remains to be seen, but the Focus feels more solid. And its fine handling comes at no cost in ride comfort or stability.

In the cabin, the Focus doesn't really invite comparison with any of its obvious rivals. In fact, with its swept-back windscreen and relatively high seating position, it feels not dissimilar to a small people carrier. The seats and driving position are fine, and there's plenty of passenger space, both front and rear.

(Some taken from topgear)