Item: Ford Focus ST
Rating: 3
Author: What Car? Team

It isn’t frisky enough to fry your adrenal glands (0-62mph comes along in 10.0sec) and the Volkswagen Golf 1.5 TSI 130 is punchier, but it has decent shove once the revs build past 2000rpm. This mild hybrid has a small electric motor to add a bit of extra oomph at low revs but mainly it makes it more efficient (officially it'll average over 56mpg and emit 114g/km of CO2) than the regular 1.0L Ecoboost 125, which is why it's our pick of the range.  

1.0 EcoBoost 125

Hatchback

Ford builds some of the most popular cars in the UK, including the Fiesta and Focus hatchbacks.

This success is partly down to longevity and the fact that there’s a Ford dealer around every corner. However, it’s also because Fords tend to offer good value and be among the best cars in their respective classes to drive.

The company’s huge range also helps; it offers everything from the small – but surprisingly practical – Ka+ to the large and lavishly equipped Edge SUV.

Meanwhile, other highlights of the range include the S-Max and Galaxy people carriers, the Mondeo executive car and the Ranger pick-up.

FORD

FOCUS

ST-Line Edition is our favourite, mainly for how it drives with the sportier suspension, but also because you get 17in alloy wheels, LED front foglights, keyless start and entry, auto wipers, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror and privacy glass. It also includes more aggressive styling inside and out.

ST-Line Edition

1.0 EcoBoost Hybrid mHEV 125 ST-Line Edition 5dr

10-ecoboost-hybrid-mhev-125-st-line-edition-5dr

Abarth 595

Audi RS3

Audi S3

BMW M135i

Cupra Leon

Ford Fiesta ST

Ford Focus ST

Honda Civic Type R

Hyundai i20N

Hyundai i30N

Mercedes A35 AMG

Mercedes A45 AMG

Peugeot 308 GTi

Renault Megane RS

Skoda Octavia vRS

Suzuki Swift Sport

Toyota GR Yaris

Vauxhall Corsa VXR

Volkswagen Golf GTD

Volkswagen Golf GTI

Volkswagen Golf R

Volkswagen Polo GTI

Volkswagen Up GTI

Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Costs & verdict

The Ford Focus ST hatchback is more expensive to buy than rivals including the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/i30n/hatchback/review/n183">Hyundai i30N</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/review/n17168">Renault Megane RS</a>. In fact, it’s quite a bit pricier&nbsp;than the entry-level version of the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/honda/civic/hatchback/review/n143">Honda Civic Type R</a>, which is a car many would perceive as occupying the performance bracket above. As for the estate version, it’s also priced above rivals&nbsp;such as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/seat/leon/estate/review/n17158">Seat Leon ST Cupra</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/skoda/octavia/hatchback/review/n17187">Skoda Octavia vRS Estate</a>.

So, when it comes to&nbsp;performance per pound, this isn’t a cheap hot hatchback, but the ST is well equipped. As standard, you get 19in alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry, privacy glass, power-folding door mirrors, a heated windscreen, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. That said, most of its rivals, including the Type R and the i30N, come very well equipped too.

You don’t buy something this powerful if you’re hoping for&nbsp;world record fuel economy, but&nbsp;the petrol version&nbsp;can manage an average of around 35mpg while the diesels push that to over&nbsp;50mpg, according to the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/buying/new-official-fuel-consumption-and-co2-tests-explained/n1213">official figures</a>. However, in&nbsp;our tests, which included a mix of roads to give a real-world average, we managed just 32.1mpg for a petrol ST. For context, the more powerful Civic Type R managed 34.8mpg in the same circumstances. From our experience, the Focus ST automatic is even less economical.&nbsp;

As for safety, the Focus fared very well in its <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/euro-ncap-safety-ratings-2019-%E2%80%93-how-safe-is-your-car/n17044">Euro NCAP</a> appraisal, scoring five stars overall. You get traffic sign recognition and automatic emergency braking (<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/what-is-aeb-and-how-does-it-work/n3283">AEB</a>) as standard, while blindspot monitoring is on the options list.

The regular Focus finished well in the latest&nbsp;What Car? <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/2019-what-car-reliability-survey-family-cars/n20053">Reliability Survey</a>. <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/ford">Ford</a> as a brand wasn't quite so good, placing behind&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/toyota">Toyota</a>, <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/hyundai">Hyundai</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/honda">Honda</a> in the mid-pack.

