The Ford Focus was first launched in the European marking in 1998 but came to North America for the 2000 model year as a replacement for the Ford Escort and its cousin, the Mercury Tracer. Despite being a “cheaper” model with goofy, bubbly headlights and a somewhat lackluster interior, the Focus was a big hit. The first generation model ran until 2004 and won more than 60 awards during its lifespan. It even found itself on Car and Driver’s Ten Best List. Ford has continued to improve on the looks and overall function of the Focus, and it is currently in its third generation, with a facelift taking place for the 2015 model year.
With the current generation being six years old, it’s not all that shocking that our spy photographers have caught what we believe to be the next-generation Focus out doing some cold weather testing. Oddly, it isn’t under any camo, and it looks quite similar to the facelifted Focus that debuted in 2015. Be that as it may, there are still some significant changes to mention – some that might be hinting that this mule is sporting an old, modified body as a decoy.
While the body may very well be a decoy, we can still make some predictions about the next-gen Focus. Take a little walk with me as I talk about what we see in the photos, and what we can expect when the next-gen Focus is unveiled sometime in the future.
Update 3/15/2017: We have received a second round of spy shots that show the next-gen Focus playing in the snow and on the ice. This time around, however, it’s sporting what appears to be the official body with lots of camo and padding to throw us off. Check out the exterior section below to learn all about it.
Continue reading to learn more about the 2018 Ford Focus.
Spy Shots
March 15, 2017 – Ford Focus caught testing on the snow
February 16, 2016 – First testing session
Exterior
Right away, this looks more like another facelift than a new generation of Focus. The grille and headlights are the same and, while the fog lights are nonexistent, but the cutouts in the fascia and the inserts in those cutouts are. Even the air dam carries the same general shape, so it raises the question: what is the big difference in this model?
The rear wheels sit farther in the rear of the wheel wells, and the rear fascia looks about the same, except for the patched seam right in the middle.
Notice how the fog light inserts sit farther away from the grille, and how the bumper has those weird patches on each side of the grille? Add that to the seam in the hood and you have a good indication that this Focus is actually sitting on a wider track than the current model. Moving to the sides, the overall design is the same, but look at the crease that runs across the width of the roof, and down the rear quarter panels – even the rear corner glass looks to be “thrown in there.” The rear wheels sit farther in the rear of the wheel wells, and the rear fascia looks about the same, except for the patched seam right in the middle.
All these seams indicate to me that parts of the body are welded together with extensions in the middle of the fascias and hood. I suspect this body has been intentionally widened to accommodate a wider platform underneath. That said, it looks like the next focus might be a little longer and wider. This body is likely a decoy used to test new underpinnings or a new chassis design. This way, Ford can test new mechanicals without releasing even a hint of changes to the body of the next-gen Focus. Well played, Ford. Well played.
Update 3/15/2017
Right away, I want to let you down easy and say that there’s not a whole lot we can make out of the new body. There’s plastic padding over the fascias and doors, all blocking our view of what’s going on with the metal beneath. But, we can make out a few things. First off, the headlights for the new-gen model will be much smaller than those seen in the previous spy shots. They are also placed closer to the front corners while the grill looks like it may have been moved up a bit. There does appear to be an official grille hidden under the plastic padding, and it is sporting horizontally-oriented chrome or aluminum slats. This is similar to the grille found on the Focus Titanium but will be slightly different with the upper and lower slats curving upward and downward on the ends, respectively. The fog lights will, indeed, be moved farther to the lower, outside corners while the air dam looks like it will be shorter but will maintain the same length.
To the side, the whole body is blocked my camo and padding, but it does appear as if the lower body will be significantly wider than that of the current model. The rear haunches, specifically, will be much beefier than before. The roof appears to have the same general slant in the rear, but the rear quarter glass is now much more rounded, creating a half-oval shape. The rear overhang on the hatch also appears as if it will feature side wings while the overhang itself will have the same clearance above the rear glass. We can’t make out much else from these shots, but the decoy taillights tell us that new taillight units will be in place and should give the Focus a more modern look that will keep it fresh well through the turn of the decade.
