Ford Focus 2011 News

The pocket rocket Focus RS is almost a sell-out, the first deliveries of the supercharged Falcons from Ford Performance Vehicles have begun, and there are a string of new arrivals planned to take the brand through to the end of 2011. The most important is the four-cylinder Falcon - to be called the Falcon EcoBoost - in the second half of next year.  Ford Australia also intends to have a Falcon with liquid petroleum injection and the Territory will finally get a V6 turbodiesel engine. "In the next 12 months around 85 per cent of the Ford product catalogue will be new or updated," says Peter Fadeyev of Ford Australia.  "This is a blend of new-model introductions and regular-model updates. The winners will be Australian customers." The latest Thai-built WT Fiesta is the next model on the launching page, followed by an update and upgrade of the Mondeo. Both cars are in showrooms from November, although the flagship Mondeo Titanium does not arrive until December. "The Titanium has a lot of the latest European safety systems, such as lane-departure warning," says Fadeyev.  November also brings a limited-edition Territory with more equipment and a slight visual tweak, as part of the run-out for the big change - including the turbodiesel - in the first half of next year. The big action happens in the second half of 2011 with the Falcon - likely to get a new name beyond FG - as the headliner, but an all-new Focus and the Ranger pickup on the plan. Ford is not giving any solid detail yet on the Focus, which will be built like the Fiesta in Thailand, but says the Ranger line-up will be much more extensive than the single display vehicle at the Australian International Motor Show.  While Ford is pushing hard, GM Holden also has plans for its own new-model drive following the arrival of the Barina Spark. It says there will be 10 new models in less than two years, but is not going into any detail beyond the obvious switch to an all-new Barina to sit slightly above the spark, the localised Cruze hatch and an all-new Captiva SUV. “Over the next year and a half Australian customers will see a roll-out of new Holden product like they’ve never seen before. We will have new, world-class, market-leading Holden vehicles competing in almost every segment in this market,” says Mike Devereux, chairman of GM Holden. “Spark is just the beginning with more fresh and original vehicles in the pipeline from our global and local design teams."

Yes, the Focus RS is coming to Australia, albeit in limited numbers, with a sensational reputation in the UK.  The Focus XR5 on sale for sometime here has a turbocharged, 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine of 166kW power. But now the super-special RS will leave that in its dust. The RS has that engine tweaked to an amazing and V8-like 224kW power. Torque peak of 440Nm is from just 2300rpm. The RS output of 224kW (it bears repeating) shadows not only the Subaru WRX figure of 195kW but also the hotter STi version's 221kW. Mitsubishi's Evo X is rated at 217kW, putting the new Ford in front. Focus RS is built on a separate line to the normal Focus and has unique body panels, picked by flared wheel arches. Aero help comes from a front splitter and rear bumper venturi on the three-door hatchback. Recaro seats in partial leather trim, keyless entry and start, eight-speaker sound system, dual-zone climate control and rain-sensing wipers are part of the kit. Price will be $59,990 for this Euro hotshot and it will be here in the final months this year, only 315 earmarked for Australia.

