Ford’s Focus RS begins production in Germany

Ford Motor Co. has started production of its new Focus RS at its plant in Saarlouis, Germany, but U.S. customers will have to wait until spring before the small car hits stateside showrooms.

The Dearborn automaker announced late last week that the first hot hatch has rolled off the assembly line there, and released a new video describing the car’s four drive modes.

The Focus RS will get 350 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque, and can hit a maximum speed of 165 miles per hour.

The all-wheel-drive performance car can go from 0-62 miles per hour in 4.7 seconds, and is powered by a 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine equipped with a six-speed manual transmission. Pricing will start at $36,605, Ford has said.

Drivers can select from four different drive modes including: normal, sport, track or drift mode.

Ford last introduced a rally sport version of its Focus five years ago for the 2009 model, and before that in 2002 — but those cars were sold only in Europe. The latest car will be the 30th vehicle to wear Ford’s RS badge. Ford said it will compete directly against the Subaru WRX STI, VW Golf R and Mitsubishi EVO.

The Focus RS is one of 12 performance vehicles Ford has pledged to bring customers globally through 2020. It joins the Focus ST, Fiesta ST, Shelby GT350 and GT350R, and the Raptor and GT supercar in Ford’s performance lineup.

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