Ford Focus RS – What’s in a Name?

Popular culture has an additive personality. The two main addictions being the lives of celebrities and the power of a brand. Sometimes a name or a few words is more than enough to make hordes of people rabid with excitement, Britney Spears, Coca Cola, Ford Focus RS – all have their status as icons of modern society.

If someone has talent I’m all for them earning masses of money, being idolised and I may even listen to them preaching to me about global warming issues that they’ve contributed to with their private jets – Bono you know who you are. What I don’t have any time for are the reality television ‘stars’ who crave any form of attention and limelight without having any discernable talent. Since the advent of Big Brother, we are inundated with reality television programmes covering every conceivable topic: from being stuck on a desert island, being gifted a modelling contract, dancing and now even conducting an orchestra.

Even supposed A-list celebrities get on my wick. If anyone can tell me the talents of LiLo (that’ll be Lindsey Lohan to the uninitiated) or Paris Hilton, please send me a postcard. Combine these two with their ever-changing fashions and you’ve got content for a year’s worth of OK! Magazine.

I must admit that despite my rant I’m a sucker for a label on clothing. Despite the fact that a t-shirt from a supermarket will cover my chest as ably as one with a designer label, there’s something comforting about a well known brand, despite the fact it’ll cost ten times more and be 95 percent the same as the supermarket’s version. The problem is that even if you look past the obvious increase in price for a branded product, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s as good quality as you’d hoped – much like finding out the new album from a band you love is rubbish, after you’ve bought it.

Ford find themselves in this quandary as the world waits with baited breath for the return of the iconic RS badge that will adorn the updated Focus early next year. The RS badge has always symbolised a great Ford, regardless of the base model it’s built upon. The RS200, Sierra, Fiesta and previous Focus were all barnstorming cars full of power and every boy racer’s dream once the RS treatment was delivered. There is no doubt however of the one Ford that the new Focus RS must beat – the Escort Cosworth.

The Cossie as it became affectionately known was a perfect example of what a good performance overhaul can do to improve the base model. The Escort in standard trim was quite simply awful. It was built to a cost so low that you’d be lucky if half the car didn’t fall apart on the way to the shops. The styling was woefully bland; the handling distant at best and as for reliability, well you could rely on the fact that it would always break down. However, a 225bhp engine, chassis upgrade, wide body kit and the iconic ‘whale tail’ spoiler transformed the car into a world beater on the rally circuit that you could happily take to the shops and return in one piece. It was a supercar for the working class.

Clearly then the excitement surrounding the new Ford Focus RS is justified based on history. The opportunity for disappointment however is also higher than ever. So how do I rate its chances? Firstly it’s available in a lime green so vivid that my retinas detached themselves. Secondly it has styling that is somehow modern yet harks back to the 90’s look of the Cossie whilst being more aggressive than Joey Barton on a night out. A rear diffuser gives it F1 chic and there are more vents than a supercomputer could count. It all sounds a mess but let me assure you it works.

Performance promises to be blistering, with a 2.5 litre turbo-charged engine developing over 280bhp. Basically on paper the Focus RS will crush every competitor in its class and embarrass a few in the upper echelons too. My only concern would be that 280bhp through the front wheels shouts ‘torque steer’ louder than a billboard in Times Square. Ford have allayed these fears stating that a electronic limited slip differential will solve these problems making the Focus RS not only the most powerful RS ever, but all being well a very drivable one.

2009 promises to be the return of an icon. Let wallets of all sizes rejoice.