Ford Focus Active review: Three pot screamer

The new Ford Focus is ordinary. It’s dull. But a gutsy little engine makes this hatch a hoot.

Ford Focus Active. Picture: supplied

My son was taught many things at school, absolutely none of which are of any use. And that’s why recently, when the keys to his first flat were handed over, he thought he could simply move in, open a beer and sit down on the sofa to watch a bit of football. Council tax? Residents’ parking permit? Wi-fi? None of this had occurred to him. He had, however, bought a flat-pack sofa and some other stuff from Ikea, mainly because his mother had said to him: “You’re going to need to think about furniture.”

I offered to help him assemble it. But with all the bits and pieces spread out like a wave across the floor, I began to feel overwhelmed. So I had to become unmanly and break out the instruction manual, which was a series of simple diagrams. Well, they might be simple to you, but to me they looked like the architectural drawings for a submarine base.

Nonetheless, with my special tongue-out concentrating face on, it all started to come together. To get some parts attached to other parts I had to adopt a few cruel and unusual yoga positions, and that made me out of breath, but after just three hours the sofa was built, and when I put it the right way up it didn’t wobble or fall to pieces.

I’d never bought anything from Ikea before. But having built that sofa, and seen how strong and robust the finished product was, I’m wondering why anyone would buy anything from anywhere else.

All of which brings me to the Ford Focus Active. Now, you don’t want one, because you want an SUV or a sports car or something with a BMW badge. A Ford Focus? That’s flat-pack furniture with windscreen wipers. It’s ordinary. It’s dull. And even if you do have a beige-slacks moment and fire up Ford’s configurator, you’ll learn it has a 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine. And you’ll think: “Oh, for crying out loud. A three-cylinder engine? It won’t move.”

But here’s the thing. It does move. Really move. Because, while the engine might be small, it somehow conjures up 134kW. And what’s even better is that it will shut down one cylinder when you aren’t in a hell-for-leather frame of mind and run around happily on two. Which means you’ll save money on fuel and be right-swiped by Greta Thunberg next time she’s in town.

It’s a lovely engine, too, full of vim and vigour, and if you ask it to stretch its legs, it makes a sort of eager gravelly noise. I really, really liked it. I liked the overall feel of the car, in fact. The original Ford Focus, thanks to its well-engineered independent rear suspension, was in a class of its own for good manners, but in recent years some of that quality has been missing. It’s back now, however. Even though this model has a raised suspension, you can whiz along in it and things never get hectic or unruly. It’s as composed as a ballet dancer.

And here comes the best bit. You get, as standard in the Active X trim, a full-length glass roof, keyless entry, mercifully unpanicky parking sensors, two-zone airconditioning, Apple CarPlay, a lane-departure warning system and something called post-collision braking. Personally, I’d prefer pre-collision braking, but there you are. Now, sure, you get that sort of stuff with a BMW or a Mercedes as well, but they don’t cost $29,990 and the Ford does. Because it’s a Ford.

It won’t turn many heads. But if you want a spacious car that does what you want, cheaply and efficiently, you’ll struggle to find anything better. Certainly, it swallowed up all the empty Ikea boxes left in my son’s flat. Which gives me an idea. Why doesn’t Ford sell the Focus in kit form? It would be cheaper still – and clever people like me who are good with their hands could put it together in a weekend. It might even be fun.

Ford Focus Active

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo-petrol three-cylinder (134kW/240Nm)

Average fuel: 6.4 litres per 100km

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, front-wheel drive

Price: From $29,990

Rating: ★★★★