Europe is back in business, celebrating the end of the global financial crisis that rocked the car world and drove the biggest of them all - General Motors - into bankruptcy.There were green shoots of happiness at the Frankfurt Motor Show in late 2009, but this week's Geneva Motor Show shows the same sort of excitement and promise of an early spring morning in Europe.Every carmaker has something new in Geneva, from full-blown production models to quirky concepts. The Swiss show is often dismissed as a sideshow but this time, with 25 new models as diverse as the Nissan Micra and Porsche Cayenne, there is serious action on every front.Carmakers are predictably focussed on green solutions to meet the challenges of fuel economy and CO2 emissions - with Fiat even showing a tiny two-cylinder engine for its funkoid 500 - but there is also room for fun.  How else do you describe a Honda city concept that looks like a 20th-century take on the unicycles used by Circe du Soleil acrobats?But even the green machines have turned mean as Ferrari shows its 599 Vettura Labratorio hybrid, although BYD from China balanced things with its fully-electric E6 hatch.Porsche also has its 918 supercar concept and both it and the Ferrari tap Formula One technology with KERS hybrid packs - that's Kinetic Energy Recovery System - to store energy for a quick, explosive boost of extra power.Porsche plans to put the 918 into production but, as yet, Ferrari is only using the super-special 599 - painted symbolically in green instead of the Italian brand's signature red - as a rolling labratory.  "We want to understand how to use this technology. We are not yet at the point to see it in a road going Ferrari," says Amedeo Felisa, Ferrari's CEO.The upbeat mood at Geneva is captured by the top man at Bentley, Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen, who says the reaction to his company's Mulsanne and Supersports models has filled him with confidence after a shocking 2009.  "There is a feeling that it is behind us," Paefgen says as super-wealthy Bentley buyers emerge from their GFC-proof bunkers.Walking the stands at Geneva I see green machines that are more than just concepts and plenty of choices for small-car buyers, from budget hatches to baby prestige cars like the Audi A1.  The little Audi gets a rousing reception, Volvo wins praise for the safety and styling of the new S60 sedan and the Alfa Giulietta - replacement for the 147 - raises more questions about the often-promised renaissance for the brand.Lexus shows a compact new CT200h hybrid that brings petrol-electric power to a new group of buyers, Mini has the Countryman with extra ground clearance and the basics for a World Rally Championship challenge in 2011, and the Mitsubishi ASX crossover - test driven this week by Peter Lyon near Tokyo - heads the Japanese contingent.For Alfa fans, the Giulietta is pitched at the Volkswagen Golf with a range of 1.4, 1.6 and 2.0-litre petrol and diesel engines.  BMW’s new 5 Series and a 4-litre six-cylinder X5 diesel creates a predictable buzz among SUV fans.Kia’s head of design, Peter Schreyer, lifts the wraps off the stylish new Sportage, which is due in Australia later this year, with the promise of both turbodiesel and petrol engines, as well as front and all-wheel drive.  The Sportage could be major hit for the Korean brand, matching the impact of the Hyundai ix35, when it goes on sale with an opener in the sub-$30,000 bracket.Ford leverages the first European appearance of its new Focus hatch in Geneva by unveiling the Focus wagon, which at this stage is a Europe-only car. Europeans are big wagon buyers and the wagon is expected to account for one-third of all Focus sales there.But the Focus wagon is only the halfway point - the fifth of 10 proposed models - using the same basic building blocks and the future includes a Focus electric car. Currently, the wagon, hatch, sedan and C-Max and Grand C-Max all share the same underpinnings.“We are now using our global resources to develop cars for all countries, including Australia,” says Ford's technical chief, Derrick Kuzak.  He also reveals the current Europe-only Kuga compact SUV and North American Escape will be replaced by a single global car, which could head to Australia, and hints that a hot performance Focus with a more-powerful version of Ford’s 2.0-litre Ecoboost turbo engine will also be available in Australia.Lexus uses Geneva to showcase its critically important CT 200h hybrid, which it hopes to become a volume player.  But the CT 200h is not the only car to push the green theme at the affordable end.Hyundai has the stylish turbocharged 1.7-litre i-flow concept sedan, which uses a lithium-ion battery pack with six-speed dual-clutch transmission, and it is joined by the ix35 FCEV hydrogen fuel-cell car and Opel’s Flextreme GT-E.Apart from Ferrari, Porsche shows off its GT3 R Hybrid - also with KERS - and 918 Spyder, both exploring the outer limits of hybrid drivetrains for race and road cars.  The Cayenne, along with the VW Touareg, share their hybrid debuts as Audi uses the first appearance of its baby A1 to reveal a full-electric E-tron concept that joins earlier R8-based plug-in supercars.Apart from the conventional petrol and diesel A1, Audi also adds the RS5 coupe to its A5 lineup and a hybrid A8 sedan. The RS5 gets a powerful 335kW/430Nm 4.2-litre V8, quattro all-wheel drive and seven-speed S-tronic dual clutch gearbox.Like the BMW-built Mini, Audi has several distinctly styled A1s on its stand. It says owners will have access to so much customisation that no two A1s will be exactly the same.Audi has the Mini firmly in its sights with an expected starting price around $33,000 for the A1, with a three-door car to kick of sales with a five-door and cabrio expected. The range-topper is expected to be an S version with a performance-tuned turbo four cylinder engine.Citroen springs one of the few real surprises of the show with its hot-pink Survolt sportscar while Giugiaro teams up with Proton to deliver a stylish hybrid city car.  The Survolt is a pure design fantasy with no likely production expected. The showcar did not even have an engine and Citroen says it has been designed to go electric.Apart from the sleek Citroen, two Italian styling houses - Pininfarina and Bertone - have show cars based on Alfa Romeo mechanical parts. Bertone returns to Geneva for the first time in two years with the Pandion 2+2 concept coupe and Pininfarina shows the two-seater 2uettottanta.Apart from the twin concepts, Citroen has the DS3 Racing as well as its DS High Rider three door, a pointer to the next-generation C4, which is due to be launched next year as a five-door.  The company will only build 1000 versions of the DS3 racing and the head of local importer Ateco Automotive, Neville Crichton, says he would like to bring a few to Australia but will initially focus on launching the DS range.“It certainly is a good looking thing,” Crichton says.  Mercedes-Benz continues to create a buzz at Geneva with its SLS Gullwing supercar but the F800 Style, a pointer to the next-generation CLS minus its cantilever rear doors, dominates the Mercedes stand and shares the limelight with the E-Class cabriolet.Fitting in the quirky category in Geneva is Aston Martin’s Cygnet hatch, a remake of Toyota’s iQ city car. The $50,000 makeover model will only be sold to existing Aston Martin customers.  Aston Martin boldly has the Cygnet right next to its four-door flagship sports car, the Rapide.

