Ford Focus Mk4 Review (2019-present)
Ford Focus cars for sale
4.0
Expert review
Pros
Enjoyable to drive
Ample room for tall passengers
Excellent Ecoboost petrol engines
Cons
Some rivals have bigger boots
Ford's new car warranty is short compared with those offered by Hyundai and Kia
Entry-level cars with torsion beam suspension aren't as good to drive
The CarGurus verdict
There are more striking family cars out there, others still that have flashier interiors, and still others that are more reliable. The Ford Focus offers a good range of commendable petrol and diesel engines, though, and in terms of safety and road holding, it is right up there with the very best, if not one step ahead.
Don’t be put off by the small displacement three-cylinder engines. They’re all turbocharged, which means they punch well above their weight. They’re also more charismatic than a conventional four-cylinder motor. Pick the right engine from the extensive line up for your particular needs and you’ll enjoy a good blend of performance, powertrain refinement and fuel efficiency.
Meanwhile, the sporty Focus ST is a very good all-rounder without being truly exceptional in any one area. Whereas other hot hatches compromise on day-to-day comfort to deliver a more thrilling driving experience, the Ford prefers to deliver consistently across the board, being both effortless to use everyday and fun to drive on a great road.
What is the Ford Focus Mk4?
The original Ford Focus completely rewrote the family hatchback rulebook when it arrived more than 20 years ago. Since then, the new Ford Focus – now in its fourth generation – has consistently been among the best cars in its class as well as a permanent fixture in the top-five best-selling cars in this country. Throughout its time on sale it has stayed true to the same attributes that made the mk1 such a standout performer, notably class-leading handling and steering response.
Over the years the Focus has grown in size and weight, but even now the mk4 version has an advantage over the competition in terms of driving manners (although that competition has steadily closed the gap; rivals such as the Volkswagen Golf and Seat Leon are almost as agile and responsive as the Focus). Other hatchbacks like the Honda Civic stand out for their much more distinctive styling (the new Focus is perhaps a shade derivative in that respect), while the Golf’s very crisp and modern interior makes the Ford’s cabin look very plain indeed.
How practical is it?
The basics of the Focus Mk4’s interior, such as the material and build quality, plus the driver’s seating position and passenger space, are all fine – there simply isn’t much design flair on show. More pragmatic buyers won’t mind that, although they will like the comprehensive range of petrol and diesel engines that means there is a Focus to suit all needs.
Perhaps what’s more important is that after years of offering a Focus that was slightly smaller than the opposition when it came to interior space, Ford finally got back on track with the launch of the Mk4 version. Inside you’ll find ample room in the rear seats for even tall passengers. The hatchback's 375-litre boot is pretty much a match for the VW Golf, but a long way behind a Skoda Octavia and, indeed, the version of the Vauxhall Astra that was launched in 2021. Note that if you choose a Focus Active model the boot space falls to 341 litres, or if you choose a Focus Estate is grows to 575 litres.
What’s it like to drive?
At launch, the Focus was available with quite a wide range of engines, though this has been slimmed down as time has gone by.
The base of the petrol engine line-up was a 1.0-litre three-cylinder unit, turbocharged to give it the power of a bigger engine. Ford calls these turbo engines Ecoboost and they're punchy for their size, but the entry-level model's 83bhp meant it wasn’t well suited to much more than town driving. Next up were two more potent versions of the same engine with 98- or 123bhp, while bigger 1.5-litre engines – still turbocharged three-cylinder units – produce either 148- or 180bhp.
The diesels are all four-cylinder units and all are turbocharged, too, with power outputs ranging from 93- to 148bhp (the less powerful diesels displace 1.5 litres and the more powerful one 2.0 litres).
Later in the Focus’s life, all but the 123bhp petrol and 148bhp diesel were dropped. The smaller petrol engines weren’t replaced, but the 1.5-litre engines made way for a 1.0-litre mild hybrid engine with 153bhp. At the same time, Ford equipped automatic versions of the 123bhp engine with mild hybrid technology, giving them a fuel economy boost that meant they were no longer any less fuel efficient than the pure petrol engines.
Right at the top of the range is the sporty ST, which is offered with either a petrol or diesel engine and is terrific fun to drive.
Ride and handling remain a Focus strong point. It might look like a fairly ordinary family hatchback, but the Mk4 Focus has a superb blend of ride comfort and control which, along with its accurate and well-weighted steering, makes every model a joy to drive.
