Ford Focus RS (2009) first ride

By Ben Barry

09 January 2009 00:01

CAR has been lucky enough to bag the first passenger ride in the new 2009 Ford Focus RS with Jost Capito, the man responsible for Ford Europe’s fastest-ever production car. We experienced the car at high speeds in an ideal mix of typically British conditions – dry, damp, even icy – to analyse how a front-wheel drive car with 301bhp and 325lb ft torque copes on tricky B-roads and smoother A-roads.

We’re all ears. How does the new 2009 Ford Focus RS feel on the road?

Fast. The RS uses the same 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo engine as the regular Focus ST – making it the first ever Escort or Focus RS to use anything other than a four-pot – but it’s reworked with a larger turbo and intercooler, new pistons, cams and a revised ECU. What’s most impressive is the tractability of the new RS's engine, despite the larger – and what could prove to be a slower spooling and laggier – turbo. The RS pulls robustly from 1200rpm in sixth, and actually starts to feel rapid from 2000rpm. Not scary fast, but you’re very aware that the RS is very quick even at these modest rpms.

It’s a linear, progressive unit too, that’s starkly in contrast to the nothing-boost-nothing characteristics of a Mitsubishi Evo X. The hot Focus's power simply flows from almost idle speed to the 7000rpm redline – the same limit as the more modest ST, though the RS does allow an extra 200rpm for very brief periods of time.

Aurally, the new Focus RS also provides a very different experience to the ST. The cheaper ST has a very pronounced, Ur Quattro-esque warble from its Volvo-sourced five-pot. And while that’s still audible in the RS (particularly from 3000-4000rpm), the soundtrack this time is dominated by the louder exhaust and a surprisingly loud dump valve tisssssh. Not to everyone’s taste, but Capito’s logic with the RS is robust. ‘This is not a better ST,’ he says with a smile. ‘This is the RS. It’s a completely different car. Customers who like the ST may not like the RS, and vice versa.’

All very interesting, but the answer to the big question is…

The words you’re grasping for, presumably, are: 'Does it torque steer like a bastard?’ It doesn’t seem to, no, despite all that power and the same kind of Quaife torque-biasing diff that was fitted to the notoriously twitchy Mk1 Focus RS. Obviously there’s only so much we can glean from the passenger seat, but we took the RS and Capito to poorly surfaced, steeply cambered B-roads of our choosing and also watched him wind up the boost with a set amount of lock dialled in on a roundabout.

‘The RevoKnuckle [Ford’s suspension system that allows the front wheel to turn independently of the front strut] doesn’t eliminate it entirely,’ explains Capito, ‘but it’s a massive reduction. The RS torque steers less than the ST.’ If you’ve ever driven an ST, you’ll know that it doesn’t torque steer that much at all.

Indeed, the new Focus RS (2009) seemed very consistent in its responses, Capito’s level of steering correction remaining far lower than it would in the Mk1 RS. There was a lot of wheelspin, however, and the new RS would frequently grip in second only to light its tyres higher up the rev range as the full force of all that torque came in. But the hottest Focus stuck to its course.

Also impressive was the high threshold of intervention dialled into the RS's ESP system. It means the driver modulates the throttle rather than having the electronic chips stodgily cut power, while the stability programme still watches over you should a big lift off the gas get the back end swinging.

And that’s not so unlikely. A stiffer rear anti-roll bar means an interactive rear end should be on offer, but during our time in the car the impression was one of confidence-inspiring high-speed stability – something emphasised by the high degree of lateral support offered by the reclining Recaro seats.

How does it ride?

The new Focus RS has lost the cotton wool suppleness of the ST, so there’s far less body roll, but a harsher ride too. It doesn’t feel as edgy as a Civic Type R and it’s rarely crashy, but you’re certainly aware of every secondary imperfection on the road surface.

