Features of Ford Focus 2012. How do you find it?

[jrqp30]

I personally tried out their new features which is the Park Assist and Auto City Stop.
How do you guys find it?

Here is a video of me testing it out:
Ford Focus Experience -> View #135 Jeffrey Pascual

Would you agree that the price of PHP 1.2M is reasonable for this kind of monster?
I was actually rooting for the Ford Fusion but I believe it will be until next year upon arrival in the Philippines..

[ghosthunter]

I personally tried out their new features which is the Park Assist and Auto City Stop.
How do you guys find it?

Here is a video of me testing it out:
Ford Focus Experience -> View #135 Jeffrey Pascual

Would you agree that the price of PHP 1.2M is reasonable for this kind of monster?
I was actually rooting for the Ford Fusion but I believe it will be until next year upon arrival in the Philippines..

The price is simply too high at P1.2M. The older model could be justified because it was a turbo-diesel. With the current model, I find it hard to say the price tag of P1.2M is worth it because the Park Assist and Auto City Stop are just added "toys" that would not be missed if they were removed.

[m05tw4nt3d]

i wonder how park assist works. sana pwede din palagyan yung manual nav ko.

[basti08]

With all the electric nannies you'll find in more expensive euro brands, you could say the Focus is a real bargain at 1.2M. But it competes with more mainstream Jap brands here making it the more expensive among the compact roster, still, top line Japs costs about as much and not as well equipped. Add to that a new powerful engine, wonderful euro compliant ride and handling, features galore and a gorgeous styling. Still a bargain after all imo.

[ghosthunter]

With all the electric nannies you'll find in more expensive euro brands, you could say the Focus is a real bargain at 1.2M. But it competes with more mainstream Jap brands here making it the more expensive among the compact roster, still, top line Japs costs about as much and not as well equipped. Add to that a new powerful engine, wonderful euro compliant ride and handling, features galore and a gorgeous styling. Still a bargain after all imo.

That powerful engine will also consume a lot of expensive gasoline. Not something most people would want in their compact sedan or compact hatch. People buying a car in this category would like a bit of style but fuel economy and purchase price still matters more as well as long term maintenance cost/service. This is why Japanese brands like Honda and Toyota will still be top choices.

[basti08]

It's a matter of priority. I believe this (Focus)could provide cross shopping among euro brand buyers rather than those of usual Jap sedan target market. I, myself, doesn't have the balls to own one. I tend to lean on simpler, much easier to maintain japs. But for those who could afford a rather bare A4 1.8 Non FSi or BMW 316i or Benz C180 or even a Volvo S40. The Focus (at least here locally), could put up a good fight against those euro sedans. Ford is not tagged as cheap brand here as it is elsewhere. Not only is it priced way down low, it offers greater features, amenities and up to par engines and even tranny (dual clutch)against those pricier entry level premium branded compacts.

[ghosthunter]

It's a matter of priority. I believe this (Focus)could provide cross shopping among euro brand buyers rather than those of usual Jap sedan target market. I, myself, doesn't have the balls to own one. I tend to lean on simpler, much easier to maintain japs. But for those who could afford a rather bare A4 1.8 Non FSi or BMW 316i or Benz C180 or even a Volvo S40. The Focus (at least here locally), could put up a good fight against those euro sedans. Ford is not tagged as cheap brand here as it is elsewhere. Not only is it priced way down low, it offers greater features, amenities and up to par engines and even tranny (dual clutch)against those pricier entry level premium branded compacts.

Only the top of the line Focus has much of the "toys" ... the lower priced variants are pretty much bare and only a little more than basic transport. So comparing the top of the line Focus with the likes of BMW, Audi or Benz is a false comparison because the euro-car vs focus price tag difference is too big (euro car brand usually starting at P2M and up).

Many would be comparing it with the likes of the Hyundai Sonata which has a much closer price tag or the cheaper Hyundai Elantra 1.8L or Toyota Corolla 1.6L or Mitsubishi Lancer EX GTA.

