2005 Focus review

Now had my focus st a week and judging by the amout of comments from people thinking of getting one thought i'd write a little review.

The Focus st really is a Jeckle and Hyde car. Driving around town you have no idea at the amount of power you have under your right foot. There are a few clues like the recaro seats, gauge pod and the st logo on the steering wheel but nothing in the way it drives. The clutch is a little on off but it's just a case of getting used to it.

It's the same story on the motorway and long distant drives. It will sit there at motorway crusing speeds and is really quiet inside. If you do a steady 70mph you'll even get 35mpg. I covered 400 miles in 2 days and had no back ache at all.

Take the car down a quiet road where you can put your foot down and the car transforms. You get a lovley growl just before the turbo kicks in. It's almost like a warning to say hold on. The turbo kicks in really early and from 2000rpm your at full boost. There is a bit of torque steer if the road isn't smooth but it's not dangerous. The car just wiggles a little bit. The car pulls really hard all the way up to 6000rpm and the power backs off a little. I have found that changing at 5500 revs is spot on if your going for it. It drops the next gear in right in the middle of the torque curve and your off again. It keeps pulling up to silly speeds and i have no dought that it would keep pulling the same up to 140mph. I havn't tried it though as i like my licence the way it is.

The amount of power is only half the story. They way it goes round corners is amazing. There is a bit of body roll but then again it's not designed to be driven flat out all the time. Turn in is instant although it is a little lacking in feel. You can tell when your getting to the limit though as it goes a little light at the front end, espically with the esp turned off. One thing i will say is don't lift of or hits the brakes when your going for it. The back end is quite livley and it dosn't take much effort to get the back end to swing round.

As for living with the car overall it is very good. It's well built and a very nice place to sit. Plenty of space in the back and you can get 2 kids and an adult in the back without any bother. All the switches are really easy to reach and don't feel like they would break any time. The cubby holes in the back have already had a thorough test from the kids and they still open and close.You get quite a few looks when your driving down the road and as of yet not had any boy racers try it on. Maybe they know they wouldn't stand a chance.

I only have a few minor niggles but that is all they are. First is the mirrors. There is a different magnification between the rear view and the door mirrors. It's a little off putting when you look in the rear view cars appear really close. But the wing mirrors make things appear really far away. The other is the boot. Because of the dual exit exhaust you loose a good 5 inches in height because of the spare wheel. It does how ever give you a few natty spaces to store bits. Easier to explain by looking at the picturs at the bottom. I don't know if all focus's are like this or if it's unique to the st.

Overall for me at least the car is perfect. It copes really well with the miles i do, but as soon as you want to have some fun it does the job brilliantly. Fingers crossed i get to keep this one for a very long time. There are no plans to do any mods to the car apart from cosmetic ones as the car is plenty fast enough to get into trouble with.

And a short video of the car and the sounds it makes. All fottage was made in a safe manner and most of all legally.

Click an image to enlarge