Should you buy one?

If you want a spacious family car that’s good to drive, then the Ford Focus Estate makes a lot of sense – especially if you’re buying one to keep (as in, not on a leasing agreement). It’s more fun than the Volkswagen Golf and Skoda Octavia estates, and the infotainment system on the facelift model is a real cracker. The only thing that lets the side down is the lack of any serious hybrid technology, which removes a lot of the car’s appeal for those living in emissions-controlled areas or for those shopping for a company car. 

Just to be clear, we’re not lusting for more fuel economy – the Focus Estate’s mild-hybrid petrol engines already offer that in spades. Plug-in hybrid powertrains also rarely deliver the astronomical economy figures they advertise, so all we’re pining for is the low Benefit-in-Kind rates and the cheap road tax.

What we like

The Focus Estate can do almost everything. It offers acres of space, it’s entertaining in the corners and it’s affordable to fuel. The petrol engines also provide enough performance to make it fun in a straight line, while the diesel option is efficient enough to allow you to cover vast distances comfortably. Oh, and have we mentioned how good the new 13.2-inch infotainment is?

What we don’t like

Ford hasn’t jumped on the hybrid bandwagon. In a way, this isn’t such a bad thing, as a heavy PHEV system would have likely ruined the Focus Estate’s balanced handling. But it’d be nice to have that option – especially if you live in the city. Rivals like the Skoda Octavia and Volkswagen Golf are available with the tech, too, meaning Ford’s slightly behind the curve.

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