Focus RS Mk2 Vs Audi S3 2L turbo 265bhp
Discussion
Hey guys, so my lifelong dream was to own a Mk 2 Ford Focus RS in white with lux pack 2, however with afew things questioning my decision I also like the Audi S3 265bhp 2l turbo after ruling out the vauxhall vxr as a rival.
I would just like your advice on maintenance and running costs.
How much is servicing for both the Focus RS and the Audi each year?
Tyre cost as I know the cost for the RS would be around £200 a tyre?
Is main dealer service actually worth it?
Any rusting issues as both cars that I buy will be around 4-5 years old?
General upkeep and repairs?
Also as this will be my everyday car I need to think about running costs. I know they both have a big drinkng problem and the RS estimated MPG is 30.1 and the Audi S3 is roughly 33.0 (40.9 is u can afford one of the 300 bhp 12/14 S3s - I wish!) But neither will match up to it so whats your personal experiences with mpg? I will be doing alot of town driving and some A roads I don't intend to drive like an idiot and will be sensibe in the week and leave the fun for weekends. Also how much does a full tank cost?
Insurance isn't a problem as they both don't differ all that much in terms of annual premium. I'm a girl with 5 years no claim which is protected, so please no sexist comments. Any other ownership info would be appreicated and your personal experience of driving the car.
I would just like your advice on maintenance and running costs.
How much is servicing for both the Focus RS and the Audi each year?
Tyre cost as I know the cost for the RS would be around £200 a tyre?
Is main dealer service actually worth it?
Any rusting issues as both cars that I buy will be around 4-5 years old?
General upkeep and repairs?
Also as this will be my everyday car I need to think about running costs. I know they both have a big drinkng problem and the RS estimated MPG is 30.1 and the Audi S3 is roughly 33.0 (40.9 is u can afford one of the 300 bhp 12/14 S3s - I wish!) But neither will match up to it so whats your personal experiences with mpg? I will be doing alot of town driving and some A roads I don't intend to drive like an idiot and will be sensibe in the week and leave the fun for weekends. Also how much does a full tank cost?
Insurance isn't a problem as they both don't differ all that much in terms of annual premium. I'm a girl with 5 years no claim which is protected, so please no sexist comments. Any other ownership info would be appreicated and your personal experience of driving the car.
Edited by peej91 on Wednesday 7th May 13:27
peej91 said:
Hey guys, so my lifelong dream was to own a Mk 2 Ford Focus RS in white with lux pack 2, however with afew things questioning my decision I also like the Audi S3 265bhp 2l turbo after ruling out the vauxhall vxr as a rival.
I would just like your advice on maintenance and running costs.
How much is servicing for both the Focus RS and the Audi each year?
Tyre cost as I know the cost for the RS would be around £200 a tyre?
Is main dealer service actually worth it?
Any rusting issues as both cars that I buy will be around 4-5 years old?
General upkeep and repairs?
Also as this will be my everyday car I need to think about running costs. I know they both have a big drinkng problem and the RS estimated MPG is 30.1 and the Audi S3 is roughly 33.0 (40.9 is u can afford one of the 300 bhp 12/14 S3s - I wish!) But neither will match up to it so whats your personal experiences with mpg? I will be doing alot of town driving and some A roads I don't intend to drive like an idiot and will be sensibe in the week and leave the fun for weekends. Also how much does a full tank cost?
Insurance isn't a problem as they both don't differ all that much in terms of annual premium. I'm a girl with 5 years no claim which is protected, so please no sexist comments. Any other ownership info would be appreicated and your personal experience of driving the car.
Hi,I would just like your advice on maintenance and running costs.
How much is servicing for both the Focus RS and the Audi each year?
Tyre cost as I know the cost for the RS would be around £200 a tyre?
Is main dealer service actually worth it?
Any rusting issues as both cars that I buy will be around 4-5 years old?
General upkeep and repairs?
Also as this will be my everyday car I need to think about running costs. I know they both have a big drinkng problem and the RS estimated MPG is 30.1 and the Audi S3 is roughly 33.0 (40.9 is u can afford one of the 300 bhp 12/14 S3s - I wish!) But neither will match up to it so whats your personal experiences with mpg? I will be doing alot of town driving and some A roads I don't intend to drive like an idiot and will be sensibe in the week and leave the fun for weekends. Also how much does a full tank cost?
