Ranked #18 car in the UK · Hatchback · 12,174 units sold last year
The Mk4 Ford Focus (2018-2025) is the last of the line: Ford ended Focus production in late 2025 to pivot to SUVs and EVs, which makes the run-out cars an end-of-an-era used buy. It stayed one of the sharpest-driving family hatchbacks, with a chassis that shades the VW Golf and Toyota Corolla for handling. The range is mostly 1.0 EcoBoost three-cylinder petrol (later mild-hybrid), with 1.5 EcoBlue diesels early on and the 280 PS Focus ST as the halo. Cross-shop the Golf, Civic, Corolla and Astra; the ST is already a cult used pick.
combined
The short version
Forecourt score
Value 82 · Reliability 11 · Insurance 84
The Ford Focus holds its value well and is cheaper to run than most. Its MOT-based reliability is average, 60 out of 100, ahead of 11% of the cars we track. On three-year value retention it ranks better than 82% of models.
The Forecourt score blends how this car ranks against the catalogue on value retention, reliability and insurance cost (weighted 40/40/20). Higher is better; running cost is not yet folded in.
Fuel
Mild Hybrid · 999cc
Power
125 ps
Drivetrain
FWD
Cam drive
Wet belt
Quoted MPG
51 mpg
The volume Focus (used market). 1.0L EcoBoost mHEV, 125 PS, 6-speed manual, FWD. 51+ mpg. Discontinued from new 2025.
Tidy and well looked-after for its age — the typical car.
Remembered as you browse other cars.
Optional — fills in the exact year and ULEZ status for your specific car. The registration isn’t stored.
Estimated market value
How we got this number — click for the breakdown, or to challenge it.£13,300
Range £11,200 – £15,550
medium confidence
Past the steep drop and getting scarce — strong value now.
At 26,763 miles it’s about the ~31,950 typical for a 3-year-old.
Seen one for sale?
A data-led guide from the depreciation curve, UK parc trend and reliability — not financial advice.
How a 2023-registration Ford Focus loses value over time.
Based on the 2023 car with 26,763 miles you entered above — worth about £13,300 today — here is the cost of owning it for the next 5 years, at roughly 8,921 miles a year.
5-year total
£15,898
Per year
£3,180
All-in per mile
£0.36
Fuel per mile
13.9p
Best age to buy — around 4 years
A 4-year-old example loses roughly £1,000 a year — under half the £3,250 a one-year-old sheds. The steepest drop is behind it.
Uses current UK pump and home-charging prices (DESNZ weekly), typical-driver insurance and manufacturer service intervals. "Fuel per mile" is just the energy input — so an EV at ~9p and a diesel at ~22p make running-cost comparison direct. A guide; your own costs will vary.
Where this car ranks against the 340 vehicles in our index — higher is better.
Percentile rank across our full index. A measure is shown only where the data spreads meaningfully across the index.
How the available versions compare on price, running cost, and the headaches each tends to develop.
Ford's family hatchback. Discontinued 2025 — end of Focus era. Cross-shop VW Golf, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla. Focus ST 280ps is the cult used market hot hatch — last new Focus ST a future classic.
Watch for
Fuel/energy costs based on this week’s UK averages (w/c 22/06/2026) · Petrol 153.3p/L, Diesel 172.5p/L, Electricity 27.0p/kWh · DESNZ
Group 15 of 50 (low — cheaper end of the scale) · Comprehensive · 3 years NCB
Indicative annual comprehensive premiums for this car, by driver age band and risk profile. Pick the combination closest to your circumstances.
Estimated annual premium · typical, age 33-39
£820/ year
Roughly £68 per month
Typical
Average UK driver — 3 years NCB, average postcode, no recent claims.| Age band | Lower risk | Typical | Higher risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age 17-25 | £1,870 | £2,337 | £3,038 |
| Age 26-32 | £976 | £1,148 | £1,401 |
| Age 33-39Selected | £722 | £820 | £968 |
| Age 40-49 | £613 | £681 | £789 |
| Age 50+ | £546 | £607 | £716 |
How we estimate this
Indicative annual comprehensive premium estimates. The 'Typical' figure represents an average UK driver in each age band; Lower and Higher risk show the realistic spread driven by factors UK insurers legitimately price on (postcode, occupation, claims history, NCB, voluntary excess, modifications). Based on 10,000 miles/yr, £250 voluntary excess, and the no-claims bonus selected above. Always get individual quotes before buying.
