2012 Ford Focus ST-R

Starting in early 2011, the Focus in both North America and Europe will be the same vehicle. The U.S. car essentially stayed put: The original Focus was good enough to be a C/D 10Best winner, but the competition moved on, leaving the current version dead last in a recent small-car comparo.

The 2012 Ford Focus ST-R certainly looks terrific, especially in five-door form. Compared with the current U.S. Focus, the new car is 0.5 inch lower (at 58.1 inches tall) and 3.0 inches long¬er (178.0 inches overall), and it has a 1.3-inch-longer wheelbase (104.2 inches). The 2012 model’s dimensions are close to the current Euro car’s, save for a wider track and lower stance.

Torsional rigidity is up by 25 percent over that of the current Focus. Ford says the engine will put out 155 horsepower and 145 pound-feet of torque. Jim Hughes, the chief nameplate engineer for the Focus in North America, adds, “We’ll eventually get an EcoBoost [turbocharged DI] engine in the Focus.” Derrick Kuzak, the global product-development chief, says: “There will be no conventional automatic on this car.

will American consumers pay more money for this latest Focus?
As the all-new Focus ST road car makes its global production debut, Ford is giving a European welcome at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show to a special motorsport counterpart - the race-tweaked, production-based Ford Focus ST-R.

Despite its close resemblance to the Focus ST road car, the Ford Focus ST-R is purpose-built for the track by Ford Racing in North America as a fully-prepared competition car.

Focus Role in Ford's Global Motorsport Strategy
The global Focus race car development - a major plank in Ford's new global motorsport strategy - is based on international S2000 regulations. Both the Team Aon Focus BTCC car and the new Ford Focus ST-R are evidence of a Ford strategy with global ambitions to help privateers to be competitive on all levels.
Ford launched its global motorsport development program last year.