Ford Focus Named Britain's Best Used Car
Published: 2nd December 2003
Ford Focus
The Focus, which is also Britain’s best-selling new car, scooped overall victory in the magazine’s annual Used Car of the Year awards primarily because it is outstanding value for money. A four-year-old 1.6 Zetec 5dr example at £5245 is less than less than half the price of a new one, but is every bit as talented.
In their conclusion, the judges said, ‘Pound for pound, this is the best car on sale in Britain.’
What Car? editor Rob Aherne said, ‘Think of everything you want in a used car and the Focus satisfies. Whether you’re looking for a keen drive, a family car or excellent reliability, you’ll find them all here – at a fantastic price.
‘The previous owner will have suffered the worst effects of depreciation, leaving you with little to worry about.’
The Focus was one of Ford’s two winners in the 10 awards classes. The Mondeo also picked up the award for the Best Used Family Car for the second year running, while Ford’s sister company, Jaguar, picked up the Luxury and Compact Executive class awards with the XJ8 and X-type respectively.
Toyota was another double winner, the Yaris picking up the Best Supermini title and the RAV4 winning the 4x4 award.
The other awards went to five different manufacturers. BMW’s 5-series picked up the Executive Car award, the Zafira went away with the MPV award for Vauxhall, and the Estate Car award went to Volvo’s V70. Finally, Subaru’s Impreza was voted Best Used Sports Car, while the Honda Civic Type R scooped the Hot Hatch crown.
What Car? Used Car of the Year Award winners 2003
| Used Car of the Year | Ford Focus 1.6 Zetec 5dr 99S |
| Best used Supermini | Toyota Yaris 1.0 GLS 3dr 2000x |
| Best Used Small Car | Ford Focus 1.6 Zetec 5dr 99S |
| Best used Family Car | Ford Mondeo 1.8 Zetec 5dr 01Y |
| Best used Compact Executive | Jaguar X-type 2.0 0251 |
| Best used Executive | BMW 523i SE 00W |
| Best used Luxury Car | Jaguar XJ8 3.2 98R |
| Best used 4x4 | Toyota RAV4 5dr 2.0 GX 00X |
| Best used MPV | Vauxhall Zafira 1.8 Comfort 99T |
| Best used Estate Car | Volvo V70 2.5 10v SE 99S |
| Best used Sports Car | Subaru Impreza WRX 01Y |
| Best used Hot Hatch | Honda Civic Type-R 01Y |
Ford Focus
Our Ford Focus Guide lists the full specification of the current UK Focus range, including car prices, fuel consumption, dimensions and other vital data.
Price Range: £17,870 - £27,575
Body Style:
Fuel:
/ 
Models in the range: 38
We have road tested the Ford Focus, to read our in-depth car reviews:
Ford Focus Review - May 2006
Ford Focus Review - Aug 2007
Our Car Buyer’s Guide covers all of the UK’s major new cars and includes CO2 ratings and car insurance groups. Data updated on the 30th Jan 2010
