2013 Ford Focus ST

Back in highschool one of my buddies parents' drove a first generation Ford Focus. Occasionally my friend and I would borrow the car for school or football practice, etc. and I specifically remember thinking how horrible the car was. The inside was cheaper than a coupon shopper and the ride was horrendous. Maybe I'm exagerrating a little but I honestly felt like the car was going to break down every time we drove it. Then about 6 months ago my wife and I flew to Wisconsin and ended up renting a 2011 Focus while we were there. This time around though, I was blown away. The car was spectacular. It was sportier and more aggressive. The trend continued inside the car with it's sleek lines and high quality materials. The ride was also monumentally better than what I remembered in my buddies Focus. It drove great and the steering was quick and responsive for a compact. I was very impressed to say the least. When the time came to return the car I was a little bummed that I'd be back driving my wife's 2007 Elantra at the end of the day. My point in all this is that the Ford Focus has made leaps and bounds of progress since it was introduced in 98'. Well now Ford's about to take their success with the Focus another step further with the introduction of the ST. Hit the jump for more!

The new Ford Focus ST will go on sale this month with a starting price of $24,495. That's about $300 less than a Speed3 or a GTI. But Ford's going to need more than a 3 bill price advantage to get it's fair share of the hot hatch market. So to up the ante they've given the ST a 2.0 liter turbocharged 4 cylinder that's good for 252 hp and 270 lb.-ft. of torque. Those numbers blow the GTI out of the water and will definitely give the Speed3 a run for it's money. There's even a magic function called "overboost" which temporarily provides an additional 15 torques when you smash the pedal to the floor and hold it there. Thanks are in order to the man who came up with that. Since the ST is fwd torque steer is a certain but Ford has minimized it's effects with a system that compensates for it when detected. This, coupled with the electronic power assist steering, will provide for easy maneuvering in the parking lots and crisp handling at the track. The 6-speed manual gearbox should provide plenty of rowing fun for the driver too. Other features include high performance brakes, a sport tuned suspension, 18 inch wheels, RECARO seats, Ford's MyTouch system, and a Symposer box which funnels the beautiful growl of the engine into the cab for all to hear.

Aside from the powertrain and all the gadgets and gizmos the ST is a serious looker. With it's black honeycomb grill that takes up almost the entire front end the car resembles a large predatorial fish with it's mouth wide open about to devour it's poor unsuspecting prey. It honestly looks like a creature from the deep abyss with it's tail lights that extend forward almost touching the rear doors. But even so, I absolutely love it. Like mentioned before I use to strongly dislike the Focus, then about 6 months ago I began to like it, and now with the addition of the ST I may end up loving the Focus. A little while ago I went and test drove a GTI with the intent of comparing it to the Speed3. While I wasn't able to test drive the Speed3 due to a mandatory credit check before they would hand over the keys (which seemed ridiculous for a car at this price) I was extremely impressed with the GTI. It was quiet and smooth but when the muscles in my foot took over and put the pedal down the GTI responded with quick and linear power. But it still didn't provide quite enough grunt. And after looking at the Speed3 for about 10 minutes at the lot I decided it was pretty ugly, and the inside was cheap compared to the GTI. So with the GTI being slightly underpowered and the Speed3 being cheap and ugly, the stellar looking ST could definitely take the reigns as the "gotta have" hot hatch. But what do you think? Will the American market be kind to one of it's own with the ST or will it remain in the shadows of it's foreign counterparts?