The Ford Focus ST is going mean green for 2022, along with a host of connectivity upgrades and some flash new seats, too.
Ford Australia has today revealed that the Focus ST will be the only focus variant available for sale in Australia from 2022 onwards, meaning the ST-line and Active will be effectively killed off. Only the Focus ST and premium Focus ST X will remain for Australian buyers.
The 2022 Ford Focus ST has a refreshed front end and new headlights.
Ford noted that the small car market has declined significantly over the last seven years in Australia, but in that same time hot hatch sales had tripled.
A fresh ‘Mean Green’ paint colour option will be available for the 2022 Focus range.
A nip and tuck facelift
The 2022 Focus ST has been tinkered with on the exterior, sporting larger front grilles, side vents, side skirts and spoilers. A new design of 18-inch wheel will be available on the standard car, with uprated 19-inch alloy wheels offered for the Focus ST X model.
The Focus ST X will run on new 19-inch wheels.
Eagle eyed Focus fans will notice that the 2022 car has a new bonnet design and the blue oval badge has been relocated from the bonnet lip to the upper grille.
New look LED headlights which feature integrated fog light functionality round off the refreshed front look.
New pews add to modern hot hatch interior
One of the biggest ergonomic changes to the interior is the addition of new Performance front seats developed in-house by Ford Performance engineers.
Gone are the well received Recaro seats that are seen across the ST range, but the new Performance seats promise to be comfortable and supportive. They offer 14-way power adjustment including four-way adjustable lumbar support.
Out with the Recaros, in with Ford Performance pews.
The new Ford Sync 4 communication and infotainment system will make its way into the new Focus ST.
A new 13.2-inch centre touchscreen incorporates infotainment menus as well the controls for several previous button functions such as heating and ventilation.
The system has built-in wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with advanced speech recognition.
A much bigger 13.2-inch screen will use the new Sync 4 system.
A few extra safety features have been added for the 2022 Focus ST, including blind spot assist, intersection assist, adaptive cruise control, speed sign recognition, lane centring and rear occupant alert.
Is there more power?
Unfortunately, there is no extra power on offer for the 2022 Focus ST and Focus ST X. Power remains unchanged at 206kW/ 420Nm. For most, that will be plenty, but there are tuning options out there produced by companies such as Dreamscience and Mountune.
A seven-speed automatic gearbox is available, with a six-speed manual being a no-cost option.
The only mode we want to be in while driving the Focus ST.
What do you get in ST X over the regular ST?
The Focus ST X features pixel LED headlights, along with larger 19-inch alloy wheels, a track mode, a more aggressive throttle tune and more focused ESC system.
The pixel LED lights feature glare-free high beam, camera-based dynamic bending, bad-weather light and sign-based light to help detect nearby road signs.