2019 Ford Focus Spy Photos: All-New Everything, Similar Wrapper

What It Is: Ford’s third-generation Focus for the U.S. market, testing in early prototype guise somewhere in Europe. Wait, you might be thinking, weren’t there more than two previous generations of Focus, a nameplate Ford introduced in 1999, on sale in the United States? Technically, no. While Europe received an interstitial all-new version in 2005, we were served two separate yet equally lukewarm refreshes of the original until 2011, when Ford decided it would again market the same car in America and Europe.

Why It Matters: Having absolved itself of the sinfully bad 2005–2011 Focus models with the excellent 2012 Focus, Ford must build on that success. At least, it needs to prove it can keep the Focus nameplate a winner here in the U.S. rather than let it languish into obsolescence as it did before. Since the current Focus appeared in 2012, it won spots on our 10Best Cars list two years in a row before being unseated by the also-excellent Mazda 3. The Focus is still a solid compact car, but its replacement will face a tougher competitive set that includes the latest Chevrolet Cruze, the new Honda Civic, and the Mazda 3’s impending replacement.

Platform: We don’t anticipate Ford will burn the current Focus’s structure to the ground and start from scratch but, rather, that it will massage those bones to reduce weight, increase stiffness, and keep up with ever-tougher global crash standards. The current model sports a commendably rigid body and excellent suspension tuning, assets that we hope will carry over to this new Focus.

Designwise, it’s difficult to garner much from these spy photos of a heavily camouflaged Focus hatchback prototype. We can detect more sculpted body-side styling that sweeps from just behind the front wheel before rising to near the top of the rear fender, along with the latest take on Ford’s corporate two-slat grille. Overall, though, the Focus doesn’t look like it will break new ground stylistically. Inside, we’re faced with another set of confusing prototype elements, namely the bizarre binnacle atop the dash that houses a very cheap-looking head unit that doesn’t appear in any other modern U.S.-market Ford, as well as the unfinished door panels. We sure hope those white plastic air vents are test pieces, because not only are they garishly huge, they’re unsightly, too. Look past the unfinished or still-under-development bits, and there are notable changes such as an electronic parking brake with an auto-hold function and what could be a fully digital gauge cluster.

Powertrain: Today’s Focus offers only a 160-hp 2.0-liter four and a 123-hp turbocharged 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost. (Of course, the Focus ST and Focus RS performance models use burlier turbo fours, which we expect will carry over to their replacements, but we’re focusing on the regular Focus here.) Those engine choices may remain, although Ford could decide to adopt a turbocharged, small-displacement four-cylinder either as an additional engine or replacing the turbo three, helping the Focus to square up better against Chevy’s all-turbo Cruze and Honda’s half-turbo Civic lineup. The Focus prototype pictured here has a six-speed manual transmission, an option we believe will return on the 2019 Focus in addition to a revised iteration of the six-speed dual-clutch automatic offered in the current car.

Competition: Chevrolet Cruze, Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, Mazda 3, Volkswagen Golf.

Estimated Arrival and Price: Look for the new Focus to make its debut sometime next year before arriving in the U.S. as a 2019-model-year offering. Ford should continue to sell its compact in both sedan and hatchback guises, with a starting price around $17,000 to $18,000.