Official: 2009 Ford Focus RS

The new Ford Focus RS was announced and will be available to the public in 2009. The public unveiling will be at the London Motor Show later this year. The Focus already looks great but all the visual modifications make it really hot. Widened body, new front and rear bumpers and a bunch of other mods complete the look but what’s under the hood is what’s important.

And what’s under the hood, at least on paper, is pretty impressive. A turbocharged 2.5 liter 5 cylinder putting out 295 hp and 410 Nm. That’s a lot of power, a lot more than most hot-hatches, but it’s only going to the front wheels. Weight was apparently a big influence in not going for a 4 wheel drive but I’m guessing price was an even more important one. Ford assures us that they handled the handling with the help of a “special” suspension system and the limited-slip differential but that remains to be seen when the first road tests pop up.

The Focus RS looks good on paper and if Ford can keep the price down it may have a winner in the, pretty crowded, hot hatch market. It certainly has the looks. Now if only Ford US was doing so well as it’s European division. But we know the Focus is making it’s way stateside and most likely the RS too.