Highlights:
- Powerful 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine producing 350 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and a 6,800-rpm redline. That’s an impressive 152 horsepower per liter, and far exceeds original estimates!
- New turbo exclusive to Focus RS makes peak boost of 23.2 psi, producing a torque peak of 350 lb.-ft. at 3,200 rpm
- Innovative Stall Recovery feature automatically restarts engine in the event of a stall, an added feature of the included start-stop system
- All-Wheel drive with Dynamic Torque Vectoring for maximum grip
Look out, STI and Evo drivers. Serious competition is coming. The new Focus RS will be packing a major performance advantage with big power flowing through an all-wheel drive system and sporting many innovative features. Beside the fact it makes a bunch of power, the manual-only Focus RS will debut with an interesting new feature called Stall Recovery. In the event of a stall, it is no longer necessary for the driver to manually restart the engine or move the shifter to neutral as the Stall Recovery simply pushes the clutch back in.
Tyrone Johnson, engineering and vehicle manager for Ford Performance Europe explained "We knew we wanted to put start-stop technology on the RS. So we said, 'What if we went one step further, and controlled for engine stall at launch using the same technology?' Well, that's exactly what we did and it's just as fast as our start-stop technology."
The Focus RS engine achieves it’s especially high output due to an all-new low-inertia twin-scroll turbocharger with a larger compressor wheel that delivers more airflow and power throughout the RPM range than the one found on the Mustang. Peak boost is a lofty 23.2 psi. To help it handle all that boost, the RS engine features strong, high-tensile cast-iron cylinder liners and a high-performance head gasket.
A large intercooler is employed to minimize inlet temperatures and maximize charge density. Intake air flows through a low-restriction intake manifold on the front end backed up by a high performance exhaust. The exhaust system includes an electronically controlled valve that optimizes back pressure and volume. Additional space created in the front of the car allowed engineers to deploy a larger radiator than what's used on other Focus models for enhanced engine cooling.
Production of Focus RS with 2.3-liter EcoBoost will begin later this year.
