Ford's RS Redemption - RS in the 90s and beyond
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2023
- When we left off, Ford of Europe was riding high. The top three cars sold in the UK were the Escort, Sierra and Fiesta. The Sierra RS Cosworth and RS500 were the cars to own. But there were dark clouds on the RS horizon. What happened to the RS brand in the 90s and beyond, and did those cars live up to those amazing cars from the 70s and 80s?
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I mean M-Sport helped ford to Win Manufacturers title in 2006 and 2007 thanks to Marcus Gronholm
Also A tribute to Colin McRae
Big Car on a Friday evening - a pizza and a decent red. A history lesson with interviews with the people who made the history, reminiscence, and all put together seamlessly. Perfect!
What a beautiful night.
Im jealous
Ummm... health
Just arrived 24 hrs flight Aussie. Jetlag about kick in. I could have yourpizza. Kick back R S story
@@zzhughesd Haha! You're too late! Pizza's been consumed already! But if your an Aussie I'll save you some next time - you're almost as nice as Canadians!
My Mk1 Focus RS was my absolute gem. I owned that car for eleven years and loved every minute. I still miss it.
They drive like shit
Wow, inserts from the man who designed the RS 2000... Big car is getting bigger :D
I was very lucky. He happened to chat about it after we'd talked about the Volvo 400 series a couple of years ago.
As a American who owns a MKIII RS I love this video explaining the history and prestige of my vehicle
Glad to see that Neill Briggs got the recognition he deserved for making the Mk1 RS Focus happen. I joined the team on the project in late 2001 and it was in pretty bad shape due to the cost-cutting and aftermarket-sourced assumptions of the original idea. It was a classic case of if you knew what it was going to take management wouldn't have started it. I remember hearing from John Wheeler saying something similar about the Escort RS project too. The saddest missed opportunity about the Focus RS project was that if it were integrated with the ST170 development we could have lunched off the engine controller development Ford was already doing on the Falcon XR6 Turbo. As it was the Focus RS was an expensive bespoke software release and the second-to-last use case for the EEC-V controller, as far as I found out, the last being some hurried Transit update for some purpose. It all cost waaaay more than it should have and most of this reworking was responsible for the delayed launch.
For me the Focus RS will always remind me of Top Gear and vice versa. The boys always loved it and I think did wonders for the Focus in general to a worldwide audience.
The MK3 Focus RS was designed in conjunction with Ken Block. RIP❤
My grandfather still drives '88 Sierra CL.
It has nothing electronic and true old, mechanical car. I like driving it, I find it relaxing.
My dad was a sierra man, be had a fair few, I remember them being quiet 'high'spec electric windows and sun roof and 5 gears. My mum always had escorts, she had an xr3i iirc C reg, it was quite new at the time, but insurance went silly and it mysteriously got stolen.
I'm a big Fast Ford fan myself. The history of RS badge is such a roller coaster. I hope we didn't see the end of a story yet.
I drive the latest Fiesta ST and the amount of thrill it gives me every day is just fantastic. Scary to think if it got treated with more spicy powertrain and labled RS. Would have been a proper weapon, scary to think what could it do beeing really close to the footprint of a first Focus RS. Chassis of this car is really good, it is almost asking for more power.
Love your videos, awesome to see another Ford story!
I've got a BMW 330e m Sport 300bhp on overboost and I struggle to keep up with my mates mountune fiesta it's running around 230bhp he says, but the pull he has from 60mph is quite comical, I couldn't believe my eyes when I first witnessed it.
They should of named the st200 the RS200. Would have been a nice throwback to the RS2000 name
21:07 fun fact, they installed the larger US rear bumper in order to hide a secret tank that stored charged air in an attempt to reduce turbo lag
So that's why ford didn't win a title in 2003
True.
Great video! I had a Frozen White Focus RS mk2, what a beast and what a magnificent engine. Right now I drive a white RS mk3, and I think it is a better car overall, but still miss the absolutely brutal 5 cylinder. It is too bad these kind of Fast Fords are a thing of the past, probably.
Best thing about it was a volvo engine 👌🏼
Shortly before the Focus RS was discontinued here in the USA, I saw one at my local Ford dealership. They had one on the lot at the eye-watering price of $54,000. Even by today's standards, that was WAY too much money. Made me feel better about picking up my 2015 WRX for $26,500.
Even before the pandemic, many a great car have been killed by outrageous markups. "High margin" SUVs may be next if the endless sticker shock keeps up, and Ford may be sorry they decided to bow out of the car market entirely.
