Passenger & boot space
How it copes with people and clutter
Front space
Even the tallest of drivers should be fine for space in the Ford Focus. Its leg, head and shoulder room are up there with the very best family cars (the Skoda Octavia provides slightly more front head room, though).
There are lots of storage spaces dotted around, including a couple of cupholders and trays for your phone in the centre console. The glovebox and front door bins aren’t particularly generous, though.
The rear seats split and fold in a 60/40 arrangement as standard, but there are no handy release levers by the boot entrance, as there are in some rivals. Instead, you have to open the rear doors to use the release levers on top of the seatbacks, which is a nuisance if you have your hands full.
You get a useful ski hatch in the middle seat that makes loading long items into the boot a doddle (the Leon and Golf get one too).
Boot space
The Focus boot is usable and matches the Leon's for size, but it's not the vast load bay you get in the Octavia. Fitting in a large pram shouldn't pose a problem, and we managed to fit six carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf, which is one more than we could get in the Golf.
