Escort Cosworth VS Focus RS | Fifth Gear Classic
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ม.ค. 2021
- Taken from series 13 of Fifth Gear, first broadcast in 2008, Vicki puts the classic Escort Cosworth up against the Focus RS in a legendary Fifth Gear shootout! For access to exclusive Fifth Gear content and all FULL episodes, join our channel / @fifthgearuk
#EscortVSFocus #FifthGear #Shootout
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Nothing on this video has aged a day, the soundtrack was on point as well.
Josh Wink
Chemical brothers
The Prodigy
and I want to say Orbital?
either way, back when cars were great and music was fantastic!
A guy that lived up the road from me back in the 80s/90s was a Cosworth fanatic. He owned a RS500 Sierra Cosworth and later (when i was old enough to drive) an Escort Cosworth in the same blue. I remember following him through town, both of us going a little too fast to be legal (but not crazy speeds) At that time i owned an Astra GTE 16 valve, a rapid hot hatch and the Cossie wasn't exactly blowing me away. That was until we reached a very tight corner. He shot round that VERY tight corner in damp conditions without even touching the brakes! Behind him i had to brake heavily before the corner and then very slowly accelerate out of it, my GTE slithering with understeer and sliding. I barely got round that corner being right on the verge of a spin. The Cossie went round as if on rails with zero slide or hassle at about 30mph, it was incredible haha! After that i had a new found love of Cossies, especially the awd versions.
I had a gte 16v rolling road tuned to 189.9 BHP, it was a quick little thing! Loved the Bosworth never had one though.
@@AJ-ms1oi very nice, mine was just standard. A fantastic engine though, all you had to do was fit twin carbs (cheaper option) or individual throttle bodies for nearly 200bhp on an otherwise standard engine (you could actually get around 300bhp NA with heads, cams etc) I still miss my GTE, i had some great times in that little motor! Yours musta been a proper beast as my standard one used to wheelspin and torque steer onto the other side of the road if you were being too heavy footed in the wet haha!
GTE 16v was a monster, I was doing my apprenticeship at Vauxhall in 1994 and the guy I was working with had a GTE 16v, I remember clear as day on the M5 near bromsgrove doing 147mph on the digital dash racing a Rover 220 tomcat, I was loving it at the age of 17 and wanted a GTE after that... still to this day never had one though.
@@neilneilorangepeel yeah, mine was getting on for 10 years old when i bought it. But it was in great condition and only had 60-70,000 miles on the clock with the previous owner being a lady whos husband quite obviously loved and cared for it. I used to do 130+mph nigh on every day i owned it haha! It loved it! Definitely not a comfortable car for high speed cruising though, it would be doing 6000+rpm at those kinda speeds (it felt like it needed another gear!)
@@davekennedy6315 yeah the one I went in was a G plate in 1994 so only 4 years old, still remember the plate G42 BNP.. must have been scrapped now because I’ve looked for it.. can’t convince the mrs to give up the family 4 series BMW so don’t think I’ll ever get one now lol
Maybe it's because I'm old, but the escort looks far better and is so much more desirable..
Escort has awd and looks better.
Focus looks better to me but the Escort sounds technically more impressive with the AWD.
@@mr8I7 the focus looks ok, but to me it isnt any longer the "crazy" cossie machine the escort was. With bulgy wide fenders and a huge spoiler!
To me there's no contest, the Cosworth is a proper sports car, 4x4 and faster.
The Focus RS was such a let down and never been desirable car for me, I hate torque steer it ruins all fun.
@@whynotagain3639 Facts
The Cosworth is a legend
I used to work for Ford years back and, while the RS was well received, the disappointment over what it should have been / could have been was tremendous. What Ford initially promised was watered down to what was finally delivered.
You may have got pulled in by your companies own marketing wizardry, which increased your own expectations? Don't worry, the public loved it (and still do), despite your relative disappointment ;)
@@dazmorland No, the Focus RS was indeed a disappointment...there was also a lot of hype surrounding a 4WD Focus Cosworth as well.
The cossie is an iconic car! But i love the mk1 focus RS too tbh! Cool cars! Take me back to the days of this fifth gear, i miss the early 2000s
I really miss the entirety of the 90s which the early 2000s were just a bit of a shadow of.
@@curiousnomadic same!
@@HelloImNik You are just so cool
To me there's no contest, the Cosworth is a proper sports car, 4x4 and faster.
