CAR REVIEW – 2014 Ford Focus

I was provided with a 10 day test drive of the Ford Focus featured in this post. This post has not been monetarily compensated. Please note that, as always, any personal opinions reflected in this post are my own and have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.

Recently I attended a conference in Boston. As I am in New Jersey, it takes literally about the same amount of time to fly there as it does to make the 5 hour drive. It’s one hour to the airport, 1-2 hours before flight, hour in the air, disembarking, and that’s if there’s no delays and I’m not checking luggage. I love to drive, and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to take a little solo road trip. I drove a 2014 Ford Focus Titanium Edition.
I’d never driven a Ford Focus before. I expected it to look and feel small. I expected it to be more of a single person’s car, or a commuter car. I was pleasantly surprised by what I found.

I think the look of the nose has a sort of sporty look to it.

Inside the front of the car it is surprisingly roomy. I am 5″ 10″. I generally feel very cramped in smaller cars and was happy to find that I had plenty of legroom. The leather seats were super comfy, and both drivers and passengers side were heated.

I did fit in the back seat, as did my 18 year old son who is 6 foot tall. We didn’t feel like sardines like we have in the back seat of some smaller cars. However, it would be a tad trying if attempting a long journey as the two full size adults pretty much take up the whole back seat. There are charging ports accessible from the back seat.

Speaking of the back seat. It’s a split bench. Either side can be laid down independently or they can both be laid down simultaneously to have a completely open cargo space.

The trunk was rather sizable for a smaller car. It is the home of the large part of the amazing sound system. More on that later, just take note of the large speaker on the right.

Once in the driver’s seat the gauges are organized neatly right on the dash in front of you. I liked the little hoods that separated them, it also helped cut down on glare on the gauges when driving in very bright sunlight. You don’t need a key to start the Focus, it has a push button start. And speaking of keys.
The Ford Focus has MyKey owner controls, a feature that lets you program individual keys so that two members of a household can share the car and yet have their own personal settings. Some of the settings available include:

• restricting the vehicle’s top speed to 65, 70, 75 or 80 mph
• limiting the audio system to 45 percent of maximum volume
• providing a warning when the fuel tank reaches 75 miles to empty
• selecting speed alert chimes at 45, 55 or 65 mph,
• setting the Belt-Minder® to chime while muting the audio system until the safety belt is buckled

I kid you not, this car is amazing on gas mileage. I wound up nicknaming the car the camel. I filled the car up at 6,262 miles. I’ve driven up through Boston a number of times before, as my husband’s family lives in New Hampshire. I’ve always had to get gas part way. Not this time! I kept watching the gas gauge waiting for it to get low enough for me to have to stop. It took forever to drop! I told my Dad when I called them that I felt like the car was a camel and had humps with gas in them. I was ten miles short of empty according to the gauge when I stopped to refill the tank at 6,633 miles. That’s a whopping 371 miles! That made me a very happy girl!

To the right of the dash is the car’s console, which is connected to the dash where the media center is housed. It’s pretty small and compact, containing two cup holders. There are charging ports located here.

Many things can be controlled right from that media center screen in the center of the dash, including frequently used controls. And all of my favorite features. (FYI most of the same features can also be controlled from the steering wheel.)

You’re greeted by the familiar blue oval logo when you turn the car on.
The blue oval gives way to the media center.

Moving clockwise in the home screen, you can quickly and easily access your phone, GPS and maps, climate controls and stereo. If paired up with the Focus using Bluetooth you have full access to your phone, contacts and even messages. The media center also gives you the ability to change different settings such as establishing (or in my case disabling) a volume limit, and putting your phone on do not disturb so no calls or messages come through. The car also has voice-activated technology available to help you stay safe and hands free while managing phone calls, text messages and even the stereo.
The GPS was the easiest GPS system that I have used in a car to date. I loved that it allowed me to choose what view I had of the directions it provided. The stereo, well I could write a whole post about the stereo. It is awesome. (And yes these things are important to me.) The car has a Sony audio system with 10 speakers, which includes that big subwoofer I told you to notice above. The system has HD radio and SiriusXM built in.
 


When the vehicle is moving in reverse the rear view camera is automatically activated and overrides whatever is on the media center display.
There was only one thing about the car that I wasn’t crazy about. The interior posts were a grayish white. I found them to cause a little bit of a glare which was a little distracting. The color of the posts may be a choice when purchasing and not a fault with the car design itself.
 

I really enjoyed driving the Ford Focus. It was fun and so awesome on gas. If I were looking for a car for local commuting or local driving for a family of four or less I’d definitely consider it. It’d be great for regular and frequent travel as well, provided you didn’t need a lot of leg room in the back for long distances. The Focus would also be a great car for college students, so that they didn’t spend a ton on gas when they wanted to come home to visit.
The 2014 Ford Focus has an MSRP Range of $16,810 – $35,170. It is available in a number of configurations including an all electric model.

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