Ford Focus Estate: more satisfying than another round of Golf

That means not only that you can change the settings without having to rifle through the menus, but also that you develop a bit of muscle memory. And the fact the screen is located high on the dash means your eyes aren’t required to divert too far from the road ahead. Yes, physical buttons like those you’ll find in the Vauxhall Astra would still be better – but if the climate controls must be part of the touchscreen, then this is the way to do it. 

The rest of the screen’s software is much as it was before – which is to say adequate, if not exceptional. The graphics are a little dated, but the system works quickly because it isn’t trying to cope with swanky animations or complicated style sheets and, while a couple of the menus can be a little labyrinthine, the whole thing hangs together pretty well.

A less obvious change is the switch to darker, more upmarket plastics, which was sorely needed because the old Focus felt rather poorly made within. Granted, this new car isn’t exactly Ritz-like in its opulence and the horribly gauche faux stitching on the plasti-leather door trims is still there, but elsewhere the materials feel just that little bit less scratchy to the touch. The new Astra’s interior design is far more stylish, however.. 

Interior room

Space in the front is more than adequate. There’s a reasonable amount in the back too, although the room isn’t a patch on that of an Octavia or a Seat Leon, currently the class leaders in this regard. The low, sloping top to the door aperture can get in the way when you’re buckling kids into a child seat, too – it makes leaning into the car while bent over awkward. 

There’s better news at the back where, despite the boot not offering quite as much outright space as its rivals’ (593 litres to the 608, 611, 620 and 640 litres offered by the Astra, Golf, Leon and Octavia respectively), there’s still enough space for a few bags for the family holiday. And if you don’t need all that space, the intelligently designed boot floor folds upward across its width to form a partition, preventing smaller items from flying around. 

The roll-away load cover can be removed and stored beneath, too, and you’ll also find a spare wheel under there as standard – a rare treat in this day and age. 

Our test car goes by the rather unwieldy name of the Focus 1.0 MHEV ST-Line Vignale EcoBoost Estate 155 PowerShift. Phew. That means it gets the most powerful version of the 1.0-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine that’s now ubiquitous in the Focus range (in fact, the only Focus Estates that lack this engine, in one form or other, are the diesel – a 1.5-litre 113bhp unit – and the 276bhp 2.3-litre ST performance model). Here, it’s allied to a dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

X marks the spot

Shortly after this ST-Line Vignale was launched, Ford decided to rename it ST-Line X although there’s no material difference between the two. It sits at or near the top of the range, alongside the Titanium X and Active X, all of them laden with equipment, although some items – adaptive cruise control, for example – remain on the options list. 

Can’t afford one of these? If not, you’ll have to downgrade to one of these models’ corresponding non-X versions, which have less equipment but the same styling – innocuous homogeneity for the Titanium, raffish athleticism for the ST-Line and jacked-up ruggedness for the Active. 

Indeed, affording the Focus might be half the battle. The price for our test version is a not-inconsiderable £32,940, boosted to a wince-inducing £37,640 by the slew of optional extras. It’s expensive to finance or lease, too – our quick sweep of lease providers revealed the Focus to be almost invariably the most expensive car of its type, in fact, when compared like-for-like. 

Mind you, you should get some of that outlay back at the petrol pumps, because with the aid of its mild hybrid system the Focus pulls off a faintly remarkable official combined fuel economy figure of 54.3mpg. To put that into context, a full hybrid Toyota Corolla – which is 15bhp the poorer, let’s not forget – manages only a couple of mpg more. Meanwhile, the Golf, with its similarly powerful engine – which is also a mild hybrid – only musters 48.7mpg. 

It isn’t just fuel economy that the mild hybrid bolt-ons have aided. This is a lot of power for a small-capacity engine and it relies heavily on its turbo, so you’d be forgiven for expecting a significant delay before it kicks in when you launch it from a standstill. Happily, the electric gubbins fill in the gaps in the power band, so you get a lovely gutsy surge right from low revs, which is very helpful round town.

Suspension of disbelief

In these environs the Focus feels taut, but never uncomfortable. The Estate still has the more sophisticated multi-link rear suspension set-up that’s no longer available in the hatchback, so it rides a good deal better. Reason enough to choose one instead of the standard car, in my book, because the difference is significant; instead of jittering and jolting through bumps, it soaks them up. The stiffer suspension and large wheels fitted to this ST-Line version mean the isolation is not complete – but the effect is more one of feeling apprised of the condition of the road surface than being thrown around by it.