The Focus RS was such a let down and never been desirable car for me, I hate torque steer it ruins all fun.
4wd, lighter, more downforce, developed in conjunction with cosworth. It was always a no brainer which was gonna win 😂 at least VBH talked dirty throughout 🤯😂
I don’t care if it lost, the MK1 focus RS is my choice
Same, an underdog of the fast fords
Mazda 6 MPS (aka early AWD Focus RS) is not bad shout either..... except for the engine and rust issues.
Lost in their show. Who still believes them. Second hand Focus is fastest and most reliable car in price range acutely even in slightly higher price range.
@@aaryeshg.6526 A friend of mine had a Mazda 3 MPS, an amazing car. It kept up with some really great cars that had some big power advantages.
Ultimately the Focus RS has proven to be the more reliable vehicle mostly down to its simpler drivetrain and more modern engine. The Escort was turned up to 11 from the factory whereas the Focus had a bit of headroom for improvement.
Then there is the fact the Focus is a much safer vehicle, at the expense of added weight.
Good watch always wanted a cosworth when I was a kid either the Sierra or the escort 🔥🔥🔥
Yeah, the Sierra Cossie is cool as fuck too, but I gotta say the Escort Cossie has been a dream for many, many years for me.
Yep me too I’m 31
I had one back in the day a lux model, same colour unfortunately I found it disappointing having owned a sapphire cosworth previously.
Wish I hadn't sold it, they are worth a fortune nowadays !
@@KapteinFruit me too!
@@HelloImNik Nice :) Such a cool little car.
When I was 16, I hitchhiked from Cornwall, home to Manchester. I was picked up at Gordano Services near Bristol by a guy in a brand new Escort RS2000. He was driving to Leeds and went out of his way to drop me off outside my home address. He said he had a brother my age and wanted to see me home safely. Happy day.
Was that a mk2 RS2000 or the mk5?
@@johnn278 TBH John, I don't know a lot about Escorts, but I can tell you it was 1976 or possibly 77. I used to visit my brother in Bude and hitched many times. It was black (I think, although I was picked up at night.) I'd been stood there for 3 hours and I was freezing cold. I remember it had a sloping nose. It must have been a Mk2, because it wasn't rounded. I also remember it had strange net headrests. Does any of that make sense? All I know is, I've rarely been happier. I was home in under 3 hours.
@@ianworley8169 Thanks Ian yes that was most likely a mk2. Mk5 came out in 1991 I think.
@@ianworley8169 Escort mk 2 rs2000 my fav
Remembered watching this on TV. I was praying the Escort battered the Focus 🤣
Great video and great rally cars Vicky..... but i always dreamed of Lancia Delta Integrale. 😍
Great item thanks
I noticed the rear wheels stopped rolling in one of the curves. I was wondering if you left foot brake to help keep understeer in check.
Good to see Vicki 💪👍👌🌹
Just loved that cossie in my teens and still do now........
As an ex Cosworth owner.... Don't meet your heroes. Disappointing as a drive, amazing to have in the garage.
At 380hp they are fun. The 3 door was way more fun , so I know what your getting at.
Very true the focus drives so much better
But it was the poster car to my generation. And is in my eyes one of the best looking cars ever made. I sold my one with the intention of buying another one in the future. But money they are now is a bit silly . I'll take a R8 or 911 instead now.
@Valkyrie 007 I don't think my caliper coming off whilst leaving a motorway is 'subjective'. Of the cars in the garage at that point (F430, Sagaris, Chimera, 911 Turbo, 2x range rovers), it was the first on the chopping block for a reason. Chassis from the 1970's, tiny power band, plus the general feeling that it was of it's time.... No doubt it was brilliant then. It's not then. Don't get me wrong - if I could build a collection again, it would eventually get back in. But only when I have purchased everything else I would want to look at in my bat cave of amazing cars.
Both are good cars better than any over hyped type r
Integra Type-Rs are great cars too though.
@@Ash-928 Rubbish and overrated. An accord type R was a much more sensible car
Definitely my favorites💪🏾🔥👊🏽
I had always wanted a focus rs
Love a bit of josh wink…to start a video off
The Cossie is a great car. I test drove a couple but they were above my budget if the insurance costs were added to the price!!!
Friend of mine had a Cosworth and we went to Donington in it one year and it was a fantastic outing
I have always loved your segments, buuuuut comparing cars, especially on a circuit race track the tyres would play the leading roll. 😘🇦🇺🤜🏼🤛🏼🍀🍀🍀😎
Cossie for me please, Loved these things all my life.