The great news is that the Ford Focus ST is an enjoyable hot hatch for the road.&nbsp;However, it’s not up with the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/honda/civic/hatchback/review/n143">Honda Civic Type R</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/toyota/gr-yaris/hatchback/review/n22315">Toyota GR Yaris</a> as a fully-focused machine for road or track alike. It’s an easy car to keep centred in a lane on motorways, and the steering gives you lots of feel&nbsp;when you swap to twisting, sinewy back roads, but&nbsp;the weighting is inconsistent,&nbsp;so it's&nbsp;not as predictable and accurate as the Honda Civic Type R’s set-up.

It also&nbsp;lacks&nbsp;the balance, grip and poise&nbsp;of the Type R and the GR Yaris. Compared with other rivals, though, including the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/i30n/hatchback/review/n183">Hyundai i30N</a>, it offers greater&nbsp;agility, playfulness and, ultimately,&nbsp;a higher fun factor. That said, if you’re all about playfulness, have a drive of&nbsp;the manic <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/review/n17168">Renault Megane RS</a>. While the Focus ST will&nbsp;tighten its line nicely into hairpins when you lift off the accelerator, it won't swing its rear-end round like a shopping trolley as&nbsp;the Megane does.

Adaptive suspension is standard on the petrol-powered ST and optional on the diesel. With it, you can definitely feel bumps as they pass beneath the car, but it makes the ST&nbsp;more comfortable and a more usable proposition than the ever-agitated Megane RS. It's still&nbsp;a tad angsty when you hit particularly sharp ridges, though, and the Type R, despite its hardcore reputation, is even more compliant –&nbsp;as is the ubiquitously easy-to-live-with <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volkswagen/golf-gti/hatchback/review/n149">Volkswagen Golf GTI</a> for that matter.

Adding the optional Performance Pack&nbsp;gives you the option of&nbsp;knocking the adaptive suspension into Sport or Track mode, but both settings feel too firm for some of the UK's brutally calloused roads. What about the non-adaptive suspension, though? Well, it's the only suspension option&nbsp;you can have with the estate model&nbsp;and it’s fine to live with. In either body style, the&nbsp;lighter petrol-engined model&nbsp;rides slightly better than the heavier diesel one.&nbsp;

Few cars fire you out of bends quite like the four-wheel-drive GR Yaris, but the Focus ST's limited-slip differential (LSD)&nbsp;does a good job of&nbsp;magnifying the traction available at its&nbsp;front, driven wheels. Even with plenty of steering lock applied out of tight&nbsp;turns, you can get hard on the power without&nbsp;masses&nbsp;of wheel spin causing a plume&nbsp;of&nbsp;smoke in its&nbsp;wake&nbsp;like an injured Spitfire.

The&nbsp;Megane’s LSD is more aggressive, which manifests itself as&nbsp;more torque steer – a phenomenon where the steering wheel is tugged left and then&nbsp;right under power&nbsp;as each tyre&nbsp;grips then breaks traction. You get some of that in the Focus, too, but not enough to spoil the driving experience. There's less torque steer&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;diesel, partly because it doesn’t have the LSD and also because it has&nbsp;less power. 

In terms of outright pace, the petrol Focus ST gets from 0-62mph in 5.7sec, but, ultimately, it isn’t as fast as the Honda Civic Type R or the GR Yaris. It doesn't&nbsp;rev out so enthusiastically&nbsp;either. It’s quick enough to live with other rivals in a straight line, though, including the&nbsp;i30 N,&nbsp;Megane RS and Golf GTI. The Focus ST's&nbsp;augmented engine note includes some smile-inducing firework&nbsp;theatrics from its exhaust, but it’s not the most vivacious of soundtracks.

The diesel is significantly slower (0-62mph takes 7.6sec) and has a narrower, less enjoyable&nbsp;power delivery; there’s a bigger surge at low revs but it diminishes considerably after 3,500rpm. To mask its underwhelming diesel engine note, you get even more fake noise pumped into the interior than you do in the petrol version.&nbsp;

All Focus STs come with a crisp&nbsp;six-speed manual gearbox as standard. It’s a delight to use, being light and slick. The optional seven-speed automatic is available with the petrol and it’s not a good fit. We found it&nbsp;less responsive than the dual-clutch automatic gearboxes available with some of the rival cars. The Focus ST’s brakes provide solid stopping power with a reassuring pedal feel.&nbsp;

The optional Performance Pack we touched on earlier adds adaptive suspension to the diesel ST and a Track mode to both versions. This mode gives you even more aggressive settings for the engine, steering weight, automatic gearbox (where fitted) and suspension. It also allows you to choose&nbsp;the stiffness of the suspension yourself, rather than leaving the the car’s electronic brain to tune it automatically according to specific computer maps.

