Auto-braking remains a high-grade feature for Focus

Ford Australia has launched its new Focus this week and the model is available with potentially life-saving technology including rear cross-traffic alert, autonomous braking and lane-keeping assistance, but only on high-grade Titanium variants (from $32,690 plus on-road costs).

The same technology is now offered as standard on some entry-grade city cars, including the Skoda Fabia (from $15,990) and Volkswagen Polo (from $16,990). It's also available optionally as part of a $1500 package on all Mazda3 grades (from $20,490), a direct rival to the Ford Focus and a model that outsells it by a ratio of almost five to one.

It's also the subject of a push from the Australiasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) and the Australian Medical Association (AMA), who are all demanding the outlawing of vehicles not equipped with the technology.

But Ford president and CEO explained that customer feedback showed buyers weren't prepared to pay for the technology on lower grade variants.

"I get a lot of questions around specification and it's very challenging at times," Whickman stated. "We run our [survey] clinics well ahead of a vehicle launch to try and determine what the most optimised level of specification [is].

"We involve consumes in that and there's so much specification that can go into a car that we try and find the optimal offering, and when we reach that, we try and find what the optimal 'pack' is to go above that," he said.

Although Whickman indicated that customers weren't prepared to pay for safety technology in lower grades, statistics from Mazda Australia proved the contrary. Mazda's figures showed that around 15 per cent of Mazda3 buyers were paying to fit its Safety Pack to even low-grade Neo variants, the bundled safety package including rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring and autonomous emergency braking.

The Mazda3 is a direct competitor to the Ford Focus and to the end of July, sold 23,252 against 4595 Focus models.

"If we see the demand for it, then naturally we'll start to offer that opportunity," Whickman explained.

"But what we're finding at the moment is that, whether it's a Ranger or a Focus, we start from what [the customer] is looking for, and what they're willing to pay for, and then give them options beyond that to give them choice. Not every customer is looking for every article," he concluded.

The new LZ-series Focus is on sale now from $23,390 (plus on-road costs).