The Diesel variation of the ST (Sports Technology) is new. It is a bit more expensive than the petrol version, and despite the higher torque, has a lower performance and of course, can't be revved anywhere near as high. Actually, and also as far as the price is concerned, it's targeted directly at the Golf GTD. With its substantial performance difference to the petrol driven ST, it will be interesting to see how many buyers choose the thrifty sportsman.
The RS could always be had as an estate car, which Ford called the 'Turnier'. In this case, any number of compromises are possible. An interesting point is, that all the RS models have the same permissible gross weight. Thus, the longer Turnier can in fact, take on a lower load, although at more than 600 kg, it is still pretty roomy. As far as the saloon is concerned, this is of course, too high, indeed, judging by the test-reports, this doesn't seem to make the springing excessively hard. On the contrary, from the word go, the Focus, and particularly the RS, has always been given top marks for its suspension. Just one small comment: despite having the same tyre-width, the optional 19-inch rims are somewhat narrower than the 18-inch standard rim. Sure, a car like this should be conspicuous, and if the exterior is fairly moderate, then at least the interior should make it possible to justify the higher price. It was wisely decided by the manufacturer, apart from the very eye-catching colour-schemes, to also offer something a bit more modest (see above pictures). Although it seemed as if the front-end could hardly be improved, with the changed lighting and the other lower section it has become more attractive. The petrol driven Focus RS is really serious competition for the Golf GTI, and compared with the equally priced basic model it has 22 kW (30 HP) more. However, Ford does not offer the appropriate double-clutch-gearbox which would suit this car perfectly. 04/15