Ford claims its Focus top-selling car A NAME makes all the difference in the fight between Ford and Toyota over who has the top-selling car in the world. Ford on Wednesday claimed that crown for its Focus compact during the first half of the year, based on registration data gathered by the RL Polk & Co research firm. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company sold 589,709 Focuses from January through June across the globe, a 20 per cent increase over the first half of last year, said Erich Merkle, Ford's top sales analyst. The Focus, according to Ford, beat the perennial No. 2 Toyota Corolla, although Merkle said he could not release Polk's numbers for the Corolla. A Polk spokeswoman confirmed the number provided by Ford was accurate but declined further comment. If the Focus beats Corolla for all of 2013, it would be the second year in a row Ford lays claim to the top honours. But Toyota disputes Ford's leadership. The Japanese carmaker has said it sold a Corolla hatchback under the Matrix name, and it sells cars that are nearly identical to the Corolla under different names in countries outside the US Ford doesn't tally Toyota's other nameplates in its count. Toyota has contended that if all the other nameplates are added in, the Corolla is the winner. A Toyota spokeswoman said on Wednesday the company disagrees with Ford and is drawing up a response to Ford's claims. Merkle said the Focus' gains are largely due to China, where sales more than doubled to 202,380 in the first half of the year. A new version of the Focus has been on the market only about a year in China, and it's considered a new product there. But Focus sales aren't as hot in the US, where they're up only 1 per cent to 188,654 through September. US sales overall are up more than 8 per cent for the first three quarters of the year, according to Autodata Corp.