I for one applaud Ford for keeping the "rally-purposed" vehicle segment alive, I like the RS and if Mazda decides to throw it's hat in the ring that's even better. The death of the Evo seems a tad more insignificant now... fyi this wasn't the post I was replying to but dammit I'm at work..
Ken Block "hooning" the prototype RS, doesn't really sound like they let him go to redline or editors subdued the volume.
I had a 2002 and a 2009 WRX and "symmetrical all wheel drive" means that the 1-2 wheels with the least traction got power. For anyone who says "It's still a Focus" have you driven one? What I mean is, for an econobox it's as good as any other econobox, I think better.
i.e. "it's fun to speculate and we're excited to see what it's all about." Sounds similar to some of the SH-AWD set-ups except with clutch packs on each rear wheel instead of a transfer gear between the clutch pack and rear diff. So not the same and more speculation. Def interested to see it in the flesh. giggitty.
I knew it! As soon as I got rid of the 2013 Focus ST for the STI....Ford came out with the AWD RS. SOB! I liked my focus, sans the 2WD. Oh well. I don't think it looks that boss tho....they didn't really do anything different from 2013. They could have really gotten me all butt hurt if they would have did something different with that big ass front piece of plastic and different rims.
I see what you're saying. None that I can confirm. I was referring to the development/evolution of the duratec 35/ecoboost 3.5 (SHO vs f150). How they stick to the whole modular design concept (particularly with reconfiguring motors or building new blocks around existing parts and vice versa) and every now and again take on whacky projects that, if we're lucky, work their way into other platforms.
Yeah, good platform sharing. The Ecoboost 3.5 got into the Mustang right?, wonder why they don't pop a beefy tranfer case on the end of that trans and send some power up front. They could just put a little clearing through the oil pan like the GT-R. That would be a car that would fly off the shelves.
No, the mustang has the same 2.3L ecoboost that's presumably going into the RS. Not sure if they can share the turbo. It's a zippy car as is, and probably 4-500lbs heavier than the RS: An awd flat plane coyote S550 mustang would break the internet.
I doubt that any of us "hate" this car, but if/when I spend 30K + on any car, it will be one I built. And I, like a few others here would probably not spend 30K + on a hopped up fail wheel driver. Especially when a base model Impreza, or even 1000$ CL special 1995 Legacy wagon for that matter, don't need any special systems and clutches to achieve over steer. For 1/30 (or less) the money, you can turn the wheel step on the throttle and hoon the crap out of any old Subaru. For 250,000 miles, and then still sell it for good money to another person needing a reliable old wagon, that gets them through crazy crap that SUV's are scared of. With Subaru, driving enjoyment is just cheaper, because for at least 25 years Subaru has been happy to sell us rally hardware disguised as commuter cars, not the other way around.
I thought the same until I started rallyxing an old subaru and started seeing the seams pull apart at the trans tunnel, rear strut towers, etc... All that said, this is coming from a broke hater that spent 30k+ on a subaru as well as a backwards nazi slot car. Back on topic, I'm glad Ford didn't build around a homologation rules limited platform with this one.
So...why do we got to hate on a car that a lot of people like or are looking forward to? Cheaper than a STI and just as fun, still AWD. And $30k for a new car? That's the line that was crossed? MY car cost a hair less then $30k. Having experienced what a ST can do, the RS will do the same thing better and with a better drivetrain.
Because Subaru is the only AWD car in the world! Everyone copies subarubarubaru. WRB is the only color that matters! Rally! Rustangs and kraut-mobiles suck! AGHJJVNJFF! Oh god....sorry everyone I had a minor stroke.
The MKT/MKS/Taurus SHO models with the EcoBoost are all transverse engines. The only 3.5L EcoBoost in the Ford lineup that's longitudinally mounted is the one in the F-150.
I tear apart, rebuild, repair, modify and daily drive all ranges of Subarus and I find the engineering to be damn good, they consistently impress me and take me to my destinations cheaply and more reliably than my 7 previous cars so absolutely, I'm fanboy. Crazy that you'd find a Subaru fanboy on a Subaru forum.
So you tear down and mock another product because you don't agree with it? That is what we are all hinting at.
