The RS may look exciting in print, but believe us there is a lot more to this car than an impressive spec sheet and a dramatic body kit. If you are the shy, retiring type, you’d best steer clear of the Focus RS. The stance, the multi-spoke 19-inch alloys, the WRC-inspired rear wing and the stunning paintwork draw attention wherever the car is seen.
Apart from vivid green, you can have an RS in less lurid white or blue, but you will still be ogled by every boy racer in the vicinity. The eye-catching styling isn’t just for show, though. The front bumper has been developed with input from the engine specialists in order to provide extra air for the upgraded cooling system and enlarged intercooler. The wheelarches house widened tracks and the black wing creates necessary downforce at high speeds. Even if its exterior packaging feels a little overdone, we think that the RS is one of the few hatches that can pull off the “muscle vest” look.
Ignore the racy styling, which really is a matter of personal taste, and what you are looking at is the most powerful and fastest Ford to fly out of a South African showroom. And the greenest car we have ever tested (sorry, we couldn’t resist). The mighty Sierra XR8 pumped out 161 kW from its five litres of Detroit iron, but even that sounds wheezy compared with this Focus. With a top whack of 263 km/h, not only is it Ford’s fastest production model on the local market, but also the fastest FWD car available from new – in fact, it eclipses its Mazda3 MPS cousin by a full 13 km/h...
That manic top speed is provided by a turbocharged in-line five. No high-tech, idiot-proof paddles/ twin clutches are employed. Instead, power is transferred to the front wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox. The basic description may appear similar to that of a Focus ST but the engine, gearbox and front suspension of the RS are significantly revised compared with those on its milder ST sibling.
Almost all aspects of the RS Duratec engine have been replaced or tweaked, including the pistons, con-rods, camshafts and cylinder liners. Attached to the block are a new exhaust manifold, intake system and a Borg Warner K16 turbo: there’s a re-mapped ECU, too. The new turbo unit provides 1,4 bar of boost pressure – double that of the ST engine. Thanks to all the mods, power output is up by 35 per cent to 224 kW and max torque has increased to 440 N.m – 40 more than a BMW M3!
One may think that delivering that much power AND asking the front wheels to steer would necessitate a driver with enlarged forearms. Remarkably, Ford engineers have managed to almost eradicate torque steer – that bugbear of powerful front-drivers. A patented lower front suspension system called RevoKnuckle reduces the distance between the wheel centreline and the steering axis, thereby reducing the moment that creates torque steer. The final component is a Quaife helical limited-slip differential, which helps to effectively transfer drive to terra firma, and the combination works brilliantly.
Plant the throttle in a straight line and one can paint the road with expensive Conti rubber as the front wheels bite in unison. However, standing starts require a delicate balance between revs and clutch release.The best acceleration time we managed from zero to 100 km/h was 6,09 seconds, which is only slightly slower than Ford’s 5,9-second claim. Keep your foot planted and the standing kilometre is dispatched in 25,65 seconds with a terminal speed of 206 km/h.
The RS is at its most impressive when on the move. The power delivery is flexible and strong throughout the revrange. It feels very much like a large elastic band – wind it up and let it go. In-gear acceleration is remarkable: 60-120 km/h in 5th gear takes 9,3 seconds whereas the same increment in the WRX STi takes 11,57. Maximum torque is produced on a plateau from 2 300 to 4 500 r/min and peak power arrives at 6 500 r/min.
When negotiating a mountain pass behind the fat-rimmed steering wheel, your hands and the Ford’s suspension are in constant communication. As mentioned, there is very little torque steer and a quick steering rack – just 2,3 turns from lock-to-lock – makes it easy to fall into a fast rhythm over a twisty piece of road. Thanks to Recaro bucket seats, occupants are not fl ung around the cabin when the driver explores the car’s dynamic limits. Grip levels are extremely high and resistance to understeer is near unbelievable for such a powerful FWD. If anything, a hint of oversteer is available if you are a keen driver who can make a car dance. Unsurprisingly for such a focused car (no pun intended) , the ESP system has been reprogrammed to intervene later and even then the intrusion is subtle.
Carry too much speed into an unfamiliar corner and there is reassuring arrest from the twinbooster brake set-up. The discs measure 336 and 302 mm front and rear, respectively. Our best efforts under braking from 100 km/h yielded a stopping time of just 2,73 seconds and the average over ten stops was an excellent 2,82.
Ford engine boffins insisted that the RS had to have a distinctive and enjoyable engine note and that all the ear-pleasing frequencies entered the cabin. Apart from the five-cylinder waaarrrrrpppp, there is also a very cool wastegate exhalation. Keep the RS in gear as you rush between corners and, when you do lift off, it does the most convincing Group B rally impression we have ever heard in a modern road car: waaarrrrrpppp tsssscccchhhh; and it’s addictive. There is even a loud pop from those 100-mm exhaust ends on the overrun.
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| Ford Focus RS |
Work the shifter and you will find a short-throw and precise action that is meaty but not heavy.
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