After a string of false starts, as well as running the same badge on two entirely different cars for Europe and the USA, the blue oval brand gets serious in 2010 about a universal Focus.  The all-new global car is previewed this week as the headline act for Ford at the Detroit Motor Show and should be rolled into Australia late in 2011. The new car is so important that Ford USA, which has feasted on the sales and profits from giant pickup trucks and SUVs for a generation, is turning one of its biggest truck factories in Detroit into the American production base for the Focus. The decision was made easier because share of pickup sales in Ford showrooms has dropped from 70 per cent in 2004 to just 40 per cent in 2009. Ford says the all-new Focus is the company's first truly global car and it will be sold in 122 countries.  The move means it will drop the current three-Focus plan for a single mechanical package that shares about 30 per cent of its parts with the Mazda3. But the Focus plan does not stop with a single car. It will be spun into 10 different vehicles, with the move starting with the Focus hatch and sedan displayed this week in Detroit.  "We recognised customer wants were converging globally, and these products will have genuine global reach," says Derrick Kuzak, Ford Motor Company's group vice-president of product development. Kuzak says Focus is the "ultimate expression of Ford's new DNA".  What he means is the car's look comes from the successful 'Kinetic' design that has worked so well in Europe on cars including the latest Fiesta now sold in Australia. The Focus hatch has a strong and aggressive face, with grille lines streaming back over the bonnet to heavily-sculpted flanks. The sedan has a more conservative shape, particularly around the tail, and is missing a lot of the hatch's tight dynamism. The basics of the global Focus are familiar from the current car, with little change to the wheelbase, but the car crouches 20 millimetres lower and the nose has been stretched by 30 millimetres to improve pedestrian crash protection.  There are two 'Design Study' teaser cars at the Detroit show but only one, the sedan, has a fully-fitted cabin. The interior has an upmarket look with stitched upholstery, contrasting piano black and satin metal finishes, and trapezoidal shapes in a driver-focussed layout. It also has a quality Sony sound system. It is far too early for Ford Australia to set powerplants or equipment levels for Australia, but the plan includes an all-new 2-litre engine - with direct fuel injection and a six-speed, twin-clutch gearbox - being readied for the USA and some parts of Asia.  There is also a 1.6-litre Ecoboost engine, a cousin to the 2-litre four that will be fitted to the locally-made Falcon later this year. The Ecoboost package uses direct fuel injection and turbocharging to reduce engine capacity without any performance loss, with the benefit of a 20 per cent improvement in fuel economy and a similar drop in CO2 emissions.  A great deal of work has gone into making the Focus quieter, more comfortable and safer while improving the car's famed agility. The body for the global Focus will be 55 per cent high-strength steel - more than any other Ford - while eight different thicknesses of steel will be combined in the B-pillar for side-impact protection.  Ford is promising a raft of technology, including the sort of dynamic cornering control system normally fitted to high-end sports cars. Instead of using braking the way it operates in ESP stability control, DCC uses 'torque vectoring' of the driven wheels to help the car pull itself through corners.  Engineers have also tweaked the electrically-assisted steering for better precision and to improve fuel economy, with an active 'shutter' in the grille to cut airflow and drag when the car is moving. The Australian on-sale date for the global Focus is still being decided, with America and Europe up first.  "We believe some Asian markets will get it early in 2012, we are in the middle there somewhere between the US and Asia," says Sinead McAlary, spokesperson for Ford Australia. The car will be built in Spain, Russia, Germany, Thailand and China - as well as the former truck factory in Detroit - and the objective is to sell two million cars a year. That would make it the world's best selling car. McAlary will not confirm which Focus factory will supply Australia, but it is likely to be Thailand and she admits "demand from the European and US markets will not affect our supply".

