Ford Focus 2011

Wow

That front end styling is as fugly as it can get. Compared to the current model this could really kill sales.

Problems with keyfob/central locking

My mother in law has just got the new C-Max as her mobility car and in the first week they were locked out of it twice because there is a problem with the keyfob and the central locking but so far Ford haven't managed to find a fix for it.

It's a very common problem with them.

Automatic parallel parking?

"All you control is gear selection, clutch, brake and throttle"

Why it's like it drives itself.

@All the "Why review a car" posts

What part of:

"Ford Focus 2011" or "We take Ford's new C-class for a quick spin"

made you think this was going to be anything other than a car review?

Then, given you don't want to read a car review, I am interested to know what malware El Reg punted to your computer to force you to open the link. After which please share what compulsion was used to make you read the article and then to force you to comment on it.

Finally, please can you explain the validity of your assumption that just because *you* don't want to read a review on the new Ford Focus then no-one else would want to read about it either?

Amazing tech!

So this is where all the kids who doodled cars on their exercise books in school got to.

Amazing tech, but should be used as an extra assistance, not an alternative to human abilities - see recent case of "satnav told me to drive the wrong way and now my kid is dead.

But yeah, crazy stuff!

Autopark.

The Prius does this and it works quite well.

It does it with a rear-facing camera and some fancy image interpretation. It also displays the camera output on the main screen. This is handy 'cos you can prove that it's got it right and also use it for reversing in other situations too (it has a fisheye lens and gives a rather better field of vision than turning yer head round).

The snag here is that Prius drivers all learn very rapidly that it's a damned sight quicker and easier to do it yourself, following the helpful cue lines it draws on the screen for you, relegating the core function to "look what this can do" moments in the pub car park....

Hope they get it right this time

I've owned a number of Focus cars of the years and after seing the obvious improvements upto the 04 model have been dissapointed that they basically threw everything they learned and refined out of the window. I held off buyng another for years because I hoped they would refine the new models, but eventually (my old one was ready for the scrap yard) had to go for one (06) plate. Design flaws include

*MAJOR* The AUX connector is in the glovebox, you can't connect a device to it and shut the glovebox, so you can't use it if you have a passenger. The glovebox has a covered hole for a power supply but it's not installed, so no power supply for your ipod, all other power supplies are in inconvenient places.

*MAJOR* No protection strips along doors or bumbers, not ideal for shopping trolly filled car parks.

Electric window controls are horizontal and under the window itself so open the window in any rain and the water gets trapped under the controls, no drain available.

Central console catches knees.

1.6 Engine in 06 model doesn't perform as well as 04 model.

Handbrake on wrong side (you can get used to this)

The power supplies are in the wrong place, the most convenient for a GPS is on the opposite side of the gearstick to the windscreen so you have a cable getting in the way of the gearstick.

I read that VW were invloved in the design, I think they were sabotaging the competition.

"Shifting responsibility from the driver"

"Bah! Anti-lock braking/cruise control/automatic choke/intermittent windscreen wipers/self-cancelling indicators/automatic timing advance/steering wheels/electric starters (pick one depending on decade) are stopping drivers knowing how to drive properly! Mutter, mutter, where's my pipe, etc..."

Don't get me wrong, some automatic stuff I'm not in favour of. Turning headlights on automatically is annoying. Automatic windscreen wipers don't do it for me either. And I'd like to be doing the steering myself, thanks.

But automatic parallel parking OTOH I'd love. Sure I can do it myself. And I could empty a septic tank with a bucket if I had to. But if there's a gadget that'll do a shitty job for me, I'm all in favour. Similarly, anything which gives me information in a way which lets me keep more attention on the road is worth having. Blind-spot warnings in particular are a very good idea on any modern car, bcos you just don't have the visibility. (Sure you can look round. What's happening in front of you when you do...?)

@Nick Galloway

I seriously hope you're joking there. If not, you need a good long drink of Clue-Up...

Next up on Top Gear

Jeremy drives around Microsoft's Redmond campus in a white van with "Linux Rulez" and "Ballmer is a wanker" painted on its sides.

Just think of the lawsuits

With all this technology and no personal responsibility for the driver, the U.S. courtrooms will be filled with lawsuits from now until eternity. Everyone but the paid liars will lose.

DVLA

So we'll soon have a new license type with tickboxes about what types of car you can drive, based upon the gizmo's the car has. Like drivers who take the test in an automatic who can only drive automatics.

Speaking of which, I wish I'd bought an automatic when I got my present car. PITA having to drive in slow moving traffic presently.

cost per year of design life?

with the typical car becoming economically unfeasible to run (due to the repair costs of complex systems and parts availability) after 7 years, and this car with some of the gizmos costing £20k, this is strictly for the (business expense charging) birds.

Forced induction @ Riscyrich

Yep, that'll be the boost in EcoBoost.

Performance

"The 150PS 1.6 EcoBoost will do 0-62mph in 8.6s and 31-62mph in the same time. "

Well, presumably that means it will do 0-31mph in 0.0s, which is quite an astonishing rate of acceleration for a Ford. No wonder you need those low speed safety features!