2008 Motor Trend Car of the Year Contenders

Ford Focus: Cynics Need Not Apply

For 2008, the Focus receives all-new sheetmetal, retuned suspension, and a coupe variant. It also sheds 40 pounds and gets better gas mileage than ever. Improved creature comforts include redesigned seats, an optional Microsoft-developed voice-activated infotainment system, and a custom configurable ambient lighting system.

So why was the Focus so roundly savaged by our Car of the Year judges? Take the styling, for example. While we tend not to highlight such subjective issues, the ham-handed execution drew noteworthy criticism. Cues like the chromed two-bar grille are supposed to evoke the Edge and Fusion and Ford's new look. Problem is, both of those cars were styled in the last two years, while the Focus was penned in late 1990s. No surprise then that it all seems stuck on, rather than designed in-like the chrome fender trim that terminates abruptly and enigmatically at the door seam. Same goes for the interior: "Lots of plastics, lights, and slick sloping fonts, but little in the way of quality," says one editor.

The Focus failed to impress on the road course as well. Despite cooling improvements and the addition of an e-throttle, the 2.0-liter Duratec I-4 is described as "agricultural" by one editor while another noted that it "hangs onto revs ridiculously." Ford claims to have added big-car quietness to the Focus, but it appears it have added big-car handling as well. Lassa notes the Focus displays "less roll on the handling course than the [new Subaru WRX], but it loses grip way earlier and flops over on its rim-protectors."

Since the Focus appeared in 1999, Honda launched two Civic generations, Toyota birthed five Scion models, while Volvo and Mazda found a way to sell cars based on the stellar second-gen Euro-spec Focus.

So? Editor MacKenzie sums it up best: "The Focus is the most cynical car here." And cynics don't stand a chance in Car of the Year.

-Edward Loh

What they did right: Calling Microsoft for Sync.

Room for improvement: Pretty much everything other than Sync needs to be upgraded if the Focus is to be anything other than a heavily discounted-price-only small-car entry.

Bet You Didn't Know: Converging the North American Focus with the latest C1 platform Focus sold elsewhere would've driven the price into Fusion territory, so we get a redo of the original C170 Focus.