RE: Ford Focus RS (Mk1): Spotted

[ZX10R NIN]

SidewaysSi said:

For similarish money you are into 265/275 Cup territory which would slaughter the old Ford. If it is Ohlins equipped then even more so.

An R26 is about a third of the price of the Focus so in today's money not really a competitor.

You're not comparing apples with apples though are you, it's comparable competitor was the R26 R which was a better drivers car but didn't slaughter the FRS & also remember the FRS came out a fair bit before the R26.R take a look at the prices of those:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

In 2002 when this was launched there was nothing close to it & when the RS225 was launched in 2004 it wasn't a great hot hatch & it didn't actually become a good drivers hatch until the R26 was introduced.

[blade7]

DoddsyFrs said:

prices of the Fords have since appreciated considerably.

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

[livinginasia]

These are fabulous cars, I have two of them in my collection and they are an absolute riot to drive. The owners club (of which i am a member) are the most helpful bunch of gentlemen I have ever met, and really do their best to keep these cars on the road - an extremely useful source of spares and information. I would recommend one in a heartbeat, amazing value for money for something so fun.

[Ahbefive]

I know I'll get attacked by the usual suspects that hate Fords so much that they feel compelled to negatively comment on every thread about every Ford but hey-ho:

There seems to be a lot of slating of an owners club that from my experience is just a bunch of people that are enthusiastic about theirs cars. I have taken my megane to RSOC track days despite not being member and they have always been friendly and there is never any negative atmosphere. Just a friendly bunch of car enthusiasts of all ages, some like to polish some like to thrash about on tracks, some just drive them. This is pretty much the same ethos as PistonHeads as far as I know. I find this negative attitude towards the RSOC as pathetic as I find the negativity shown by youtube comments about the people of PistonHeads.

Every marque has enthusiasts but Ford have a bit of a UK tradition so the scene is bigger than others which I think makes people want to give it a bit of stick.

Anyway, as a drivers car I find the R26 as pretty much a cut price mk1 RS, with all the same competence, performance and handling wrapped up in a Renault body. If they were the same price however I would have the Focus in a heartbeat as I prefer the styling, the gearshift, and they have a far bigger and more helpful following.

Edited by Ahbefive on Sunday 16th December 14:38

[Jonesy23]

As total heretic I got mine new (one of the last few built so all the many revisions), thrashed it around putting lots of miles on it, and never washed it - it was bought to drive not to look at.

Had a decent appetite for brakes and tyres, needed the power steering hoses replacing and it took three attempts to get the coolant hoses on tight enough to not leak. And the fancy turbo heat-shield fell off because apparently no-one thought standard stainless nuts & bolts might work loose.

Diff was never particularly lairy on mine, ABS was a bit crudely calibrated though.

The development was more than a bit half arsed and there was a lot of half finished stuff on the car if you looked at all closely, though also a lot of interesting detail. Drove and rode OK but the extended gestation meant it missed out on the good bits it could have got from something like the ST170 - the ST had *much* better steering for a start, and a much better collection of kit. The RS was stupidly Spartan for no good reason (unless you count "can't have a heated screen because we stole the relay slot for something else" as a good reason).

Looked good from the outside though, a proper evolution of the standard car with interesting details - for example the flared rear arches are a totally different shape from the standard ones, not just wider.

Must be entertaining trying to run one today given the spares were being sold off while it was still in production and then the warehouse was cleared of all the rest. And the spares weren't cheap to begin with and a lot was unique.



(And LOL at the article - what a lot of under researched drivel)

[blade7]

DoddsyFrs said:

blade7 said:

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

As I said i'm looking for something interesting but haven't decided yet. I'll ignore the polish comment thank you.

I try to ignore repetitive comments about values too...

[SidewaysSi]

ZX10R NIN said:

SidewaysSi said:

For similarish money you are into 265/275 Cup territory which would slaughter the old Ford. If it is Ohlins equipped then even more so.

An R26 is about a third of the price of the Focus so in today's money not really a competitor.

You're not comparing apples with apples though are you, it's comparable competitor was the R26 R which was a better drivers car but didn't slaughter the FRS & also remember the FRS came out a fair bit before the R26.R take a look at the prices of those:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

In 2002 when this was launched there was nothing close to it & when the RS225 was launched in 2004 it wasn't a great hot hatch & it didn't actually become a good drivers hatch until the R26 was introduced.

I largely agree re. closest competitor. But if today you wanted a road and track hot hatch with your £15k and it was between this and the later Meg, I can't see why you would go for the Ford.

I set a budget then buy a car as opposed to the other way around.

[Car-Matt]

blade7 said:

DoddsyFrs said:

blade7 said:

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

As I said i'm looking for something interesting but haven't decided yet. I'll ignore the polish comment thank you.

I try to ignore repetitive comments about values too...

You show me someone who doesn’t consider price/depreciation/appreciation when buying/selling/running a car and I’ll show you a liar ;-)

[blade7]

Car-Matt said:

blade7 said:

DoddsyFrs said:

blade7 said:

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

As I said i'm looking for something interesting but haven't decided yet. I'll ignore the polish comment thank you.

I try to ignore repetitive comments about values too...

You show me someone who doesn’t consider price/depreciation/appreciation when buying/selling/running a car and I’ll show you a liar ;-)

As I'm not currently selling the weekend toy that I bought 10 years ago, I don't really give a toss that it's apparently worth around 3 times what I paid for it. I bought it because it was one the fastest, best built,best handling cars for the money at the time.

