Ford Focus
Encyclopedia
The Ford Focus is a compact car
manufactured by the Ford Motor Company
since 1998. Ford began sales of the Focus to Europe in July 1998 and in North America during 1999 for the 2000 model year
.
In Europe, South America, North America and South Africa, the Focus replaced the various Ford Escort
s sold in those markets. In Asia and Australasia
, it replaced the Ford Laser
.
. The decision to name the new car the "Ford Focus" was made in early 1998, as Ford's overheads had been planning to keep the "Escort" nameplate for its new generation of small family cars. A last minute problem arose in July 1998 when a Cologne court, responding to a case brought by the publishers Burda
, ordered Ford to avoid the name "Focus" for the German market cars since the name was already taken by the publisher's Focus
magazine. This eleventh hour dispute was overcome, however, and the car was launched without a different German market name.
Ford of North America began marketing the Focus in October 1999 for model year 2000 with some changes from the European version. The car launched as a 3-door hatchback
, 4-door sedan and 5-door wagon
; a 5-door hatchback debuted in 2001. Some 2000 Focus' came with a G-Shock
watch
.
Motor Show in mid-2004.
The basic suspension design, which contributed much to the Mk 1's success, has been carried over largely unchanged from its predecessor which, along with a 10% stiffer bodyshell, offers a better ride according to Ford but lacked on the precise and poised handling of the Mk1. The same body styles as the Mk 1 Focus were offered, though the saloon did not appear until mid-2005.
The Focus Mk 2 is much larger and considerably heavier than its predecessor with a 25 mm (1 in) increase in wheelbase, 168 mm (6.6 in) longer, 8 mm (0.3 in) taller and 22 mm (0.8 in) wider. As a result the interior and boot space have increased. New technologies include a KeyFree system, a solar-reflect windshield, adaptive front lighting, Bluetooth hands-free phones and voice control for audio, telephone and climate control systems.
Stylistically, the Mk 2's styling features the same design language found in the Mondeo and Fiesta
. Although still recognisable as a Focus the new car uses styling features from the abandoned B-Proposal for the original Focus which never reached production.
In 2005 came the Ford Focus ST with a top speed of 152mph and 225bhp it was the fastest hot hatch of the time until 2009 with the release of the second RS model with 162mph and 300bhp it was one never to beat, until the launch of the Ford Focus RS500 in 2011, which had a top speed of 163mph and 350bhp.
The first generation Focus for the North American market followed a separate development. Since debuting at the 2007 North American International Auto Show
, the restyled 2000-2011 generation was available as a two-door coupe
and 4-door sedan — the hatchbacks and wagon
were discontinued. The interior was redesigned, including new seats, a new dashboard design with message center atop of the dashboard, ambient lighting, dashboard panels that simulate brushed aluminum, and Ford's voice-controlled Sync
audio/Bluetooth system. Also included in the redesign was a support beam behind the dashboard for extra structural rigidity.
Ford unveiled the 2011 global Ford Focus at the 2010 North American International Auto Show. The car shown was a 5-door hatchback model, also debuting a new 2.0L direct injection I4 engine. A 5-door estate will also be available at launch. The new generation launched simultaneously in North America and Europe in early 2011, with production having started in late 2010. Production in Asia, Africa, and South America will follow later. Ford debuted the all-electric Ford Focus EV
at the Consumer Electronics Show
in 2011 to compete with the Nissan Leaf
and the Chevrolet Volt
. This new generation of Focus incorporates a redesigned cabin with improved materials, and new infotainment technologies that help to differentiate it from recently decontented competitors such as the Mk VI Volkswagen Jetta.
made its debut in rallying
and the World Rally Championship
on the 1999 Monte Carlo Rally
with Colin McRae
and Simon Jean-Joseph at the wheels of the two cars, replacing, for the first time in a generation, the venerable Escort. It was immediately on the pace, setting many fastest stage times, but a vehicle weight issue meant that the two cars were excluded from that event. McRae went on to give the Focus WRC its maiden victory on the Safari Rally
in February of the same year and took victory again in the following rally, the Rally Portugal.
