Behind the wheel of the new Ford Focus week 4

I managed to take the Focus out on an extended run down to London this week so I really got to see just how good the 1.6 litre 150PS EcoBoost engine is. Now I should point out that MTI is being courted at the moment by a new suitor, people or persons who must remain unnamed (for now) who would like to acquire our site. I should also point out that we have been down that particular road before so no one around here is getting particularly excited; well in fact no one is really taking it seriously at all to be honest, except me of course. This is why I accepted the kind offer from our suitor for a day at the Cricket last week watching England versus Sri Lanka in the first NatWest one day international at the Oval in Kennington (or the Kia Oval to give it it’s proper, paid for, name), London. Included in the “price” (not that I was paying) was a night at a 4 star hotel so even though I don’t much care for Cricket the prospect of a day sitting around in the sunshine being wined and dined (and lunched) was too good an opportunity to pass up.

Our new Ford Focus in Candy Yellow

The trip down to the Kia Oval from Norfolk was going to be over 100 miles so this meant an early start. Living in the heart of the countryside means you have to deal with traffic hazards that city dwellers don’t have to worry about. Leaving so early in the morning (about 06:30 to be precise) meant I would miss any local snarl ups but also meant I was second on the scene at an RTA involving a Citroen Saxo and a deer. I don’t know what happened to the Deer as it wasn’t around but the Saxo was on its roof in the ditch. Luckily the driver was the right way up and apart from a painful neck seemed OK. He was only a young lad (yes it was a Saxo) and he was pretty shook up but he’d called his dad who’d arrived about the same time as me and he was dealing with the formalities. When it was ascertained that I could be of no assistance I carried on my way but not before the lad’s dad had commented on the Candy yellow colour of the Focus even managing a “deer would have run a mile if he’d seen that coming” joke. Everyone’s a comedian.

On this trip I discovered the DAB digital radio (having forgotten the USB stick) and had fun listening to some obscure stations and have also discovered a slight throatiness from the engine when it’s pushed hard. Now this, as far as I am concerned anyway, is a good thing and I’m really getting to love driving this car. On the motorway I used some “creative” driving to avoid getting held up in slow moving traffic. Yes I was having fun and I think I was even involved in a bit of a “race” with a VW Golf. That’s what happens I guess when you stand out from the crowd and of course you’re not going to do that in a Focus but you just may in a Candy Yellow one. I lost the “race” (if it even was one, I’m still not sure) but it made the journey a little more interesting, even if it meant that I stopped changing the channels on the DAB and realised I’d been listening to Christian radio for 15 minutes.

The Kia Oval, Kennington London

Predictably I arrived early so had a bit of a wander around before meeting up with the representative of MTI’s potential new owners.

I didn’t learn much about cricket as it was all a bit of a haze what with all that cold beer and lovely crisp white wine but I do know that England won by 110 runs and I didn’t sign anything.

Approx 220 miles and a somewhat disappointing 36.8 mpg but that was probably more my fault than the Focus.