Ford’s original Focus was a breath of fresh air when launched upon the motoring world back in 1998. As a replacement for the Escort, its radical styling and fantastic handling was a big middle finger to the small car main-players of the late 1990’s.

Unfortunately, successive generations of Focus haven’t quite captured the same magic like the original did, but Ford are currently readying their 4th generation car – can stand out and blow the competition away? Let’s probe further.

Post-Kinetic Styling:

Illustrated here in ST-guise, the all-new car wears a similar face to its smaller sibling – the latest Fiesta. Although here, the headlamps are deeper, more angular and perched above some rather angry-looking fog light housings.

Perhaps the biggest talking points will be its sleek proportions, long hood and very BMW-like Hofmeister Kink (Focus previously had a quarter window behind the rear doors). Around the back, the view is dominated by a pair of horizontal, two-piece tail-lamps that now extend across the hatch opening.

Under The Skin:

Conjecture has the new Focus riding upon a modified version of Ford’s global C-car platform; although rest assured there will be improved cabin space, NVH and safety levels. Expect pre-collision assist and pedestrian detection systems for avoiding stray wildlife of the human kind.

The current car’s over-styled, cheap feeling interior has been ditched. Ford has worked hard to bring a sense of ‘premium’ to the new Focus, with soft-touch plastics, floating 8” touchscreen, generous levels of kit and contemporary styling (think latest Fiesta, but more upscale).

EcoBoost Power:

Small is good; the engine lineup will start with Ford’s latest 1.0-Litre, three-cylinder unit in various states of turbocharged tune. Next up is the 1.5-litre turbo four, followed by a couple of diesels in 1.5 and 2.0-litre capacities. It’s unclear if Ford will still offer an Electric powertrain under the Focus banner – stay tuned for future updates in this regard.

Fast Ford fans will be catered for with the continuation of the ST’s 2.0-litre, EcoBoost four. Whilst those wanting more mumbo in RS guise will have to wait, as that car isn’t expected to appear until much later down the track.

On The Street:

Expect an official presentation in early 2018 ahead of a market launch in the second half of the year, with a range of variants; including hatch, sedan, wagon and an crossover-like, ‘Active’ version with increased ride-height, extra cladding and possible all-wheel-drive.

Major rivals range from Volkswagen’s Golf, Mazda’s 3, Subaru Impreza, Honda Civic, Vauxhall Astra (or is that the Peugeot Astra?), Chevrolet Cruze, Skoda Octavia and the soon to be revealed Toyota Corolla.

What do you think of Ford’s 2019 Focus?

By Josh Byrnes

Photo Renderings Copyright Carscoops / Josh Byrnes

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