Having just gotten ourselves acquainted with the current-gen Ford Focus’ shape, after it was recently facelifted, we now learn that the desire for its successor to become a more stylish is one of the main pillars of the latter’s development. Set to make its debut in 2017, the next Focus will retain the familiar shape, but will also aim to evoke emotion.
The current-gen Focus, prior to the restyling, looked quite odd at the front end, with only the ST model managing to escape the awkward trapezoidal grille that never really worked…
Edmunds spoke to Ford’s global product development chief, Raj Nair. He said “Design is still critical,” and that “Owners talk about rational reasons for purchase, but a fair percentage buy for emotional reasons like styling.”
It’s still undecided what exactly it will look like, but I for one loved the rear light design of two generations ago – those lights that rose up onto the (steeply-raked) C-pillars that the first two incarnations had. Come to think of it, Ford has yet to beat the visual impact of the first-gen Focus which looked almost futuristic when it was first revealed in 1998, and those lights played an important part.
By Andrei Nedelea
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