Letting the roof down!

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England), March 2, 2007

Byline: By Steve Hughes

Ford is playing catch-up in the expanding coupe cabriolet market with the belated introduction of its stylish new Focus CC. It lines up alongside established favourites such as the Peugeot 307, Volkswagen Eos and Renault Megane ( all of which it undercuts in price.

There are three Focus CC models ranging in price from pounds 16,795 for the entry-level 1.6i to pounds 21,575 for the 2.0TDCi with upmarket CC-3 trim and equipment levels.

The coupe cabriolets are based on the standard Focus platform, which is made in Spain and transported to Italy.

There it enters the styling house of Pininfarina, which has been responsible for many of the world's most revered coupe cabriolets.

Strengthened by the addition of extra steel to make the body as rigid as possible with the folding roof down it becomes the Focus CC and is produced in limited numbers for what is still a niche market.

Germany will take most of them, with the UK second, followed by Italy, France and Spain.

In the case of the Focus CC the roof folds away in just two sections and takes half a minute to do so, which is slow by modern coupe-cabriolet standards.

However, once it is stowed in the boot there is a class-leading 234 litres of luggage space and when the roof is up this increases to 534 litres, which is about half as much again as that of the Peugeot and significantly more than even the Megane.

Ford says that it designed the car primarily as a coupe so that it will look more attractive than its rivals with the roof up, which is how it will spend most of its time.

In the metal the car looks perfectly balanced both with the roof up and down and benefits from image-boosting Pininfarina badges and logos on each side of its flanks.

On the road, the car drives just like a standard Focus, with not the slightest hint of scuttle shake with the roof down ( a problem which plagues some of its less well-engineered rivals.

There are petrol engines of 1.6litres and 2.0litres but the diesel is a corker and arguably the one to go for.

There is an extremely effective wind deflector behind the heads of the driver and front seat passenger but this cannot be used when there are passengers in the back.

The rear seats are not just for show but are surprisingly roomy and certainly ideally suited to youngsters.

Niggles with our test cars included a few drops of rain penetrating the roof during a torrential downpour and the air conditioning system not working on one model.

However, the cars look great and drive well. It is an impressive package that is not only stylish but also practical.

There is plenty of room in the boot for a weekend away with the roof down and in regular use with the roof up the enlarged cargo area would cater for a full family's needs.

Ford has been late bringing the Focus to the coupe cabriolet market but it has been worth the wait.

The only problem now will be availability because of limited production.

Such will be the demand for the first of these highly desirable newcomers that those who take the plunge early are likely to get all or most of their money back if they choose to sell in a year or two's time.