[jut703]

That powerful engine will also consume a lot of expensive gasoline. Not something most people would want in their compact sedan or compact hatch. People buying a car in this category would like a bit of style but fuel economy and purchase price still matters more as well as long term maintenance cost/service. This is why Japanese brands like Honda and Toyota will still be top choices.

People buying TOTL compacts aren't exactly the type to be stingy about gas expenses. Compared to the Altis 2.0V, Civic 2.0 EL, Impreza 2.0i, Sentra 200, and Mazda 3 2.0R, the Focus Sport+ offers the most bang for the buck. Notwithstanding the novelty auto parking and city stop features, it still offers everything that the most loaded of compacts have. It's still close to 200k cheaper than a Sonata GLS, which it has more features than.

[ghosthunter]

People buying TOTL compacts aren't exactly the type to be stingy about gas expenses. Compared to the Altis 2.0V, Civic 2.0 EL, Impreza 2.0i, Sentra 200, and Mazda 3 2.0R, the Focus Sport+ offers the most bang for the buck. Notwithstanding the novelty auto parking and city stop features, it still offers everything that the most loaded of compacts have. It's still close to 200k cheaper than a Sonata GLS, which it has more features than.

... er... actually they still are stingy on fuel expenses as seen by how popular the car fuel economy threads are.

[eido]

Bat sabi nung kausap namin na sa hindi daw nag lock yung sa fuel lid hehe hindi ko na din kse ni try

[basti08]

AM/AG4, were you able to check if the Trend really has the more traditional Hydraulic Power Steering? Because on their brochures, it is indicated that the base Ambiente has Eletric Power Steering, same as with the Titanium + and Sport + models. The Trend though has a rather odd set up of the Hydraulic PS.

[AG4]

AM/AG4, were you able to check if the Trend really has the more traditional Hydraulic Power Steering? Because on their brochures, it is indicated that the base Ambiente has Eletric Power Steering, same as with the Titanium + and Sport + models. The Trend though has a rather odd set up of the Hydraulic PS.

I noticed that too in the brochure e-mailed to me, I was wondering if it was a typo.
That was one of the questions I was supposed to ask, but totally forgot some of the questions when I saw the car. :bwahaha:

I took a peek inside the lower grill of the Focus Trend and it looks like it has active grill shutters inside, but in the brochure its listed only for the top trim levels.

[basti08]

I noticed that too in the brochure e-mailed to me, I was wondering if it was a typo.
That was one of the questions I was supposed to ask, but totally forgot some of the questions when I saw the car. :bwahaha:

I took a peek inside the lower grill of the Focus Trend and it looks like it has active grill shutters inside, but in the brochure its listed only for the top trim levels.

:bwahaha:

You also go gaga on the showroom like me.

Anyway, they also emailed me a brochure and emailed back that question. I still haven't got a reply.

Still, can't get over the Titanium Plus sedan which I think now looks better than the hatch counterpart.

[AG4]

:bwahaha:

You also go gaga on the showroom like me.

Anyway, they also emailed me a brochure and emailed back that question. I still haven't got a reply.

Still, can't get over the Titanium Plus sedan which I think now looks better than the hatch counterpart.

Couldn't help it. :D

Same here, the sedan looks great, but the hatch is kinda growing on me too, its only the Trend sedan that i've seen in the metal though.

Titanium +


Sport +

[eido]

Mas gusto ko din sedan kesa sa hb. Hb yung naka display sa global

[jut703]

Checked out the Focus today. I first got to try out the Titanium+ in Ford EDSA (it was their only display unit), and it came in Lunar Sky (exclusive to the sedan, brownish-grey color).



The dash and instrument panel cluster are just downright beautiful. The TFT LCD of the MID in between the gauges offers a wealth of information. It displayed fuel economy in L/100km though, which I don't find very amusing. Not sure if it could be converted to km/L. The sound system works really well, offering sound quality that sounds closer to the audio units in the midsize sedans than in an ordinary compact. Defnitely blows the Altis' sound system out of the water. One weird thing though, spec sheets say it's got 9 speakers, but I only saw 6.



