2009 Ford Focus RS: It's all in the genes

GTi, GT-R, STi, RS: Performance acronyms stir up images of burnt rubber in any petrolhead's, er, head.

The last one, RS, has been around since 1970, first seen in the form of a plastic badge on the boot lid of a 1.6-litre Ford Escort. The legendary performance autograph has since adorned 21 Fords, including the Euro-muscle-car of the Seventies, the Capri, and Eighties' all-wheel drive, BMW M3-busting Sierra Cosworth.

The latest one to carry the DNA, number 22, is the 2009 Ford Focus RS and its key figures are astounding: 300bhp and 440Nm of torque. That might not sound like much next to Merc AMG or BMW M division vehicles, but remember that the Focus is a hatchback, squeezing everything is has through only the front wheels.

Ford believes all-wheel drive systems add cost, weight, inertia and, consequently, fuel consumption, so the RS got a FWD layout for its simplicity, precision and linear steering response.

The turbocharged 2.5-litre engine delivering those high output numbers, peaks at 6,500rpm, without affecting durability, thanks to powertrain changes which include a revised cylinder head gasket, metal sprayed cylinder bores, revised pistons and a bespoke camshaft profile and connecting rods.

The Borg Warner K16 turbo offers a maximum boost pressure of 1.4 bar — twice as much as the Focus ST's 0.7 bar — to generate the RS's 35 per cent power increase over the ST. Although the power is immense, first-time drivers are more likely to get sucked in by the amount of torque available: 440Nm,which peaks at 2,300rpm and running all the way to 4,500rpm, means that most of the time you can use any gear to get going.

Combined with an RS-bespoke six-speed transmission, all that power propels the car to 100kph using only the first two gears, and reaching triple digits in 5.9 seconds, while the speedometer stops only once the needle reaches 263kph.

The WRC-like RS also has numerous safety features, so over-enthusiastic, freshly-licenced drivers don't end up in a ditch. Not that UAE drivers will — as the car's not coming here.