The rest of the driving experience we’ll need to experience for ourselves. The steering is 10% quicker than the ST's but we can’t report on what that adds to the driving experience, and the brakes certainly seemed impressive from the passenger seat, Capito claiming they are very progressive. He also told us that the clutch was almost as user-friendly as the ST's, the stronger unit providing only a slightly edgier biting point. But then he’d hardly provide us with a long list of faults, would he? Roll on the February 2009 launch...

Verdict

The new Ford Focus RS appears to be everything we hoped for. Sure, we only sat in the passenger seat, but we spent a full day being driven hard over challenging British roads in tricky conditions by an extremely competent driver.

This Focus seems to have retained the lairy edge we expect from the Blue Oval's RS products, while curbing the psychotic characteristics of its predecessor. We’ll have a full report of this passenger ride in the March 2009 issue of CAR Magazine, plus an in-depth interview with its brainchild Jost Capito. Why no dual-clutch gearbox? Why does he hate four-wheel drive? Did Capito consider adaptive damping? And what will he be doing when he leaves the UK to work for Ford in America this March? You’ll read it all in the magazine, out 28 January 2009.

Statistics

How much?	£24,995
On sale in the UK:	March 2009
Engine:	2522cc 5cyl turbo, 301bhp, 325lb ft @ 2600rpm
Transmission:	Six-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Performance:	'Sub-6.0sec' 0-62mph, 163mph
How heavy / made of?	Approx 1400kg
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	Tbc

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Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCI Zetec CAR review

By Glen Waddington

18 November 2008 09:50

You’re going to see an awful lot of the new Ford Fiesta pretty soon. It’s bound to take its traditional place near the top of the British sales charts, and it deserves to do so far more than ever before. But though there’ll be plenty around, I’d wager three-quarters of them will be petrol-powered – the smaller you go, the less economics work in favour of diesel.

Why? Because the increase in purchase price is a greater proportion of the car’s overall value, and small cars tend to have lower annual mileages, so it takes longer for the improvement in fuel economy to outweigh the higher purchase price.

Nonetheless, a quarter of a massive sales volume is worth having, so Ford offers two diesel engines for the Fiesta: an 89bhp 1.6 16v, or the 67bhp 1.4 8v, tested here in best-selling Zetec trim, which sells for a sky-scraping £12,595 for the five-door.

Hmm, £12,595 for a Fiesta! Better be good...

The Fiesta offers plenty of virtues, which add up to a class-leading drive. So yes, it is good. Nearly-£13k good? Well, I have some reservations about that.

And they all concern the engine. It’s not bad, and delivers some excellent stats, headlines of which are 67.2mpg and 110g/km, but you pay for its parsimony with some distinctly ordinary performance figures. These days, 101mph flat-out and 14.9sec for the 0-62mph scramble fail to impress, especially at this price.

And that engine likes to remind the driver of its diesel nature. It’s rumbly when cold, rumbustious under acceleration, and drones with a rattly overtone around town on a light-to-medium throttle. It fails to deliver that low-rev turbodiesel shove we’ve all got used to, instead metering out just enough pace that it never actually feels slow. The Fiesta deserves a bit of zing, and the 1.4 petrol provides it – the diesel doesn’t.

So remind me of the good bits about the Fiesta?

You pay no penalties for diesel ownership elsewhere. This is a very grown-up small car, with proper seats, solid-feeling trim and high-quality switchgear. The dashboard looks good – even feels good too, so long as your hands don’t stray below the padded top – and the equipment level in Zetec trim affords pretty much everything you’ll need, from air-con and electric front windows to an MP3 socket.

There’s decent space all-round too. Real adults can sit in the back, and the boot is capacious by class standards, though the loading lip is high and the seat squab doesn’t tip: you merely flop the backrests down, which leaves a stepped boot floor in cargo-hauling mode.

Refinement is excellent, despite occasional protests from under the bonnet: road noise is low, there isn’t much wind noise at speed, and the engine falls to the background at a cruise. The Fiesta certainly lives up to its price tag in this department.

