Ford Focus

By Gary Lord

April 2005

• Latest deal price: from £11,559 to £20,146

Everything's changing at the moment. Parliament has been dissolved before a General Election, the cardinals are electing a new Pope, and we've just become familiar with a new Doctor Who, only to learn that he's going to regenerate again next year. It's all taking some getting used to - just like our latest-generation Ford Focus.

As I'm looking after the car, I decided to visit some friends in Brighton, East Sussex, Dean and Charlotte Ricca-Smith. They own a MkI model, and I wanted to gauge their reaction to the newcomer. Things got off to a bad start as Charlotte didn't even recognise EO54 OVG as a Focus.

One thing I have noticed while driving the Ford is how few MkI owners notice the new car - I thought it would get more attention. My friends' reactions were mixed. Charlotte loved the Sony stereo and Dean its more chunky looks. But they both felt it had lost a lot of the original's charm.

The interior hasn't got the distinctive curves of their model, while the exterior lacks clever design details such as the triangular side indicators. However, on my drive back to London along the twisty A23, it was reassuring to know that Ford hadn't tinkered with the Focus's impressive dynamics.

Our 1.6-litre diesel is great fun to drive, and returns more than 40mpg. With no problems to report so far, the Ford has yet to see the inside of a service centre. Long may it continue.

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