Ford Focus 1.6 Review

Isn't it typical that the older you get the quicker the world around you seems to move? If only there were a car that would remind you of older days, when everything moved a little slower. Meet the entry level Ford Focus 1.6 auto.

There are two reasons why the 1.6 accelerates approximately as quickly as a glacier and has a 0-100km/h time most effectively measured via a calendar rather than stopwatch. First there's the 74kW/150Nm supplied by the engine, and the old school four speed automatic gearbox.

The gearbox is the worst culprit because there are gaps between the gear ratios that the channel tunnel couldn't cross. You're either screaming away at full rpm, or lumbering along with the engine just over tick over. Why no five speed auto? I'd guess price, as the 1.6 auto comes in at NZ$27,690.

Nevertheless, there is another reason for this car in the range - it uses very little fuel, which is obviously one of the more popular motoring subjects at the moment. Hit the fuel consumption button and you find that in town you're scoring 9.5L/100km. Move on to the open road and you're looking at something in the region of 7.2L/100km.

But the most ironically frustrating thing is that the Focus is such a good handling car, with a chassis seemingly forged from bits of a substantial rail bridge. There's virtually no body flex, which allows the suspension to do its job accurately and quickly.

The result is a fantastic car that doesn't even have half the power to exploit the handling capability. But the handling hasn't been sacrificed to the detriment of ride quality and the Focus has a mature ride that many larger cars simply fail to achieve.

Inside the car is obvious that this is on the bottom rung of the spec ladder. You get power windows in front, but DIY winders in the back and the air con is manual. You do get a jack for an MP3 player, but as it is positioned in the glove box you can't change songs very easily unless you have a very long cord and run the risk of chopping it in half when you close the glove box.

There is plenty of room inside the car though - I managed to fit a dishwasher in the back with the seats folded down and there was still room for most of the rest of a kitchen. It's been a long time since you needed to buy a big car to get big room on the inside.

It's easy to take cheap shots at the 1.6. It's slow and uses a number of gear ratios that should be extinct, but it delivers transport for little expense on petrol, and handles and rides like, well, any other focus.

So if you live life exclusively in the slow lane then this car does make a fair bit of sense. Next week I'm in the XR5 turbo, which is an entirely different kettle of fish. I can't wait.