What about the drive?

Oh, it’s good. There’s a real fluency and poise about the Fiesta. It’s softly set up but extremely well balanced, so it’s thoroughly chuckable yet very pliant and comfortable. In fact, this is probably the best-riding small car you can currently buy, full-stop.

There’s a great feeling of consistency to most of the controls too. The five-speed manual box shifts with precision and ease, as if its every movement is cushioned by a measured film of oil. The steering is linear too, though a touch numb compared with Fiestas of old and lacking bite compared with the tuned responses of the semi-sporting Zetec-S. But the only let-down dynamically is the action of the brakes. They pull you up strongly enough but are rather sudden in action after an initial dead phase of pedal travel.

Verdict

The new Fiesta is a great car all-round. It’s good-looking, decently built, spacious, well equipped and mature, and it offers the kind of refinement and fittings you’d never have expected in a supermini even five years ago.

But the 1.4 diesel doesn’t show it in its best light, even if 67.2mpg sounds incredibly tempting. Our advice? Stick with the majority and go with the petrol engine. It can’t match the diesel’s economy but 49.5mpg and133g/km aren’t bad, you get 95bhp for £500 less, and petrol’s cheaper to buy.

Statistics

How much?	£12,595
On sale in the UK:	Now
Engine:	1398cc 4cyl turbodiesel, 67bhp @ 4000rpm, 118lb ft @ 1750rpm
Transmission:	Five-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Performance:	14.9sec 0-62mph, 101mph, 67.2mpg, 110g/km
How heavy / made of?	1152kg/steel
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	3950/1722/1481

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Ford Ka Zetec (2008) CAR review

By Chris Chilton

29 October 2008 00:01

We’re so accustomed to six-year model cycles that the 12 years it’s taken Ford to come up with the second generation Ka is scarcely believable. But the new Ka is here – and now CAR Online has finally driven it. Read on for our full review.

This new Ford Ka looks like a three-door Vauxhall Corsa in a fairground mirror!

It might look like a Vauxhall, but in fact the Ka is based on the platform of the Fiat Panda. Having to stick with that car’s hard points is the reason for the narrow upright stance. It’s still reasonably pretty and features the Ford 'Kinetic design' mouth, but it’s certainly not radical like the original Ka was in 1996.

I’m trying to put this delicately….great driving cars are what Ford’s all about but Fiats tend to be dynamic disasters. Tell me the new Ka still feels like a Ford. Please...

The new Ka does feel like a Ford, but then it’s also recognisably Fiat-based. Like the Panda, it doesn’t ride well on tough town roads, the front suspension transmitting a shudder into the cabin over big lumps.

But, on balance, Ford has worked its magic on the chassis. The addition of a rear anti-roll bar, the stiffening of the front one and various suspension bushes together with recalibration of the electric power steering give the Ka the sort of incisive turn-in and cheeky steering response that the Fiat has always looked like it would offer, but never delivered.

Ford told CAR that although the two cars are built in the same factory it doesn’t share chassis information with Fiat. Well if it isn’t bright enough to have done so already, I suggest someone at Fiat takes a look at the changes Ford has made and sneaks them onto the 500 as soon as possible.

So if the chassis is a Fiat platform but transformed by Ford’s expertise, whose are the engines?

They’re from Fiat, but don’t worry, the Italians tend to be pretty good at that stuff. Notice I said 'engines', not 'engine'. That’s because this time there’s actually a choice of petrol and diesel.

The petrol is the Panda’s 70bhp 1.2 which offers similar power to the old 1.3 but is far greener, delivering 55mpg and emitting 119g/km of CO2, which means it qualifies for the UK's £35 road tax. Performance is modest: 13.1sec to 62mph and 99mph flat-out, but such is the little motor’s willingness that it’s surprising how infrequently you feel short of grunt, even out of town. The diesel engines offers very similar on-paper performance but over 60mpg.

