Ford Focus to debut at Detroit

[the Teuton]

I don't think Ford is going to win the world car gamble yet with this. It's too...good (and probably expensive) of a car.

I think the Fiesta will far outsell it.

[Vinsanity]

I showed the pic to my sister, who hates Focuseses, and she says it's an improvement. I think it's a step in the right direction.

[SVT666]

I don't think Ford is going to win the world car gamble yet with this. It's too...good (and probably expensive) of a car.

I think the Fiesta will far outsell it.

The Fiesta won't outsell the Focus.  It's too small to sell in huge numbers.  I'm predicting right here, right now, the 2011 Focus will win COTY honours from everybody.

[the Teuton]

The Fiesta won't outsell the Focus.

I'm not too sure. We'll see.

It's too small to sell in huge numbers.  I'm predicting right here, right now, the 2011 Focus will win COTY honours from everybody.

No crap. After reading about it, it looks to be an amazing car. I can't wait! I really can't! I still think it's going to be expensive as hell, though, relatively speaking.

[SVT666]

That interior kicks ass.  I think the 2011 hatch looks fantastic, though I still think the SVT Focus is best looking hatchback the US market has ever seen.

[CJ]

After seeing this, I'm not so sure I can agree with that.

[the Teuton]

It has a torque vectoring FWD system -- and that's not even mentioning the possibility of an RS or SVT model yet.

It's going to change the game on so many levels.

As for you, Hemi, I bet you're sitting in Canuckistan with a box of Kleenex in your lap right now.

[SVT666]

It has a torque vectoring FWD system -- and that's not even mentioning the possibility of an RS or SVT model yet.

It's going to change the game on so many levels.

As for you, Hemi, I bet you're sitting in Canuckistan with a box of Kleenex in your lap right now.

If they come out with an SVT model of the hatchback (likely the 300 hp RS from Europe), it will make buying a Mustang really difficult, though not impossible.

[Rich]

OMG I want this car

[ifcar]

The Fiesta won't outsell the Focus.  It's too small to sell in huge numbers.  I'm predicting right here, right now, the 2011 Focus will win COTY honours from everybody.

Don't you think it might make sense to wait for, say, more than photos, a press release, and a blue oval before making that call?

Also, it will be a 2012 model, so you don't even know what most of the COTY competitors will even be, much less how good they will be.

[2o6]

That's very attractive. The want to buy a Fiesta has just been thrown out the window. All of it is very attractive.

[r0tor]

Wow, this car will single handedly change the econobox class.... very well done Ford

...now make a AWD RS/SVT model and I'll be all over it...

[Madman]

Screw the old-fart, third world sedan.  THIS is the Focus I want to see.



Ah, that's better!

Good move by Ford.  Move the Focus upmarket to make room for the Fiesta underneath.  Now if only they could crush every 2005-10 Focus already on the the roads into little metal cubes of shame and eradicate all memory of that awful turd of a car from the collective consciousness of the motoring public, Ford could rehabilitate the Focus's image overnight!  Okay, I'll settle for this stunning new one and continue to pretend the current travesty doesn't exist.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[Byteme]

From the news today:

DETROIT (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. is unveiling the 2012 Focus, a small sedan that is the company's first truly global car.

The new Focus, due in European and North American showrooms early next year, was designed and engineered to be sold worldwide using almost all the same parts, unlike past versions.

It'll be sold in Asia, the Americas and Europe.

Ford unveils the new four- and five-door Focuses on Monday at the Detroit auto show. The cars are equipped with a new two-liter four-cylinder engine and six-speed automatic transmission. The company wouldn't reveal gas mileage, but said it will be significantly better than the current North American Focus, which gets up to 35 mpg on the highway.

By sharing parts globally, the aim is to keep costs down and make money on small cars, a segment that used to be a loser. The Focus also shows that gas mileage is a prime motivator now for more frugal car buyers, and that small-car owners still want performance, quality and a lot of features. Pricing will be announced closer to the date it arrives in showrooms.

It also has the same electronic-controlled suspension as the European Focus, generally known for better handling than U.S. vehicles.

But Jim Hughes, the Focus' chief engineer, said new technology will allow it to handle well without compromising ride quality.

"It certainly has a lot more steering precision and agility," he said. "The vehicle itself will still be very, very comfortable."

The new Focus' interior is slightly larger than the current version, and Ford says it will be quieter than all vehicles in its class and even the larger Honda Accord midsize car.

The Focus styling has a smaller windows and lines that rise from front to back. Hughes said they took steps to reduce wind drag.

[sportyaccordy]

Am I the only person that actually kind of likes the Focus's styling? It's like an awkward puppy.

I like the new Focus, particularly in top of the line trim. They could solve a lot of its styling problems by simply fitting it with some grown up wheel wells and tires (though that would obviously bump up the price). Give it some stock 205-55-15s and corresponding wheel wells and it would look a lot better.

I am in the air about this new one. Side profile is pretty sharp. Front/rear quarter views are questionable. I know they left the rear lower portion black to reduce the car's sense of mass, but nothing can save its quarter views- within the box it occupies it definitely fills up the space more than say, a 3-series. It's upright and cab forward. Like the last one, best they could do is fit it with slightly higher profile tires and bigger wheel wells, of course at the expense of space. As it is, even with what look like 18s it still has too high a body to wheel ratio, which is pretty absurd on a compact car.