Exterior-wise, the color's great, but I'm not that much of a fan of the sedan. For one, the rear looks a tad long - not exactly ugly, but the Focus looks more natural in hatchback form. Second, there's the rims - 16" is just so-so in the Focus, so the Titanium doesn't exude much of a TOTL aura with the small-ish rims. Third, the side skirt actually makes a difference, and unfortunately only the Sport+ has it. Other stuff to note is the fact that the 2.0 models come with engine covers, while the 1.6 variants don't. Also, the fuel lid isn't locked (yes, you just flick it open and it's there). I couldn't pry open the actual gas tank cover though, so I guess it'll still need the user's permission before you get to pump in (or siphon out) gas.



If there's one thing you could take against the Focus though, it's space. To be honest, I was expecting much more rear legroom since this is a new compact based on a new platform. Lo and behold, it's just about an inch more expansive than what my 3-year-old daily drive has. Aside from that, because of the dashboard's design, even the front passengers don't have an aura of space. This is somehow mitigated by the fact that the car's pretty wide, but admittedly it's nowhere near class-leading when interior room is concerned. Thankfully, the trunk's pretty good - it's deep and moderately wide, though it's not that high. Loading bags of groceries won't be a problem, but stacking luggage on top of each other might be. Again comparing to our Altis, which I find to have enormous trunk space, the Focus trades height for a bit more depth.



Among my other nitpicks is the fact that the glovebox is pretty tiny. I don't know why the aux/usb enclosure has to take so much space, but it does. The housing for the rain sensors and god-knows-what-sensors is pretty large, too. It's not distracting though, since no-one really looks at the top-middle portion of their windshield.

There's not much to note about the moonroof, except that it's there. It's not panoramic or anything, just your run-of-the-mill power moon roof. The microphone which allows for voice control is conveniently placed by the map lights. Overall though, I prefer the interior of the Sport+ over the Titanium+ even if the former doesn't have leather. Black trumps beige for me anytime.

[AG4]

The sound system works really well, offering sound quality that sounds closer to the audio units in the midsize sedans than in an ordinary compact. Defnitely blows the Altis' sound system out of the water. One weird thing though, spec sheets say it's got 9 speakers, but I only saw 6.

Each of the 4 doors contain 1 main speaker and 1 tweeter, the 9th speaker is on the center top portion of the dashboard.
The front tweeter is on the inner side of the side mirror base, the rear tweeters are located infront of the inside rear door handles.
(It's actually slightly visible in your photo)

Clearer image


Speaker on the dashboard

4+4+1= 9

Also, the fuel lid isn't locked (yes, you just flick it open and it's there).

The fuel lid is connected to the central locking system just like the outgoing Focus.

If there's one thing you could take against the Focus though, it's space. To be honest, I was expecting much more rear legroom since this is a new compact based on a new platform. Lo and behold, it's just about an inch more expansive than what my 3-year-old daily drive has.

The platform is not all-new, its a modified (improved) version of the C1 platform which is/was shared with the Mazda 3 and Volvo S40/V50/C30/C70.

[numbah5]

So, there is no subwoofer and amplifiers installed on the Focus?

[jut703]

Each of the 4 doors contain 1 main speaker and 1 tweeter, the 9th speaker is on the center top portion of the dashboard.
The front tweeter is on the inner side of the side mirror base, the rear tweeters are located infront of the inside rear door handles.

Sneaky layout for the speakers, eh. I was looking in the wrong places, searching for two more full-size speakers on the shelf behind the rear seats and a subwoofer either under one of the seats or in the trunk. Either way, the sound was pretty good - not tinny (despite the 4 tweeters) and has a fair amount of bass even without a sub.

The platform is not all-new, its a modified (improved) version of the C1 platform which is/was shared with the Mazda 3 and Volvo S40/V50/C30/C70.

Sorry for the confusion, this is what I meant - that the Focus is running on the newer, updated "Global C Segment Platform" as opposed to the current Mazda 3 which was built using the older C1 (like its predecessor).

[numbah5]

Because the sound system is made by Sony kaya maganda ang sound quality. Meron kayang amplifier ang sound system ng Focus?