Bill Pierre Ford

Ford Focus quickly became Ford’s top-selling passenger car. Reworked for 2005, the front-wheel-drive compact comes in four body styles. They include the ZX3 two-door hatchback, ZX5 four-door hatchback, ZX4 sedan and ZXW wagon. Trim levels include the
entry-level S, midrange SE and upscale SES.Focus comes as a 2-dr hatchback called the ZX3, and with four doors as the ZX4 sedan, ZX5 hatchback, and ZXW wagon. Price levels ascend through S, SE, SES, and ST designations. All have 4-cyl engines. The ST has 151hp, the others have 136. The ZX3 S and sporty ZX4 ST sedan are manual transmission only. Other models offer manual or automatic. The ST has a sportsuspension and 4-wheel disc brakes. It also includes ABS, which is optional on other models. Traction control is available for SE, SES, and ST versions. All Focuses include a height-adjustable driver seat and split folding rear seatbacks. Head- and torso-protecting front side airbags are available linewide. Other options include sunroof, leather upholstery, and heated front seats.

Consumer Guide Automotive places each vehicle into one of 18 classes based on size, price, and market position. Compact Cars comprise popularly priced sedans, hatchbacks, and wagons with wheelbases 100 inches or longer.

The 2008 Focus will get modest styling and engineering updates on a largely unchanged vintage-2000 platform. The wagon body style may be dropped, but a 2-dr coupe, maybe a
hatchback, will join the line. All models add the Ford brand’s new three-bar grille theme, a full-length bodyside creaseline, and spruced-up interiors. Dimensions and powerteams will
see little, if any change.

Like the similar make-do Focus freshening of 2005, this one reflects Ford Motor Company’s continuing cash shortage. However, sources believe the North American Focus will share in a new-generation European platform that should be ready by early next decade–provided the company’s current turnaround efforts succeed.