Interior looks awesome, and hopefully Ecoboost will do for the compact class what the VQ35 did for the luxury & midsize class. VW has shown that people will pay a premium for performance and an upscale feeling in a compact car. 200-240HP Foci/Civics/Corollas have a lot of appeal for a young city slicker like myself, and with the economic crisis looming people may like the appeal of getting performance with good gas mileage and unassuming exteriors.

Hopefully, as the article mentioned, this car won't be the abject failures the Escort and Contour were. I think the compact class in the US has finally grown to where a car of this size makes sense, as shown by the success of the new Civic, Corolla, etc. So hopefully with a bit of an upscale edge the Focus can beat the competition and give Ford a strong hold. From what I'm seeing it's possible.

One question I have now is, what happens to the Fusion? I might be thinking from too myopic a viewpoint, but if this car offers 90% of the space, 100% of the performance, and 133% of the gas mileage, will this possibly eat away at Fusion sales? I think we will have to see it in the flesh to know whether or not the two cars are too close in size; however something tells me Ford wouldn't make that foolish mistake. Plus the Fusion only comes in a sedan body (IIRC), whereas this will prob be available as a 2/4 door hatch + wagon.

Very European, somewhat chic... seems to be the right car for the times. Best of luck Ford, looks like a good enough effort that you won't really need it.

[Raza]

Whoa, that's the new Focus sedan?  That actually looks good.  Focus sedans have never looked good.

[Byteme]

Whoa, that's the new Focus sedan?  That actually looks good.  Focus sedans have never looked good.

That's it.  Ford won both the Car and Truck of the Year Awards at the Detroit Auto Show.  They are on a roll.  The Big Three in the US today is Ford-Honda-Toyota.

[SVT666]

Don't you think it might make sense to wait for, say, more than photos, a press release, and a blue oval before making that call?

Also, it will be a 2012 model, so you don't even know what most of the COTY competitors will even be, much less how good they will be.

I repeat.  This will be COTY for 2012 (not 2011 as previously stated).

[giant_mtb]

That thing looks awesome!

[S204STi]

I dig it.  I do hope we get a 5-door, but even if we don't I'd never turn someone away from this car.

[Vinsanity]

Screw the old-fart, third world sedan.  THIS is the Focus I want to see.



Ah, that's better!

the overall shape is very nice, but that taillight area is just weird

[SVT666]

I dig it.  I do hope we get a 5-door, but even if we don't I'd never turn someone away from this car.

The article says the 4 and 5 door will be debuting in Detroit.

[the Teuton]

No 3-door hatch and no traditional coupe? The coupe has actually proven to be a good seller, I believe, though I've not seen many.

[FoMoJo]

Big improvement on the 4-door.  The 5-door just looks gorgeous. 

I like this feature as well...Another feature that will be new to the Focus is automatic start-stop functionality that switches off the engine when the car comes to a halt. This will be one of the first such applications in the U.S. market in a non-hybrid vehicle....It would be interesting to see exactly how it works but, with direct-injection, they should just be able to squirt a bit of fuel in the appropriate combustion chamber and light it off.

[SVT666]

Big improvement on the 4-door.  The 5-door just looks gorgeous. 

I like this feature as well...Another feature that will be new to the Focus is automatic start-stop functionality that switches off the engine when the car comes to a halt. This will be one of the first such applications in the U.S. market in a non-hybrid vehicle....It would be interesting to see exactly how it works but, with direct-injection, they should just be able to squirt a bit of fuel in the appropriate combustion chamber and light it off.

How does that work in the middle of winter?  I need the heat to keep blowing and I need that windscreen clear of fog.

[FoMoJo]

How does that work in the middle of winter?  I need the heat to keep blowing and I need that windscreen clear of fog.

I'd like to get some details on that.  I expect that it knows enough not to shut the engine down when the conditions don't comply; or start it back up when off too long. 

[nickdrinkwater]

Big improvement on the 4-door.  The 5-door just looks gorgeous. 

I like this feature as well...Another feature that will be new to the Focus is automatic start-stop functionality that switches off the engine when the car comes to a halt. This will be one of the first such applications in the U.S. market in a non-hybrid vehicle....It would be interesting to see exactly how it works but, with direct-injection, they should just be able to squirt a bit of fuel in the appropriate combustion chamber and light it off.

How does that work in the middle of winter?  I need the heat to keep blowing and I need that windscreen clear of fog.

This is commonplace in Europe.  I don't know how it works, but it does.

[nickdrinkwater]

[SVT666]

That's hot.  Especially in that colour.

[nickdrinkwater]

It looks massive in the profile shot.  That said, they have done a good job in minimising the size of the front overhang, much better than the current car in this respect.

The tail lamps seem to be inspired by the 370Z, either way they dropped one of the key design identities of the Focus which was the high-level rear lamps.

Aesthetically, this is not the step forward I was expecting.  It's not that fresh to look at.  I guess that means it will date well, but still, I was expecting something more adventurous.