Its first appearance was in the European market in the fall of 1997. It finally made its way across the Atlantic in the year 2000 winning numerous "Car of the Year" awards. The Ford Focus is a direct replacement to the pricey Ford Escort. It has been said that "for every Escort that was built, Ford lost money."

Being the most popular and best-selling car ever built this past summer, Ford made all attempts to hide this fact for fear of generating negative consumer behaviour and thus losing sales. The Ford Focus is currently the most value-packed and affordable automobile a North American can buy. They come in the following trims and models:

Four-door sedan - SE (base)
Four-door sedan - ZTS with the 2.0 Zetec engine
Four-door wagon
Three-door hatchback - ZX3 with upgraded suspension and the 2.0 130 HP Zetec engine.
Focus S2 - sportier variation of the ZX3 and available in Liquid Grey.
Focus Street Edition - sportier version of the SE/ZTS models with an upgraded audio system and European-tuned suspension.

MSRP starts around $16,595.00 CDN

New for 2002:

SVT Focus (based on the ZX3 model). For full details, check out http://www.svtfocusonline.com .

Also:

ZX5 - A five-door hatcback based on the ZX3.
Sport version of the wagon.

I am the proud new owner of a 2001 Ford Focus ZX3. It is the sportiest egg on the block. It is also the loudest egg in terms of stock stereo system that I have ever experienced.

I had been hunting around looking to buy a new car since July, and was really thinking about getting a Ford Ranger - I figured that owning a pickup truck would make it easier to move from one state to another (which I plan on doing in the next couple years). I thought about this some more, and realizing that I would never fit everything I owned into a truck bed and attached trailer, I decided to get a car. My stepfather works for Ford, and I am therefore hooked up with the A plan. I researched the ZX2, the Focus, and thought about getting what would be my third pre-owned Ford Escort. After some consideration into my needs vs. my wants, the choices were to either go used, or get a new Focus.

I went with the Focus. MSRP on the model that I wanted was 14,500. Dealer added options (an alarm, some hellacious window tinting and some other crap - special tires?) bumped the dealer price up to 18,500 before tax, title, & registration. Like hell. After the wheeling and dealing and the salesperson dropping a couple grand off that price, I announced my Ford favored status and paid (with tax and an extended 5 year warranty) 14,500 for the car. Pretty damn good.

Anyway, about the car: it's sporty looking, has admirable suspension, and it's pretty quick. Yes, it is just a 4 cylinder, but it also only weighs like 13 pounds. Well, maybe a little bit more. The Focus is also supposedly the first car built "from the inside out" which makes it ergonomically the most convenient and comfortable car I've ever driven. Everything is within reach, and all of the instruments are a cinch to figure out. The car has a 13 gallon gas tank, and gets 35 mpg highway, which will be much more fuel efficient than my boyfriend's beloved SUV (which I was driving prior to yesterday).

Yay Focus.

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