The best hot hatch you can buy.

Specs:
2013 Ford Focus ST w/Option Group 203A
Power: 2 litre turbocharged 4-cyl petrol, 250PS and 360Nm.
Fuel consumption: 7,2 l/100km (combined)
Efficiency ranking: E
CO² emissions: 169 g/km.

It's not easy to find a Ford Focus ST to test drive. At this point, only the bigger dealers have them, and one has to jump through hoops just to test drive one. In my case, this meant a credit check and running through some numbers to ensure I wasn't just a guy lookin for a 250bhp joyride. I really wanted to like this car though, something to convince me that there's better things in the automotive world than a VW Golf.

The press has been almost unanimously positive about this vehicle where it's sold around the world. Not watered down for the US this time. And I'm happy to report it is as good as they say. I test drove a fully-decked out version with xenons, full-leather Recaro seats, Ford Sync this and My Touch that. Um, whatever.

Starting off, the first thing you notice is how refined it is. It's eerily quiet even when you get the revs up, and you find yourself doing +10-20km/h faster than what you thought you'd be doing. Combine that with the slick (German) 6-speed gearbox that's light and a throttle that's calibrated right, this is something you could drive to pick up your children or take your spouse out to dinner in. Then when both of them are asleep early the next morning, tear up the backroads on the weekend. The motor is flexible, smooth, and gutsy at most any rpm and pairs well with the excellent gearbox.

The brakes are sturdy and firm, yet best of all, the electric power steering is spot on. BMW wishes theirs was this good. It's well weighted, communicative, and feels natural. It's easily the best electric power steering I've driven, better than that in the Golf and Polo TDI......and every BMW I've driven so-equipped. The chassis isn't unsettled by mid-corner bumps and feels secure and well-planted, and the ride is just on the right side of firm.

This is easily a fun car. I don't rag out test cars, but the ST begs to be pushed harder and I really liked the way it felt around the bends. It still doesn't feel quite as unhinged as a rear-drive vehicle and launching off on a sandy surface requires some care. But I think overall, this vehicle is bang-on in the driving department.

Problems? The interior is still a mess. The seats don't go down far enough, the backseat is fit only for children (thanks to the fat Recaros), and the rear seats don't fold flat. The dash just isn't elegant at all because of that stupid touchscreen, the centre tunnel encroaches on legroom (and I'm on the slender side, and only 1,72m tall), so there's none of the quality feel that you'd find on a Golf or GTI. And this may just be me, but I hate how the clutch engages at the very bottom of its short travel. The friction point a hair off the floor, and combined with the torque of the engine, I stalled on the uphill start, spun the wheels on the second try, and getting a seamless downshift wasn't easy. I'm very used to the progressive, light clutch on German cars (BMW, Opel, VW) so this is yet another Ford product where I just can't like the clutch engagement. But your results may vary.

But in spite of these problems, it is very likely the best hot hatch on the market, regardless of where in the world you are. I wouldn't have one because I can't stand the interior or cramped quarters (and the clutch), but you probably should. The VW may have a more fluid drive and refined interior but the Ford drives better and is more engaging without much compromise. It does many things very well and is even fairly economical. No thanks to the god-awful options structure, it gets a bit pricey on paper but it's better value than those silly crossovers and has plenty of excitement to make those mountain drives all the more fun. Unless you're obsessed with fuel consumption and interior ambiance, the Focus ST is probably the right one for you. Let's call it the responsible man's family car.

What's great:
+ Excitement factor, yet refined for the daily run.
+ Solid chassis and steering
+ Enough power for any situation.

What's not:
- Interior
- Inflexible options packaging
- Missing a few features (Auto-start stop, rain sensor, parking sensors)

Test drive took place on a mix of suburban and rural roads (approx 14km) in Buncombe County, NC. Weather was sunny and 18°C and pavement conditions were good to fair.