ASBO anyone?
Ford Focus RS 2.3T EcoBoost,Model on test: £35,570 ROAD TEST BY TOBY AIKEN
Ford has a strong history of reliable family
hatchbacks.Back in the day, it also had a name for hotmodels - the RS Turbo, the XR3i and of course the SierraCosworth.On a fewoccasions, Ford has brought back the RS and the slightly less insane STmarques for special editions, and hotter versions of its standard production cars.But is the latestmotor towear the RS badge up to scratch?
Oh.My.God. Yes. The Focus RS is a five door, five
seat, all-wheel drive hatchback, but with amonstrous 2.3 litre turbo charged powerhouse under the
bonnet.Generating around 350bhp
and hitting 62mph froma standing start in 4.7 seconds, this is a fantastically fast Ford. Remember the five-litreMustang takes 4.8 seconds to do the same trick and you realise justwhat amachine this is. On paper, there’s noway that the
chassis should be able to handle the power - it’s a family hatchback for god’s sake - but handle it does.And it does sowith aplomb. Youwant to drive to the shops, thiswill let you act normally - if you ignore the body kit and noise fromthose two big-bore exhausts.Butwhen youwant to act as if you have threeASBOs and don’t
care, switch to sport (obviously, I wouldn’t suggest track or driftmode unless you are on a track and have a clue howto handle it) and put your foot down. This thingwill not disappoint. And it’s not as if peoplewon’t see
you coming - the paintwork is stunning. Such a striking blue that I fell in lovewith it themoment I sawit, evenwhen someone complained that it looked like a boy-racer had parked in our parking space. I could genuinely go on about the blistering pace this car has formost of this column, but Iwant to get onto a few other bits first.
48 SEPTEMBER /OCTOBER 2018 THECHELTONIAN
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