Yeah, hard to pick the RS at that price.
The American market and the dealer markups, are alien to me.
We never got the proper RS Sierra in South Africa but we did get the XR8...a beast of a V8, my uncle had one and would regularly take me for a drive in it...many many smiles brought to my 7 year old face on those days...
It was the summer of 1995, and Mark had just purchased a red Escort RS for his annual holiday to London. He had always dreamed of driving the iconic car through the bustling city streets, and he was finally living his dream.
The first few days of his holiday were relatively uneventful, with Mark driving his Escort RS to all the usual tourist spots in London. But then one day, he decided to take a detour and explore some of the lesser-known areas of the city.
As he was driving down a quiet street in East London, he noticed a group of men standing on the corner. They looked at him menacingly as he drove by, and Mark couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
As he continued driving, he soon realized that he was being followed. Several cars were tailing him, and Mark could feel his heart racing as he tried to shake them off.
Just as he was about to give up hope, he spotted an abandoned warehouse in the distance. He quickly made a U-turn and drove straight into the warehouse, hoping that his pursuers wouldn't follow.
To his relief, the other cars drove right past the warehouse without stopping. Mark was safe, for now.
As he explored the warehouse, he stumbled upon a secret underground garage filled with vintage sports cars, including several rare and valuable models. He couldn't believe his luck - it was like stumbling upon a hidden treasure trove.
But his luck didn't last long. Just as he was admiring a beautiful Ferrari, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. He turned around to find himself face-to-face with the same group of men who had been following him earlier.
They demanded that he leave the garage immediately, but Mark refused to go without a fight. He knew that his Escort RS could outrun any of the other cars in the garage, and he was determined to make a break for it.
With the men hot on his tail, Mark raced out of the garage in his Escort RS, pushing the car to its limits as he weaved in and out of traffic. It was a wild and dangerous ride, but he eventually managed to lose his pursuers and escape back to his hotel.
As he lay in bed that night, his heart still racing from the adrenaline of the chase, Mark realized that he had just lived out the adventure of a lifetime. And he couldn't wait to see what other adventures his Escort RS had in store for him.
Allways extra enjoyable with the input of those involved in the development. Like that a lot! Very interesting, as always!
The Focus WRC 03 was certainly not a disapointment! It was the most radical WRC car at the time, taking plenty of victories with Markko Märtin in 2003 and 2004, with good results by Duval too. And in 2005 decent results by two pay drivers in the form of Gardemeister and Kresta.
I know I’m being picky, but the Lancia you showed in the video was a Group ’B’ Lancia Delta S4, not a 1985 WRC Delta Intergrale.
yes, picky
The "why buy a Lamborghini" line makes me laugh. I know a chap who sold his company to retire and bought one of those baby lambos. After having a go in my mates mk2 focus RS he sold his daft lambo, bought said focus and despite his wife's discouragement, an old Yamaha 'fizzie'... Good lad.
FS1-E had to be rubbing nose in it at that point. I think I crashed a YB-100 before I had my FS1-E crash.
Crashing things gets expensive over time. Ouchies.
That may not make sense if so, disregard.
Australia was always kind of a weird market for Ford, there's a whole minefield of what was identical, what was rebadged and what was essentially a different car with the European badge added.
The Fiesta XR4i and Focus ST 170 made it here in very small numbers, the second gen Focus RS was rebadged as the Focus XR5 Turbo (there was also a Mondeo XR5 Turbo with the Volvo engine).
There were also a bunch of Mazda derived hot hatches right from the beginning based on the 323 Familia and 626 starting with the Laser S back in '81 (twin carb 1.5 L), the 1.6 and later 1.8 L turbo Laser TX3, the 2.2 turbo and later 2.5 na V6 TX5 all culminating in the poor selling Laser Lynx and 2.0 Laser SR (essentially the Thai Laser RS with the badge letters reversed).
Quite a lot to unpack if you're ever inclined to do so.
The focus xr5 was the st. Not the rs.
Another great video and very informative thank you. Would be good to chat with the likes of John Bull who did the ride and handling of the Escort Cosworth and the likes of Geoff Fox who was one of the managers for SVE to get their story on record before we lose these legends of Ford design for ever.