Technology, equipment and infotainment
When the Mk4 Focus was launched, trim levels were wide ranging, starting with the entry level Zetec and scrolling through the Titanium, Titanium X, sporty Ford Focus ST-Line and ST-Line X, the raised Active, Active X and Active X Vignale, and then the top-of-the-range Vignale.
Later on, Zetec was swapped for the more sparsely equipped Trend, while the Titanium X and ST-Line X were renamed Titanium Vignale and ST-Line Vignale. At the same time, the Focus Active range was rationalised to just the Active and the Active Vignale.
All Mk4 Focus models are well-specced for the price point, with alloy wheels, a touchscreen infotainment system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), and cruise control across the range, and a head-up display on Titanium models and above.
Ford Focus Mk4 running costs
Whichever engine you choose, the Focus will return decent fuel economy for this type of car: not class-swot mpg, but not in detention, either. If fuel efficiency is a driving factor in your decision-making, it’s important to look a little deeper than the official figures. For instance, if you do rather more miles than the average driver, particularly on the motorway, a diesel engine will prove most fuel efficient. However, if for the most part you only drive in town and you do fewer miles than most, a smaller petrol unit will be the best bet.
Most engines are offered with either a six-speed manual gearbox or an eight-speed automatic: for best fuel economy, choose the manual transmission and drive cautiously. Putting the performance-oriented ST model to one side, the lowest mpg figure Ford quotes across the entire line up is 52.3mpg. That’s for either of the 123bhp-engined 1.0–litre petrol models. Meanwhile, the most fuel efficient model is a Ford Focus hatchback with the 118bhp diesel engine, a manual gearbox and 16-inch wheels. Ford says it’ll return 67.3mpg combined. It’s also the cleanest model in the range, emitting only 110 grams of CO2 per kilometre.
Focus resale values and insurance costs are very competitive for the class, although servicing will cost a little more than some. That said, Ford does allow you to spread the cost of its service plans: servicing over three years on a petrol Focus from the upper reaches of the model line-up, for instance, will cost £18.75 per month, assuming 15,000 miles per year.
Ford Focus Mk4 reliability
Ford has rarely excelled itself in the kind of owner reliability surveys that give a useful insight into how dependable certain makes and models are. But nor has it disgraced itself in those surveys, either. Ford tends to rank in the middle band for reliability with only a small percentage of owners reporting faults in the first year of ownership.
That said, in the 2021 What Car? Reliability Survey, the latest Focus finished 19th out of the 24 family cars included, a result that doesn’t exactly cover it with glory. What’s more, it didn’t score high enough in the Auto Express Driver Power Survey to finish within the top 75 cars, which are the only results that the magazine publishes.
The Ford manufacturer warranty for the Focus runs over three years or 60,000 miles. It can be extended at additional cost. That compares well to the likes of VW and Honda, although the Korean manufacturers’ warranties make those look pretty mediocre: Kia offers a seven-year warranty with its cars, and Hyundai five years.
- As well as the hatchback and estate, there’s also the higher-riding Ford Focus Active model. It sits on raised suspension, crossover-style, to help those that need to tackle rougher tarmac. It's by no means a proper off-roader, though.
- Independent rear suspension was the original Focus’ big innovation. Subsequent models have used similar arrangements since, but nowadays almost every Focus hatchback feature a simpler, cheaper torsion beam, though all estate models still get the more sophisticated independent suspension setup. Keen drivers will notice the difference.
- The Focus was on the receiving end of a facelift in 2022. It’s worth the upgrade, if you can stretch to it, as the interior was redesigned with smarter, more upmarket materials and a huge central touchscreen. The downside was the loss of physical climate control buttons in favour of touch-sensitive controls which made up part of the touchscreen, though given the controls are on screen all the time, you don’t have to dig through the menus to find them, as you do in the Volkswagen Golf. Other changes included tweaked styling and beefier seats for the hot ST version.
- For saving at the pumps: the 118bhp EcoBlue turbodiesel officially returns 67.3mpg on the combined cycle. Just be aware you’ll struggle to match that claim if you have anything other than a light right foot.
- For driving in the city: the 1.0-litre petrol engines are a little out their depth on faster roads but more than adequate in town, where they’re also economical.
- For all types of driving: the best all-rounder in the engine line-up is the 153bhp 1.0-litre mild hybrid. It’s punchy, reasonably frugal and clean.
- For setting your pulse racing: although there’ll be no RS, the current petrol Ford Focus ST is the most powerful yet with 276bhp. It’s also great to drive. The diesel version has 187bhp.
