Pricing in sharp Focus

FORD Australia has finally released the all-important pricing for its third-generation Focus, which will start from a tick under $22,000 when it arrives in showrooms next month.

With rises between $300 and $1000 (before on-road costs) across the 17-strong model LW range – except on the cheapest manual hatch – the Blue Oval brand hopes buyers will respond to the new model’s Fiesta-esque styling, significant content and technology increases, greater options availability and German (rather than South African) build quality compared to the outgoing LV Focus.

Kicking off from $21,990 for the Ambiente five-door hatchback (replacing the old CL nomenclature), the newcomer is bravely pitched above the base-model Mazda3 Neo ($21,330), as well as the Holden Cruze CD and Toyota Corolla Ascent (both $20,990).

No Ambiente manual sedan is available, so the cheapest booted Focus is the $24,290 Ambient Powershift driving the front wheels via a six-speed DCT dual-clutch transmission.

Powershift is a $2300 option over the regular five-speed manual gearbox on most hatch models, against the $2000 extra Ford’s rivals charge for their albeit more conventional and less efficient torque-converter automatics.

As with the entry-level Hyundai i30 SX ($19,590), all Focus Ambiente models are powered by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine in lieu of the 2.0-litre unit previously standard in the LV-series Focus as well as the existing Mazda (in modified form), while the Corolla and Cruze each come with 1.8-litre units. A 2.0-litre engine adds $1000 to the i30 SX’s price.

To get a 2.0-litre engine (in this case an all-new direct-injection petrol engine dubbed GDi), Focus buyers must step up to the LX-replacing $24,490 Trend hatch (or $26,790 for the Powershift hatch/sedan), $27,390 Sport hatch ($29,690 Powershift hatch/sedan) or $32,590 Titanium Powershift in either bodystyle.

The Trend, expected to be a volume seller, is offered with auto-on/off headlights, rain-sensing wipers, auto-dimming rear-view mirror and ‘follow me home’ lighting in a $300 ‘Convenience Pack’.

Focus Sport replaces the $900-cheaper LV Zetec but adds a longer list of standard features, including sports suspension, dual-zone climate control and an audio upgrade with 4.2-inch colour screen, as well as the Convenience Pack items listed above.

The Titanium, meanwhile, is the new Ghia in the Focus series, but goes much further than before by offering big-car options such as adaptive cruise control, bi-Xenon high-intensity discharge headlights with LED daytime running lights and static cornering lamps, and a sunroof as part of a $2300 Sports Executive Pack.

As before, a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel is available, but now it extends beyond the hatch (though a few LV TDCi sedans were imported into Australia in 2009).

The Trend TDCi Powershift (no diesel manual is available) is the entry-level diesel at $30,500 – a $700 increase over its equivalent precedent – the Sport TDCi Powershift is $33,190, while the new Titanium TDCi Powershift is the LW range flagship at $36,090.

A Ford insider described the new Focus pricing pitch as “the VW Golf experience with better responses at more affordable prices”.

2011 Ford Focuspricing:&nbsp
Hatch
Ambiente 1.6&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp	$21,990
Ambiente 1.6 (a)	$24,290
Trend 2.0 GDi	$24,490
Trend 2.0 GDi (a)	$26,790
Trend TDCi (a)	$30,500
Sport 2.0 GDi	$27,390
Sport 2.0 GDi (a)	$29,690
Sport 2.0 TDCi (a)	$33,190
Titanium 2.0 GDi (a)	$32,590
Titanium 2.0 TDCi (a)	$36,090
Sedan
Ambiente 1.6 (a)	$24,290
Trend 2.0 GDi (a)	$26,790
Trend 2.0 TDCi (a)	$30,500
Sport 2.0 GDi (a)	$29,690
Sport 2.0 TDCi (a)	$33,190
Titanium 2.0 GDi (a)	$32,590
Titanium 2.0 TDCi (a)	$36,090