Partially, but to flat out condemn it because it's not a a Subaru is...how do you say? Silly. Correct me if I'm wrong but I feel the post was bringing to light a potential vehicle for people that are tired of breaking subarus. Or want something new and fun. Or because it's @Curry , he's just reading and laughing.
Close, if I know Curry and his CurryScience™, it was to mock those who mock products they don't agree with, or possibly to mock those who mock those who mock products they don't agree with.
Not exactly. Integrating the transfer case in the gearbox and using a compact, flat motor to set the front wheels back even further is for sure brilliant engineering. Not the best for performance (depending on the application, of course), but agreed, damn good engineering. I just wish they'd bring their ROW fwd and small displacement motors over to diversify the US product line. It's just really stale. Especially the STI line. Which is a damn shame considering all the commotion it created in the US market 10 years ago. If I were to ever shop another wrx/sti/lgt, it would for sure come in well below the RS (and others) even sight unseen.
I LIKE Subarus and like to see what people do to their Subarus and I like all the help and advice for fixing Subarus. That is why most people join a Subaru forum. It is not a requirement here to believe that everything Subaru makes is the best thing ever and that everything else sucks.
Really? Crap, I thought that was in the EULA when I signed up for my account. Well, I've got this all backwards then, sorry ಥ_ಥ
The funny part is that when you look at the longtime members (and mods) on here, very few of us still own Subarus. The rest of the market has caught up with (and well surpassed) Subaru in a lot of ways. They're starting to play catchup, but they've got a ways to go in a number of areas.
it will be interesting what kind of suspension upgrades they make for the RS. my ST's rear trailing blades were about as thick as a credit card. A lot of the STs component's were regular ol' focus parts, I just hope that with the RS upgrade they make some significant all around changes. I moved over to Subaru due to the toy feel of the ST (Fun, but never felt significant). For Fords sake lets hope they put some real RnD into developing true performance parts for this platform. if you're all motor and nothing else, you might as well plop a V8 in it and really get "hoonie" pretty decent lookin car tho:
The Ford Focus RS' Kickass AWD System Will Show Up On Other Fords http://jalopnik.com/the-ford-focus-rs-kickass-awd-system-will-show-up-on-ot-1684316417
What would a 58 year old man look like a bigger dumb ass in...a WRX STi or a Focus RS? Note that a flat brim hat will never be part of his attire. Currently we have a Subaru and a Ford and I feel like the Subaru dealer service departments are more competent that the Ford one(s), so this also a determining factor in my personal decision.
Whats with the rear "filler neck""break light" protruding falice on the lower rear diffuser? Lol. Really odd. Also....awd mustang coming!....i heard they're bringing back the probe and escort too in awd/twin scroll setups....well maybe not the latter two!
I've been silently watching this thread. I'm pleasantly surprised by everyone's open minds and non biased reactions (well mostly everyone). I've owned 10 Subarus, built 3 (well 2 1/2), 5 mitsubishis and some a dodge omni GLH in there somewhere. My point is, post 2008 Ford (more than any other car manufacturer IMO) woke up and realized they were making absolute ****. It's now 2015 and you're starting to see the fruits of their labor. The Focus ST is an awesome car, and this being it's bigger brother, is going to be incredible. The S-AYC technology in the Evo X is a lot like this car's. It's not nearly as distracting as I imagined it would be, in fact I ended up disliking it because it was in turn making me a worse driver. It's just that good. The torque vectoring that Subaru put out is a good step in this direction, but it's not on the level of Mitsu and Ford's implementation. I just hope it's more reliable than Mitsubishi's. The first thing I usually did was disable S-AYC so I could get more drift action on the way to work. Well this is the quickest way to break your S-AYC/ACD pump come to find out. Since the Ford has a "drift" setting I'm hoping they've figured out a way to make it reliable and fun. One final note/thought is the Ford ST is already 3200lbs. I'm hoping the fact that they call out that the AWD components are "lightweight" that they've really tried their best to keep the added weight down, but it's going to be interesting to see where they ended up. The Evo X did things like not having a reverse gear, it uses 2nd and 4th (I think) together to go into reverse, but they still made it a fat pig... only time will tell.
Why does the love for performance need am age limit? I'm 57 and have an 02 bugeye with a 323awp STI engine.
