Ford Focus RS review

[justinco]

Finally got to spend some time with this car. A friends 2016 Ford Focus RS with the RS 2 package.

Tons of fun and great on the street. Not sure I would buy one for myself but still a pretty sweet car!

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=il-iOvvK0Ww[/ame]

[krayzie]

My colleague told me of a similar non-linear feel of the clutch pedal with the new Golf R.

[justinco]

Originally Posted by krayzie

My colleague told me of a similar non-linear feel of the clutch pedal with the new Golf R.

The RS was not the first car I have felt that kind of clutch on. I'm honestly not sure why some manufacturers do it that way, versus a more linear clutch pedal feel.

[kalam]

@ 19 minutes passing on double yellow lines. :O

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by krayzie

My colleague told me of a similar non-linear feel of the clutch pedal with the new Golf R.

Originally Posted by justinco

The RS was not the first car I have felt that kind of clutch on. I'm honestly not sure why some manufacturers do it that way, versus a more linear clutch pedal feel.

Our 86's are not linear. I removed the spring that is there to assist in bumper to bumper driving situations.

[justinco]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

Our 86's are not linear. I removed the spring that is there to assist in bumper to bumper driving situations.

Both my FRS and BRZ are. Same amount of pedal pressure throughout the pedal range. The RS was not at all similar. Maybe yours is different, but not either of my cars.

[8RZ]

There were 2 at my last autox event that did spectacular, great drivers.

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by justinco

The RS was not the first car I have felt that kind of clutch on. I'm honestly not sure why some manufacturers do it that way, versus a more linear clutch pedal feel.

Could be due to the dual mass flywheel in European cars.

Japanese cars like the twins usually come with a single mass flywheel.

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by justinco

Both my FRS and BRZ are. Same amount of pedal pressure throughout the pedal range. The RS was not at all similar. Maybe yours is different, but not either of my cars.

Have you done the spring mod? No way you can do the mod n not feel a difference.

[justinco]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

Have you done the spring mod? No way you can do the mod n not feel a difference.

I did not do the spring mod. The stock clutch feels perfectly fine.

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by justinco

I did not do the spring mod. The stock clutch feels perfectly fine.

Look up the spring mod and check out the reviews. The assist it gives at the end to help avoid fatigue in traffic also makes it feel non-linear. Anyone who doesn't have peripheral neuropathy would feel the difference. Do the mod in five minutes and reverse it if you don't instantly love it.

[justinco]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

Look up the spring mod and check out the reviews. The assist it gives at the end to help avoid fatigue in traffic also makes it feel non-linear. Anyone who doesn't have peripheral neuropathy would feel the difference. Do the mod in five minutes and reverse it if you don't instantly love it.

I may do that at some point, but I really have no reason to. This car/clutch is super simple to drive even in traffic. It does not bother me one bit, it's very easy lol.

Now my old turbo Honda's with 6 puck unsprung clutches, those were a pain to drive in traffic

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by justinco

I may do that at some point, but I really have no reason to. This car/clutch is super simple to drive even in traffic. It does not bother me one bit, it's very easy lol.

Now my old turbo Honda's with 6 puck unsprung clutches, those were a pain to drive in traffic

Right. That was hard to drive because it was hard to push. In this case removing the spring makes it harder to push in the clutch but it feels more linear so it is worth it.

[WolfpackS2k]

Maybe we could get back on topic and stop talking about the clutch pedal of the Twins?

I drove a FoRS this past weekend in the NC mountains. Was equipped with the sticky Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires. Didn't really care for the driving position. With the seat down low I felt like I was in a bathtub. Window sill and dashboard seemed high. I adjusted the seat upwards to fix that, but overall it's an usual move for me b/c I'm 6'2". Wasn't super fond of the spacing between the steering wheel, shifter and pedals. Had difficulty shifting quickly between gears due to clutch pedal feel. The shifter itself was nice, however.

The engine seemed pretty good. Responsive for a turbo engine, though one could still notice the lag. Exhaust note was too quiet for my tastes, but when you could hear it it was nice. Seemed strongest in the mid range, and felt like it really started to tail off after 6000 rpm.

No hint of understeer even on the tightest of turns, though the front tires did look a bit chewed up on the edges after we were done driving for the day.

Based on vehicle weight power the power to weight ratio should be very similar to my car, but it didn't feel that way to me. Didn't notice the torque advantage. The gears of the FoRS are significantly shorter than the Porsche which should have further helped it out. Fun practical car, but nothing about driving it made me want it over my 987. Which is a very good thing I'd say, lol.