Ford Focus: Non-ST range culled in Australia

Ford has officially pulled the pin on the non-performance Focus hatchback range for Australia.

Only the Focus ST hot hatch range will be sold Down Under from 2022, as Ford officially kills the Focus ST-Line and high-riding Focus Active.

This is the second time Ford has trimmed back its Focus range, having axed the ST-Line wagon, and the Trend and Titanium hatchbacks for the 2021 model year.

Ford points to the fact small cars accounted for just 12 per cent of sales in Australia last year, compared to 20 per cent in 2014, as the reason for its decision.

Sales of the latest Focus have plummeted dramatically compared to those of the broader small car market since its launch in 2019.

Ford sold 3682 examples in 2019, 1878 examples in 2020, and has moved just 647 to date in 2021.

Volkswagen sold 14,355 examples of the Golf in 2019, 10,012 in 2020, and has sold 1372 so far this year (though it has faced supply issues and changed over to a new model).

The segment-leading Toyota Corolla is sitting on 23,404 sales to date in 2021, followed by the Hyundai i30 and its 19,134 sales.

In its best-ever year, 2013, the Focus outsold the Volkswagen Golf with 19,180 deliveries according to VFACTS data.

The fate of the Focus is the same as that of the smaller Fiesta hatchback, which has only been available in hot ST guise since the current-generation car launched.

Although the ST-Line and Active are dead, the Focus ST hot hatch will carry on in two forms for 2022.

The facelifted model will be offered in base ST guise, and more luxurious ST X trim when it touches down locally.

Pricing for the updated range hasn’t been locked in yet.

The Focus debuted in 2002 as a replacement for the Laser. Here’s how its sales have charted since 2002:

MORE: Everything Ford Focus

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