Insurance isn't a problem as they both don't differ all that much in terms of annual premium. I'm a girl with 5 years no claim which is protected, so please no sexist comments. Any other ownership info would be appreicated and your personal experience of driving the car.
Edited by peej91 on Wednesday 7th May 13:27
As an owner of a Focus ST, I would say (maybe from a biased point of view) that for driving pleasure, the RS will run rings the S3, i appreciate that the driving capability of the S3 is very good, but the 5pot engine and the smile that it brings to your face is priceless.
Neither will be particularly good on fuel, i average high 20's in mine and thats as good as you'll see unless you're undertaking long journeys. RS tank is 62 litres IIRC, so based on a 60 litre tank of Vpower, thats about 80-85 notes.
Servicing costs on the RS is fairly cheap, not dissimilar to the ST, if you have a local dealer see if they can offer you a service plan, I pay about £25 a month with Brunel Ford for annual service, MOT, discounted parts and AA membership, which works out quite reasonable.
Tyres for the RS shouldn't be £200 a corner unless you go with the Michelin Pilot Sports, I've always used Goodyear Eagle F1 on mine and the grip is fantastic, they go for around £160 if you shop around in the 19"s, but dont expect any more than 10-12k from a pair of fronts, less if you have a heavy right foot.
Audi servicing I cannot comment on, although I would envisage it to be quite expensive compared to Ford?
I believe there is an issue with rust occurring on some cars on the wheel arches on the RS, check thoroughly when viewing a car.
The Audi is generally a very good car, but I understand that it lacks the feel good factor of the RS, doesn't look as good IMO, the engine note is rather dull and you may find you get bored with it after a while.
Where abouts are you based? What are you currently driving?
Edited by ST86Dave on Thursday 8th May 00:40
Thanks for your feedback! I'm currently based in the derby/nottingham area so alot of my driving is town or A road. I currently drive a Ford Puma 1.7i. Lovely car, will be sad to see it go but its old and not worth the maintenance costs anymore. Looking for something a little more fun. I only get roughly 200 miles to a £45-£50 tank so fuel costs of this one arent great either.
ST86Dave said:
Hi,
As an owner of a Focus ST, I would say (maybe from a biased point of view) that for driving pleasure, the RS will run rings the S3, i appreciate that the driving capability of the S3 is very good, but the 5pot engine and the smile that it brings to your face is priceless.
Neither will be particularly good on fuel, i average high 20's in mine and thats as good as you'll see unless you're undertaking long journeys. RS tank is 62 litres IIRC, so based on a 60 litre tank of Vpower, thats about 80-85 notes.
Servicing costs on the RS is fairly cheap, not dissimilar to the ST, if you have a local dealer see if they can offer you a service plan, I pay about £25 a month with Brunel Ford for annual service, MOT, discounted parts and AA membership, which works out quite reasonable.
Tyres for the RS shouldn't be £200 a corner unless you go with the Michelin Pilot Sports, I've always used Goodyear Eagle F1 on mine and the grip is fantastic, they go for around £160 if you shop around in the 19"s, but dont expect any more than 10-12k from a pair of fronts, less if you have a heavy right foot.
Audi servicing I cannot comment on, although I would envisage it to be quite expensive compared to Ford?
I believe there is an issue with rust occurring on some cars on the wheel arches on the RS, check thoroughly when viewing a car.
The Audi is generally a very good car, but I understand that it lacks the feel good factor of the RS, doesn't look as good IMO, the engine note is rather dull and you may find you get bored with it after a while.
Where abouts are you based? What are you currently driving?
As an owner of a Focus ST, I would say (maybe from a biased point of view) that for driving pleasure, the RS will run rings the S3, i appreciate that the driving capability of the S3 is very good, but the 5pot engine and the smile that it brings to your face is priceless.
Neither will be particularly good on fuel, i average high 20's in mine and thats as good as you'll see unless you're undertaking long journeys. RS tank is 62 litres IIRC, so based on a 60 litre tank of Vpower, thats about 80-85 notes.