The MkI Focus WRC went on to scoop further victories over the years for McRae, Carlos Sainz
and Markko Märtin
from then until it was phased out in favour of the MkII offering in late 2005. This car, a winner in both Marcus Grönholm
's and Mikko Hirvonen
's hands in the two-car factory BP-Ford World Rally Team that contested the 2006 World Rally Championship season, duly racked up the manufacturers' title, spelling the end of a formidable twenty-seven year wait for such an honour in this series for the Blue Oval. The team successfully defended the manufacturers' title in the 2007 season
.
All the rally cars are built, prepared and run for Ford by M-Sport
, the motorsport team based in Cockermouth
, Cumbria
in Northern England. The team is managed by Malcolm Wilson
, a well known former British rally driver.
Besides rallies, the Focus has also been used in the SCCA Speed World Challenge Touring Car Series, the TC 2000
, resulting champion in 2003 and 2005.
The Ford Focus ST made its debut in the 2009 British Touring Car Championship, with Arena Motorsport. During its second season, the car ran on Liquefied Petroleum Gas, taking the first BTCC win for a car powered by this fuel at Brands Hatch.
Compact car
A compact car , or small family car , is a classification of cars which are larger than a supermini but smaller than or equal to a mid-size car...
manufactured by the Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
since 1998. Ford began sales of the Focus to Europe in July 1998 and in North America during 1999 for the 2000 model year
Model year
The model year of a product is a number used worldwide, but with a high level of prominence in North America, to describe approximately when a product was produced, and indicates the coinciding base specification of that product....
.
In Europe, South America, North America and South Africa, the Focus replaced the various Ford Escort
Ford Escort
Ford Escort may refer to:* Ford Escort , a vehicle manufactured by Ford Motor Company's European division from 1968 through 2003* Ford Escort , a compact car that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market...
s sold in those markets. In Asia and Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
, it replaced the Ford Laser
Ford Laser
The 1985 KC Laser/GC Meteor was the model's first major redesign. All body styles were carried over, with the addition of a station wagon from 1986. A new "TX3" variant, which was half-way between "GL" & "Ghia" in specification level, replaced the "Sport" variant from the KB series. Unlike the...
.
First generation
Ford of New Europe introduced the Focus in 1998 to the European market as a replacement for the Ford EscortFord Escort
Ford Escort may refer to:* Ford Escort , a vehicle manufactured by Ford Motor Company's European division from 1968 through 2003* Ford Escort , a compact car that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market...
. The decision to name the new car the "Ford Focus" was made in early 1998, as Ford's overheads had been planning to keep the "Escort" nameplate for its new generation of small family cars. A last minute problem arose in July 1998 when a Cologne court, responding to a case brought by the publishers Burda
Hubert Burda Media
Hubert Burda Media is a German privately held, family-owned global media company with its origins in printing and magazine publishing. The company is headquartered in Offenburg and Munich, has additional main offices in Berlin and Hamburg and has more than 7400 employees...
, ordered Ford to avoid the name "Focus" for the German market cars since the name was already taken by the publisher's Focus
Focus (German magazine)
Focus is a German weekly news magazine published in Munich and distributed throughout Germany. It is the third-largest weekly news magazine in Germany. It is considered conservative and leaned towards economic liberalism.- Overview :...
magazine. This eleventh hour dispute was overcome, however, and the car was launched without a different German market name.
Ford of North America began marketing the Focus in October 1999 for model year 2000 with some changes from the European version. The car launched as a 3-door hatchback
Hatchback
A Hatchback is a car body style incorporating a shared passenger and cargo volume, with rearmost accessibility via a rear third or fifth door, typically a top-hinged liftgate—and features such as fold-down rear seats to enable flexibility within the shared passenger/cargo volume. As a two-box...
, 4-door sedan and 5-door wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
; a 5-door hatchback debuted in 2001. Some 2000 Focus' came with a G-Shock
G-Shock
G-Shock is a brand of watches manufactured by Casio, known for its resistance to shocks . They were, and continue to be, designed primarily for sports, military, and outdoor adventure oriented activity; for example, practically all G-Shocks have some kind of stopwatch feature, countdown timer,...
watch
Watch
A watch is a small timepiece, typically worn either on the wrist or attached on a chain and carried in a pocket, with wristwatches being the most common type of watch used today. They evolved in the 17th century from spring powered clocks, which appeared in the 15th century. The first watches were...
.
