Earlier this year, Ford revealed the latest in a long line of everyone’s favorite hot hatchback: the all-new Ford Focus RS. Orders are open now and customers will receive their cars in early 2016, but not everyone knows why they should be excited about the Focus RS. The folks at Ford Performance have put together a mini-series of videos to fix that.
The series, which is called “Rebirth of an Icon,” will feature people instrumental to the development of the new Focus RS. As you can see in the trailer, those individuals range from Raj Nair – Ford group’s Vice President, Global Product Development and chief technical officer – to Ken Block, the rally cross star better known for his Gymkhana stunt videos. Block was brought on as a consultant for the Focus RS project, and his involvement in its development as a test-driver is sure to be a highlight of the video series.
There will be eight episodes, each airing a week apart. From the official press release, here is a rundown of what to expect from each episode:
Episode 1: Project kickoff – Block and Nair debate what the car should deliver from behind the wheel of an early prototype.
Episode 2: Design and development – Crunching crashes put the new design to the toughest of tests.
Episode 3: Hitting the road – A 1,600-kilometre (1,000-mile) drive through epic terrain takes prototypes from high in the Rocky Mountains to the Arizona desert.
Episode 4: Test-track trials – Block heads for Ford’s top-secret test facility and indulges in some “hooning”
Episode 5: Arctic extremes – Winter testing in Sweden shows the team is under pressure to improve performance.
Episode 6: Power struggle – It’s all about performance as the Ford manufacturing plant in Saarlouis, Germany, gears up for production
Episode 7: Close scrutiny – The day of the critical signoff drive follows Block’s headline appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Episode 8: Final chapter – It’s time for the nail-biting management review.
The first episode premieres Wednesday, September 30. Subscribe to Ford Performance on YouTube if you don’t want to miss this incredible story unfold.
At Leith Ford, we get excited about cars like the Ford Focus RS because it shows us exactly what our patron brand is capable of. The DNA for a performance vehicle like this one is found in all Ford models, particularly the base Focus. They might not all have all-wheel drive with dynamic torque vectoring, but cars like the ones in our inventory are still solid driving vehicles that will take care of you and your passengers.
Schedule a test drive for a new Ford Focus today. It’ll make your next visit to our dealership that much more memorable. All of us at Leith Ford look forward to seeing you.