Ford Fiesta RS joins jet set
27-03-2008, 12:48 PM
#1
Ford Fiesta RS joins jet set
Taken from this weeks Auto Express....
Calling all fast Ford fans – get ready for the ultimate Fiesta. Following our sensational pictures of the ST in Issue 994, Auto Express can now give you the best look yet at an even hotter version – the RS.
Taking Fiesta performance to new heights, the exciting model will be a stripped-out, lightweight pocket rocket. It’s effectively a hardcore version of the ST, promising few creature comforts but amazing handling and even more driver appeal.
The newcomer is set to rival forthcoming high-performance superminis such as MINI’s John Cooper Works, along with existing extreme hot hatches including Vaux*hall’s Corsa VXR. But the Fiesta RS will actually be closest in spirit to the Renaultsport Clio 197 Cup – another car that takes a minimalistic route.
As you can see from our exclusive images, the aggressive bodykit adds bulging wheel*arches, lowered side sills and a rear spoiler to the Fiesta’s already sporty lines.
News that a hot Fiesta is on the way will be music to the ears of buyers who had been looking forward to the previous-generation Fiesta RS, previewed at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show as a concept (pictured below).
That project was canned when Ford bosses couldn’t make it economically viable across Europe. RS sales are always biggest in the UK, whereas take-up in France, Germany and Spain is much smaller. These days, conditions are, if anything, even tougher with high steel prices and a strong Euro making it very difficult to make money on a small car – particularly if it’s a flagship performance hatchback.
However, thanks to Ford’s increased profitability in Europe, hot models are back on the agenda. The Focus RS has already been given the green light for production (see Issue 992) and the Fiesta version is the next step.
Available in limited numbers, the hot Fiesta will have a special-edition feel with a stripped-out cabin featuring racing-style seats, lightweight materials throughout and lots of RS detailing. To keep the weight down, kit will be basic – and that’s great news for performance.
It’s likely to use a slightly uprated version of the ST’s potential 1.6-litre turbocharged engine – inspired by the hi-tech range of small cap-acity direct-injection EcoBoost turbo units revealed by Ford at the Detroit Motor Show earlier this year. With that on board, the RS would develop about 200bhp and sprint from 0-60mph in only six seconds, on its way to a 140mph top speed. With its light weight, CO2 emissions and economy should be kept down.
It’s unlikely, however, that the Fiesta will follow the forthcoming Focus RS’s lead by having a clever front differential. But it could use Ford’s six-speed twin-clutch semi-auto gearbox with steering wheel-mounted paddle*shifters, giving the RS the feel of a Junior World Rally Car. Add wider tracks, stiffened springs, uprated dampers and thicker anti-roll bars plus fat, sticky tyres, and the RS promises to handle brilliantly.
While the new Fiesta will reach dealerships in October and the ST is due in 2009, the RS isn’t likely to arrive until 2010, with a potential price tag of around Ł17,000.
Calling all fast Ford fans – get ready for the ultimate Fiesta. Following our sensational pictures of the ST in Issue 994, Auto Express can now give you the best look yet at an even hotter version – the RS.
Taking Fiesta performance to new heights, the exciting model will be a stripped-out, lightweight pocket rocket. It’s effectively a hardcore version of the ST, promising few creature comforts but amazing handling and even more driver appeal.
The newcomer is set to rival forthcoming high-performance superminis such as MINI’s John Cooper Works, along with existing extreme hot hatches including Vaux*hall’s Corsa VXR. But the Fiesta RS will actually be closest in spirit to the Renaultsport Clio 197 Cup – another car that takes a minimalistic route.
As you can see from our exclusive images, the aggressive bodykit adds bulging wheel*arches, lowered side sills and a rear spoiler to the Fiesta’s already sporty lines.
News that a hot Fiesta is on the way will be music to the ears of buyers who had been looking forward to the previous-generation Fiesta RS, previewed at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show as a concept (pictured below).