Europe
The second generation Focus was launched at the Paris Motor Show on September 23, 2004 as a three and five-door hatchback and an estate, although the new car was previewed, in 4-door sedan form, as the 'Focus Concept' developed by Ford Europe at the BeijingBeijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
Motor Show in mid-2004.
The basic suspension design, which contributed much to the Mk 1's success, has been carried over largely unchanged from its predecessor which, along with a 10% stiffer bodyshell, offers a better ride according to Ford but lacked on the precise and poised handling of the Mk1. The same body styles as the Mk 1 Focus were offered, though the saloon did not appear until mid-2005.
The Focus Mk 2 is much larger and considerably heavier than its predecessor with a 25 mm (1 in) increase in wheelbase, 168 mm (6.6 in) longer, 8 mm (0.3 in) taller and 22 mm (0.8 in) wider. As a result the interior and boot space have increased. New technologies include a KeyFree system, a solar-reflect windshield, adaptive front lighting, Bluetooth hands-free phones and voice control for audio, telephone and climate control systems.
Stylistically, the Mk 2's styling features the same design language found in the Mondeo and Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
The Ford Fiesta is a front wheel drive supermini/subcompact manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company and built in Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, China, India, Thailand and South Africa...
. Although still recognisable as a Focus the new car uses styling features from the abandoned B-Proposal for the original Focus which never reached production.
In 2005 came the Ford Focus ST with a top speed of 152mph and 225bhp it was the fastest hot hatch of the time until 2009 with the release of the second RS model with 162mph and 300bhp it was one never to beat, until the launch of the Ford Focus RS500 in 2011, which had a top speed of 163mph and 350bhp.
North America
The first generation Focus for the North American market followed a separate development. Since debuting at the 2007 North American International Auto Show
North American International Auto Show
The North American International Auto Show is an annual auto show held in Detroit, Michigan at Cobo Center, usually in January. It is among the largest auto shows in North America.-History:...
, the restyled 2000-2011 generation was available as a two-door coupe
Coupé
A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style , the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time...
and 4-door sedan — the hatchbacks and wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
were discontinued. The interior was redesigned, including new seats, a new dashboard design with message center atop of the dashboard, ambient lighting, dashboard panels that simulate brushed aluminum, and Ford's voice-controlled Sync
Ford Sync
Ford SYNC is a factory-installed, integrated in-vehicle communications and entertainment system that allows users to make hands-free telephone calls and control music and other functions using voice commands...
audio/Bluetooth system. Also included in the redesign was a support beam behind the dashboard for extra structural rigidity.
Third generation
In 2010 Ford decided to reunite both international and North American models by releasing the international Mk3 worldwide. The current North American version was thus discontinued, and the new model was launched simultaneously in North America and Europe in early 2011, both having started production late in 2010.Ford unveiled the 2011 global Ford Focus at the 2010 North American International Auto Show. The car shown was a 5-door hatchback model, also debuting a new 2.0L direct injection I4 engine. A 5-door estate will also be available at launch. The new generation launched simultaneously in North America and Europe in early 2011, with production having started in late 2010. Production in Asia, Africa, and South America will follow later. Ford debuted the all-electric Ford Focus EV
Ford Focus Electric
The Ford Focus Electric is a 5-door hatchback electric car being produced by Ford Motor Company. The Focus electric will be Ford's first full production, all-electric passenger vehicle. The initial U.S. market roll-out is scheduled to be limited to 19 regional markets, beginning with California and...
at the Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
in 2011 to compete with the Nissan Leaf
Nissan Leaf
Nissan introduced its first battery electric vehicle, the Nissan Altra at the Los Angeles International Auto Show on 29 December 1997. The Altra EV was produced between 1998 and 2002, only about 200 vehicles were ever produced, and it was mainly used as a fleet vehicle for companies such as...
and the Chevrolet Volt
Chevrolet Volt
The Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle manufactured by General Motors. The Volt has been on sale in the U.S. market since mid-December 2010, and is the most fuel-efficient compact car sold in the United States, as rated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency...
. This new generation of Focus incorporates a redesigned cabin with improved materials, and new infotainment technologies that help to differentiate it from recently decontented competitors such as the Mk VI Volkswagen Jetta.