Wheeler dealer revived an RS car to find the original designer. The 3 wing setup was given a veto. Ant Anstead crafted a third wing with consultation from the first designer. Some place in California lives the one and only car
This was the first thing that popped in my mind when I heard the part about the 3 piece spoiler
Hey Jeff just wanted to say you don’t know what you’re talking about
Mike Brewer completely missed that in Germany where the production Cosworth Escort was made the Germans had a 3rd wing
Now you know
oh dear, looks like folk have believed a fictional entertainment program. It was never designed with a 3rd rear wing and the guy on Wheeler Dealers had nothing to do with the design of the Escort Cosworth
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Stephenson?wprov=sfla1
the rs and st models of the fiesta and focus were really the only versions of them that sold in the us, so i hope that if it comes back that they could sell it here perhaps just with the st and rs models available
Who doesn't love fast Ford's??
Thanks for another fantastic video!!
Interesting point about the 3 fin cos worth rear wing, as a certain TV show, would have us believing a different version of the story.
GM fans lol
I adore your channel and content, your synopsis and reviews (while hating your background set and the dorky lego's car crap models), but I am willing to endure all that because you get it, You know what makes cars desirable cars. You know what matters in the car-centric world like few others. Crude as they are, your graphics, video clips but engaging narrative captures the ethos of a make/brand/model like few others. For a car-geek-guy like few others, you have a true gem of a channel that stands out in the vast and confusing TH-cam market of auto reviews.With that said, the RS is nothing more than a 'has-been' brand that every (and only the) car-geek will miss knowing that the EV revolution is already in place and set to dominate the oh-too-very-soon future. Sad that, utterly, simply because all those lovely and forever-lost exhaust notes will never, ever, be heard again for our progenitors. Our descendants look toward a brighter (quieter) future;. a future that will never understand the majestic mystique of the fabulous RS cars.
19:15 this photo of the Focus RS was my wallpaper on my PC as a little kid. I guess that was the then-modern day equivalent of a car poster on a bedroom wall to fawn over.
Love your vids. Well presented. Keep up the great work.
As always - brilliantly informative and very entertaining. Many thanks, Big Car.
This is legendary. Thank you.
Thank you for making this videos.
I watched this whilst building a 1/24 Sierra Cosworth rally car in the livery shown at 2:10! What good timing!
Great stuff Big Car guy. You have really nailed your content and delivery recipe.
I’ve been waiting for part 2 ❤❤
Mk1 focus RS
it’s just pure ❤❤❤
50th present in 2 years to myself
Brilliant video!
What a fantastic channel. Subscribed.
I like this channel very much. So, cheers! I had a Focus in 1999, it looked like a spaceship compared to other brands. Never got a RS. They were/are too expensive in my country.
Happy I got one before they’re all gone
I own a 2003 MK1 Focus RS, been in the family since new. I’ve owned it and driven it as a daily driver since 2018. Done 103k and still as tight as a drum.
Also, I always thought the spoiler on the Escort Cossie was meant to be 3 wing. Wheeler Dealers done one and they had Frank Stephenson on the show to explain and confirmed it was three but the money men at Ford wanted to cut costs.
Maybe it was insurance guys who only wanted you to see flashing lights in rear view & NOT a crossbar
Frank Stephenson was only a student in the design team in that era. The boss of the design team said that there wasn't any plan of a three wing at all .
An Aston Martin based on the Escort Cosworth? That’s incredible, I think there would have been enough space for it next to the DB7
A fantastic video explaining the history of Fords RS up to the 90s
Well, the intention was to explain it from the 90s to the present day, but thanks for the compliment Anton! 😀
Nit pick.
1987 WRC was not Group B.
So, the Lancia you showed isn’t the correct one 😜
Great video !!
Excellent Video, showing the cars I grew up with!! I remember trying to insure a Ford Orion 1.6i Ghia (technically a XR3i with 4 doors!) in the early 90's (as a fresh-faced 20's year-old) and being told to go away by all insurers (however a standard carburettor 1.6 Orion Ghia was OK!!). If I also remember correctly, a certain Top Gear buffoon claimed that when he lived in Central London in the early 90's and owned an Escort Cossie it cost him £20,000 to insure it (Fully Comp). Can't help laughing at Top Gear's comments regarding the RS brand was to bring serious performance accessible, pleasurable and affordable to the man in the street, as these days anything with a RS badge gaffa-taped to it, is the complete opposite of affordable!! The future RS Story into the 2020's, with Ford currently busy burning their European bridges and the deletion of the Mondeo, Focus and Fiesta, is there anything left to put a RS badge on? Perhaps this is to make room for a new fleet of EVs? But at the moment Ford appears to be regressing to be a US-Only car maker? And I say this as an owner of a Mk3.5 Focus, whilst it's neither a ST or RS model and a humdrum (Euro6) TDCi it still puts a smile on my face when I take it for a blast down a B-Road Twisty (and there's plenty of those here in Rural Wiltshire, UK!!) Anyway..keep up the good work!
