Road Test: Ford Focus 2.0T ST-1 5dr

Ford calls the Focus ST its pentathlete. The analogy arrives alongside the new Focus RS, and it’s helpful for understanding the freshly face-lifted ST’s place in the world. While the snorty RS has an eye firmly on circuit prowess, the ST is the slightly softer, one-car-fits-all alternative. As such there are diesel and wagon options, a combination we tried last month.

But where does the good old petrol hatchback fit in all of this? Very well, we say. The outgoing car was a peach, twinning an agile chassis with a muscular engine, while costing less than most rivals.

Starting at £22,195, this updated ST is £100 cheaper and has stiffer suspension, recalibrated torque-vectoring and steering systems and new use of stop/start, which has helped reduce CO₂ figures.

While we found the estate’s ride tough on broken UK roads, on better Spanish tarmac this hatch never felt anything more than firm-edged. Some may find it too hard for its do-it-all target, and it’s stiffer than many rivals. But given just how well it changes direction, keener drivers will argue it’s purposefully firm.

With uncannily satisfying levels of weight and feel for an electronic system, its steering is intuitive enough that you’ll rarely need to correct your lock, no matter how tight the corner. The torque-vectoring ensures you have unwavering faith in the front axle too.

As a result, you’re goaded into cornering quicker and quicker, the sign of a hot hatch doing its job properly. Unshackle its ESP, and it’s more fun yet, a benefit being minimised wheelspin out of second-gear corners as the tyres dig in without slightly heavy-handed electronic intervention.

Engine changes are slight, but given what a flexible unit this 2.0-litre EcoBoost turbo is, that’s fine. It’s big-lunged but willing to rev, allowing you to stir its snickety gearchange as much as you like.

Value continues to be a forte. Barely any buyers go for the headline £22k car, instead choosing the ST2 and ST3 variants. The latter gets the new Sync 2 touchscreen media system and, at £25,995, is cheaper than a basic (and 30bhp lighter) Golf GTI. However good that new RS turns out to be, the Focus ST remains a winner.