That project was canned when Ford bosses couldn’t make it economically viable across Europe. RS sales are always biggest in the UK, whereas take-up in France, Germany and Spain is much smaller. These days, conditions are, if anything, even tougher with high steel prices and a strong Euro making it very difficult to make money on a small car – particularly if it’s a flagship performance hatchback.
However, thanks to Ford’s increased profitability in Europe, hot models are back on the agenda. The Focus RS has already been given the green light for production (see Issue 992) and the Fiesta version is the next step.
Available in limited numbers, the hot Fiesta will have a special-edition feel with a stripped-out cabin featuring racing-style seats, lightweight materials throughout and lots of RS detailing. To keep the weight down, kit will be basic – and that’s great news for performance.
It’s likely to use a slightly uprated version of the ST’s potential 1.6-litre turbocharged engine – inspired by the hi-tech range of small cap-acity direct-injection EcoBoost turbo units revealed by Ford at the Detroit Motor Show earlier this year. With that on board, the RS would develop about 200bhp and sprint from 0-60mph in only six seconds, on its way to a 140mph top speed. With its light weight, CO2 emissions and economy should be kept down.
It’s unlikely, however, that the Fiesta will follow the forthcoming Focus RS’s lead by having a clever front differential. But it could use Ford’s six-speed twin-clutch semi-auto gearbox with steering wheel-mounted paddle*shifters, giving the RS the feel of a Junior World Rally Car. Add wider tracks, stiffened springs, uprated dampers and thicker anti-roll bars plus fat, sticky tyres, and the RS promises to handle brilliantly.
While the new Fiesta will reach dealerships in October and the ST is due in 2009, the RS isn’t likely to arrive until 2010, with a potential price tag of around Ł17,000.
27-03-2008, 01:40 PM
#6
i didnt know until 10mins ago either and i hadnt seen a post here and i've been on a LOT!
anyway looks smart. cross between a new corsa and the last shape civic type R.
i hope they get good power, lsd and keep the fucking weight down! that lot would do 0-asda in no time!
anyway looks smart. cross between a new corsa and the last shape civic type R.
i hope they get good power, lsd and keep the fucking weight down! that lot would do 0-asda in no time!
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27-03-2008, 04:14 PM
#12
PassionFord Post Troll
27-03-2008, 04:22 PM
#13
............
Even tho the new fiesta's chassis is much more capable? ( bearing in mind I know someone who has been involved in the chassis development so thats not really anything you can argue with )
27-03-2008, 05:04 PM
#14
PassionFord Post Whore!!
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them new fiestas have got to be a joke, right? 
fukking hideous!
as is the very new focus facelift lol
they should of done a fiesta ST shape car with the focus RS engine in at very least lol..
fukking hideous!as is the very new focus facelift lol
they should of done a fiesta ST shape car with the focus RS engine in at very least lol..
27-03-2008, 05:14 PM
#15
............
Blinding - Put this man in charge somebody!
27-03-2008, 05:16 PM
#16
PassionFord Post Whore!!
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if you read I said SHOULD of made one
so what they did with the YB in an escort was wrong too then? that was a 15 year old engine at the time (terrible mistake that was
ford best take a 
from mondeo man ) maybe you should be incharge. and get ford making even more boring shit cars lol
Last edited by pee vee; 27-03-2008 at 05:20 PM.
27-03-2008, 08:20 PM
#17
............
if you read I said SHOULD of made one
so what they did with the YB in an escort was wrong too then? that was a 15 year old engine at the time (terrible mistake that was ford best take a from mondeo man )
maybe you should be incharge. and get ford making even more boring shit cars lol
so what they did with the YB in an escort was wrong too then? that was a 15 year old engine at the time (terrible mistake that was
ford best take a from mondeo man ) maybe you should be incharge. and get ford making even more boring shit cars lol
The YB was a superb engine as every engine builder in the land knows
The zetec-e is not.
ps the YB was nowhere near 15 years old when the first escos came out. maybe 8 years.
Theres nothing boring and shit about the proposed RS Fiesta..200bhp, nice dsg gearbox and a much better chassis than the current one! Wrapped up in a lightweight 'clio cup' style package - Gee how shit
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