Ford Focus goes down the 48v MILD Hybrid route, just like the Fiesta and Puma

The 2020 Ford Focus is now available with a 1.0 litre 48v Mild Hybrid powertrain, the return of Zetec models and new 12.3″ infotainment.

Ford is on a mission to cut its average CO2 emissions by delivering mild hybrid options across its range, the most recent of which have been the mild hybrid Fiesta and the mild hybrid Puma. And now it’s the turn of the 2020 Ford Focus to deliver a 48v mild hybrid powertrain option.

Ford is replacing the 1.5 litre EcoBoost engine with a mild hybrid version of the 1.0 litre Ecoboost, paired to a six-speed manual gearbox, which ups power by 5bhp to 153bhp  and cuts emissions to 116g/km, and a 123bhp version of the same engine, both delivering improved official economy of 48.7mpg.

Ford’s mild hybrid take on the 1.0 litre Ecoboost dumps the alternator and replaces it with a belt-driven integrated starter generator (BISG) which gathers energy otherwise lost during braking and coasting and stores it in a 48v battery under the front seats.

That stored power can then be used to deliver additional torque when needed, boosting by up to 50 per cent at low revs.

That’s allowed Ford to fit a bigger turbo (with the BISG filling the hole in torque which it would have had) and lower compression ratio, with stop/start upgraded to react more quickly and save fuel.

Other changes for the Focus range for 2020 include the reintroduction of Zetec model,s as an entry point, a new 12.3″ digital instrument cluster and increased specs for the ST-Line and Active models.

The 2020 Ford Focus Mild Hybrid will be in Ford’s showrooms next month (July 2020).