Ford knows this, and it also knows that, for the new Focus, it advertised some very appealing consumption figures (40 mpg / 5.88l/100km). And, as we've all learned the hard way, those figures aren't all that easy to achieve by us, the ignorant drivers.
Enter the EcoMode, a software with which Ford equipped the SE, SEL and Titanium trims of the new Focus. The feature is, if you like, your mpg assistant. After measuring and recording bad driving habits like gear shifting, constant driving and speed, it decides to teach you a thing or two. And it even gives you a grade...
By taking into account the above parameters and a few others, the EcoMode generates the driver profile and gives them a score, which is displayed on the instrument cluster screen. For the system, the good or bad driving skills you have are rated using a leaf (ironic, we know): two leafs on the display means you suck, five means you have a chance of hitting the mpg on the label.
"The foot of the driver has one of the biggest impacts on real-world fuel economy of a vehicle and was the starting point for the development of EcoMode," said Thomas Schick, engineer with the Ford of Germany Core Vehicle Integration team who helped design the software.
"This is a useful tool that creates awareness between personal behavior and fuel consumption and offers up hints on how to improve. Applying those hints and recommendations is all up to the driver."
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