Four trims are available: the £7995 Studio (CD player, dual airbags and anti-lock brakes but not air-con), £8495 Style (electric windows and locks, body colour handles), air-conditioned Style Plus at £8995 and the £9495 Zetec which features cold air, 15-inch alloys, remote locking and front foglights.

Most buyers are expected to splash out and go for the Zetec which is the only trim to get the diesel option though the extra cost means take-up will be small.

The Fiesta’s gone all grown-up, has the Ka too?

Step out of the new Fiesta and into the Ka and you’re in for a disappointment. It’s not that awful by small cheap car standards, it’s just that Ford has raised its game so much of late that the Ka’s cabin (with its old-fashioned plastics and Fiat switches) sticks out like a sore thumb.

Like the Fiat, the driving seat is set high, giving a fine view of the road but the tall roof means it still feels airy in there. Not so much in the back, however: headroom is limited, there’s not much under-thigh support and there are only two seatbelts on the rear bench. A quick comparison with the old Ka revealed surprisingly little difference in rear room although the new car’s safety kit means it’s a far preferable place in which to have an enormous accident.

So what about a Ka ST or second-generation SportKa?

Nothing in the pipeline, claims Ford. That seems unlikely, not to mention a disappointment, particularly when Fiat’s 100bhp 1.4 and 135bhp Abarth engines are lying around in the parts store. But Ford claims that environment, not performance is the word on buyers’ lips – and so it will be focusing its attention on getting a mildly greener eco Ka to market first.

Verdict

It’s a strange brew but Ford has managed to work its chassis magic and ensure that the new Ka drives with sufficiently more vim than the Fiat on which it’s based. It still feels more Fiat than Ford, but the much better steering and tight body control mean this mixed-DNA city car is far more fun to punt around than its lowly power output would suggest. Just like the old car, then.

Overall, it’s a likeable package, but I see two problems. One is that the mechanically similar Fiat 500 which, admittedly doesn’t drive as well, is far more desirable and is significantly cheaper. The other is that Ford claims most buyers will go for the £9500 Zetec and that sort of money buys you a new Fiesta, a car that feels light years ahead in terms of design, refinement and space.

Look past the equipment difference and spend your money on the better car.

Statistics

How much?	£9,495
On sale in the UK:	January 2009
Engine:	1242cc 8v 4cyl, 68bhp @5500rpm, 75lb ft @ 3000rpm
Transmission:	Five-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Performance:	13.1sec 0-62mph, 99mph, 55.4mpg, 119g/km
How heavy / made of?	940kg/steel
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	3650/1827/1409

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Ford Galaxy 2.0 TDCi Ghia CAR review

By Colin Overland

13 October 2008 10:37

Before the current Mondeo arrived, its styling, its cabin technology and its chassis were previewed in the latest version of Ford’s biggest MPV, the Galaxy. And if you think the supersized Mondeo is big, the Galaxy will have you searching for a new adjective.

It looks like the S-Max, and everyone loves the S-Max, so what’s the point of this?

Space. It’s longer, wider and heavier than the old model, creating a clear space between the full-blown seven-seat Galaxy and the five-plus-two-seat S-Max, which in turn is in a different league from the C-Max.

It’s a lot of car for your money – more car, in fact, than the neat styling may lead you to think. Be careful about what you compare it with: the Galaxy is bigger than the regular Renault Espace and wider and heavier (but shorter) than the Grand Espace, which can cost you more. The five- and seven-seat versions of the lower-priced Citroen C4 Picasso are both smaller than the Ford. Everything bigger than this is basically a van, and some things smaller than this feel like vans even if they’re not.

The Galaxy is priced from under £20k to the high-mid 20s, but it’s easy to take it to more than £30k when you go for extras such as bi-xenon cornering lights or a roof that’s glass all the way back to the middle row of seats. The car on test here, the 2.0 TDCi Ghia, has a basic on-the-road price of £23,995, but our test car came with 17 instead of 16-inch alloys, DVD sat nav, leather trim, metallic paint, sunblinds and a few other extras that took it to £30,220, which doesn’t sound like such a bargain.

