hot hatch

Get Down ID Motorsports picks up power with a high-flow downpipe and a hotter tune By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of ID Motorsports When we last left ID Motorsports’ 2016 Focus RS project, the hot hatch had picked up over 30 horsepower and 46 lb-ft of torque courtesy of a custom tune and...

Youth Movement Popular with younger customers, Ford Performance vehicles are selling well By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Performance With all the talk that younger people aren’t as interested in driving, there is some good news from the Blue Oval. Apparently younger drivers with higher...

Close Call A Livernois-tuned Focus RS hangs with a stock Shelby GT350 on the drag strip By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Livernois Motorsports If you own the top dog Shelby GT350 Mustang, you might immediately dismiss that Focus RS staging next to you at the drag strip. Well, you might...

Turning up the Heat ID Motorsports tests SCT tuning and a Mountune CAI on Ford’s hot hatch By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of ID Motorsports We are still waiting to steal some seat time in Ford’s 350-horsepower, all-wheel-drive Focus, but lucky owners are already out there enjoying them...

Keep Your Cool Mishimoto offers a bolt-in, high-efficiency radiator for the Focus ST By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Mishimoto Right off the dealer lot the Focus ST is one of the most fun cars Ford has ever offered. It offers a balanced package of power and handling that makes it a blast...

Adrenal Plan SVTP chatted with Ford about the hottest hatch’s complimentary school By Steve Turner Owners of the Ford Performance’s new hot hatch, the Focus RS get a lot of performance in a small package. Not only does it deliver 350 horsepower, four driving modes, and more. One feature...

Education in Excitement Focus RS owners to receive a free Ford Performance Racing School By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company As if there weren’t already 350 reasons to want an all-wheel-drive ride like the 2016+ Focus RS, Ford gives you one more—the RS Adrenaline Academy...

Real Winner Race Forza Motorsport 6 online and you might win a 2017 Focus RS By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Microsoft Your parents probably told you that playing too many video games is a waste of time. Well, if you put that time into racing Forza Motorsport games, you might just be...

One-Two Punch Ken Block and Andreas Bakkerud take the fight to the world in the hot hatch By Steve Turner Pop. Bang. Pop. Bang. The turbocharged 2.0-liter dances off the two-step rev limiter. As the start light goes green the car launches. Its all-wheel-drive system and Cooper tires claw for...

What’s Your Focus? Ford Performance is giving away the hottest hatch in its lineup By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company You never know what you might discover on an event midway. While prowling the aisles of Formula Drift’s Uncharted Territory event at Orlando Speed World, we...

Special Delivery Billy Johnson puts Lethal Performance’s RS in Drift Mode on the dealer lot By Steve Turner Regular readers know the last time Lethal Performance picked up a new project vehicle at Weikert Ford in Lake Wales, Florida, that the company did so in smoking style. So, when Team...

MagnaFocus Magnaflow releases its cat-back exhaust system for Ford’s hottest hatch By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Magnaflow If you watched Ford Performance’s Rebirth of an Icon documentary series, you know that engineers put a lot of effort into giving the new Focus RS and aggressive...

Waving the Flag A US Focus RS customer shares his thoughts on Ford’s hottest hatch By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company From the moment we learned the Focus RS would arrive on US shores, we’ve been excited for the hot hatch to usher in a new era of Ford Performance in the...

Starting Line Mishimoto embarks on its Focus RS project with baseline testing By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Mishimoto The highly anticipated Focus RS is finally arriving on US shores and starting to hit the streets. Rated at 350 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque at the crank, Ford’s...

Shakedown & Expectations The final installment of the Focus RS RX series details its testing By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company For several weeks, Ford Performance offered a behind-the-scenes look at the Focus RS RX driven by Ken Block and Andreas Bakkerud in the FIA World...

The New STyle If you live in Europe you can get ST handling and styling on a budget with the ST-Line By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company For a while now, Ford has told us that performance cars are selling well. Apparently they are quite popular in Europe, but not everyone has...

Hard Parts The third installment of the Focus RS RX doc details the competitive gear By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company Ford Performance is offering a behind-the-scenes look at the Focus RS RX driven by Ken Block and Andreas Bakkerud in the FIA World Rallycross...

Hot Lap Ride along as Focus RS Chief Engineer Tyrone Johnson laps Silverstone By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company As Focus fans, we have long been jealous of Europe. They always get the good stuff first. Ford is finally sharing the same car with the entire world, but Europe...

French Connection Ford to release limited Le Mans editions of the Fiesta, Focus and Mustang in France By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company We know it’s a big deal that Ford is returning to race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the all-new Ford GT. After all, it’s the 50th...

Craftsmanship & Assembly The second Ford Performance Focus RS RX video delivers an inside look at the build process By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company Today Ford Performance released the second installment of its video docu-series offering a behind-the-scenes look at the new...

Around the Block Ford Performance gives us a look at the development of its WRC Focus RS By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company Recently we shared with you the reveal of the livery for the Hoonigan Racing Division World Rallycross Championship machines piloted by Ken Block and...

RX Wrap Ken Block and Andreas Bakkerud reveal their World Rallycross Focus RS RX livery By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company and Hoonigan Racing Division When Ken Block dropped the eighth edition of his popular Gymkhana video series there was a big teaser at the end—the Focus...

Hearing Brigade Quality control testing of the 2.3-liter Focus RS engine includes listening By Steve Turner Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company Closed in soundproof booths, highly trained Ford production workers listen carefully. EcoBoost 2.3-liter engines run as their tuned ears seek out a...