Plus, in a car like this, I would take a half-decent manual over an uninvolving automatic. The six-speed manual is a bit limp and has a very long throw between gears, but it does allow for fast changes regardless and it never gets in the way of the fun. Its ability to send up to 70 per cent of power to the rear wheels and up to 100 per cent of that power to either rear wheel keeps the traction levels high and that means it can keep up with a lot of more expensive machinery, even with a relative newbie at the wheel. It really is very capable and surprisingly easy to drive fast. On a track, the weight of the Focus makes itself known, but on a road it takes really stupid entry speeds to make the all-wheel drive system give up and leave you to deal with the extra weight. The fast steering and low levels of body roll make it very capable of lively direction changes – much to the misery of your passengers. Ford Focus RS review: How does it handle?įor what is quite an ungainly car in terms of shape and size, the Focus RS comes across as sharp and eager. Hatchbacks are tough to beat as all-rounders and the Focus RS is no different. Because in ten years time there will be so few of them in one piece.Īpart from that, it’s business as usual so you still have a reasonable boot, rear seats, cup holders for that much-needed morning caffeine fix and child seat mounts. Then, of course, you have Drift Mode, which lets it go sideways more easily but really it’s just a button for ensuring the Focus RS holds its value. Big spoiler, aggressive front bumper, boost gauge ─ the usual stuff.įord Performance has also given it much bigger brakes to help keep you from short escapades off the road and into a tree, active dampers to keep it planted and seats that do a better job of keeping you in place.
Unlike its front-wheel drive predecessors, it comes with all-wheel drive and, like its predecessors, it has boy racer-friendly styling. It is based on the current third-gen Focus, which will be replaced in the not too distant future. Ford Focus RS review: What are we looking at?Īttaching the RS badge is never a task taken lightly by Ford, which is why it has ended up with 345bhp generated by the 2.3-litre turbocharged four-cylinder Ecoboost also used in the Ford Mustang (well, not the proper V8 one). So is the Focus RS worth buying and has it grown on me enough to stick it on the list of classic hot hatchbacks? Did it just need more time to shine? It was time for me to find out, once and for all. This was the last chance to get to know Ford’s budget beast and, having driven the 2017 Honda Civic Type R, the challenge was greater than ever.
With a trip to Goodwood Revival looming, I asked Ford for one last loan and a few days later a Nitrous Blue example showed up at my door. Second time around, I was able appreciate just how much performance you get for your money, but we had still yet to reach first-name terms. It seems to dig into the corners better when you are pushing it, but for 99% of the driving I do, it really makes no difference.Some cars require more time to get to know, I told myself, so I got it in for a week of country roads, Ikea trips and getting stuck in traffic. The LSD does make a difference when flogging the car. Neither bothered me, but my wife is not a fan of the car at all. In my opinion, the improvement with the revised struts was minimal at best for the type of driving I do, and the ride is still firm.
#2017 ford focus rs drivers#
I had 10k miles on the 17 and have about 9K on the 18, both served as daily drivers until a month ago when I bought a truck to commute in. I am not saying that all cars that had the HG replacement surgery were not done right, but I feel more comfortable with a factory assembly than a dealer assembly.įor my replacement, I was willing to take a 2017 that did not need the HG replacement or a 2018, and ended up with a Race Red 2018 to replace my NB 2017. I would be willing to pay extra for the comfort of knowing that it was put together right(?) at the factory and was not opened up in the service department at a dealer that I know nothing about. My engine blew up 400 miles after the HG replacement and then it never ran right after that. I had a 2017 that ended up as a lemon law buyback after the head gasket fiasco.
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