Ford Focus

The Ford Focus is a compact car but not as small as the Ford Fiesta.

History

The Ford Focus was first manufactured in 1998. The Ford Focus began selling in the United States in 1999. The Ford Focus was made to replace the Ford Escort and Ford Laser. The Ford Focus was the smallest Ford car until the Ford Fiesta was added to the lineup as a “subcompact” in 2011.


Design

The initial Ford Focus has a two liter four cylinder engine. The 2005 edition added a 2.3 liter engine. The second generation of the Ford Focus came out in 2008. The third generation of the Ford Focus came out in 2012. There were hatchback and sedan versions of the Ford Focus today, but that generation eliminated the two door and wagon versions of the Ford Focus. A sporty Ford Focus ST model was added to the lineup in 2013. That model has a 252 horsepower, turbocharged two liter four cylinder engine.


Performance

There are several trim levels of the Ford Focus. The S is the base level. That trim level comes with power features and an auxiliary audio jack. The SE is the mid-level in terms of functionality and price. The Titanium is the premium version, though the SFE is about as expensive but focuses on sport instead of function and comfort. Except for the SFE version, the only engine in the 2015 Ford Focus is a two liter four cylinder engine. You can choose from a manual or automatic transmission.
The gasoline powered Ford Focus has a top speed of around 120 miles per gallon.
The standard Ford Focus version gets around 26 miles per gallon in the city and 36 miles per gallon on the highway. The SFE trim gets up to forty miles per gallon.
There is an electric version of the Ford Focus called the Ford Focus EV. That version gets around 110 miles per gallon equivalent or MPGe. The Ford Focus runs off a battery and partially recharges by capturing breaking energy. The Ford Focus electric version requires a 240 volt recharging station and relevant permits to be installed in your home. The Ford Focus can travel up to 80 miles on a single charge.

Price

The base model of the Ford Focus cost around $17,000 in 2015.
The electric version of the Ford Focus cost around $30,000 in 2015.

Rivals

The Ford Focus is a rival to the Honda Civic, Chevrolet Cruze, Dodge Dart, Volkswagen Jetta, Nissan Sentra, Kia Forte, Hyundai Elantra, and Toyota Corolla.
The main rival to the Ford Focus EV version is the Nissan Leaf.

Trivia

The 2013 Ford Focus received a Top Safety pick rating from the IIHS. The 2013 and 2014 Ford Focus received a five star rating from the NHTSA.

The Ford Focus was part of a 2015 recall due to problems with the fuel pump. The fuel pump could seize, either causing the Ford Focus not to start or stall while driving. The recall affected Ford Focus cars built in 2013 and 2014.
The 2014 Ford Focus faced a recall for wiring problems.
In 2012, there was a service bulletin issued for the Ford Focus having slow fueling and fuel nozzle shut offs.
In 2014, the most common car in the UK was the Ford Focus.