The Cossie is still a great looker to this day. The first gen Focus styling is not my fave.
What is the song at the start?
Such great cars the Cossies. Be it Escort or Sierra, 3 door or Sapphire, 2 wheel drive or 4x4. Even today a well driven one will hold it's own, against much newer and more expensive machines, around a track. And they still look so damn cool too. Although for the remaining years of production ford offered the Escort with the rear wings as an option, in a desperate attempt to lower the insurance rating, trying to make it appear like a lesser Escort, and not so Cosworth like, it's just not the same without it. Also, whereas the original 3dr Sierra version was a bit rough and ready, by the time the Escort came out, although still based on the Sierra platform, it had become a pretty civilized car, and was just as happy taking the kids to school as it was going on an early morning blast around some deserted county roads. Fantastic! Unfortunately, so are the prices good examples fetch today 😳! Lastly, when Vicki mentioned the five figure insurance premiums, back in the day, it reminded me of when a much younger Jeremy Clarkson had one on long term loan from Ford, (lucky f**ker), and he said on Top Gear, I think, that just out of interest he phoned up to get an insurance quote. For him, early 30's at the time, living in London, with the car parked out on the street, one quote he got was something like £21,000 for the year. If I remember correctly, the car was only £20,000 new
Cossie FTW - it's on the numberplate ;)
Still love the Focus RS too...... Ford turned it around in the 90's, first came the Mondeo, then Ka, Focus etc etc and they've just got better and better ever since.
I love the Ford Focus RS!
The Focus RS was introduced in the WRC in 1999 & Colin McRae moved from Subaru to Ford.
Man that background tune gave me a rave flashback. Big box little box
Josh Wink - Higher state of consciousness, 1995, pretty much when the real rave scene had died a death and become a commercial money-making cash-grab for big companies..
@@DjNikGnashers Nice one. had forgotten the name. will blast it...
@4:14 Why would you do a handbrake turn on a dry tarmac if you wanna go as fast as possible?
Incredible to think that just a few years later, family estate cars running on diesel would leave both of these cars for dead.
No they would not.
The caterham 160 0-60 in 6.5 seconds from a 80hp 660cc 3 cylinder from a suzuki alto kei car would give them a run for their money though...
Jason Plato did 1:25,95 with the Cossie in the Fiesta ST comparison
Yeah that was a real surprise. A 3 cylinder 1.5 as well. Puts in perspective how poor the Focus RS is here.
Saw a White Escort Cossie brakes fail he went straight passed me on the left and hit the Armco barrier at at least 150mph. It disappeared in a huge ball of sparks and red vapour , I’ll never ever ever forget the Thunderous noise of the impact. It had Coventry city f.c badges on it, but it’s the noise, it’s like a rollercoaster crash. Whereas the Focus RS has no engine and so there was no chance of a huge smash. RIP...the victims in the Southam white cossie
Vicky BH is still the best Driver on TV, I don't know where she learned to drive like that but she has serious skills. Awesome Driver.
She’s a professional racing driver, so I would hope she is a good driver😂
Hmm, really? Jason did run a fast lap (Ford Escort RS Cosworth VS Ford Fiesta ST) on the same circuit (in the same car!) in 1:25:95. She did it in 1:28:50.
Well that's the Focus shot down!
I remember in Maxx power magazine, the comments for the cossie in the insurance section at the back just said 4,7,10,30,47,48 should just about do it. They were my lotto numbers for the next 26 years lol 😂 never won enough to buy a cossie though 😳
I had one when they were still cutting edge and they were amazing.
Fantastic the best 😍🤩👏🏻👍🏻💥
A guy in my street has a escort and a couple Sierra cosworth and a rs focus mk1 and the new one very nice cars
Pretty rich guy I suppose 😁
@@sv_cheats1970 oh yes
Breath the pressure 🐜
The Cosworth won as expected - it's what they do!
I know which one I’d love for my daily ride...
I would have both with a lottery win!
There's a bright yellow cossie for sale in my country right now. $68000... I wish lol.
Best Focus RS is Volvo powered MK2 😎
4 wheel drive is better than front wheel drive. I wonder if it would have been a tie if the Focus had 4 wheel drive
The Prodigy :D
Cossie , Josh Wink, Prodigy oooo cushion 😵
Escort cost 25k 25 yrs later Escort costs 25k for a rough one 😁😂
those poor road tires 😂
Pretty pricey in their day. But I guess my MkII was pretty pricey too.
