You’ve waved good bye to work or school, packed your holiday bags, applied sunscreen, and now it’s time to hit the road… straight into stationary traffic.

In the UK and across Europe, huge numbers of drivers setting off on their summer hols make so-called phantom traffic jams a common occurrence.

These frustrating hold-ups appear seemingly out of nowhere on busy roads when one driver hits the brakes, causing a chain reaction as other drivers tap their brakes, eventually resulting in traffic behind grinding to a halt.

Ford has worked with a US university to show how an advanced version of cruise control already offered on 80 per cent of our vehicles can help reduce phantom jams by automatically slowing down and speeding up to keep pace with the car in front, without getting fatigued or distracted.

Adaptive Cruise Control tech uses radar to track the movements of traffic ahead. When Ford put it to the test on a closed track, it was able suppress the braking wave so the last car in the lane only slowed by 8 km/h (5 mph) instead of coming to a stand-still.

See the effects for yourself in this short film.



A new version of the system introduced in our new Focus can even keep the car centred in its lane and bring it to a complete halt in stop-start traffic, before automatically setting off again when the car ahead moves – helping further reduce the stress of driving in traffic.

If all drivers do their best to avoid traffic accidents but should the unthinkable happen and you are driving the all-new Ford Focus you'll at least have the benefit of being in a vehicle designed with the highest safety standards in mind; which has just been awarded the top rating of five stars in the 2018 Euro NCAP round of testing.

Drivers are facing a “pothole crisis”’, made worse this year in some areas by the “Beast from the East” arctic air-mass, which delivered icy conditions that further contributed to shattered road surfaces.

A pothole was repaired every 21 seconds on average in England and Wales during the past year and harsh impacts can also cause damage that results in hefty repair bills for car owners.

Ford is helping limit the impact of damaged roads for drivers of the all-new Focus by introducing innovative pothole detection technology. The system senses when a wheel is falling into a pothole and adjusts the suspension so that the wheel doesn’t fall as far into it.

Because the tyre and wheel don’t drop as far, they don’t strike the opposite side of the pothole as harshly. The rear suspension can respond even faster than the front, with a signal from the front wheel providing a pre-warning to the rear wheel before it reaches the pothole. This all happens in a split second.

Guy Mathot, vehicle dynamics supervisor:

“Our engineers are always searching for the roughest roads to really test our suspension to the limit, but more and more we're noticing that the rough roads are finding us. Potholes are a problem that isn’t going away anytime soon, but with our advanced suspension technology for all-new Focus, we've been able to reduce their impact.”

The pothole detection system is a feature of the car’s optional Continuously Controlled Damping technology, which every 2 milliseconds monitors suspension, body, steering and braking inputs, and adjusts the vehicle’s suspension responses for the smoothest ride quality.

Ford develops suspension systems using a specially created road at the company's test facility in Belgium, which consists of precise replicas of some of the worst potholes and road hazards from around the world. Engineers further refine the systems with hundreds of hours of testing on a diverse range of European public roads, monitoring loads and strains with equipment similar to that used by seismologists to study earthquakes.

Technology that was first developed for fighter jets is helping to improve the driving experience for the new Focus – that offers Ford's first Head-up display for Europe.

The display will make it easier for drivers to keep their eyes on the road as they monitor information including speed, navigation and road signs on a display that is projected to overlay the view ahead.

For some existing systems there can be a drawback – that for those wearing polarised sunglasses, which counteract glare, the display can be rendered almost invisible. Ford's Head-up display also emits the kind of light that polarised sunglasses are designed to eliminate from view. But a carefully tuned filter “bounces back” polarised light to the driver and effectively solves the problem.

Glen Goold, chief programme engineer for Focus

“Wearing polarised glasses can make a massive difference to visibility for drivers affected by glare, such as when stretches of water, snow or even tarmac reflect sunlight. Our Head-up display also offers one of the brightest screens and has among the largest fields of view.”

Summer evenings pose the problem of peak driving times coinciding with the sun being low on the horizon; in the UK the sun has been identified as the cause of almost twice as many accidents as snow, rain and fog put together. Head-up display ensures drivers will not need to glance down and refocus to see the information and notifications that they can select.

