Category: Small Family 
Price Range: £11,945 to £20,595
Excellent dynamics, comfortable, safe and good range of low CO2 engines.
Korean competition offers better value.
Leads the class for drive, but not for value.
Three years of Focus mark II production is long enough to have had any glitches ironed out in what is generally perceived to be a reliable car.
As well as being reliable, the Focus also feels as though Ford has tried hard to match the quality of some of its German competitors. The top of the dashboard and upper areas of trim are finished in soft-touch plastics; oval air-vents have chrome-effect surrounds; and fit and finish is good, although some of the available colour schemes (like a grey-blue dash upper with beige lower and black bits here and there) can look a little clumsy.
The lower they are to the floor, however, the harder and thinner the cabin plastic becomes. A substantial centre console rather than just a gap between the seats makes the cabin feel more cockpit-like and snug, lifting the perception of quality.
New 2008 models benefit from a new classier instrument panel and centre console, although cheap-looking blanks remain, reminding you of all those options boxes that went unticked.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Ford Focus
wrote on 05 10 2007
wrote on 19 09 2007
wrote on 12 09 2007
wrote on 26 07 2007