Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet: First Look

Motoring Channel Staff - 1/Mar/2006

Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet Ford will enter the increasingly popular coupe cabriolet market segment with its snappy Focus CC Ford hopes to sell 20,000 of its Italian built convertibles annually

Even five years ago the only way most people could get into a convertible with the versatility (and security) of a metal folding roof was to buy an expensive Mercedes-Benz. 

But how the times have changed.

Peugeot, Renault, Opel/Holden, Daihatsu and other marques all have coupé-cabriolet models - sometimes called CC for short - and now Ford is joining the open-air ranks with a preview of its very own Focus Coupé-Cabriolet.

Making its debut at the 76th Geneva Motor Show, Ford says the introduction of the Focus Coupé-Cabriolet was been led by customer response to Ford's Vignale Concept, which was displayed at the 2004 Paris Motor Show. The positive reaction prompted Ford to green-light the car for production, and it has been made ready in less than two years.

The new Focus Coupé-Cabriolet has been developed jointly by Ford of Europe and Italy 's Pininfarina, which enjoys a worldwide reputation for the design of some of the world's most attractive vehicles. The Focus Coupé-Cabriolet will go into volume production in mid-2006.

"We were delighted with the reaction to the Focus Vignale Concept and were determined to progress it to volume production," said Gunnar Herrmann, Vehicle Line Director for the Ford Focus.

"We also wanted to keep the production model as true to the beautiful concept car as we could, while making it convenient and affordable for everyday use," said Herrmann.

The Focus has earned its accolades as one of the best handling cars in its class, setting the standards by which small cars (C-class) are judged. The Coupé-Cabriolet will be no exception, and has been developed to be as agile, convenient, and reliable as the Ford Focus name implies.

The new Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet will be offered with a choice of three powertrains when it launches in Europe later in 2006: two petrol engines, the 74kW (101hp) 1.6-litre Duratec 4-cylinder engine and the 108kW 2.0-litre Duratec, and the latest generation 100kW 2.0-litre Duratorq TDCi diesel.

Ford says that the vehicle range's full technical details will be announced closer to market launch later in 2006.

The car utilises a two-piece folding electric hardtop to go from snug family motoring to wind-in-the-hair excitement. It is a full 4-seater, and will offer a substantial luggage compartment with more than 500 litres of usable space. The bold wheelarches familiar on all Ford Focus models give it a purposeful look, while the profile and rear views display a distinctly Italian design flavour with chrome details and a well-proportioned bootlid area.

"The initial design intent of the Vignale Concept remained almost untouched during its transition to the production Focus Coupé-Cabriolet," said Chris Bird, director of design at Ford of Europe. "The new Focus also provided us with a great starting point from which the design team could create a really distinctive dual-personality vehicle."

Customers will also be able to personalise their car to their own taste with an extensive list of colour and trim options, plus a dedicated range of options and accessories.

"Focus Coupé-Cabriolet is designed as a Grand Tourer, rather than a pure sports roadster," said Jon Wellsman, Ford of Europe's Brand Manager for Ford Focus. "As you would expect from a Ford Focus, it will be great to drive both as a coupé, and as a cabriolet."

The new Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet has been developed in cooperation with renowned Italian vehicle design, engineering, and manufacturing company Pininfarina S.p.A. Following the confirmation in November 2004 that Ford of Europe would progress the Focus Vignale Concept through to a production model, the company selected Pininfarina as the ideal partner to work with on the programme.

The co-operation with Pininfarina continues through the manufacturing process, as all Focus Coupé-Cabriolet production vehicles will be built at Pininfarina's manufacturing plants Grugliasco and Bairo, both being located in the suburbs of Turin, Italy. Core Focus parts will be supplied to the plant by Ford's lead Focus manufacturing facility in Saarlouis, Germany .

"We are proud to be working again with Ford of Europe on the new Focus Coupé-Cabriolet, as it represents for us a significant investment, not just in terms of our design and engineering expertise, but also in our ongoing relationship with Ford of Europe, and the deployment of our high quality manufacturing facility in Italy," said Andrea Pininfarina, Chief Executive Officer of Pininfarina S.p.A.

The new Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet will go on sale across Europe later in the Northern summer, and it is estimated that approximately 20,000 vehicles will be produced a year.