The company is also unlikely to build another turbo Territory after the lacklustre reception of its F6X version. FPV boss Rod Barrett says Campbellfield operation will build "fast Falcons" only for the foreseeable future. "We've noted our speciality," he says. Barrett says the Focus would have been a welcomed entry addition to the FPV range but Ford's decision to cancel local production has ended the chance to go up against HSV's hot Astra-based turbo VXR. "If the mothership doesn't produce the mother car, we have got very little opportunity to make a locally-produced Focus now. That was always our waiting game. A hot Focus sourced out of Europe is also unlikely. "We don't do imports," Barrett says. "They are just price-prohibitive for our business case and when the decision was made that the Focus wouldn't be made at Broadmeadows that effectively ended the FPV locally built Focus." With the company building just 2000 hot Falcons a year, Barrett admits the options are few for growing the FPV brand. Although a hot Focus would have given enthusiasts a leg up into an entry FPV, going down the import path to bring in an Focus RS as a badged FPV was no longer an option because of exchanges rates. "We did look at it and then the dollar dropped," he says. Ford of Europe's, Focus RS, which sells in the UK for $52,000, was the likely candidate. The RS has a heavily reworked version of the same five-cylinder turbo petrol engine that powers the XR5 that lifts performance to 224kW/440Nm. To cope with the extra power the RS gets a beefier sports suspension, upgraded brakes, dual exhausts and retuned steering as well as a limited slip differential. The car accelerates to 100km/h in 5.9 seconds and has a top speed of 260km/h. Barrett says that if the company could have got 200 Focus RS models it could have been profitable, with a price under $60,000. Apart from the Focus, Barrett also says there are no plans to revisit the Territory F6X. "It's not in our immediate plans to go back into a Territory at the moment," he says. "We didn't have plans to go into an F6X at the new Territory." Barrett says the F6X was accepted as a very good car but "unfortunately it didn't appeal to the market".

Instead has announced that it is changing tack and will introduce a four-cylinder engine into the Falcon line-up, invest $230 million iin new engine technology and start a big export business push for the Falcon and Territory.The changes will see the four-cylinder in the Falcon range from 2011 as part of Ford’s global ‘ecoboost’ strategy.The first application of the ecoboost four-cylinder in a rear-wheel drive will be a 2.0-litre with direct-injection and turbocharging, which Ford says will “deliver the power and refinement of a six-cylinder” but with 15-20 per cent better fuel economy.The first of these engines will be fitted to Falcons within two weeks for local testing.Other developments include a PSA-sourced 2.7-litre turbodiesel for the 2011 Territory –which will reduce emissions by 25 per cent compared to the petrol six-cylinder version – three new engines and a range of other engine updates from 2010 aimed at better economy.The company is committed to investing in new, more economical petrol, diesel and LPG engines for its large cars.The move will protect current car-worker jobs at Geelong and Broadmeadows and provide the potential to grow the company's employee base when exports start.Ford had already committed to building the Focus at its Broadmeadows plant from 2011.The Focus plan would have meant 40,000 cars a year would have been built at Broadmeadows with 15,000 to be sold in Asia.Last November it renewed its commitment to the in-line six cylinder Falcon engine in place of importing a new V6 engine.Ford had originally announced that it would dump the Falcon and Territory's six cylinder in favour of a globally sourced and more efficient V6 that met Euro IV emissions standards that come in from next July.  

Two months after Ford Australia fixed a potentially dangerous brake defect on some versions of its Territory, the company is now recalling its Focus and Mondeos to check problem with brake vacuum pumps. The recall for the LV Focus and MA Mondeo, built since last year, only affects those with a diesel engine. Ford says under certain conditions the supply of vacuum to the brake booster may be reduced causing a hard brake pedal and increase stopping distances. Ford is contacting known owners by mail. In March, Ford recalled more than 83,000 Territories to fix a brake hose defect which was uncovered by Carsguide after complaints from readers.    

