The New Ford Focus RS: A Car That's Got It All

The biggest news about the new Ford Focus RS is that it has four-wheel drive, which was rumored before its launch but did not materialize. However, there is a bespoke system with a rear drive unit that also features torque vectoring between the back wheels, thanks to two clutch packs. The modes available on the car are normal, sport, track, and drift, each with its own unique characteristics.

In normal mode, the steering is nicely weighted, reminiscent of the engine itself. It's not particularly special, but it's fine for road driving. When I put it in sport mode, the steering weights off a bit, making it feel natural and responsive. The mode also sharpens the throttle response and adds some artificial pops and bangs from the exhaust, which is quite entertaining on the track.

The Focus RS feels like a proper racing car, with a wonderfully reactive front-end that makes direction changes feel effortless. It's a pleasure to drive, with a good sense of where the front end is, and it always feels like the rear is trying to help you around corners once you're on the throttle. The adaptive dampers can be switched between normal and sport settings, but even in smooth Spanish asphalt, it takes drilling to an unacceptable level.

One mode that I spent some time investigating was the drift mode, which is only available on a track. It's slightly odd feeling, as you turn in aggressively and then need to be brutal with the throttle to keep the car sideways. However, when used on an empty track, it's a lot of fun. The engine has all its talk, with 347 pounds of torque at 2,000 rpm, making it feel very gutsy.

Another notable aspect of the Focus RS is its brakes. With 350 millimeter vented discs and four piston Brembo calipers up front, they've been absolutely fantastic. The pedal feel is nice and responsive, and they help you drive the car hard without feeling overwhelmed. In fact, the car wants to be driven aggressively, making it a great option for track work.

Overall, the new Ford Focus RS feels like a proper racing car, with all the bells and whistles that come with it. It's a car that's designed to be driven hard, and it delivers on that promise. Whether you're driving on the road or on a track, the Focus RS is sure to put a smile on your face.

If you're looking for a car that's similar to the Focus RS, but not quite as extreme, you might want to consider the Ford Fiesta ST. The Fiesta ST feels like a more civilized version of the Focus RS, with a similar sense of control and responsiveness. It's a great option if you want to drive hard without feeling overwhelmed.