The Performance Pack also adds a light that indicates when you need to change up a gear, and rev-matching to help you change down smoothly (with the manual gearbox only). There’s a launch control system that helps you to make&nbsp;perfect getaways, too.

Fuel 

Gearbox

0-62 MPH

The diesel Focus ST is significantly slower than the petrol version (0-62mph takes 7.6sec) and has a narrower, less enjoyable power delivery; there’s a bigger surge at low revs but it diminishes considerably after 3,500rpm. To mask its underwhelming diesel engine note, you get even more fake noise pumped into the interior than the petrol version, too. It's one to avoid. 



http://example.com

2.0 EcoBlue 190

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The petrol version of the Focus ST is fast enough to live with the Renault Mégane RS and Hyundai i30 N – though not the Honda Civic Type R – in a straight line. There’s an augmented engine note that includes some smile-inducing firework theatrics from the exhaust, but it’s not into the realms of the ridiculous.

2.3 EcoBoost

23-ecoboost

In turbulent times, it’s vital to celebrate&nbsp;life's wonders:&nbsp;glorious&nbsp;sunny days, your child’s first birthday party, swerving every other child's&nbsp;first birthday party – and hot hatches like the&nbsp;Ford Focus ST.&nbsp;

But is&nbsp;the current Focus ST actually worth celebrating?&nbsp;Ford has an immense and enviable legacy of building great high-performance hatchbacks&nbsp;(including the excellent <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/fiesta/hatchback/review/n140">Fiesta ST</a>),&nbsp;and in this review&nbsp;we intend to reveal whether this latest incarnation&nbsp;is yet another&nbsp;hit, or a rare miss.

<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L-dfiAZSYn0"></iframe>

As with the previous generation of the Ford Focus ST, you can order a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/buying/do-i-choose-petrol-or-diesel/n1110">petrol or diesel</a> engine, in hatchback or estate bodies. Power peaks at 187bhp for the diesel and a heady 276bhp for the petrol and,&nbsp;for your daily piece&nbsp;of trivia, the petrol engine is a detuned version of the previous <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/focus-rs/hatchback/used-review/n17887">Ford&nbsp;Focus RS</a>’s turbocharged 2.3-litre four-cylinder.&nbsp;That lends&nbsp;it a dash of pedigree to go with that&nbsp;healthy dollop of poke.&nbsp;

To keep all its vigour channelling straight to the road, there’s an electronically-controlled limited-slip differential fitted as standard to the petrol versions. It&nbsp;helps minimise wheel spin and prevent the nose from running wide as you power out of corners.

You get bigger brakes than&nbsp;the standard <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/focus/hatchback/review/n37">Ford Focus</a>&nbsp;comes with to scrub off speed more effectively, while the steering and suspension are also bespoke and tuned for&nbsp;increased agility.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The big question, then, is whether or not the Focus ST is the&nbsp;king of the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/best-hot-hatches-2021/n17005">hot hatches</a>. We'll let you know if you keep reading this review.

We'll also compare it with its rivals, including the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/honda/civic/hatchback/review/n143">Honda Civic Type R</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/i30n/hatchback/review/n183">Hyundai i30N</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/review/n17168">Renault Megane RS</a>&nbsp;and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/toyota/gr-yaris/hatchback/review/n22315">Toyota GR Yaris</a>. Oh yes, and let's not forget the original hot hatchback, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volkswagen/golf-gti/hatchback/review/n149">Volkswagen Golf GTI</a>.&nbsp;

If you’d like to buy a new Ford Focus ST – or any other new car that suits your needs – try&nbsp;our <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals">New Car Buying</a> service&nbsp;for the latest deals.

The minute you open the Ford Focus ST’s driver's door, a pair of unique (to the ST)&nbsp;heavily bolstered, part-leather front seats from specialists Recaro immediately differentiate it from lesser Focus models. These adjust electrically in multiple ways and grip you tightly around the midriff, rather like a friendly bear.

They enhance what’s already a great driving position, because every Focus comes with loads of adjustment for its steering wheel, along with well-aligned pedals and a dashboard that is pretty simple to use.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The quality of the interior materials is a little iffy, though, with&nbsp;plenty of hard plastics on show. However, the detailing, such as the alloy pedals and ST-engraved stainless steel scuff plates on the sills, add a smidgen of sporting panache and charm.