Love the video! Unfortunately Ford has sacked their biggest Europe market off, when it comes to car production and R&D work, it'll become harder and harder to sell to such a market :(
I love your videos, true history.
Wow that is a awesome video
I saw the ~2001 Focus in the thumbnail a day ago and thought about clicking but couldn't do it, but now that the thumbnail is a 90s Escort RS, well, here I am.
The Mk1 Focus (RS or not) had such a timeless design in my opinion
I remember a friend who was maybe 30 ish years old with full no claims bonus being quoted £15,000 for third party only insurance on an Escort Cossie in the late 90's....
He bought an Audi instead.! 😂
In 1998 I had a Toyota Corolla GT (AE86) I was able to insure this fully comp for around £350 similar XR3I was £2000, and being only a 1.6 it could keep its own up against XR3’s R/S turbo and golf GTI. One thing the AE86 had against the rest it was rear wheel drive
Enjoyable as always. You should do a video on the original the Ford Puma!
just sold my Focus Turnier from 2001 yesterday. reliable till it was rusted through. engine still going as on its first day. goes to Africa now. yes it was a great reliable car. my wife especially loved the ride quality.
15:49 I know kids today know Sainz Jr better thanks to Formula 1 but it's stil weird to hear Legendary Carlos Sainz referred as a "Dad of the Formula 1 Driver"
I really enjoy your videos. One of the reasons is the quality of your audio recording setup and the clear and precise way in which you read your script. I struggle with the videos where you feature industry insiders/experts because of the jarring difference between muddy Zoom recordings and the somewhat stream-of-conscious guest segments and your professional and practiced interludes. Just my two cents :)
What a genuinely beautiful car the Escort Cosworth is.
RIP ST and RS Fords
Thank you
Brilliant 👏 👏 👏
The Aston Martin Escort Cosworth looks like a Puma. I love the Puma.
No it doesnt.
Hey Mr Big Car. Love your pieces. You seem to have close access to Steve Harper. How about something on the Grinnall Scorpion III? Keep up the good work and thanks.
This was awesome! Great video as always, thanks.
just today I saw a orange RS blasting down the city main road with 4 guys in it all with a big grin. great cars
Probably been smoking. 😉
@@whoarewe7515 lol for sure
The Escort Mk1 wasn't the first one to wear the RS badge, the Taunus 16M was the first. Just to put that right.
The memory of seeing a police Escort RS Cosworth slowly roll past my Grandmas house remains strong.
You missed out on Ken Block having a hand in the Mk3 RS's development.
Nah. That was more a marketing trick.
best of steve saxty.the author ford cars
I have the same car and your very lucky I get 19 miles to the gallon 23 if I’m careful lol but it is out of this world had my one 5 years and it still puts a smile 😊 on my face every time I look at it 👍
The facelifted Mk2 RS is visually one of my favourite cars, and it was so, so good when I started playing Forza with it on 360.
It was basically a cheat code for peanuts on forza
You missed that the 2.3 mazda mps engine and the 3&6 models were used as tests for the fRS as a fwd and awd, the 2.3 ecoboost is basically the same as the 2.3 found in the mazda mps’s but with some development changes.
A friend of mine bought a new "Cossie" and kept it mint before selling it when fashions changed. Oh how he, and his bank manager, regret selling it!
Big car a Friday evening ❤❤
Tiers rs really is the childhood memory here in Taiwan, you can see them everywhere.
Having just got a Puma ST-Line and with them using it (as a silhouette) in Rally1 I'd love to see an Puma RS Version.
Another great video. Keep it up. I need your videos in my life. Anyways, at 1:25, the way the fella switches gear really bothers me for some reason.
I'm surprised how you didn't mention that the Mk3 focus RS was all-wheel drive because of Ken block he helped develop that car and even got one of the first working prototypes
That was more of a marketing trick. He didn't made much in the car's development.
at 3:30 it is said that Lancia won the 1987 WRC, that is true but the picuture showned is from the group B Lancia Delta S4 from 85-86.
The pronunciation of Lancia is enough to get a 'like' from me :)
I love all RS Ford.