Motorsport
The first Focus World Rally CarFord Focus WRC
The Ford Focus RS WRC is a car built for the Ford World Rally Team by Ford and M-Sport and based on the Ford Focus Climate 2-litre production hatchback, developed to compete in the World Rally Championship. The RS stands for Rallye Sport and the WRC for World Rally Car, the car's FIA specification...
made its debut in rallying
Rallying
Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...
and the World Rally Championship
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
on the 1999 Monte Carlo Rally
Monte Carlo Rally
The Monte Carlo Rally or Rally Monte Carlo is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco which also organises the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix and the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique. The rally takes place along the French Riviera in the Principality of Monaco and...
with Colin McRae
Colin McRae
Colin Steele McRae, MBE was a Scottish rally driver born in Lanark.The son of five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and brother of rally driver Alister McRae, Colin McRae was the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Champion and, in 1995, became the first British person and the youngest to win the...
and Simon Jean-Joseph at the wheels of the two cars, replacing, for the first time in a generation, the venerable Escort. It was immediately on the pace, setting many fastest stage times, but a vehicle weight issue meant that the two cars were excluded from that event. McRae went on to give the Focus WRC its maiden victory on the Safari Rally
Safari Rally
The Safari Rally is considered by many to be the world's toughest rally. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II...
in February of the same year and took victory again in the following rally, the Rally Portugal.
The MkI Focus WRC went on to scoop further victories over the years for McRae, Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz Cenamor is a Spanish rally driver. He won the World Rally Championship drivers' title with Toyota in 1990 and 1992, and finished runner-up four times...
and Markko Märtin
Markko Märtin
Markko Märtin is a rally driver from Estonia, who competed in the World Rally Championship from 2000 until 2005.-Career:...
from then until it was phased out in favour of the MkII offering in late 2005. This car, a winner in both Marcus Grönholm
Marcus Grönholm
Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship in 2000 and 2002. After Peugeot withdrew from the World Rally Championship, Grönholm moved to Ford for the 2006 season and placed second in the drivers' world championship, losing the...
's and Mikko Hirvonen
Mikko Hirvonen
Mikko Hirvonen is a Finnish rally driver currently driving for the Citroën Total World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship. He placed third in the drivers' championship and helped Ford to the manufacturers' title in both 2006 and 2007. In 2008, 2009 and 2011, he finished runner-up to...
's hands in the two-car factory BP-Ford World Rally Team that contested the 2006 World Rally Championship season, duly racked up the manufacturers' title, spelling the end of a formidable twenty-seven year wait for such an honour in this series for the Blue Oval. The team successfully defended the manufacturers' title in the 2007 season
2007 World Rally Championship season
The 2007 World Rally Championship season was the 35th season in the FIA World Rally Championship. The season began on January 19 with the 75ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo and ended on December 2 with the 63rd Wales Rally of Great Britain. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the drivers' world...
.
All the rally cars are built, prepared and run for Ford by M-Sport
M-Sport
M-Sport is a large and successful motorsport team based in Cockermouth, Cumbria in England. Formed in 1979 by former WRC driver Malcolm Wilson, and originally known as Malcolm Wilson Motorsport, the team has had varying success running cars in several rally championships...
, the motorsport team based in Cockermouth
Cockermouth
-History:The Romans created a fort at Derventio, now the adjoining village of Papcastle, to protect the river crossing, which had become located on a major route for troops heading towards Hadrian's Wall....
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
in Northern England. The team is managed by Malcolm Wilson
Malcolm Wilson (rally)
Malcolm Irving Wilson, OBE is a British former rally driver. He is the father of current World Rally Championship driver Matthew Wilson....
, a well known former British rally driver.
Besides rallies, the Focus has also been used in the SCCA Speed World Challenge Touring Car Series, the TC 2000
TC 2000
The TC 2000 Championship is a touring car racing series held in Argentina since 1979. It's considered the most advanced racing car series in South America and one of the top 10 touring car series in the world.-Rules:...
, resulting champion in 2003 and 2005.
The Ford Focus ST made its debut in the 2009 British Touring Car Championship, with Arena Motorsport. During its second season, the car ran on Liquefied Petroleum Gas, taking the first BTCC win for a car powered by this fuel at Brands Hatch.
Sales
- 1999: 55,896
- 2000: 286,166
- 2001: 264,414
- 2002: 243,199
- 2003: 229,353
- 2004: 208,339
- 2005: 184,825
- 2006: 177,006
- 2007: 173,213
- 2008: 195,823
- 2009: 160,433
- 2010: 172,421