New Ford Focus here in August
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2nd May, 2011
The all-new Ford Focus is on its way to Australia and
will come to market in August as a five-door hatchback and four-door sedan.
The all-new Focus is a key element of the Ford product portfolio in Australia and has been
expanded to include a new high-series Titanium variant, offering luxury levels of convenience and
comfort that will please buyers shifting from larger and luxury-class vehicles.
With over 10 million units sold since its introduction in 1998, the Ford Focus has become a firm
favourite with consumers worldwide for its outstanding value, comfort and safety, and above all, for
being great fun to drive.
Following an unprecedented global development programme under the company's One Ford strategy,
the next-generation Focus is set to continue the successful tradition of its predecessors.
“In every world market where Focus competes, customers are looking for expressive design,
affordable innovation, superior quality, responsive performance and exceptional fuel economy,”
said Bob Graziano, President and CEO, Ford Australia.
“In Australia, the all-new Focus presents all these elements in an outstanding package. It
will raise the bar in these areas and deliver a new level of standard and available content, enabled
by its global scale.”
Distinguished by its sleek and sporty design, the new Ford Focus is packed with more affordable
technologies and features than ever previously offered by Ford in this market sector.
“The new Focus is evidence of One Ford in action, and truly represents the best of Ford Motor
Company,” Graziano said.
“Our investment in a new global small car platform is enabling us to provide consumers in
Australia, and around the world, with an affordable range of cars which offer quality, fuel
efficiency, safety and smart technology beyond their expectations.”
Developed in Europe, for sale worldwide
Developed in Europe, for sale in over 120 markets worldwide with 80 per cent parts commonality,
the next-generation Focus is the volume model made from Ford Motor Company's new global small car
platform. This platform will underpin at least ten vehicles around the world and account for two
million units of annual production by 2012.
“A year ago, we shared our vision for a new generation of small cars from a common global
platform,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president for Global Product Development.
“We've delivered the all-new C-MAX and Grand C-MAX for the European markets and with the
all-new Focus we’re demonstrating the possibilities this new global approach has for transforming
the core of the Ford product line-up around the world.”
Volume production has already commenced at the lead Ford Focus assembly plants in Saarlouis
(Germany) and Michigan (USA).
European production will be expanded in mid-2011 when the assembly plant in St. Petersburg
(Russia) starts building the four-door and five-door models.
Focus models for Australia will be sourced from the lead European assembly plant in Germany.
Striking, streamlined design
Both new Focus bodystyles share a sporty and dynamic 'character', marking the next evolution of
Ford’s acclaimed kinetic design form language, which has contributed to the growing popularity of
the company’s latest small and medium global cars.
With its striking front end, sleek profile, dramatic rising beltline and athletic stance, the
new Focus clearly signals the rewarding driving experience that awaits customers when they take to
the road.
The all-new Focus sedan has a drag coefficient as low as 0.295, compared to 0.320 for the
current model. The streamlined Focus shape and steeply raked windscreen contribute to significantly
reduced drag, while optimised aerodynamics help reduce wind noise at speed and contribute to
improved fuel efficiency.
Noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) levels have been reduced and driving dynamics improved by
the increased stiffness of the body structure, with 30 per cent greater rigidity than the previous
Focus model.
Stylish, functional interior
The dynamic quality of the exterior is reinforced by the distinctive design of the interior. The
new Focus has a modern, cockpit-style interior, with the stylish centre console wrapped around the
driver and providing outstanding access to the vehicle’s major controls.
Ford’s latest-generation Human Machine Interface (HMI) system is used within the cockpit, with
twin five-way toggle switches on the steering wheel controlling the two main vehicle displays
located in the instrument cluster and high in the centre of the instrument panel.
The interior combines outstanding functionality with outstanding craftsmanship. The cabin’s bold
and contemporary graphics, the sculptured shape of the soft-touch instrument panel and the choice
of superior trim materials all help to give occupants the feeling that they are travelling in a
premium-class car.
Smart technology enhances convenience and safety
The global scale of Ford’s small car programme makes additional technologies and features more
economically viable for cars in this segment. This unprecedented technology investment is aimed at
ensuring the new Focus offers customers an exciting array of advanced features generally found only
in larger, more expensive vehicles.
