After yesterday’s leak of internal photos revealing the Ford Focus RS, the Blue Oval has taken the unusual step of releasing its own ‘official’ spy photos. This pair of pictures shows the new RS testing at the Nurburgring in Germany ahead of its spring 2009 launch.
Reacting against the leak, Ford today published a few nuggets of hard fact confirming CAR’s previous scoops. It has announced:
• It will use an uprated version of the ST’s 2.5-litre five-pot Duratec
• Power will be ‘in excess of 276bhp’
• Torque will be over 295lb ft
• Chassis is front-wheel drive, with a limited slip diff
Nothing that we didn’t already know, really…
The head of Team RS speaks
Jost Capito, the head of Ford’s European performance division, said: ‘The new Focus RS is as much a car for driving enthusiasts as the one before it and classic Ford RS models of the past. We’re staying true to the core RS principles of a no-compromise, affordable high performance road car you can live with. The new Focus RS will have the muscles, heart and soul of a genuine RS and will be exciting to drive every day.
‘In early prototypes based on Focus ST vehicles, the new system is more than meeting our targets for exceptional levels of traction, handling and steering. Given that the enthusiastic team behind the car are all performance vehicle enthusiasts, you can imagine that our standards are high.’
Want more information on the Focus RS? Then you’ll have to wait until 4 July 2008 when the car is unveiled at the 2008 London motor show.
Needless to say, CAR Online will decamp to London for the motor show to bring you all the news and unveilings the minute they happen.