Servicing costs on the RS is fairly cheap, not dissimilar to the ST, if you have a local dealer see if they can offer you a service plan, I pay about £25 a month with Brunel Ford for annual service, MOT, discounted parts and AA membership, which works out quite reasonable.
Tyres for the RS shouldn't be £200 a corner unless you go with the Michelin Pilot Sports, I've always used Goodyear Eagle F1 on mine and the grip is fantastic, they go for around £160 if you shop around in the 19"s, but dont expect any more than 10-12k from a pair of fronts, less if you have a heavy right foot.
Audi servicing I cannot comment on, although I would envisage it to be quite expensive compared to Ford?
I believe there is an issue with rust occurring on some cars on the wheel arches on the RS, check thoroughly when viewing a car.
The Audi is generally a very good car, but I understand that it lacks the feel good factor of the RS, doesn't look as good IMO, the engine note is rather dull and you may find you get bored with it after a while.
Where abouts are you based? What are you currently driving?
Edited by ST86Dave on Thursday 8th May 00:40
peej91 said:
If you're looking to get one on finance, 4-5 years is a long time to be paying off £400-500 a month, plus £200-300 a month on fuel. There is also officially "RS tax", any parts for the ST are likely to cost 3 times as much for the RS. Better off being used as a weekend toy rather than an every day car.You won't get 30mpg out of an RS unless you drive like an old lady.
Continental 5Ps are about £175, the descendant of the original fitment, and seem to suit the car.
Rust is creeping in on RS rear arches, they tell me.
Main dealer service - I've done it so far and it's about £400, the oil alone is about a quarter of that. Ford dealers throw in a year's recovery but make sure to ask for it.
I came from a Puma 1.7 via a Clio Trophy. The RS will be a big step up!
Continental 5Ps are about £175, the descendant of the original fitment, and seem to suit the car.
Rust is creeping in on RS rear arches, they tell me.
Main dealer service - I've done it so far and it's about £400, the oil alone is about a quarter of that. Ford dealers throw in a year's recovery but make sure to ask for it.
I came from a Puma 1.7 via a Clio Trophy. The RS will be a big step up!
Johnnytheboy said:
You won't get 30mpg out of an RS unless you drive like an old lady.
Continental 5Ps are about £175, the descendant of the original fitment, and seem to suit the car.
Rust is creeping in on RS rear arches, they tell me.
Main dealer service - I've done it so far and it's about £400, the oil alone is about a quarter of that. Ford dealers throw in a year's recovery but make sure to ask for it.
I came from a Puma 1.7 via a Clio Trophy. The RS will be a big step up!
I've never understood the MPG complaint on the T5, I certainly don't drive like a granny and I average about 26-28 on a tank, and thats mostly a 5 mile commute coupled with the odd blast around the levels. I've heard the RS is marginally better on economy than the ST, although I couldn't care less either way, if I wanted good mpg, I'd have bought a diesel! Continental 5Ps are about £175, the descendant of the original fitment, and seem to suit the car.
Rust is creeping in on RS rear arches, they tell me.
Main dealer service - I've done it so far and it's about £400, the oil alone is about a quarter of that. Ford dealers throw in a year's recovery but make sure to ask for it.
I came from a Puma 1.7 via a Clio Trophy. The RS will be a big step up!
Johnnytheboy said:
I was getting about 23-24 average MPG until recently, when I appear to have started wearing very heavy shoes and am now getting 22 ish.
But I do drive it purely at weekends.
Best way, I'm taking a new job next month with a company car so will be looking to chop the ST in for an RS or M3. Appreciate it more when you spend 5 days a week tootling around in a derv But I do drive it purely at weekends.
Thanks for the info. I definately won't be paying finance, I strictly don't believe in it personally due to the interest added on, I'm the same with insurance I have to pay it off annually. However in I do have the money outright so thats not an issue.
ST86Dave said:
If you're looking to get one on finance, 4-5 years is a long time to be paying off £400-500 a month, plus £200-300 a month on fuel. There is also officially "RS tax", any parts for the ST are likely to cost 3 times as much for the RS. Better off being used as a weekend toy rather than an every day car.
Edited by peej91 on Thursday 8th May 15:35
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