While the number of features offered in each market will vary according to local customer demand
and acceptance, the full range of technologies has been engineered for the new Focus.
Smart innovations available on the all-new Focus for Australia include Active Park Assist, cruise
control with Adjustable Speed Limiting Device (ASLD), keyless entry system with push button start
and Adaptive Cruise Control.
Active Park Assist is a semi-automatic parallel parking system that uses sensors around the
vehicle and the new Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS) system to guide the vehicle into place.
It measures the length and depth of the chosen parking space and then steers itself into position,
while the driver controls the accelerator, brake and gear selection.
Passive safety features include a new generation of advanced airbag restraint systems with driver
and front passenger airbags, side front airbags and side curtain airbags for front- and rear-seat
occupants, as well as an exceptionally strong and light steel body shell.
The new body shell makes use of more high-strength steels than any previous Ford.
High strength steels comprise 55 per cent of the body shell and more than 26 per cent of the
vehicle structure is formed from ultra high-strength and Boron steels. These advanced materials help
the structure meet the most stringent crash legislation across world markets while minimising overall
vehicle weight.
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Unmatched driving quality
When it was introduced globally in 1998, the original Ford Focus brought new levels of agility and
responsiveness to the small car segment. The next-generation Focus plans to raise the benchmark once
more, targeting class-leading driving quality that blends outstanding steering precision and road
feedback with significantly improved refinement and ride control.
Ford engineers have enhanced Focus' cornering stability and agility with the introduction of an
advanced Torque Vectoring Control system, which is fitted as standard equipment.
The system behaves like a limited-slip differential to constantly balance the distribution of torque
between the front wheels, which results in reduced understeer, improved traction and better turn-in.
This technology has, up to now, typically only been available on premium sports vehicles.
Ford engineers have also retuned and enhanced the innovative suspension concepts from prior models,
developing optimised new designs for the Control Blade Independent Rear Suspension (IRS) and the
semi-isolated front subframe.
The new chassis design also now incorporates a completely new Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS)
system on mid- and high-series models, which has been tuned to deliver precise response at speed while
remaining light and manoeuvrable for easy parking.
Spirited performance with outstanding economy
The engaging driver appeal of the new Ford Focus is magnified by a three-prong powertrain range that
delivers spirited performance and offers outstanding fuel economy and CO2 emissions.
The powertrain line-up includes an all-new 2.0-litre GDi (gasoline direct injection) petrol engine
that combines high-pressure direct injection and twin independent variable camshaft timing (Ti-VCT) for
enhanced performance and fuel efficiency.
A completely updated 2.0-litre Duratorq TDCi common rail turbo diesel engine is also part of the
line-up. Both engines offer significant increases in power and torque compared to the outgoing model.
Both engines can also be matched to either a manual transmission – a five-speed manual with the GDi
engine or six-speed manual with the TDCi engine – or the latest six-speed PowerShift automatic
transmission, depending on the variant.
The third powertrain comes in the form of a 1.6-litre Duratec Ti-VCT engine, which will be the fuel
economy leader for the new Focus range, providing a reduction in fuel consumption of more than 15 per
cent compared to the outgoing model.
Ford Focus – a history of success
With well over 10 million units sold since its initial launch in 1998, the Focus brand has been a
tremendous success in markets around the world. Previous generations have been manufactured in Germany,
Spain, USA, Mexico, China, Taiwan, Russia, Philippines, Vietnam and South Africa.
"The launch of the next-generation vehicle marks the start of an exciting new chapter for Focus
in Australia," said Graziano.
"The all-new Focus is at the centre of a convergence for automotive trends. It was designed with
an acute understanding of global customers yet it's tailored for each individual region, combining the
best from Europe, North America and Asia to deliver a new level of emotional driving enjoyment."
"New Focus offers a desirable combination of dynamic design, outstanding driver appeal,
affordable technology, quality craftsmanship and impressive fuel economy, which will not only delight
our existing customers but also expand the appeal of the Focus brand to a whole new generation of Ford
customers."
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