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Some manufacturers make a few minor design changes halfway through their cars lives,
but Ford has gone for some serious facelifting with first the Fiesta, then the Mondeo -- which
isn't available until next November, and now the Focus. So you have the Aston Martin-esque
grille, slimmer headlamps and new bonnet.
There are changes round the back too with redesigned tail lights. On the old car they
kind of looked like that had been splatted on and they are definitley better this time.
But it's still not the prettiest car from behind this focus.
There are some other changes too inside the car such as these little accents in the air
vents. The biggest difference though is the centre console which has been redesigned.
Before the buttons were all small and fiddley. But now most of the controls are now operated
via the 8inch touch-screen. So now all you have is the heater and air conditioning. There's
also some changeable drinks holders and a place for your smart phone. There's also the
new sync two system which lets you program the sat nav by using your voice.
The new focus is also available with some updated active safety systems and a self parking
system which can steer you in or out of a bay. But bigger news is that it's the first
car to get Ford new 1.5-litre turbo petrol ecoboost engine which comes in either 148
or 178bhp guise. Ford has tuned the chassis to make the car even better to drive than
before and added extra insulation so it's quieter. If you want a new focus it goes on
sale in July priced about the same as the old car.