Interior
The photographs here reveal absolutely nothing about the interior, but even if they did, they wouldn’t be representative of the interior we’ll see in the next-gen focus. Given the pieced-together nature of the body, this mule probably has a barebones interior – one that is likely modified from the current generation to make the car road legal for testing purposes.
When we do get new shots of the interior, expect to see an updated center console, updated instrument cluster, and a larger infotainment screen. Technology will probably be on par with features available to other cars in the same segment with the 2018 Focus hits dealerships.
Drivetrain
We only get a quick glance at the engine bay from the photos, but I have reason to believe Ford may be testing a new engine with this mule. I came to this conclusion by comparing the engine cover and the location of the oil cap in the images. That engine cover looks similar to the Duratec engine cover on the 2015 Ford Focus, but it has a significantly different shape, and the oil cap sits farther forward and left of the oil cap on the current focus Drivetrain. Then again, this could be an engine that is currently used in other markets that I haven’t seen much of.
The current Ford Focus, here in the U.S. can be had with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder, a 1.0-liter three-cylinder, or a 2.3-liter four-cylinder, depending on which trim you’re looking at. The 1.0-liter produces 123 horsepower and 125 pound-feet of torque, while the 2.0-liter produces 160 horsepower and 146 pound-feet of torque. The 2.0-liter Ecoboost in the ST Hatch pumps out 252 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque, and the 2.3-liter in the RS Hatch pumps out 350 ponies and 250 pound-feet of torque.
If Ford continues with the same engines, expect mild power pumps to all, with the exception of the RS Hatch. I suspect that 2.3-liter will remain untouched for now. If Ford is testing a new engine, expect it to put out somewhere in the range of 170 horsepower and 150 pound-feet. This output may be close to the current output of the base 2.0-liter, but the new engine will likely bring better fuel economy.
Prices
In the U.S., the current focus is available in eight different trim levels. The base model S Sedan trim starts out at $17,225, with prices climbing to $24,425 for the Focus ST and $35,730 for the range-topping RS trim. There is no telling what Ford will do as far as pricing goes for the next-generation Ford, but if Ford is bringing a new chassis, platform, or new engine to the table, expect to see a mild increase in pricing. The starting price may increase to as much as $18,000 after everything is said and done.
Competition
Honda Civic
The Honda Civic has been around twice as long as the Focus, but it continues to be one of Honda’s most popular go-to compact cars. It has its place in the hearts of those looking for great fuel economy, reliability, and it’s a favorite among tuners everywhere. The Civic hit a rough patch in the mid-2000s as the styling cues of the eighth generation Civic weren’t all that accepted. But, that is in the past, and the Civic was actually redesigned for the 2016 model year. The new design was widely welcomed and is certainly more appealing that the outgoing model. For the 2016 model year, the Civic starts out at $18,640 but increases to around $26,000 for the range-topping natural-gas trim.
Read our full review on the Honda Civic here.
Chevrolet Cruze
The Chevy Cruze, as we know it now, came to be in 2009 when Chevy released it as a successor to the Chevy Cobalt. The first generation ran from 2009 to 2015, and for the 2016 model year, Chevy brought in an all-new design. The Cruze comes standard with a 1.4-liter, turbocharged engine that puts out 153 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque. Power is routed to the front wheels via a six-speed manual transmission or six-speed automatic transmission. The Cruze pulls an estimated 40 mpg on the highway and can hit the 60 mph benchmark in 8.0 seconds. As of the time of this writing, the Cruze starts out at $16,620 but climbs as high as $24,000 for the range-topping model. In 2017, expect to the Cruze hatchback hit dealership showrooms. It will compete against the Focus Hatchback and is expected to start out at $22,700.
Read our full review on the Chevy Cruze here.
Conclusion
If anything, the spy shots you see here spark my curiosity as to what Ford is planning to do with the focus. The body of this mule is clearly altered to be longer and wider, which means the underpinnings of the next Focus will also be longer and wider. Something tells me that the body design will be quite interesting when we see the real thing as we come closer to 2018. I’m curious to see what Ford has cooked up for engine and transmission options for this new focus, and with a wider track, just think about how well the Focus RS will be able to take on extreme maneuvers on the track. That will certainly be something to see.