Where each one leads
Ford Focus
- Against cars of the same year, the Ford Focus comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 36% more often than average) than the Mitsubishi Lancer (fails 42% more often than average).
- NHTSA rates the 2018 Ford Focus at 5 of 5 stars, the 2017 Mitsubishi Lancer at 4.
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2018 Ford Focus uses 7.0 l/100 km, the 2017 Mitsubishi Lancer 7.9.
- New Ford Focus cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 124 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 140 for the Mitsubishi Lancer in 2022.
Mitsubishi Lancer
- Against cars of the same age, the Mitsubishi Lancer comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 10% more often than average) than the Ford Focus (passes 1% less often than average).
- Fewer Mitsubishi Lancer cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (2.3% against 3.2%).
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Ford Focus | Mitsubishi Lancer | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1999–2018 | 1996–2017 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 2,529,698 (2010–2022) | 46,274 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 895,531 | 6,331 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 159,279 | 3,729 |
| In traffic in Finland | 57,546 | 2,580 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Ford Focus | Mitsubishi Lancer | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 68% | 65% |
| … against cars of the same age | −1% | +10% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 3.0% | 3.2% |
| … against cars of the same year | +36% | +42% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 3.2% | 2.3% |
| US owner complaints | 22,105 | 865 |
| Most complaints about | Power train | Power train |
| Model year with most complaints | 2012 (3,770) | 2003 (199) |
| US recall campaigns | 36 | 15 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 1,969 | 1,335 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 60 | 10 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Ford Focus | Mitsubishi Lancer | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2018) | 4★ (2017) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Ford Focus | Mitsubishi Lancer | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 7.0 l/100 km (2018) | 7.9 l/100 km (2017) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 6.7 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 5.5 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 7.6 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 124 g/km | 140 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 96 kW (129 hp) | 150 kW (201 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,414 kg | 1,350 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €27,290 | €20,298 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 192,000 km | 220,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).