Visibility is generally good, with thinnish&nbsp;windscreen pillars that provide largely unobstructed forward vision. The thicker rear pillars are less helpful, but then you get lots of parking aids, such as the reversing camera and parking sensors at the front and rear. Oh yes, and at night&nbsp;there are adaptive LED headlights that illuminate your route through&nbsp;the gloom brilliantly.&nbsp;

You also get Ford’s latest Sync 3 infotainment system. It isn’t the best infotainment system on the market (the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/1-series/hatchback/review/n20208">BMW M135i's</a> is one of the best), but it’s better than the system&nbsp;you get in the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/honda/civic/hatchback/review/n143">Honda&nbsp;Civic Type R</a>&nbsp;and the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/review/n17168">Renault Megane RS</a>. It is made up of&nbsp;an 8.0in touchscreen with built-in sat-nav, plus <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/owning/what-is-apple-carplay/n1193">Apple CarPlay</a>/<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/owning/what-is-android-auto/n1194">Android Auto</a> if you prefer using your phone’s navigation and apps instead. Then there’s the stereo: a Bang &amp; Olufsen system that pipes a healthy 675 watts through its 10 speakers.

The ST hot hatchback comes with lots of equipment as standard, including 19in alloys, adaptive LED headlights, adaptive dampers (not the estate, but that gets a powered tailgate instead), front and rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry, privacy glass, power-folding door mirrors, heated front seats, a heated windscreen, and a heated steering wheel. The standard infotainment system includes an 8.0in touchscreen, sat-nav, a DAB radio, Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay/ Android Auto and a 10-speaker/ 675-watt B&O stereo.

Enjoyable hot hatch but pricey and not in the Honda Civic Type R’s league

Unsurprisingly, the ST is just the same as any other Ford Focus when it comes to passenger space, which means it’s one of the roomiest hot hatches you can buy. There’s plenty of space in the front, and&nbsp;the hatchback version has more head and leg room in the rear than many rivals, including the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/i30n/hatchback/review/n183">Hyundai i30N</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/review/n17168">Renault Megane RS</a>. Even the roomy&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/honda/civic/hatchback/review/n143">Honda Civic Type R</a> can’t beat it on either score. Meanwhile, the estate is right up there with&nbsp;its closest competitor on space, the Seat <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/seat/leon/estate/review/n17158">Leon Cupra ST</a>.

Boot space in the hatchback version is roughly on a par with the i30N and Megane, but you’ll fit more suitcases or shopping in the&nbsp;Civic Type R or the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/skoda/octavia/hatchback/review/n17187">Skoda Octavia vRS</a>. The estate version obviously has a bigger boot, but it’s still not on par with the capacious Octavia vRS Estate’s.

For more detail on how the Focus stacks up in this area, check out our specific reviews of the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/focus/hatchback/review/n37">Ford Focus hatchback</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/focus/estate/review/n8">Ford Focus Estate</a>.

The Ford Focus ST is a bit of an anomaly. It’s a fine mid-performance hot hatchback, offering playful handling, decent pace and has a generally palatable ride. It’s also very well equipped and spacious, which all sounds perfect, until you look at its price. It’s priced in contention with the Honda Civic Type R and Toyota GR Yaris, and, as good as the Focus ST is, it cannot hold a candle to those cars' breadth of talents. Petrol versions are preferable to the oddball diesel, though.

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Engaging handling </li> <li>Thrilling performance </li> <li>A characterful engine with an enticing soundtrack </li> <li>Reasonable running costs </li> <li>Not hard to live with day to day</li></ul>

A popular choice with UK buyers since the days of the original Volkswagen Golf GTI, the hot hatchback mixes everyday practicality with higher performance and the sort of handling and agility that’s ideally suited to British roads. A good hot hatch should be fun and, since it’s likely to be your daily drive, it should also deliver respectable running costs.

The Golf GTI remains one of the best hot hatches on the market, along with its main competitor,&nbsp;the&nbsp;equally as responsive and cheaper to buy Hyundai i30 N. But there are some terrific options for even less money than both of these cars. We're big fans of the Ford Fiesta ST, which is definitely one of the best hot hatches ever and certainly one of the most fun to drive. It's full of character and its engaging handling makes it a bit of a hoot at all speeds.&nbsp;

If you’ve got a bit more money to spare, there are even faster cars available, such as the Honda Civic Type R. This latest version is sublime to drive, either on road or on a track, as it's so sweetly balanced. It's also incredibly quick in a straight line&nbsp;and round a corner, and yet it's as practical as a regular Civic.&nbsp;

Ford Focus ST review

Introduction

What Car? says...