Ford Focus upgrades, generation by generation.

Mk3 and Mk3.5 cars from 2011 to 2018, mostly for the Android screen on the early SYNC 1 cars and for CarPlay on the SYNC 2 and SYNC 3 facelift. Mk2 owners come in for a screen to replace the 6000CD, and Mk4 owners for dash cams, a reversing camera and extended ambient lighting.

Mk4 cars from 2018 have CarPlay and Android Auto from the factory on SYNC 3 and SYNC 4. A Mk3.5 with SYNC 3, built from late 2016, has it once the software is updated to version 3, and early builds also need the newer USB hub. SYNC 2, SYNC 1 and the 6000CD never had it, so those cars get a CarPlay box or an Android screen.

Only in the details. The camera usually sits above the number plate on the tailgate rather than in the handle, and the cable run is a little longer. For a subwoofer the estate has room for a proper enclosure in the boot side or under the floor, where the hatch is usually limited to the spare-wheel well. Everything at the front, from the screen to the dash cam, is identical.

Mk2 — 2004–2011 (hatch, estate and saloon): 6000CD radio, or the Sony six-disc unit on Titanium and Ghia cars; Bluetooth and voice control on later cars, no screen. Mk3 — 2011–2014 (hatch, estate and saloon): SYNC 1 with a 4.2-inch display on most cars, or the Sony DAB radio with a 5-inch screen; no touchscreen and no CarPlay. Mk3.5 — 2014–2018 (hatch, estate and saloon): SYNC 2 with an 8-inch touchscreen on 2014–2016 cars, SYNC 3 from late 2016 (CarPlay after a software update); base cars keep a 4.2-inch display radio. Mk4 — 2018–2025 (hatch, estate and Active): SYNC 3 with an 8-inch touchscreen and CarPlay and Android Auto from the factory; SYNC 4 with a 13.2-inch screen from the 2022 facelift. Not sure? Send the reg on WhatsApp and we tell you the generation and the route.

Car radio: Android screen on the Mk2 and Mk3; SYNC 3 and SYNC 4 usually stay on the Mk4. Parking sensors: Four sensors in the rear bumper with a buzzer that beeps faster; sound only. CarPlay: Android screen on Mk2 and Mk3 cars, SYNC 3 update or a box on the Mk3.5, factory CarPlay on the Mk4. Reversing camera: Mirror monitor or Android screen on older cars, camera into the SYNC screen from the Mk3.5 on. Ambient lighting: Ambient LED kits on Mk2 and Mk3 cars, the factory ambient light extended on the Mk3.5 and Mk4. Speakers: Plug-in speaker upgrades on every generation; Sony and B&O cars keep the factory amplifier. Dash cam: Hardwired from the passenger-side fuse box, 12-volt side only on mild-hybrid Mk4 cars. Subwoofer: Under-floor or spare-wheel-well subwoofer with a compact or DSP amplifier, boot space kept. Soundproofing: Doors and floor treated with butyl and foam, trim refitted without marks.

Car radio: two to three hours, usually the same day. Parking sensors: two to three hours. CarPlay: under an hour for activation, two to four hours for a box or a screen. Reversing camera: two to three hours. Most Focus owners wait at the workshop or drop the car in the morning and collect it the same day.

Mk2: the 6000CD radio, or the Sony six-disc unit on Titanium and Ghia cars; Bluetooth and voice control on later cars, no screen stays and we add to it. Mk3: the SYNC 1 with a 4.2-inch display on most cars, or the Sony DAB radio with a 5-inch screen; no touchscreen and no CarPlay stays and we add to it. Mk3.5: the SYNC 2 with an 8-inch touchscreen on 2014–2016 cars, SYNC 3 from late 2016 (CarPlay after a software update); base cars keep a 4.2-inch display radio stays and we add to it. Mk4: the SYNC 3 with an 8-inch touchscreen and CarPlay and Android Auto from the factory; SYNC 4 with a 13.2-inch screen from the 2022 facelift stays and we add to it. Steering-wheel buttons, factory amplifiers and cameras are carried over on every route; the only route that changes what you see is an Android screen, and even then the controls are kept.

Send the reg or the year on WhatsApp or the form below and we confirm the generation, the route, the price and the next free slot. Every job carries a one-year warranty on the work, done at our workshop in Rosemount Business Park, Dublin 11, Monday to Saturday.