The Legacy of the Ford Focus: A Eulogy

Ford has confirmed that the Ford Focus will be ending production in November. Spanning 4 generations, 12 million cars and many motorsport wins. Let’s look back on what made the Focus special and what killed it. 

First Generation

In the 1990’s, Fords heavy hitter, the Ford Escort was in a dire situation. By its fifth and sixth generation the mainline Escort had lost its youthful charm and was now seen as old, stodgy and uncool even with the help of the RS Cosworth. In 1998, Ford announced that they would be phasing out the Escort name in the European market and introducing a new C segment car to replace it. 

The “C170” Ford Focus would enter production in 1998 to instant success. It featured Fords controversial, “New Edge” design language first championed by the Ford Ka in 1996. It would take home "European Car of the Year" in 1999 with its modern styling, great value and incredible driving dynamics. It would go blow for blow with the Mk4 Volkswagen Golf, with the Focus being seen as a better driving but poorer made rival. A sporty, “ST170” would be created to go to war with the mighty Golf GTI.  

In 2002, Ford would announce an even higher performance version of the Focus, with the "Focus RS" nameplate being born. It was developed by Tickford Engineering with over 70% of car being modified or replaced to create one of the hottest hatch at the time. It came with a 2.0-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder making 212bhp and featured a revolutionary front suspension setup named the “Revo-knuckle” strut system. It would soldier on until 2004, being replaced by the “C307”.

Second Generation

The second generation Focus would debut at the 2004 Paris Motor Show. It would be a larger more adult version of what the Mk1 Focus started. The suspension set up would be carried over from the first generation. No bad thing as the second generation was still marveled as a great handling family hatchback. It would be larger and better built than the first generation, and feature more modern convinces such as Bluetooth audio streaming, climate control and a UV deflecting windscreen. Another notable point is that it was the only generation of Focus to receive a convertible body style, being introduced in 2007. 

The Focus’s performance offerings would be expanded on from the previous generation, again with two distinct versions. The more reasonable of the two would be the Focus ST. This used a 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo-charged engine taken from Volvo. It would make 225bhp and send the Focus to 60mph in 6.4 seconds. Following a face lift in 2007, an even hotter Focus would launch in 2009. The second generation Focus RS would now make 301hp from a modified and upgraded version of the Volvo five-cylinder. It would also feature aggressive aero with a larger front split and rear wing. The 0-60mph time would be cut down to 5.7 seconds and it would go onto do 163mph. As a send off to the second generation Focus, a “RS500” version would be created. Limited to just 500 units, it would see Ford and its performance partners push the 2.5 engine to 345bhp. Each of these cars would be given an individual plaque in the centre console and could only be ordered with matte black paint.

Third Generation

For the “C346”, Ford would reintroduce the European market Focus to the US market, not being done since the original Focus back in 1996. Now using Ford’s “Kinect Design” language, the third generation Focus would again help for push the brand into new territory, for better or worse. The introduction of the 1.0 EcoBoost turbocharged 3-cylinder engine would be a first for a car in its class and pave the way for the downsizing of engines that is so common today. In light of the Great Recession, Ford would also create the “ECOnetic” line with the aim of reducing fuel consumption, pushing the Focus to 80mpg if driven right.  The Focus would go on to be the best selling car in 2012. 

Sadly the Focus’s good fortunes would come to an end with the introduction of the “Powershift” gearbox. This dual clutch automatic would be plagued with reliability issues that would hurt both the Ford brand as a whole but especially the Focus. It’s has spawned many buy back lawsuits from customers with complaints of shuddering, slipping clutch’s and complete gearbox failures. The 1.0 EcoBoost engine would also be shown to be a weak link, suffering from engine failures at a high rate. This was commonly attributed to its wet belt system. The door seals were also a point of contention, having a habit of failing and letting water into the cabin, corroding the car from the inside. 

The ST and RS name plates would return with the RS making its final appearance in the third generation. The ST would see its engine be down sized to a 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder. Thankfully performance would be increased, now making 252bhp and with a 6 second 0-60mph and 2mph higher top speed compared to its predecessor.  The RS would go out with a bang, featuring All-Wheel-Drive for the first time, and now making 350bhp. It would now do the 0-60mph sprint in 4.7 seconds, courtesy of a 2.3 litre turbocharged four-cylinder. Drift mode would also come with this generation of RS, being one of the first systems of its kind, using the AWD system to help create controlled power slides.  

Final Generation

The final generation of the Focus, the “C519” would enter production in 2018. It would be lighter, stiffer and longer than the previous model. It was clear by this point that the family hatch back was being phased out in favor of the crossover, as Ford discontinued the Focus in the US for the second time sighting a lack of sales. Ford did add one more version to the Focus to the lineup. The “Vignale” trim was an attempt create a luxury hatchback, named after the Vignale design house that Ford had purchased. It featured upmarket trim, self parking technology, signature design elements and a “Bang & Olufsen” sound system. The ST would come back for a final time, now powered by a 2.3 litre EcoBoost four-cylinder making 276hp. An electric limited-slip differential would be introduced along with other performance improvements such as an anti-lag system for the turbo and variable dampers.

A refresh would come in 2022 with a new front grill and lights along with the introduction of the first hybrid power train in the Focus line up. Sadly, the writing was very much on the wall for the Focus by this point. The smaller Fiesta and larger Mondeo had both been cancelled by 2023 with the Focus standing alone as the only car in Fords model line up. This week, Ford announced that the Focus will be ceasing production in November with all remaining inventory to be sold off, with Ford claiming they will now aim to become the “Porsche” of the off-road and SUV market.