[Deep Thought]

SidewaysSi said:

I largely agree re. closest competitor. But if today you wanted a road and track hot hatch with your £15k and it was between this and the later Meg, I can't see why you would go for the Ford.

I set a budget then buy a car as opposed to the other way around.

Agreed. However that is not the likely reason why someone will want this is it?

[DoubleD]

blade7 said:

Car-Matt said:

blade7 said:

DoddsyFrs said:

blade7 said:

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

As I said i'm looking for something interesting but haven't decided yet. I'll ignore the polish comment thank you.

I try to ignore repetitive comments about values too...

You show me someone who doesn’t consider price/depreciation/appreciation when buying/selling/running a car and I’ll show you a liar ;-)

As I'm not currently selling the weekend toy that I bought 10 years ago, I don't really give a toss that it's apparently worth around 3 times what I paid for it. I bought it because it was one the fastest, best built,best handling cars for the money at the time.

So costs came into it when you bought the car. Im sure they also will when you come to sell it one day.

[gigglebug]

DoubleD said:

So costs came into it when you bought the car. Im sure they also will when you come to sell it one day.

I've never once given any consideration as to what any of my cars might be worth down the line when I purchased them. Am I a liar?

[gigglebug]

This is one of the few cars that I regret not buying, they're still my favorite of the Focus RS's. I'm sure I bought the Alfa GTA as oppose to one of these so not a bad substitute but I should have had one when they were better value, left it a bit too late now.

[DoubleD]

gigglebug said:

DoubleD said:

So costs came into it when you bought the car. Im sure they also will when you come to sell it one day.

I've never once given any consideration as to what any of my cars might be worth down the line when I purchased them. Am I a liar?

Bit random

[gigglebug]

DoubleD said:

Bit random

Sorry, quoted the wrong person by mistake. Was meant to be responding to Car-Matt. Carry on.

[s m]

ZX10R NIN said:

SidewaysSi said:

For similarish money you are into 265/275 Cup territory which would slaughter the old Ford. If it is Ohlins equipped then even more so.

An R26 is about a third of the price of the Focus so in today's money not really a competitor.

You're not comparing apples with apples though are you, it's comparable competitor was the R26 R which was a better drivers car but didn't slaughter the FRS & also remember the FRS came out a fair bit before the R26.R take a look at the prices of those:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

In 2002 when this was launched there was nothing close to it & when the RS225 was launched in 2004 it wasn't a great hot hatch & it didn't actually become a good drivers hatch until the R26 was introduced.

Looks like you can get a Focus RS for under 10k with a 60 second search on EBay.

Just like the recent DC2 and EK9 Civic Type R and anything else that's 'Spotted' they seem to find a rather high priced example......which then in turn attracts the 'but you could buy xxx for less ' comments

[DoubleD]

gigglebug said:

DoubleD said:

Bit random

Sorry, quoted the wrong person by mistake. Was meant to be responding to Car-Matt. Carry on.

Ha ha. Well I consider purchase costs, obviously so I can see if I can afford to buy it. Something that wont lose a ton of cash while I own it is also rather nice, but I wouldntbuy a car that I didnt want just because it held its value.

[Car-Matt]

blade7 said:

Car-Matt said:

blade7 said:

DoddsyFrs said:

blade7 said:

Time to cash in and buy something better then, unless you bought it to polish.

As I said i'm looking for something interesting but haven't decided yet. I'll ignore the polish comment thank you.

I try to ignore repetitive comments about values too...

You show me someone who doesn’t consider price/depreciation/appreciation when buying/selling/running a car and I’ll show you a liar ;-)

As I'm not currently selling the weekend toy that I bought 10 years ago, I don't really give a toss that it's apparently worth around 3 times what I paid for it. I bought it because it was one the fastest, best built,best handling cars for the money at the time.

Funny that, you seem to know the current market value so you have considered the price and quoted it back to us for posterity

Lololololol

[RyanTank]

ZX10R NIN said:

SidewaysSi said:

For similarish money you are into 265/275 Cup territory which would slaughter the old Ford. If it is Ohlins equipped then even more so.

An R26 is about a third of the price of the Focus so in today's money not really a competitor.

You're not comparing apples with apples though are you, it's comparable competitor was the R26 R which was a better drivers car but didn't slaughter the FRS & also remember the FRS came out a fair bit before the R26.R take a look at the prices of those:

the 26.R cant be compared to an FRS either surely? its a stripped out plastic windowed trackday marketed motor. The ford was designed as an everyday useable motor, as many were before becoming owners club garage queens.

realistically any competitor that came out after the RS production ended should in theory be a better vehicle simply down to advancements etc.

As garish as the blue paneling is on the interior its still a great looking one compared to the lump on offer by Renault.

[Car-Matt]

gigglebug said:

DoubleD said:

So costs came into it when you bought the car. Im sure they also will when you come to sell it one day.

I've never once given any consideration as to what any of my cars might be worth down the line when I purchased them. Am I a liar?

Unless you’re buying cheap cars and running them into the ground the yes I’d say your not honest.

I am of course using the unsaid caveat that we are talking about cars with a value at purchase price and will still have a value at resale time

Not £1k snotters