Adjust the annual mileage to match how you'll actually use the car. Insurance is what you selected above (age 33-39, typical risk, 3 yrs NCB).
Routine service
£185
Annual main-dealer service
Major service
£210
Every 2 years, annualised
Road tax
£195
Standard rate, post year-one
Fuel
£1,185
50 mpg, £1.49/L
Insurance
£820
Age 33-39, group 15
Clean-air zones
✓ ULEZ compliantBased on London ULEZ standards — Birmingham, Bath, Bristol, Sheffield, Glasgow and other UK clean-air zones generally follow the same rules.
Excludes depreciation and unscheduled repairs (see next section).
What out-of-warranty repairs typically run, by mileage band. Your selected mileage is highlighted.
0-30k miles
£80
per year · low risk
30-60k miles
£240
per year · low risk
60-100k miles
£520
per year · medium risk
100k+ miles
£900
per year · high risk
195/65 R15 · 205/55 R16 · 215/45 R17
What a full set of four will cost you (including fit and balance), and which brand each tier of buyer should pick. A typical set lasts about 24,000 miles.
Budget
£300
set of 4, fitted · £60 per tyre
Mid-range
£440
set of 4, fitted · £95 per tyre
Premium
£620
set of 4, fitted · £140 per tyre
Factory options ranked by how much of their original cost they recover at resale. Anything above 70% return tends to make money back; below 40% is paying for your own enjoyment.
| Option | New cost | Added used value | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
Tow bar (factory-fit) Niche, but the buyers who want one will pay for it. | £650 | £450 | 69% |
Parking sensors & reversing camera Near-expected now — its absence costs more than its presence returns. | £500 | £300 | 60% |
Heated seats / cold-weather pack | £450 | £200 | 44% |
Metallic or premium paint Almost universal — an unusual colour is the bigger resale risk. | £600 | £200 | 33% |
Panoramic / opening roof | £1,100 | £350 | 32% |
Larger alloy wheels | £700 | £200 | 29% |
Drawn from owner reports and warranty data. Filtered for relevance to 26,763 miles.
Watch now
Failure typically happens around your current mileage.
Upcoming
A known weak point — but you haven't reached its usual mileage yet.
Already due
Past its usual failure mileage. Either already fixed, or about to.
Recorded in 13.7% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
Recorded in 9.2% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
Recorded in 10.3% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
Recorded in 9.4% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
Recorded in 4.3% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
Recorded in 4.5% of MOT tests over 100k miles — from 29,966,113 DVSA MOT tests analysed.
"Parts low/medium/high" indicates how easy the replacement part is to source — discontinued or specialist parts mean longer workshop time and bigger bills.
Euro NCAP's independent crash-test rating for the Ford Focus, from its 2018 assessment.
The passenger compartment of the Focus remained stable in the frontal offset test.
Independent crash-test data from Euro NCAP. Star ratings reflect the test protocol of the year shown — newer protocols are stricter, so a 5-star from 2024 represents a higher bar than a 5-star from 2014.
How this model fares at its MOT as it ages — from 30,190,577 real DVSA test records.
MOT pass rate by age
A 3-year-old Focus passes its MOT 85.8% of the time; by 25 years that has slipped to 65.7%. The y-axis is zoomed to this model’s range so the trend is readable.
Longevity
From 8,596 vehicles registered in 1998.
Survival by registration year
Each point is one registration cohort. Older cars on the left, newer on the right. A flatter line means the model holds up over time; a steep drop means cohorts disappear from UK roads faster.
What’s on the road
The fuel-type split of every Focus currently MOT’d in the UK. From 2,296,596 vehicles.
