The all-new Ford Focus has been tested for endurance in extreme weather conditions by being, amongst other things, frozen in Arctic Sweden and baked in the Arizona Desert. It was also taken through a series of tests in the Environmental Test Laboratory at Ford's Dunton Technical Centre in Essex.

In the Technical Centre, Ford technicians recreated extreme weather conditions, from 55 degrees Centigrade right down to -40 degrees. An altitude chamber also simulates the conditions of areas from 100 metres below sea level to 4,000 metres above it. Spending thousands of hours inside the lab, the Ford Focus proved that it can handle whatever Mother Nature throws at it.

Bruce Thirkettle, Environmental Test Lab supervisor said, “The main advantage of testing here is that we can precisely recreate conditions at any time of the year. Temperature accuracy is within plus or minus 0.6 of a degree, humidity to within 0.7 per cent and altitudes to plus or minus 10 metres. It's an exact science that means any vehicle performance changes are down to components and not any variation in the environment. We torture test vehicles here, so customers can enjoy worry-free motoring in Ford vehicles from launch."

The Focus underwent such trials as being soaked at -30 degrees for 16 hours and then transferred to a test chamber and driven a short distance to make sure it functions completely. Everything down to the air conditioning is checked – the car was heated to +50 degrees and the air con then timed to see how long it takes to cool the cabin to a comfortable temperature.

With that in mind, you can be sure your new Ford Focus will stand up to all kinds of weather and keep you comfortable and safe throughout. For more information on the forthcoming Ford Focus, contact People’s Ford today.