Considering there have only been two previous versions of the Focus RS, the arrival of the latest one has excited the marketplace beyond all expectations.
The first two RS cars incorporated plenty of chassis trickery to transmit big power through to the road surface. The new Mk 3 is no different in its overall objective. The enabling application this time is four-wheel drive, but the precise method is not the usual front-drive with power diverted to the rear on demand.
It has an active rear differential, which is actually two independently controlled clutches. The front-mounted power take-off unit can divert up to 70% of available torque to the rear, while the rear unit can send 100% of that torque to either rear wheel. Special gearing allows the rear wheels to rotate faster than the fronts.
The RS doesn’t just have a specialised drivetrain, steering and suspension. It has something that far more expensive rivals don’t have: a redesigned bodyshell. That gives it huge anti-twisting stiffness.
Compared to the Focus ST, the front suspension is 33% firmer and the back 38% firmer. Adaptive dampers allow Sport and Track rates to be increased by 40%. The power steering is electromechanical, and the Cosworth-redeveloped 2.3 turbo engine makes 345bhp and 325lb ft of torque.
Let loose, the RS feels as quick as an £80,000 sports car until fourth gear is reached. It’s not quite as strong as Audi’s RS3, but it’s stronger than all its like-for-like competition by price.
The turbo four engine won’t set fire to your imagination but its power delivery is flexible, balanced and crisp, with an unexpected offbeat thrum. The brilliantly weighted clutch and punchy six-speed manual gearbox are both fabulous to use.
At low speed on normal roads the steering is quite hard work and the suspension firm. Its substantial weight and presumed appetite for consumables like brakes and tyres may count against it as a perfect trackday weapon.
But the experience it delivers between those two points is wonderful. We’d characterise it as a mix of Nissan GT-R, Audi R8 and a Group B rally car. You need to give it a big boot to engage the much-talked about Drift mode, but overall it is magnificent fun to drive quickly. Mild understeer will accompany a too-fast corner entry speed but you can lift or brake gently to bring the front end back into line and then apply power to loosen the back end. In that regard only BMW’s M135i matches it in the hot hatch market. It always transitions beautifully between being front-driven, neutral and tail-happy.
In everyday driving, boot space is slightly reduced by the tricky rear axle, but this is still a Focus and therefore a grown-up car with good practicality. Our car came with the excellent Signature RS Recaro seats, but as is usual for a Focus they place the driver too high in the cabin.
The RS’s Sync2 infotainment system is standard and includes an 8-inch touchscreen, DAB, Bluetooth and voice control. The £465 extra sat-nav is not class-leading but at least you get a 10-speaker Sony system with subwoofer and a rear-view camera thrown in.
The obvious Focus rivals – Mercedes-AMG’s A45 and Audi’s RS3 – are at best £10,000 dearer. Volkswagen’s Golf R is its closest rival at just over £31,000, and could be cheaper to run for hard users given the fact that the Focus averaged just 19.1mpg on our test, with 27.4mpg as a touring figure.
The opportunities to exploit the RS’s real talents don’t come around too often as many of them are at the top end of the performance and handling scale. But if you can live with that, and you don’t want a raucous Honda Civic, BMW M135i or the default choice of a Golf R, the Focus RS is the best alternative yet to a high-end weekend-use supercar – at a fraction of the price.
Good: Extraordinary handling, great value, feels more special than some rivals
Bad: Too high driver’s seat, unsettled ride at low speed, engine relatively average
- Price: from £30,620
- 0-62mph: 4.7sec
- Top speed: 165mph
- CO2: 175g/km
- MPG: 36.7