Yessssssss
So, isn't there an AWD Focus RS? Surely that would be a more reasonable comparison?
I'd have both
Track name at beginning
Prodigy - , not sure which track though, maybe Fire starter 🤷
Shame it's one of the later small turbo cossies not the real badboy early version.
Ford really screwed up when they didn't release the 4x4 Colin McRae RS focus.
Where's the drag race you muppets 😂
vbh looking nice...
Sorry. It it’s the escort all day long. Better looking, sounds and interior. A true classic
Different result on a dry track! Remember the Focus beat the Impreza by 4 seconds around top gear track!!
Difference between a man driving and a woman 🤣🤣🤣
@@azza1793 LOL 3 days and still no triggered girly's, you're doing well....
Ah but there was also the FOCUS RS which was the ultimate road going Focus. Be interesting to rerun that test.
This is 2008 and that is a Focus RS.
The last itineration would leave the Cosworth for dead. Maybe that's why I've never seen a comparison test.
@@resnonverba137 I thought might be the case too.
@@resnonverba137
I would bloody hope so, being a third generation RS from 2014 with 350bhp, compared to a 1992 227bhp car 🤓
Focus RS is at least affordable for now.
The Cossie all day baby
Im a minute and thirty sec in and I bet all my money the Cossie will win. It's lighter and has 4WD. (By the way Im broke because Corona tok my job away so it doesn't matter if I loose.) :P
I knew it, the Cossie smoked the RS.
I'd sort you out vicki x
The never should of scrapped the escorts or the Sierra rs
Is that Josh wink I hear ? 😅
Cool a you like .👌
I would have the Escort over this focus. However the newer focus RS I would have over the Escort
Guess which one is now selling consistently for six figures now on the 2nd hand car market?
Wow.... She can drive!
Queria um desse esse é top lindo maravilhoso esse carro é show
This blue golf gti 16v is great. I miss my golf.
I thought there were rules about pornography on TH-cam
😂😂😂
The Cosworth is the perfect car.
This is new
Why didn’t they make the Focus RS in RWD 😢
I remember there was a man who lived around the corner from me who had the escort cosworth but he go rid of it about 10 or so years ago I bet he's kicking himself now knowing what prices they are fetching now as I don't think he would of getting that much for it even though it was in pristine condition
Had a focus st 170 would love a rs escort though
Think the only FWD car of the time that could perhaps beat the cossie would be an integra type R
This has to be a joke
@@yowhatsmyname6393 would stand a better chance than this cheaply built Mk1 RS 🤣
Dc5 would give it a good go
As good as the DC2 teggy is, its overrated as fuck
Cheaply built?? Ford lost thousands by over budgeting on em you soft lad! Maybe empty all the grass cuttings in the boot of your honda and you'll get closer.
Cossie everytime
Should have been a rs focus really.
Sold my 3 door for 3k sold my escort for 10k....... all I can say is fuk me
I drove a escort cosworth on a test
Drive and it was disappointing, didn’t live up for the hype
Silly person
Your talking out of your behind
144mph top speed is pathetic for such a revered car.
Good girl... I liked that👍🏻
Isn't she beautiful?♥️
VBH IS a treat after all these years.
Yes I always thought she was gorgeous and the car isn't to bad either
The focus Rs was such a disappointment compared to the escort
The focus RS is nothing like the Escort Cosworth.
Cossie
Cossie all day 👌
I love it when a hot blonde with a sexy accent knows how to handle a stick shift 😉.
4wd focus would dominate if ford had the balls.
... Like the mk3 RS release in 2016 you mean?
@@mitchellbaldwin3375 Oh.
Mazda 6 MPS would have worked too. Its literally an early an awd Focus RS but much older.
A friend made the only rs cosworth cabriolet featured in max power, ford wanted to buy it.
The focus just doesn't have the excitement appeal the escort does, escort much more of a beast feeling about it, and gets your spine tingling at thought of driving it, to me focus is a boring sports car which ford made no real effort with
Both were top of the line homologation specials, just built to different regulations during different times...
Turbo lag
S
Cossie over focus any day of the week
Until you drive one...
I'd do all three 😉
Designed by Germans? Erm nope Frank Stephenson was British. Still ,Josh Wink and a Cossy, almost moist.
The Escort is soooo beautifull..
In person the car is awesome.