While traditional head-up displays utilise light waves vibrating parallel to the road, the Focus Head-up display boosts light waves vibrating perpendicular to the road, so the image can be clearly seen through polarised sunglasses. The polycarbonate screen has a multilayer reflection coating that enables engineers to control the polarisation, colour, transmission and reflection of light, and tailor it to the system’s needs.

The all-new Focus has been developed from the ground up to provide the most confidence-inspiring, intuitive, and rewarding driving and occupant experience of any mid-size family car in Europe. The widest range of advanced features and technologies on any of our vehicles enhances protection, driving and parking, and is designed to make the driving experience more comfortable, less demanding and safer.

For several years now, reversing cameras that show drivers what is immediately behind them have become increasingly popular with new car customers.
Now, Ford Europe's new Focus is taking the technology a step further – by showing drivers what is around the corner behind them.
Located just above the licence plate, the camera captures a 180-degree view that can be displayed on a touchscreen inside the car – so passing pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles can be more easily seen.



Reversing manoeuvres are also made easier by radar sensors that monitor the area behind the car and alert drivers to vehicles and motorcycles crossing behind. If the driver does not respond to warnings, the brakes are automatically applied.

Glen Goold, chief program engineer for Focus:

“We know that for nearly all our customers, reversing is a crucial part of their daily drive – and one that some of them really don’t enjoy. This little camera is helping us to make a big step forwards in making it easier to go backwards.” 

According to a recent survey, of the top five trickiest driving manoeuvres, four involved reversing, and the fifth was driving forwards into a parking bay. Ford Europe's new Focus also warns of vehicles and motorcycles that may soon be crossing behind. The car can automatically apply the brakes to avoid or mitigate the effects of collisions if drivers do not respond to warnings.

Ford's “all new” Focus really is all-new.

The Focus was designed from scratch to make it look sportier while also having more room inside for people and luggage. Ford also packed it with more clever new tech than any other mid-size family car, to help drivers be less stressed and more confident on the road, and make the Focus even easier to use day-to-day.


Stress-busting features include the ability to follow the car in front at a safe distance and automatically pull away again even if traffic comes to a complete stop. The tech also gently steers to help keep the car comfortably in the centre of its lane, and reads speed signs to help you stay within the legal limit, even if the car ahead does not.

In the dark, new lighting technology sees curves in the road up to 65 metres ahead, as well as road signs to tell if you’re approaching a junction or roundabout, and adjusts the headlamp beam before you get there for better visibility.



A new fighter jet-style Head-up display projects useful information into the lower windscreen, making it easier to keeps eyes on the road. And we’ve improved out hands-free parking tech too. Now you can just hold down a button and the car will control gears, accelerator, brakes and steering to slot you hassle-free into parallel spaces or side-by-side with other cars.

Ford's tech experts didn’t stop there. A Wireless charging pad means compatible devices can be effortlessly charged by placing them on a mat in the centre console, so you can wave goodbye to storing a tangle of USB cables in the car. Mobile devices stay connected to the SYNC 3 entertainment system while they charge, so they can be controlled using simple voice commands or pinch and swipe gestures on the 8-inch touchscreen.



And the FordPass Connect onboard modem turn the Focus into a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot for up to 10 devices – great for streaming music through the premium B&O PLAY sound system. Using the FordPass app, FordPass Connect even lets drivers remotely check their fuel levels or defrost the car from the comfort of bed on cold mornings.

The new Focus goes on sale later this year with a bigger range of models than ever, including the upscale Focus Vignale, Ford Performance-inspired Focus ST-line, and the first ever Focus Active with rugged styling and a higher driving position inspired by sports-utility vehicles.



Whether it’s the five-door hatchback or the larger wagon with space in the boot for a full-size dog-carrying crate, our new Focus is the most fun family car to drive helped by – you guessed it – clever tech. Drive Modes can make the car more sporty, more comfortable or more fuel-efficient at the push of a button, and intelligent suspension can even detect potholes for smoother journeys.

Joe Bakaj, vice president, Product Development, Ford of Europe.

“The chance to build a completely new car from a fresh piece of paper does not come around often. We grabbed it with both hands, to develop the best mid-size family car that money can buy.”

A new version of Ford's popular Focus is coming which will be unveiled to the world in a few days time!



Updates from the all-new Ford Focus reveal.
All-new Ford Focus re
Update: watch a replay of the Focus reveal livestream below!