The Focus ST has been a staple in the United States for a while now, but the version of Ford’s flagship car in Europe that is definitely hotter than the ST is the RS. Auto Express is looking at the next generation RS to be the top of the Focus range after its 2014 launch.
In order to develop this upcoming hotter-than-hot Focus RS, the performance division of the European team at Ford will provide a greater displacement mill, rather than simply tuning the ST 2.0L turbocharged inline-4 to eleven! The most appropriate candidate for this change is the latest 2.3L EcoBoost engine, capable of 350 hp and rumoured to be part of the new 2015 Mustang.
The RS is expected to use a 6-speed manual transmission now that the rumours of utilising the company’s PowerShift dual-clutch box have been quashed.
Team RS state that their main concern with using the DCT is the weight increase, though the engineers to pay attention to the current trend in this auto-segment, which is clearly centred around the use of dual-clutch gearboxes.
Auto Express also confirm that the latest Focus RS will be making use of the range’s current front-wheel-drive architecture, despite the ‘squirreliness’ which occurs if you send extra power to those front wheels – it’s a problem Ford is continually working to fix and new technologies are looking likely.
An E-Diff that is active plus the limited-slip differential are going to help optimise the traction in every condition, promises Team RS’s powertrain engineer, Len Urwin.
Will the Focus RS see its way to US shores? No one knows, despite the company’s global production strategy ‘One Ford’. Its launch in Europe sees it retail at approx. £25,00 which would put a US price tag on it of $40,000 at today’s exchange rate.