Alternatively, you could also consider other cars with a Ford badge. For example, our Mustang video is always worth checking out, and it features some impressive performance stats. So why not take a look? And as always, don't forget to subscribe to the channel, tell your friends to sign up, and of course, click on the small button to do so. The more the merrier!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enso hello welcome to Spain and another Evo diary self-shot I'm afraid so short on production values hi I'm Charlie and this is the brand new Ford Focus RS one of the most easily anticipated cars of the year so we're going to go for a quick Drive and I'll give you a few of the hopefully salient details and the things I've discovered over the last 24 hours or so with it and yes we might even try the drift mode who knows remember to subscribe to Evo so you don't miss out on facts like this about my new favorite Spanish radio station this is flash FM by the way amazing will turn off so for folks RS the facts are that it's got 345 brake horsepower 347 pounds foot of torque it's got a 2.3 liter inline-4 turbocharged motor and it will do not 60 miles an hour in 4.7 seconds of course the biggest news is that it's got four-wheel drive there were rumors before the launch of each the previous Focus RS that they were before we will drive to reflect the WRC cars but no such luck now though there is a bespoke system which has a rear drive unit too capable of proper torque vectoring between the back wheels thanks to a couple of clutch packs so the modes that I've got I'm in normal mode at the moment and it's fine steering is actually nicely weighted it's a bit bit like possibly the engine it's fairly mute not particularly special had to say so ride slightly bumpy hip pattering but basically absolutely fine and put into sport noises the mode that really this is the road driving mode wheel to be on that we've got track and drift but really they are not for the road sport however is very good the steering weights off of it and it feels natural it doesn't feel sort of flagger you're horrible it feels like a hydraulic system so it's what mode adds a bit of weight to the steering as I said it also sharpens the throttle response and it gives you some artificial pops and bangs from the exhaust as you can hear what I've done and it doesn't religiously as soon as you press this wart button it doesn't have to get hot doesn't it do it's just there you go you get the box and banks which are quite entertaining going up the hill at night it really did sound like some sort of special stage and I quite like it so what is the focus RS like to drive well it's very good be pleased to hear it's got a wonderfully reactive front-end and the car just feels all of a peace through direction changes like this it's nice you really get a good sense of where the front end is and it always feels like the rear is just trying to help you around corners once you're on the throttle even off its be honest when you turn in it's instantly there and then you get on the throttle that's in sport mode so it will just help guide you around the corner I like it I like this car independently from the drive modes you can switch the adaptive dampers between their normal and sport settings bar a button that's slightly awkwardly placed on the end of the indicator stalk the sport setting really isn't for the road however is even on smooth Spanish asphalt it takes drilling to an unacceptable level on the Richter scale it really is only bearable for about 30 seconds one setting that I spend a little longer investigating however was the drift mode so the drift mode hopefully you can see some footage now of what it what it looks like it's slightly in an odd feeling you turn in aggressively and then you just need to be pretty brutal with the throttle to be honest and you keep the steering straight which is again their slightly curious feeling it doesn't really feel where does your rather artificial but give it an empty track you can find one of those I'm not on track now but if you can find somewhere then it's obviously a lot of fun the engine has all its talk 347 pounds for 2,000 rpm and it's a really gutsy feeling engine it might not be the most special unit but it's very very effective another facet of this car that's certainly worth mentioning at the brakes 350 millimeter vented disc to the front with four piston Brembo calipers and they've been absolutely fantastic really nice pedal feel and it just helps you drive the cars this car wants to be driven so being really quite aggressive on the way into corners working that nose in the Michelin Pilot Super Sports we know they're a fantastic car and no change there with these you can get the cup twos but like you know you're doing a lot of track work fair enough but IRA can't really see or you want them for the road because it just feels nicely balanced with the super sports on so there we go that's the new Focus RS perhaps the biggest compliment I compares that it feels like a proper Big Brother's the Fiesta ST Oh Carla we absolutely love the Focus ST is was it's a bit of a disappointment to be honest the RS has that same lovely feeling as the Fiesta ST of being all of Appy control weitzer absolutely there and it just feels fun an app for isn't yeah you want to drive it hard all the time and that's good if you've got a couple of minutes why not watch the onboard lap and a fiesta WRC car by clicking on the left alternatively if you're wondering what else you can buy with a Ford badge might we suggest having a look at our Mustang video on the right and of course as ever in perpetuity please don't forget to click on small button to subscribe to the channel tell your friends to sign your cat up as well while you're at it the more the merrierso hello welcome to Spain and another Evo diary self-shot I'm afraid so short on production values hi I'm Charlie and this is the brand new Ford Focus RS one of the most easily anticipated cars of the year so we're going to go for a quick Drive and I'll give you a few of the hopefully salient details and the things I've discovered over the last 24 hours or so with it and yes we might even try the drift mode who knows remember to subscribe to Evo so you don't miss out on facts like this about my new favorite Spanish radio station this is flash FM by the way amazing will turn off so for folks RS the facts are that it's got 345 brake horsepower 347 pounds foot of torque it's got a 2.3 liter inline-4 turbocharged motor and it will do not 60 miles an hour in 4.7 seconds of course the biggest news is that it's got four-wheel drive there were rumors before the launch of each the previous Focus RS that they were before we will drive to reflect the WRC cars but no such luck now though there is a bespoke system which has a rear drive unit too capable of proper torque vectoring between the back wheels thanks to a couple of clutch packs so the modes that I've got I'm in normal mode at the moment and it's fine steering is actually nicely weighted it's a bit bit like possibly the engine it's fairly mute not particularly special had to say so ride slightly bumpy hip pattering but basically absolutely fine and put into sport noises the mode that really this is the road driving mode wheel to be on that we've got track and drift but really they are not for the road sport however is very good the steering weights off of it and it feels natural it doesn't feel sort of flagger you're horrible it feels like a hydraulic system so it's what mode adds a bit of weight to the steering as I said it also sharpens the throttle response and it gives you some artificial pops and bangs from the exhaust as you can hear what I've done and it doesn't religiously as soon as you press this wart button it doesn't have to get hot doesn't it do it's just there you go you get the box and banks which are quite entertaining going up the hill at night it really did sound like some sort of special stage and I quite like it so what is the focus RS like to drive well it's very good be pleased to hear it's got a wonderfully reactive front-end and the car just feels all of a peace through direction changes like this it's nice you really get a good sense of where the front end is and it always feels like the rear is just trying to help you around corners once you're on the throttle even off its be honest when you turn in it's instantly there and then you get on the throttle that's in sport mode so it will just help guide you around the corner I like it I like this car independently from the drive modes you can switch the adaptive dampers between their normal and sport settings bar a button that's slightly awkwardly placed on the end of the indicator stalk the sport setting really isn't for the road however is even on smooth Spanish asphalt it takes drilling to an unacceptable level on the Richter scale it really is only bearable for about 30 seconds one setting that I spend a little longer investigating however was the drift mode so the drift mode hopefully you can see some footage now of what it what it looks like it's slightly in an odd feeling you turn in aggressively and then you just need to be pretty brutal with the throttle to be honest and you keep the steering straight which is again their slightly curious feeling it doesn't really feel where does your rather artificial but give it an empty track you can find one of those I'm not on track now but if you can find somewhere then it's obviously a lot of fun the engine has all its talk 347 pounds for 2,000 rpm and it's a really gutsy feeling engine it might not be the most special unit but it's very very effective another facet of this car that's certainly worth mentioning at the brakes 350 millimeter vented disc to the front with four piston Brembo calipers and they've been absolutely fantastic really nice pedal feel and it just helps you drive the cars this car wants to be driven so being really quite aggressive on the way into corners working that nose in the Michelin Pilot Super Sports we know they're a fantastic car and no change there with these you can get the cup twos but like you know you're doing a lot of track work fair enough but IRA can't really see or you want them for the road because it just feels nicely balanced with the super sports on so there we go that's the new Focus RS perhaps the biggest compliment I compares that it feels like a proper Big Brother's the Fiesta ST Oh Carla we absolutely love the Focus ST is was it's a bit of a disappointment to be honest the RS has that same lovely feeling as the Fiesta ST of being all of Appy control weitzer absolutely there and it just feels fun an app for isn't yeah you want to drive it hard all the time and that's good if you've got a couple of minutes why not watch the onboard lap and a fiesta WRC car by clicking on the left alternatively if you're wondering what else you can buy with a Ford badge might we suggest having a look at our Mustang video on the right and of course as ever in perpetuity please don't forget to click on small button to subscribe to the channel tell your friends to sign your cat up as well while you're at it the more the merrier\n"