By Mauricio Lezcano / carsntravel.com
Ford Focus adopts the new face of Ford for 2015 with a bold exterior and interior redesign and more advanced technologies that enhance driver comfort and convenience.
Performance
The new Focus will offer the remarkably efficient and fun-to-drive 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine with a six-speed manual transmission. EcoBoost technology combines smaller-displacement engines with turbocharging, direct injection, variable valve timing and proprietary Ford software to bring customers outstanding performance and efficiency. Ford EcoBoost engines can deliver significantly better fuel economy than larger-displacement gasoline engines with comparable output.
In addition, the new Focus also will benefit from suspension and chassis upgrades. These include a new shock absorber valve design providing improved interior quietness, a new electronic stability control system with less intrusion and improved comfort, and a change to the rear suspension to give drivers a more connected feel to the road.
Interior / Exterior
Focus arrives with a bold new look. It features a restyled hood, grille and trunk lid, available LED signature lighting for headlamps and tail lamps, and new rear lamp clusters. Sedan and hatchback versions will be available in the United States.
Inside, colors and materials have a clean, modern look, with satin chrome detailing, new seat trims and switches, and an available heated steering wheel. Storage is improved with a new center console incorporating adjustable cup holders and an easier-to-access glove box.
Safety
A package of sensors brings a new level of convenience for compact car customers by adding driver-assist technologies including a rear view camera, available BLISwith cross-traffic alert and a lane-keeping system.
BLIS uses two multiple-beam radar modules packaged in the rear quarter panels, one on each side, to detect vehicles where the driver may not be able to see them. The radar identifies when a vehicle enters the defined blind spot zone and illuminates an indicator light on the corresponding side view mirror, providing a warning that a vehicle is approaching. When backing out of a parking space, cross-traffic alert can detect coming vehicles that may not be visible from the driver’s seat.
Standard on Focus for the first time, the rear view camera will appear on either a 4.2-inch screen or the available 8-inch screen that comes with MyFord Touch equipped cars.
Technology Features
2015 Focus drivers will have access to powerful capabilities thanks to a host of new functions developers can integrate as they modify their apps to communicate with enhanced SYNC AppLink.
New functions include:
Connected apps can access a variety of real-time data such as vehicle speed, acceleration, odometer and location information that can be used to further customize and personalize the user experience. For example, access to the in-vehicle GPS signal can enable more precise and accurate location-based services than phone sensors.
Notifications read aloud as a driver enters the car, with no need to touch the phone. Best of all, alerts are available any time a mobile device is connected to SYNC AppLink, even if the app is not currently active. This means a driver could get an alert about a traffic jam ahead while listening to the radio or using another app.
Summary
Its combination of compelling, modern design and the high-tech interior will appeal to contemporary customers who desire a small car with very sophisticated features. What has always made Focus so attractive, being great to drive, having exceptional fuel economy and value, and offering leading-edge in-car technologies.
The manufacturer’s suggested retail price starts at $18,460.00, the one I drove included the Reverse Sensing System and the Ecoboost Package, and it came in at $21,035.00 including destination and delivery charges. The EPA fuel economy estimates 29 MPG city and 40 MPG highway with the 1.0 Liter Ecoboost Engine and the 6 speed manual transmission.
mlezcano@carsntravel.com
