Ford Focus

Few compact family cars can match the practicality of the Focus estate. The massive boot means it’s nearly as roomyas a load-lugger from the class above. While the latest revisions don’t make it any more versatile, they add a dose of style. It’s still not the most dynamic looking family car, but the attractive nose delivers a more modern appearance, while new tail-lights also help to sharpen things up. Add highly competitive pricing to the mix, and it’s hard to find fault with the most spacious model in the Focus range.

Practical, versatile and fantastic to drive, the Ford Focus estate has always been a great family car. But one thing it has lacked over the years is the style to tempt buyers away from more fash­ionable rivals.

A recent nip and tuck has made the standard Focus hatch much more attractive, and the same tweaks have now been applied to the estate.

The new-look front and rear will help it to turn more heads, but does it provide the load-lugger with the desirability it needs?

If anything, the estate is even better proportioned than the standard hatchback. The sleek headlamp design and Mondeo-style grille have turned the front of the Focus into a striking compact family car.

At the rear a new back bumper and updated tail-lights improve the styling. Specify the optional directional or xenon headlamps, and the rear lights are replaced by attractive, modern LED items.

Climb inside, and the revisions are equally impressive. The dashboard is made from higher quality materials, and is improved in terms of appearance and user-friendliness. Mondeo-style instruments have been added, while a new centre console layout makes room for an up-to-date in-car entertainment system.

The most important asset for any estate is luggage space, and the Focus doesn’t let you down when you lift the tailgate. With the rear seats in place, there’s 503 litres available, rising to 1,546 litres with the bench folded. That’s enough to embarrass many models from the class above. Rear seat space is also excellent, although there’s no extra room in the revised model.

As with the hatch, the running gear has been left largely unchanged. But because the Focus was already one of the best-handling models in the class, that’s no bad thing.

Only in tight bends does the estate feel marginally less agile than the five-door, but few drivers will ever notice the difference. Positive steering and the suspension’s superb ability to smooth out bumps will seal the deal for many buyers.

The Focus estate is available from £13,895 in entry-level Studio trim, with prices rising to £19,445 for the punchy 2.0-litre TDCi diesel driven here in Titanium trim. The oil-burner’s torquey acceleration and long-distance economy make it perfectly suited to the practical new Focus.

If you think you need an MPV or the vast space of the Mondeo estate, this car could make you reconsider. The Focus is a fine choice that’s practical and pretty enough to satisfy most estate car buyers.

Rival: VW Golf estate
As with every Golf variant, the estate trumps its rivals when it comes to image. The load-lugger is a fine all-rounder, but it can’t match the value for money offered by the cheaper models in the new Focus range.