These images show the all-new Focus as it is likely to look when it is ready for the road - and running down the production line at Broadmeadows in Victoria - in 2011. The next Focus is already well into development in Europe and, after being caught several times during secret durability tests, has now been unmasked as a production car. These images are not official from Ford, but they give a best-guess look at how today's Focus will be morphed into the all-new model for 2011. So the basic shape is the same but the car has much more adventurous lines, just as the baby Fiesta took on a sharper edge with the new model seen in Australia this year. The 2011 Focus will have the same model spread as today, but is expected to have better performance with improved fuel consumption and emissions. It will also have an ECOnetic hero car with benchmark economy and emissions. Ford Australia will not comment on the design of the next Focus but confirms the car is on track for local showrooms. "The plans are moving ahead with no changes at this stage. We're just moving ahead and the next milestone is later this year. We're still planning for implementation in 2011," says Ford's spokesperson, Sinead McAlary. The new look for the Focus helps to explain why Ford Australia did not make an immediate switch to the current compact when it decided to bolster production of the Falcon and Territory with a small car. It chose to wait for the full model change, and also for a car which takes the next big step in the history of the Focus. "If we had done it now we would have had to re-engineer the plant for this car and then the new model. That didn't make sense," says McAlary.

The small car the company will build at Broadmeadows from 2011, creating 300 new jobs and anchoring a major export drive, was revealed in Geneva yesterday.The Iosis Max is officially only a concept car but is actually the next-generation Focus hatch which is coming to Australia.It was previewed just days after GM Holden pulled the wraps off its compact Cruze at the opening of the Melbourne Motor Show.The Cruze is also set for local production from 2010, although there will also be sales of an imported version from Korea within three months.Ford Australia is reluctant to talk about its plans for the Focus, but admitted yesterday that elements of its design, aerodynamics and a new 1.6-litre four cylinder engine will make it into local production.The Iosis Max provides a "strong pointer to what the next-generation Focus will look like", Ford spokesperson, Sinead McAlary, said."Some of the aspects of the design and engineering will certainly make it into production."The Focus plan will see Ford build around 40,000 cars a year at Broadmeadows, with 15,000 set for export to Asia, in a move which should more than compensate for the downturn in demand for the home-grown Falcon and Territory.It is a major switch for Ford, which has not had a locally-made small car since it ended production of the Laser in the 1980s and closed its factory in Sydney.The design of the Iosis Max, which was a star on the opening day of the Geneva Motor Show, is much more dramatic than the current Focus but clearly linked to the style of the baby Fiesta.Innovations include a two-piece tailgate to allow easier opening of the rear hatchback, innovative doors and extensive use of lightweight materials.It is unclear how much of the concept car will survive for production, but the car's 1.6-litre EcoBoost sets a new standard for small-capacity, frugal fours.It uses a start-stop system on the engine for economical city driving as well as a new automatic transmission and is claimed to have 20 per cent better economy than similar conventional motors.McAlary said Ford Australia was still evaluating the new-generation engine in the show car."But we're certainly looking at it," she said.McAlary said Ford had a history of designing concepts that eventually became production cars."If you look at the Verve concept, that then became the new Fiesta," she said.The MAX also has a pedestrian-friendly bonnet that cushions the impact of a person on the car. 

The shipment of Commodores, rebadged as Chevrolet Omega, also marks the 10th year of Holden exports to Brazil.Brazil joins the US, Middle East, South Africa and New Zealand as markets for the VE Commodore and WM Statesman.China, where the previous long-wheelbase Statesman was sold as the Buick Royaum, is expected to be next on the list.Holden has actively positioned itself as a global manufacturer to help underpin the continuing viability of its local operations.Holden and Toyota are the only local carmakers with an active export program, though Ford has export plans for next-generation Focus, which will be built here from 2011. It expects to ship 15,000 cars a year overseas.Mitsubishi had hoped to enter an export program with Proton for its 380 sedan, but that deal fell through.From next year, cars built by Holden will be sold around the world by five brands.GM-Holden chairman and managing director Chris Gubbey says the company was able to get the investment needed for the VE program because of its export opportunities.Apart from Brazil, VEs rebadged as Pontiac G8s are soon to be sold in the US.Gubbey says VE and WM Statesman and Caprice were specifically developed with design hardware and suspensions that can be easily adapted for different markets.“VE and WM are generating a great response from our global GM partners, so much so that we expect to export 50 per cent of the vehicles we make by the end of next year,” he says.Brazil's media has already praised the Omega after a preview last month.GM Holden export manager Kristian Aquilina says the ethanol E24-capable Omega is sold as Chevrolet's flagship model in Brazil.“The Omega's position as the top model in Chevrolet's line-up confirms Holden's ability to produce a world-class product,” he says.Holden has exported more than 9000 vehicles there since 1998.The Holden export program started in 1954 with a small shipment of FJ Holdens to New Zealand. Last year 46,074 Holdens were shipped, taking the tally to more than 700,000.