Ford Performance prototype
Filmed on public and closed roads in Europe and US.
ESP and traction control deactivated.
Always obey speed limits.
This is the inside story of the rebirth of an icon
the Ford Focus RS.
From the design studio to the test track, and
from Arizona to the Arctic
we follow the team
as they strive to revive a famous name.
We're not gonna put out a vehicle that doesn't deserve that RS badge.
And we'll follow Ford rally and Gymkhana superstar Ken Block
as he joins the RS team.
Ford Focus RS
Rebirth of an icon
We're at Ford's European headquarters in Cologne Germany.
To meet the teams who must design the new RS ..
and crash it.
For the past 18 months ...
the design team have been working on a clay model of the new RS
led by Joel Piaskowski ...
head of Design: Ford of Europe.
The RS is really at the top of the mountain so to speak
it's the most aggressive looking ...
but it has the most performance story to tell at the same time,
so it's form following function.
The front end really speaks
this is a performance vehicle.
Looking at the front openings
they really tell you: I need air to breathe.
You have your upper two slots
for cooling down the radiator ...
and the lower slot for the intercooler.
On top of that we have some additional slots ...
around the fog lamp.
They basically give us some airflow to the brakes.
The splitter here ...
it's very large, very prominent.
It was necessary to push down the car, ...
when we did that, we realised in the aerodynamic tunnel we also need a big spoiler in the rear
so we also need a big spoiler at the rear,
to have a counter balance.
To have a good balance on the road.
What is unique on this car, is definitely the 19 inch wheels.
The huge defuser. Which is also functional.
Double exhaust. One on each side,
and it also holds a new LED fog lamp.
Early in the design process ...
the model was shown to RS consultant Ken Block.
The cool thing for me is ...
I enjoy watching
and learning, and helping
be a part of the process.
The consumer who's looking to buy this car is definitely looking for something more aggressive
and we want aerodynamics that actually work
we want to see this car perform.
We want something that is hitting the current trends ...
and the current tastes.
You don't want to go too mellow ...
and not have it appeal to them,
or go too extreme ...
and have it also not appeal to them.
Well he's a designer himself ...
he liked the look of it.
He said there is nothing really he would change.
While Ernesto worked on the exterior design ...
Serife Celebi tuned the interior.
One of our main goals was to have this ...
mean aggressive, in a positive way, character ...
that's the reason we kept it quite dark ...
and we have only put little details as accent colours...
in the performance blue colour ...
as you see
for example on the steering wheel
you see this detailing
and also the logo has this performance blue colour
and the gator bag
and also the gear knob.
We are all very excited if we have an ST or an RS.
You have a little bit more possibility to try new things ...
and put interesting and nice, materials into the character of the car.
Just a short walk from the design studio ...
is Ford's crash test center.
Where Christian Marschner is preparing for today's sacrifice.
We are doing about one test per day.
That means around about 250 crash tests a year.
And today we will do a Ford Focus RS
and one oblique side pole impact.
It simulates a side impact ...
onto a tree for example ...
which means that a pole made of steel
which has a two inch diameter ...
and the car hits at a 15 degree angle
at 32 kph.
To meet all the global safety standards
Ford will crash 28 RS prototypes
before the car is launched.
We have round about 75m of track
to accelerate
then bang and then ...
the car is crashed.
Starting Test!
That's a normal crash test.
Another car broken?
Exactly.
It's a pity, but someone has to do it.
The car and crash test data ...
will now be analysed by a team of experts
here in Cologne,
as the development continues.
Coming up ...
... next time we head to the US.
for a crucial development drive. ...
If we can't fix it usually it's ...
park it, cover it, someone stays with it ...
we'll call the wrecker in.
From the top of the Rockies ...
to the desert plains of Arizona.
Waiting for the day that we can floor it.