Ford Focus 2003 Review

There is a new blue-oval hero in Australia, and this one doesn't wear a Falcon badge.

It definitely won't be racing in The Big One at Bathurst next month, although cars remarkably like it were among the frontrunners in Rally Australia in Perth last weekend.

It's the hot new Focus ST170, and it has lobbed from Europe to do a number in the growing lineup of new-age hot hatches including the Toyota Corolla Sportivo, Holden Astra Turbo and Peugeot 206 GTi 180.

The top-of-the-pops Focus even comes with a true-blue Aussie body job which includes bold blue panels and extra spoilers and skirts to signal its significance to Ford fans who want something that's compact, perky and full of personality.

The ST170 is the car that Ford Australia has always wanted to use as the headliner for its Focus range, which took over last year from the long-running Laser as its contender in the tough baby-car class.

Every Focus looks good and the ride and handling is outstanding, but something was missing in the engine bay. It was the zip which makes a baby hatch more than just transport.

The ST makes up the difference with a punchy two-litre four in the nose, but the work didn't stop there.

The team at Ford of Europe ticked all the boxes to put show and go into a car which is much more rewarding to drive and be seen driving.

The go-fast Focus turns heads. And it gets people talking.

It could just be the bold blue three-door body, but it's more likely to be linked to the 121kW engine, the six-speed manual gearbox, sports bucket seats and big wheels and brakes.

It is the WRX or Evo of the Focus family, although not as extreme as the all-wheel-drive hero cars in the Subaru and Mitsubishi families.

There are even quicker cars in Europe, which has a Focus RS and will eventually get a rally-bred turbo all-wheel-drive model, but the ST is as good as it gets at the moment.

It's a big step up from the 1.8-litre Focus CL which opens the action in Australia at $20,660, or better if you can still get one of last year's cars under the recent incentive program.

The price of the ST jumps all the way to $37,000, but it's clearly the hero of the 11-car Focus range, which includes a choice of three-door hatch, five-door hatch and four-door wagon bodies and 1.8 and 2-litre engines in the lesser cars.

The Focus hasn't done anything like the numbers achieved by the Laser in its heyday, with sales for the first eight months of 2003 only reaching 8369 cars against 18,294 for the Holden Astra, 13,987 for the Mazda 323 -- mostly thanks to the latest $19,990 price deal -- and 12,118 for the Mitsubishi Lancer.

That's why Ford was keen to get the ST and why it's going to be pushed hard. We've already seen a television spot linking it to the WRC Focus, the hottest car of this year's World Rally Championship, and there will be more as the car gets known better.

But the package is pretty tasty with CD sound, airconditioning, front and side airbags, leather trim, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and those neat spoked 17-inch alloys.

On the road

OUR first taste of the ST170 was in New Zealand, chasing the WRC Focus team in a round of the World Rally Championship. It looked great, and the equipment was terrific, but it didn't really light up the way we had expected.

It was tasty, but not tantalising.

So we were keen to try it again, particularly after a recent run in the Corolla Sportivo and our earlier positive experiences with the Astra Turbo and even a couple of the costlier Euro hotties.

First up, it sure turns heads. There is something about the ST170 -- just like a WRX STi -- that tells people it's special. It could be the blue body, but it's also linked to the obvious go-faster parts.

It's much the same when you slide inside and settle into the supportive sports buckets, grab the meaty steering wheel or select a gear with the short-throw lever. The cabin doesn't have the class of some of its rivals, despite white-faced dials and plenty of standard equipment, but it still makes a positive first impression.

But the engine, which is the key to the ST, doesn't deliver on the promise. It doesn't have any fruit to its exhaust note and the throttle response is good, but not great.

The numbers look pretty good, but the tuning of the 2-litre four is flat and uninspiring.

It makes 127kW and 196Nm, but that's well behind the Astra Turbo and it doesn't have the top-end charge of the Corolla Sportivo. It's an engine that never feels totally willing or keen for action.

It is best to give it a bit of a punch and kick up quickly through the six speeds, keeping it flowing for a smooth run. It is good for overtaking, but anyone who expects the ST to really light up in the twisty stuff will be disappointed.

Still, there is a lot to like. The ST rides very well and the grip is great. It's a turn-and-go cornering car, with great balance and more traction than you can really use.

It also stops well, doesn't get flustered over bumps, and doesn't demand too much skill or commitment to get along briskly. It's in sharp contrast to the Sportivo, which really needs to be stirred to get the best action, and more like the Astra but without the turbo action.

We liked a lot of the upmarket work on the ST, but the dashboard is looking dated and confused -- it's a mismatch of lines and angles -- and there were too many minor quality niggles in our test car. It was only squeaks, rattles and loose-fitting bits, but it had us worrying how the car would look and feel after three years on the road.

It's also noisy, mostly because of the aggressive tread on the low-profile tyres.

Then again, the Sportivo was nothing special -- particularly for a company that brags about "Built in Toyota" quality even for the South African Corollas -- and we're not convinced an Alfa 147 or a hot Peugeot would be any better.

The ST was light and easy to drive, with pretty good headlamps, a nice sound system and enough fruit to justify the price tag, but . . . basically, we were hoping for more. And the sort of more that would make the ST into a compact XR-style hero car for Ford.

It gets close, but it doesn't make the final cut and we're left hoping. And hoping that Ford will tap into the European scene for something even quicker sometime in the future.

FORD FOCUS ST170 $37,000 as tested

ENGINE
2-litre four cylinder with twin-overhead camshafts and fuel injection
POWER
127kW at 7000 revs
TORQUE
196Nm at 5500 revs
TRANSMISSION
six-speed manual, front-wheel drive
BODY
Three-door hatch
DIMENSIONS
Length 4152mm, width 1699mm, height 1430mm, wheelbase 2615mm, tracks 1494/1487mm front/rear
WEIGHT
1283kg
FUEL TANK
55 litres
FUEL CONSUMPTION
Average on test
9.7 litres/100km
STEERING
Power-assisted rack-and-pinion
SUSPENSION
Fully independent with front MacPherson struts, rear trailing arms with multiple links
BRAKES
anti-skid four-wheel discs
WHEELS
6x17 alloy
TYRES
215x45 R17
WARRANTY
3 years/100,000km

How it compares

Holden Astra SRi Turbo
(from $36,990)
Toyota Corolla Sportivo
(from $29,990)
Alfa Romeo 147
(from $38,500)
Audi S3
(from $67,420)

The bottom line

+ Good looks, smart driving
- Needs more punch, rattles
A nice kick for the Focus