Ford Focus ST-Line X is packed with cutting-edge tech and drives sweetly — and is stiff competition for the Fiesta ST

ACCORDING to a big swinging d*** at Ford, the 2018 Focus is the “best Ford ever”.

Yeah, all right mate. We’ll see. I’ve got two issues with that statement right from the off.

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First up, the phrase “best ever” is so over-used these days no one believes it.

I refer the jury to One Direction’s Best Song Ever. It got to No2, so it wasn’t even the best song that week.

Secondly, I’m fresh from driving the Fiesta ST which, for me, is the greatest car pound for pound on the planet.

Then there’s all you beautiful readers out there. Some will argue that the Mk2 Escort was Ford’s finest hour.

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Others will say Escort Cosworth. Capri. GT. Even the Transit. Who said Probe? Joker.

So I was understandably ­sceptical about all the love for the fourth-gen Focus. Until I drove one. It turns out big swinging d*** might have a point — the lower, wider Focus drives sweetly, looks great, adds more space and, to top it all, it is loaded with cutting-edge tech.

Plus it’s more tailored to individual choice.

There’s now a car for everyone: normal five-door hatch, estate, tall Active crossover, tall Active crossover estate, sporty ST-Line and posh Vignale. And there’s another bonus.

I love and cherish our long history and all the cars we have created. And I take all that into consideration when I say that this is our best car ever.

Steven Armstrong, Ford vice president

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The £17,930 base model is two grand cheaper than the old Focus just retired. But let’s concentrate on the ST-Line X you see here. Oh my. It’s a peach.

It shares the same 1.5-litre three-pot as the Fiesta ST — albeit ­lowered to 182hp — bolted to a best-in-class chassis with fancy independent rear suspension. Fast, fun, well balanced, precise turn-in. It filled me with puppy dog ­enthusiasm.

Three drive modes — eco, normal and sport — are standard and you can pay more for adaptive suspension.

That engine is also a world-first, dropping from three cylinders to two when coasting, to save on fuel and lower emissions,

and re-engaging under load without even a mouse’s hiccup.

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Other observations. Head-up Display. Love it. Every Ford should have it. Wifi for ten devices. B&O sound. Stop/go cruise control with speed sign recognition. Easy-peasy 8in touchscreen. They all please.

But it’s also the simple things that Ford do well — like the adjustable cup holders and the no-cap F1-style fuel filler.

Even a French guy stopped me to say: “That F-F-F-F-Focus is f-f-f-f . . . brilliant.”

That’s the clean version. He’s from Tourrettes.

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So, is this really the best Ford ever? Quite possibly.

But stand by for a 250hp-plus Focus ST next year — and then a monster 400hp hybrid Focus RS in 2020.

That’ll be the best Ford ever.

Family rift

SUMMER. A time for beers, barbecues, live music, general laziness and getting your washing dried in double-quick time. That last one was a joke.

Unless, of course, it wasn’t because you’re a parent and you’re constantly kneeling before Lord Zanussi while polishing off leftover cheese strings and Petits Filous fromage frais.

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At this stage in life, you’d promised yourself a cheeky little sports car, like a Peugeot RCZ maybe.

But no, you started playing mummies and daddies and actually ended up being a mummy and daddy and now you need a family bus.

Well, let me point you towards the Peugeot Rifter: half MPV, half SUV but 110 per cent practical for Team ____________ (add your surname here).

It’s everything a parent needs.

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Sliding doors. How much easier is that with nippers? Refrigerated glove box for Junior’s milky buttons and Um Bongo.

Airplane-style roof box in the back. Bucket-sized centre console. Fact. This clever little box has more cubby-hole space for family debris than the boot of a Toyota Aygo.

Other positives. Rear opening window. Picnic tables. USBs. Huge glass roof. And all three seats in the second row take a child seat. Yes, I know it’s a Partner van with windows, buddy, but it’s a bloody good one.

It also comes in two sizes –  standard (4.4m) and long (4.75m) with five or seven seats and the XL version can swallow pipes, planks, surfboards, anything 3m long.

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Now for the grown-up stuff. The Rifter differs from its sisters – the Citroen Berlingo and Vauxhall Combo Life – in that it has Peugeot’s brilliant digital i-Cockpit.

In fact, I’d say the i-Cockpit (high-up dash, 8in screen with 3D satnav, small squared-off steering wheel) works best on the Rifter because of the elevated driving position. Engines. We tested the 1.2-litre PureTech petrol with six-speed manual and the all-new 1.5-litre BlueHDI diesel with eight-speed auto.

Go for the diesel. That’s got 300Nm of torque, lower CO2, and can do up to 65mpg. It also has SCR (selective catalytic reduction) that traps virtually all of the NOx. It starts at £22,920. All-wheel drive and electric versions to follow.

Summer 2019. Drop a pen on a map, load up the Rifter and go.