Latest News
Monday, December 17, 2007
After years of speculation, Ford has finally confirmed that it will build another Focus RS.
This official rendering is the first image of the new hot hatch, which will go on sale in 2009, with the concept due to debut at the London motor show in 2008.
Earlier this year, concerns over producing a powerful, high C02-emitting hot hatchback were putting the RS’s future in jeopardy, but Ford has eventually decided that it’s worth putting the car into production in spite of them.
This time, the car will need to make money. The last Focus RS was estimated to have lost Ford around £7k per car; during the conception of this one, insiders say, the business case has been as important for Ford’s RS division as anything else.
However, it looks like the company won’t be compromising on much for cost reasons. The car’s body has been heavily modified with much wider wheelarches, which were thought to have been ruled out as too expensive. The huge lower front intake features unusual secondary vents at either side.
Ford will not confirm any of the RS’s technical specification, but the company has said the car is based on the Focus ST. It’s likely to have over 300bhp from a twin-turbocharged version of the ST’s five-cylinder engine, and will have a dump valve as standard.
Four-wheel drive is thought to be on the cards, as the ST’s body shell can accommodate a rear differential, but it's not a given. As one Team RS spokesperson told us recently, "there are many ways we can give the RS more traction without adding the extra weight of a four-wheel drive system." A mechanical limited slip differential, then - or even electronically-controlled front diff - seem just as likely.
Your Say
Comments: 17 Join the discussion