I had with my Father our own company as a 26yr old I had RS Turbo in 86/88 both cars we’re stolen, i then went Cosworth 4x4 that was stolen, I then had Vauxhall Carlton GS 3.0 surprisingly that was not stolen 😊
Sure the Focus RS was quicker than the V6 and EcoBoost Mustangs, but it cost $3,500 more than the V8 Mustang GT and was slower than it. Nobody was crosshopping the $37k Focus RS with the two cheaper 300 hp Mustang models because they were $10k less. I’d hope the Focus would be quicker than them given that price disparity.
With Ford leaning towards SUV style platforms, surely they should look at doing a Dakar rally special... a 'D-RS' have you will... 🤩
One of the coolest looking cars with a Ford badge on it.
15:07 "it was incredibly reliable" said about the Ford Focus, I had a 2001 Ford Focus in Canada and I had problems with : hood release frozen shut in winter (try to refill windshield washer without opening the hood) stop dead on a corner street due to some electrical issue in it second year, bottom of fenders with paint flicking off after 4-5 years. I must disagree with the guy there. True on paper it was amazing but the early models had many flaws to address.
That's sadly because, some of the earlier US and Canada models, had cheaper, low quality parts and electronics! Some of the base engines were terrible!!
The only good US spec engines, were the 2.0 zetech and 2.0& 2.3 duratech series!
Then, of course the European market has the best, and more desirable versions of these cars, than the watered-down US versions!!😒😒
Maybe there's still time for a petrol Puma RS, that would be sweet. Anyway, good video!
Oh common! Just a few sentences for the Escort RS2000 4x4? It was launched in 1994, not 1992 (Altough prototypes and a few 1993 models exists). It was a brand new 4x4 system based on the FWD MTX75 gearbox. It had shorter wheelbase and lighter weight than the Cossie and had 40/60 power in front/rear. It was praised by journalists at the time, but Ford didn't promote it or kept it in stock at dealers. It was a more modern car than the Escort Cosworth, and driving mine from Spain to Norway over a half week last year I still thinks it holds up. It is no turbo homologation special, but in my opinion is it the final form of the GTI car of the 80s and 90s. I am really dissapointed to see the car just pushed under the rug yet again.
i remember the Lynx RS being the main competitor of the 1.8 Toyota Altis. And it's only sold in red except for the centennial edition which is black.
Considering the great UK/European cars GM and Ford had in stock, it's hard not to think they voluntarily gave up the US market to Japanese builders.
(Ford Focus)"there was nothing wrong with that car"
As a tech at a Ford Dealership, there was a list of recalls and TSB's as long as my arm.
I'm annoyed we never got the Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth in the states. Too many got destroyed to make it easy to import unless you have $60,000 to blow.
Also Clarkson had an Escort RS Cosworth. That tells you it was a car to have... Although if Clarkson, Hammond or May own a said car, It's made instantly uncool. As per the cool wall.
I honestly always preferred the 'Saph Cossie' over the Escort & Sierra 3drs
Do i remeber right, that ST225 were sold as XR5 in Australia?
I’d like to see a story on the Volvo C30 which is related to the Focus. As is the Mazda 3
At weeller dealers they had once a escort rs cosworth where they fitted a 3e wing they*marc brewwer) told there that the designer wanted it with 3 rear wings,
frank stephenson one of the designers confirmed the 3 piece wing on wheeler dealers ford escort cosworth episode
The real barrier to a future Ford RS Model is the future of both Ford of Europe and Ford itself. Especially when there is the prospect of the former (& maybe even the whole company) being sold to Volkswagen in the near future.
The Mk II Focus RS is still of the most radical sounding (and looking) hot hatches of the 2000s, too bad it never made it stateside.
The "Stealability" of the Escort Cosworth was proved when Northumbria Police had two nicked from their Killingworth compound the night after they were delivered and before they had their police livery! However the ult
imate Focus wasn't the RS - Kugel Enterprises of America would sell you a kit to turn your Focus into a rear wheel drive monster powered by a 5 liter Ford V8 which could then be tuned to give well over 400BHP!
The MK5 Escort was absolutely bloody awful to drive, look at and deservedly was the last Escort. Unbelievable that such a good car as the focus came out straight after: you could still jump into a MK1 1.6 focus today and be surprised at how absolutely brilliant it is and great to drive.
Thanks for another great video! I think the next Ford RS will be electric. No gear and half the 0-60 time😅
There was a RWD 4-door Sierra RS Cosworth inbetween the 3-door and the 4x4.
A good video. Thank you. However I'll keep my RS (RenaultSport) Megane 275 Cup !😀
I've still got the original sales brochure an all the magazines from when the Sierra Rs cosworth was brand new always loved them got cosworth tattooed on my foot lol