Common MOT failures by mileage
The defect categories this Focus fails on most often, and how the failure rate climbs as the miles add up — from the same DVSA test records.
| Category | 0-30k | 30-60k | 60-100k | 100k+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 1% | 3% | 8% | 14% |
| Tyres & wheels | 3% | 5% | 7% | 9% |
| Lighting & signalling | 1% | 3% | 6% | 10% |
| Brakes | 2% | 3% | 6% | 9% |
| Driver's view | 1% | 2% | 3% | 4% |
| Emissions | — | 1% | 2% | 4% |
Share of MOT tests in each mileage band with at least one defect in that category. The peak band for each is highlighted.
Typical mileage by age
The average odometer reading for a Focus at MOT, by age — measured from the same DVSA records, not assumed. A useful yardstick for whether a given car has done more or fewer miles than its age suggests.
Mean recorded mileage at MOT by vehicle age, from DVSA test records (ages with at least 10 tests shown).
Average
Composite of MOT pass rate, defect prevalence and cohort survival from 29,966,113 tests — high confidence.
MOT outlook · age 5 years
28th percentile — Below catalogue average
Based on 2,349,828 MOT tests · ranked against 248 catalogue models with comparable data
Where this car sits in the catalogue
Pass-rate distribution across 248 catalogue models
Safety recalls
Manufacturers occasionally issue safety recalls to fix a fault free of charge. You can check whether the Ford Focus, or your exact vehicle, has any outstanding recalls on the official DVSA service.
Check on GOV.UKOpens the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency recall checker. Choose the make, model and year of manufacture — no registration needed.
A general indicator from UK 2025 theft data and this car’s characteristics — not a prediction for any one vehicle.
Whole-car theft
Higher
The Ford Focus is one of the UK's most-stolen cars (UK 2025 data). Keyless entry on later cars makes relay theft the usual method.
Parts theft
Higher
Hybrid versions are a catalytic-converter target — a hybrid cat is rich in precious metals and can be cut out in about a minute.
Worth doing
Whether driving a Ford Focus into a UK clean-air zone will cost you anything. Rules use the same Euro standard across most zones — petrol from 2006 and diesel from 2015 onwards are exempt; pure electric is always exempt.
| City | Area | Daily charge | Likely outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | All of Greater London (within the M25) | £12.50 | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Birmingham | Inside the A4540 Middleway | £8.00 | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Bristol | City centre and part of the Portway | £9.00 | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Glasgow | City centre | — | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Edinburgh | City centre | — | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Aberdeen | City centre | — | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
| Dundee | City centre | — | Likely exempt Diesel from September 2015 meets Euro 6. |
Model-level guidance only. To check a specific registration, use the official gov.uk clean-air zone checker. Zone charges and boundaries are set by local councils and change over time.
How well-supported Ford is across the UK — a practical read on how easy servicing, parts and warranty work will be to find.
Franchised UK dealers
~290
Large network
Mass-market
Network size relative to the UK's largest (Ford is 6.4% of all franchised outlets)
Servicing, parts and warranty work are easy to find UK-wide, and most independent garages know the brand well — which keeps maintenance competitive.
For context, the UK has roughly 4,500 franchised car-dealer outlets in total, plus about 15,500 independent garages.
Approximate figures, curated from public UK industry sources (NFDA, Car Dealer Magazine). Franchised networks shrink year on year — these indicate network size, not an exact count.
Length
4,300 mm
Width
1,790 mm
Height
1,460 mm
Kerb weight
1,350 kg
Boot
380–1,250 L
Fuel tank
48 L
Of every Ford Focus ever registered in the UK, this is what's actively on the road, parked off the road on a SORN, or gone for good.
Total ever registered
1,502,097
Currently taxed & on road
895,574
60% of all registered
SORN (off road)
106,827
7% of all registered
Scrapped or exported
499,696
UK fleet trend — 2014 to 2025
-6% vs 2024Source: DfT VEH0124 vehicle licensing statistics (year-end 2025) · Updated 1 Jul 2026
Common questions
Similar cars
Same underpinnings
Ford's global compact-car platform. Underpins the current Focus and Kuga, plus crossovers globally. Different badges, often substantially different residuals, but broadly the same mechanicals and repair cost profile.
Ford C2 platform · Ford
Common questions
Answers are generated from this car's Forecourt data — DVSA MOT records, DfT licensing statistics and our valuation model — and update with the weekly data refresh.