The Pope’s humble 2013 Ford Focus has been reinvented in its 2015 iteration to make it look more sporty, revved with more power and packed with more tech innovations. So would the Pope want to trade his old one for this all-new version?
For starters, the old 2-liter, four-cylinder engine has been replaced with a 1.5-liter, four-cylinder EcoBoost engine that offers 177.53 horsepower and 240 Newton-meters of torque—much more than what the previous engine offered—while promising a 6-percent improved fuel efficiency with lower emissions.
We were driving up and down the hills of Adelaide’s countryside, famous for its vineyards and nature parks, and the ride was smooth and devoid of hiccups while navigating sharp hairpin bends and steep climbs.
It was difficult to mind Australia’s strict traffic rules because this Ford Focus picked up speed on the highways and even the inclines of the mountain roads with so much ease. And the fact that it had what Ford terms as an Enhanced Transitional Stability (ETS) system, another of its industry-first, gave the driver an added measure of confidence.
Even if the weather was sunny during the test-drive without any threat of rain, the ETS system came in handy when roaring on the uneven dust paths or the inclined narrow roads where potential loss of grip could occur.
Ford had designed the ETS system to monitor vehicle speed and the driver’s steering input in order to predict a loss of grip before it actually happens. Should a potential loss of grip is detected, the system would activate the vehicle’s Electronic Stability Program (ESP) to reduce engine torque and apply individual-wheel braking to help keep the vehicle on track.
For someone not used to driving a right-hand vehicle and on unfamiliar territory while stepping on the gas to try to keep up with everyone in the convoy, the ETS system is a bonus, especially when you realize you could easily ramp up to 140 kilometers per hour without even feeling the engine straining from the effort.
Driving assistance systems
For a compact car, it’s amusing to see Ford invade the bragging territory of luxury vehicles. The new Ford Focus has an Enhanced Active Park Assist (EAPA) that builds on its popular Parallel Park Assist by adding a Perpendicular Park Assist.
You need to activate the EAPA when entering parking territory, after which the system scans for available parking spaces. When a vacant slot is sensed, the system takes control of the car’s steering to guide the vehicle into the space while the driver controls the shifting, braking and acceleration. Yup, you can do it without touching the steering wheel.
The Perpendicular Park Assist makes use of two new ultrasonic sensors on the rear of the car, which also enables Park-Out Assist. Park-Out Assist takes the stress out of exiting a parallel parking space by taking control of the steering while the driver concentrates on operating the brake and accelerator.
More than a novelty, the Ford Focus’ Active City Stop (ACS) system helps avoid low-speed collisions when driving up to 50 kph, which is faster than the previous ACS system’s max speed of 30 kph. While the mounted sensor on the windshield cannot sense people or animals yet, it can detect slower moving or stationary vehicles in front to trigger the brakes if you’re moving forward too quickly.
More tech tools
In synch with Ford’s fun-to-drive DNA, the new Focus also has Ford’s advanced connectivity system, Sync 2, to help the driver and passenger to operate the car’s climate controls, entertainment system, navigation system and a linked smartphone with natural voice commands.
Even with our Americanized English twang, the high-resolution 8-inch touchscreen responded with ease to our voice commands. And even if it couldn’t (for some unknown reason yet), the easy menu navigation on the screen was not difficult to explore, even by a lesser techie like myself.
Another tech tool that comes with the new Ford Focus is the Ford MyKey. If you have children of driving age, the spare key can be programmed for maximum speed, in-car entertainment volume, and even immobility if the seatbelt is not fastened. The Ford MyKey can also give an earlier low-fuel warning.
The car’s interior is noticeably organized, with less clutter that allows the driver to adjust quickly to the task on hand.
There are the obligatory storage compartments, but the console has adjustable sliders that snugly hold different sizes of bottles and cups, and can safely balance a 1-liter water bottle beside a 400-milliliter cup.
Going to the exterior, one aspect of a vehicle that the Pope would likely give least attention, a new black grille melds with the stylish exterior design for a bolder, more muscular appeal. Add to this the styled rear spoiler and the overall look comes across as sheer sophistication.
The headlamps are slimmer, with unobstrusive daytime LED lights. The fog lamp is encased in the same grille material, a unique treatment by Ford to the Focus. The tail lamps are also slimmer to complement the sleek fascia and tailgate arrangement of the rear.
The overall look is a tempered sportiness, one that a young professional would want to take to work and to pick up a date. It also seems to be the perfect car for a retired couple who regularly motors to their out-of-town farmhouse on weekends. It seems perfect for the Pope, too: not too flashy, quite logical, but definitely fun to drive.
The new Ford Focus will be available in the Philippines sometime in the fourth quarter of the year.
There was no pricing indication given yet.
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