TO the long list of things that have gone awry despite the best of intentions, add the 6-speed automatic transmission in the 2012 Ford Focus — an otherwise admirably redesigned compact car.
In its effort to give the car exceptional fuel economy, Ford programmed the PowerShift dual-clutch transmission to change gears in odd and infuriating ways, rather effectively undermining the first all-new Focus since the 2000 model year.
The Focus is no longer Ford’s smallest car in the United States. The Mexican-built Fiesta now holds that spot, sliding the Michigan-built Focus upscale in features and size. The latest model is available as either a sedan or a four-door hatchback.
With an overall length of 178.5 inches, the sedan is about 3.5 inches longer than the old model. The four-door hatchback is 171.6 inches long, 3.1 inches longer than the hatchback that Ford discontinued after the 2007 model year.
The least expensive Focus is the S sedan with a 5-speed manual transmission, which has a starting price of $17,295. The SE hatchback, also with the manual, starts at $18,995. The top Focus is the Titanium hatchback at $23,495, but a self-indulgent buyer can pile on options all the way to $28,000.
Ford boasts that it is offering some features not available from competitors like the Chevrolet Cruze, Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra and Toyota Corolla. The most notable is a system that automatically parallel-parks the car. The least expensive model on which this is available is the SEL, on which it is a $695 option, but because it requires buying other options the total cost is $3,085.
I tested an SE sedan, which is reasonably well equipped for the base price of $18,195. But the test car had more than $5,000 in extras, including cruise control, heated front seats, a 6-speed automatic transmission and a sport package. The window sticker totaled $23,195.
Continue reading the main storyLike the original Focus, the 2012 models were developed in Europe. However, most of the work on the PowerShift automatic and the 4-cylinder engine was done in the United States.
Greg Burgess, the Focus vehicle engineering manager, said the American model handled almost identically to its Euro-sibling. One difference: all-season tires replaced the high-performance “summer” tires used in Europe.
The vehicle I tested had a sport package that includes higher-performance tires and replaces the rear drum brakes with discs. It also had optional 17-inch wheels with 215/50R17 tires. “The suspension tuning is pretty much the same,” Mr. Burgess said.
Two things are remarkable about the sport package. One is how quickly the Focus can travel even the most convoluted mountain road, changing direction quickly and displaying impressive adhesion and confidence-inspiring composure. The steering is precise and predictable; the body, which benefits from the inclusion of high-strength steel, feels wonderfully rigid.
The other notable benefit is that the ride quality — even on bad roads — remains quite good. Typically, sport suspensions make a car’s passengers suffer for the driver’s fun, but that’s not the case with the Focus.
So just as it seems that Ford has hammered a gee-whiz home run, we come to the automatic transmission, expected to be chosen by 90 percent of buyers.
Dual-clutch designs are revered for sporty, fast shifts rivaling those of manual transmissions. But Ford has calibrated the PowerShift to maximize fuel economy by seeking the highest gear possible as quickly as possible, which keeps the engine speed low.
The gearing is not a problem on the Interstate, but can be aggravating on back roads or in stop-and-go traffic. The transmission is often in the wrong gear at the wrong time, resulting in jerks, pauses and lethargic acceleration.
Putting the shifter in the Sport position delays shifts but creates its own problem. Touching the brake while in Sport causes the gearbox to downshift.
Some automatic transmissions are programmed to shift to a lower gear if they receive a signal from the steering that the driver is turning. The idea is to provide better acceleration through the turn and onto a straight. But PowerShift doesn’t receive any steering input, so when set to Sport it mindlessly downshifts whenever the driver brakes.
The driver can manually select gears by pushing a button on the side of the shift lever. This works reasonably well, but is not convenient and cannot offset the pervasive misbehavior.
It would take an utterly oblivious driver not to notice the PowerShift’s problems. And because the Focus’s handling is so good, the car will attract enthusiasts; I suspect that only the most bizarrely charitable enthusiast would find this transmission acceptable.
“It is quite a challenge to deliver something that is very, very fuel-efficient and yet feels just like a conventional automatic, and there are some balances and some tradeoffs that we make,” said Mr. Burgess, the engineer.
Ford has talented powertrain engineers, so the logical explanation is that they were given a fuel economy target and no option but to meet it. One might wonder why a top executive didn’t step in to keep the transmission from reaching market, but remember that this same company allowed the overcomplicated, confusing and sometimes inept MyFord Touch controls — also available on the Focus — to go into production.
I didn’t have a chance to drive a Focus with the 5-speed manual transmission, an alternative worth exploring. It is not available on fancier trim levels.
The engine is a new 4-cylinder with direct injection, designed to provide more power and improved fuel economy. The 2-liter engine is rated at 160 horsepower at 6,500 revolutions per minute and 146 pound-feet torque at 4,450 r.p.m. When the transmission eventually found the right gear, the 4-cylinder moved the Focus (weighing a substantial 2,935 pounds) along briskly.
Car and Driver magazine clocked a Focus similar to the one I tested at 8.1 seconds from 0 to 60 miles per hour. The model I drove was rated at 27 m.p.g. in town (2 m.p.g. better than the 2011 model with a 4-speed automatic) and 37 m.p.g. on the highway (a gain of 3). In about 400 miles of cruising at around 65 m.p.h. I averaged close to 37 m.p.g.
A higher-mileage version, the SFE, is offered, but it could take many years of ownership to offset its higher price.
Most of the interior is pleasing. Many of the surfaces, including the steering wheel, use soft-touch plastic, literally a nice touch in the compact-car segment. The vehicle I tried had easy-to-use knobs for climate control. One odd thing was that the top of the storage bin impinges a bit on one of the cup holders, which are situated a bit too far back.
The sedan’s 13.2 cubic feet of cargo space is competitive. Although the hatchback is shorter over all, it offers 23.8 cubic feet of storage (and as much as 44.8 with the backseat folded) and has roughly the same amount of headroom and legroom as the sedan.
Even the least expensive Focus has all the latest safety features. The Focus received a Top Safety Pick rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which tested it for front and side-impact crashes and for roof strength.
Alas, Ford has created a Focus in conflict with itself. The energetic handling will appeal to enthusiasts, but the automatic transmission won’t cooperate.
INSIDE TRACK: A great car stuck in
neutral.
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