Ford Focus Estate (2014-2018) - Practicality & boot space
The Ford Focus Estate has a large boot – but rivals’ are even larger
The Ford Focus Estate is more than spacious enough for most owners needs, but those seeking ultimate practicality may want to check out some of the Focus’ rivals, especially the Peugeot 308 SW.
Ford Focus estate interior space & storage
The Focus Estate is a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to practicality. It’s spacious up front, with a large glovebox and door bins for keeping your odds and ends in.
However, it lacks some of the clever practical touches that set cars like the Skoda Octavia Estate apart, such as seat folding levers or underfloor storage. There is a 12v power socket in the boot, though, plus some hooks for hanging shopping bags on.
Space for passengers is pretty good. There's loads of room up front, and three adults can fit in the back - just. That's because the middle seat isn't raised up, so the passenger in the middle has reasonable headroom. And thanks to a fairly narrow hump in the middle of the floor, they'll also have somewhere comfortable to put their feet.
Boot space
This is the headline figure for any estate car, and although the Focus Estate’s 476 litres with all the seats in place isn’t bad in isolation, it’s a long way from being class-leading. Equivalent figures for rivals are 500 litres (Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer), 587 litres (SEAT Leon ST), 610 litres n the Skoda Octavia Estate and a huge 660 litres in the Peugeot 308 SW.
The story is the same when you fold down the rear seats, with the Focus’ maximum capacity of 1,502 litres paling in comparison to the Octavia’s 1,740 litres and trailing all its other main rivals, too. On the plus side, the Focus Estate has a wide boot opening and a flat boot floor, so it’s a good choice for transporting awkward or bulky items such as furniture or appliances. But unlike rivals, there's nowhere to store the luggage cover when you remove it.
Towing
If you’re serious about towing a trailer or caravan with your Focus Estate, you’ll need to shell out for a top-spec Titanium or Titanium X model with the 2.0-litre TDCi diesel engine. In this form, it can tow a braked load weighing up to 1,800kg. The punchy 1.5-litre EcoBoost petrol engine is a decent tower, too, with a maximum weight of 1,500kg – that’s more than the 1.5-litre diesels can manage. The 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol and basic 1.6-litre petrol are less suitable, managing to tow 1,000 and 700kg respectively.