Isn’t a diesel engine and a big, spacious body a recipe for loud, echoy crudeness?

Not in this case. As with the Mondeo, the Galaxy is very well insulated and feels like a more expensive car than it actually is. There’s a big choice of engines, and although we’ve not yet tested them all we have a strong suspicion that the 2.0-litre diesel is the pick of the range. With its low-down pulling power, responsive throttle and high cruising speed, it feels extremely well suited to the kind of use a big family car is going to face.

There’s a 143bhp 2.0-litre petrol, also available in a bioethanol-friendly FlexFuel version; a 159bhp 2.3 petrol; and three and a half diesels: 99 and 123bhp versions of the 1.8, our 138bhp 2.0 and a 173bhp 2.2. The 2.3 is automatic only, the 1.8 is available with five- and six-speed manuals, the 2.0 petrol is five-speed manual, the 2.0 diesel is six-speed manual or auto and the 2.2 is six-speed manual.

Basic spec is called Edge. Go up to Zetec, for an extra £2000, and you get an alarm, alloy wheels and climate control as standard. Go up to Ghia for cruise control, fancier infotainment and generally plusher trim.

How versatile is it?

It has FoldFlat, Ford’s equivalent of the Vauxhall Flex7 seating, system: two big front seats, three middle seats that can be slid forwards and backwards independently or folded into the floor, plus two smaller rear seats in the floor of the boot. This all makes it very easy to pick your ideal combination of seats and luggage space, helped by the fact that there is so very much space in there. We can’t stress this enough: the Galaxy is a whopper. Yet some clever internal work has actually reduced the overall height, while giving more passenger room and more scope for all passengers to adjust their seating position. There’s lots of mid-row legroom, even with the seats slid forward to make extra legroom for the third row.
As well as being bigger in every direction than the S-Max, it has a larger and more upright windscreen and doesn’t have the smaller car’s sloping roof, giving 30 percent more bag space than the old Galaxy, even with all seven seats in use. There are also loads of cubbyholes below, beside and above you. Particularly useful are the huge door bins: they allow you to carry a big water bottle AND a road atlas AND a stack of CDs.

And how about the driving?

This is the Ford’s trump card. Whereas the rather ordinary MkI Galaxy was a joint venture, also available as the VW Sharan and Seat Alhambra, this one is all Ford, and benefits from Ford’s mastery of the art of building everyday cars that are extraordinarily good to drive.

The active suspension is constantly adjusting itself, using information from various sensors checking out the car’s ever changing relationship with the road. You also get a choice of three settings. Sport is usually best. Normal adds wobble. Comfort adds wobble and wallow. As with Transits, a heavy load can do a lot to settle the ride.
Like the S-Max, the Galaxy’s driving position is much more car-like than you get with most MPVs. The S-Max drives very well – no ifs, no buts – whereas the Galaxy drives very well for a big MPV: stable on motorways, good turning circle in town, quiet, comfortable, but ultimately not as engaging as a proper car.

VERDICT

There’s no point having the Galaxy if you don’t need the space, because the S-Max is the better car to drive and won’t cast such a big shadow over your house and your neighbour’s house. But that’s not to say that all you’re getting is a big car: it’s also a very useful, practical MPV that happens to drive very well. It’s not as close to the Mondeo as the S-Max is to the Focus, although it’s not far off. But if you don’t need so much space for bags and bodies, go for the S-Max or the Mondeo estate

Statistics

How much?	£25,945
On sale in the UK:	Now
Engine:	Engine 1997cc 16v 4-cyl, 138bhp @ 4000rpm, 251lb ft @ 2000rpm
Transmission:	6-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Performance:	0-62mph 9.9sec, top speed 120mph, 43.5mpg, 172g/km CO2
How heavy / made of?	1933kg
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	4820/1884/1807

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