Ford Focus vs Subaru Levorg

What's the difference?

Ford's small hatch, the Focus, is criminally under-bought in Australia. The latest model is  one of the best hatchbacks on the road and when you chuck in the decent price, impressive equipment and absurdly powerful engine for its size, it's a winner.

But you lot? You don't buy it in nearly the kinds of numbers it deserves. Partly because there isn't a bait-and-upsell boggo model to lure you in, partly because it's got a badge that is not exciting Australians any more and partly because it's not a compact SUV.

Or is(n't) it? Because alongside the ST-Line warm hatch is the identically priced and therefore technically a co-entry level model; the Focus Active. Slightly higher, with plastic cladding, drive modes and a conspicuous L on the transmission shifter, it's a little bit SUV, right?

Need proof that the humble wagon is now the domain of the enthusiast? Subaru tells us the top-spec performance oriented STI Sport is its best-selling variant.

The Levorg is an odd one indeed, a seemingly unnecessary addition to Subaru’s wagon-heavy range in a world where mass consumerism has shunned low-slung bodies in favour of pumped up SUV-types. Practicality be damned.

The trouble with appealing to enthusiasts though, is you’d better get it right, or you’ll face a backlash. So, does the Levorg have what it takes to build one of those money-can’t-buy hardcore fanbases?

I took the Levorg STI for a spin around the heart of Subaru country in the Kosciuszko National Park at the height of winter to find out.