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Ford's Focus RS is being lined up for an attack on the Nurburgring hot hatch lap record.

The benchmark for a front-wheel-drive car stands at 8min 17sec, set by the Renault Megane R26R.

The new Focus RS was spotted on a special industry day at the Nordschleife last week, and reports suggest it was being prepared for a record-breaking run.

A Ford spokesman declined to confirm that the car ran timed laps, but he said, “It’s no secret that we will be looking to achieve a time a...Read the full article

Luck rather than judgement for this attempt I feel.

The whole Nurburgring time is starting to get a little boring now.  There are so many external factors involved in getting a good lap time that the figures obtained mean nothing in real terms.

i totally agree with the above thread, who really cares about the focus rs being fastest around the ring, apart from pathetic car journalists. its easy for car journalists to say the rs is a bargain i wouldnt spend £25000 on any ford.

ive heard so many times in car mags that the ren megane r26r is the fastest and again who really cares, i wouldnt want a plastic french car with scaffolding in on my drive at any cost. the car is totally hideous and who is there right mind would want to buy it at £23000 a year later is will be worth £10000 thats of course if its still working.in my experience renault cars are poor.

please no more boring ring stories and leave for the likes of Max Power.

andylevitt:

who really cares about the focus rs being fastest around the ring, apart from pathetic car journalists

I care..... so that is at least 1; and before you start, no I don't read Max Power.

I'd also prefer to spend money on a Ford than the same amount on a BMW or Audi etc

Geetee40:

I care..... so that is at least 1; and before you start, no I don't read Max Power.

I'd also prefer to spend money on a Ford than the same amount on a BMW or Audi etc

I agree, well in part anyway. Personally, I'd consider all 3 marques you mention. It would seem that Ford has joined BMW as the company to knock at all costs.

it all depends on what kind of car enthusiast you are. and what priorities you have. i like motorsport and performance/ability to be fastest and win is the important factor. i would choose the fastest car even if it was so fragile it would break down within minutes of finishing 1 timed lap of the ring. any other profesional driver/team with the same options would choose the fastest car.

but anyway i'm not an automatic fan of the ford, a rwd or 4wd car would be faster. but it will be very interesting to see its best time and to compare it to appropriate competitors.

ford are not helping themselves by rasing the RS price by another £1k or so. a subaru wrx  can be had for the same price and can be much much quicker.

 

andylevitt:

i totally agree with the above thread, who really cares about the focus rs being fastest around the ring, apart from pathetic car journalists. its easy for car journalists to say the rs is a bargain i wouldnt spend £25000 on any ford.

ive heard so many times in car mags that the ren megane r26r is the fastest and again who really cares, i wouldnt want a plastic french car with scaffolding in on my drive at any cost. the car is totally hideous and who is there right mind would want to buy it at £23000 a year later is will be worth £10000 thats of course if its still working.in my experience renault cars are poor.

If car journalists are pathetic, why are you on this forum?

Sounds to me like you'd be more interested in spending £500 on a used Toyota Camry that won't break down, doesn't have any 'scaffolding' in it and won't lose much value. Seriously, have you considering reading What Car?

I've got a Renaultsport Megane........easily the worst put together and most unreliable thing I have ever owned - high praise from a former Rover Sterling owner!

 

I can see the Autocar cover story now.

Plucky Brit hero Focus RS takes the battle to its German rivals on their home turf.

Well isn't there a lot of cynicism in the air?!

I'm with Geetee40 on this - I care about laps times...to an extent. I appreciate that there are a wealth of external influences that can affect these times, but it's a pretty good line in the sand, performance-wise. If it's good enough for the motor industry and their own benchmarking purposes, then it's good enough for me.

And yes, it ain't necessarily the classiest looking car, but take away the hideous green paint and have it in a slightly more discreet tone, and I for one think it looks exactly how a car of this type should.

 

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www.iamnotthestig.com

isnt the car made in germany and the head of design Austrian Josh Capito that oh so british name.

so plucky german car takes the fight to its fellow german cars.

andylevitt:

isnt the car made in germany and the head of design Austrian Josh Capito that oh so british name.

so plucky german car takes the fight to its fellow german cars.

 

 

Yeah - that's exactly the point I was making.

German car

Austrian project head

Swedish engine

German 'RS' sports branding.

I was making a sarcastic reference to Autocar's preposterous cover story blunder of a few weeks ago in which the Focus RS was splashed as British.