On a motorway the Focus feels beautifully judged; bolted to the surface, yet still able to glide over all but the worst of the bumps. It’s a bit noisy, but no more so than one of its rivals would be, and at these speeds the three-cylinder engine belies its meagre capacity – it’s more than muscular enough to keep up with traffic.

But, this being a Focus, it’s on back roads that it really shines. Honestly, you’d have to reach up into the pricey upper echelons of the BMW 3-Series range to find an estate that’s more enjoyable, interactive or responsive. The Focus feels light and lithe, flowing from apex to apex gamely as though it’s dancing on tiptoes. 

The steering is beautifully weighted, the grip is tremendous, the front end bites eagerly as you turn it in and the suspension does a brilliant job of preventing roll. The result is confidence in spades and an instinctive urge to press on harder and faster, at which point the Focus telegraphs that you’re getting a bit over-excited by starting to push its nose straight ahead ever so slightly. 

Suddenly lift off the accelerator at this point and you can feel the nose dive, the tail go light and the faintest suggestion of a twitch from the back – as though, with a wink and a knowing smile, the car is saying “Yeah, I know you’re having fun, but let’s not get carried away, eh? This is a family show, after all…”

The Telegraph verdict

And it is indeed, first and foremost, a family car. It’s comfortable and pretty roomy, it’s very economical and pretty well equipped and, inside, it’s more user-friendly than a Golf – formerly the standard-bearer for user-friendliness. 

But you choose the Focus because you love driving – and you value that above all else; above the usual family-car concerns such as outright practicality and image that often conspire to woo people into SUVs or estates with posh badges.

This is neither of those things. And, let’s be clear, there are elements of the Focus Estate that will grate – not least its interior quality which, for all the improvements, still isn’t quite where it should be. But if you love the way it drives (and you probably will) these are niggles you could now live with. 

Because, when you’ve dropped off the kids and you’re on your way home along a favourite back road, the Focus reminds you that family cars don’t have to be strictly sensible. It reminds you that even family motorists deserve a bit of driving pleasure. It reminds you to smile. And, for that, a few compromises are worth living with. 

The facts

• On test: Focus 1.0 MHEV ST-Line Vignale EcoBoost Estate 155 PowerShift
• Body style: five-door estate (also available as a five-door hatchback)
• On sale: now
• How much? £32,940 on the road (range from £27,350)
• How fast? 130mph, 0-62mph in 9.1sec
• How economical? 54.3mpg (WLTP Combined)
• Engine & gearbox: 999cc three-cylinder petrol engine, seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, front-wheel drive
• Electric powertrain: 48V battery feeding integrated starter-generator 
• Electric range: 0 miles
• Maximum power/torque: 153bhp/140lb ft
• CO2 emissions: 116g/km (WLTP Combined)
• VED: £190 first year, then £140
• Warranty: 3 years / 60,000 miles
• Spare wheel as standard: Yes

The rivals

Volkswagen Golf 1.5 eTSI 150 R-Line DSG

148bhp, 48.7mpg, £32,235 on the road

A Golf that costs less than the Focus? Believe it – but this isn’t the bargain it first appears. The Focus has more equipment, you see, and it’s also much more fuel efficient. In R-Line form, the Golf doesn’t ride as well and its handling is fairly middling too. And with VW’s awful, glitchy touchscreen and the silly ‘slider’ climate controls, it’s a pain to live with.

Vauxhall Astra 1.2 Turbo 130 Ultimate Auto

128bhp, 49.6mpg, £33,000 on the road (est’d)

This top-spec Astra comes with pretty much every option box ticked. That goes some way toward justifying its price – which will be confirmed when the Ultimate model goes on sale imminently. What you don’t get with the Astra is a mild hybrid powerplant, so fuel consumption is a little way off, and nor do you get the same sort of zing as the Focus in corners. It is handsome, though, both inside and out. 

Toyota Corolla 1.8 Hybrid Excel

138bhp, 56.4mpg, £35,145 on the road

Despite being a full hybrid, the Corolla is only a couple of miles per gallon more fuel efficient than the Focus – a difference that’ll be wiped out by its higher price. And while this Excel version is fully loaded, it isn’t quite as smart to look nor anywhere near as enjoyable to drive as the Ford. On the plus side, of course, is Toyota’s incredible reliability record – and a warranty of up to 10 years.