Monthly Archives: August 2014

A New AWD Offering?


http://blog.caranddriver.com/2016-ford-focus-rs-awd-back-on-the-table-u-s-sales-more-likely-than-ever/

http://www.roadandtrack.com/go/future-cars/2016-ford-focus-rs-first-details-exclusive-insider-info

http://www.roadandtrack.com/go/future-cars/ford-denies-nothing-about-focus-rs-says-its-doable

I wanted to get all of the embedding and linkage out of the way first, as there is a lot of reference material, and I don’t even have reference info from Motor Trend or Automobile.

My thoughts? These are speculation articles, but R&T does have some communication from Ford regarding this car.

Is it a threat to existing cars of it’s genre? It’s too early to tell, but there’s a void to be filled (the Mitsubishi Evolution X). The playing field is being redefined, as well, because the upcoming Golf R is supposed to be a stellar offering and may well surpass the Subaru WRX STI in performance (or at least make Subaru concerned).

The early planning of the Focus RS dictated that the car would be front-wheel-drive. That has changed as of yesterday. It is definitive that the car will be AWD. We do not yet know how much HP the 2.3L turbocharged 4-cylinder will produce, but speculation is between 300-350 HP. We also do not know if the car will be definitively sold in the US, although the articles state that there’s a strong possibility. We also don’t know it’s proposed pricing, although a car that is designed to compete with the Golf R and/or Subaru STI will probably be similarly priced as those two cars. Word is, the Focus RS will also be a limited production vehicle, which may warrant a premium price (I’m not sure on this, but its worth mentioning). Will the car be a 4 door hatch? More than likely, if Ford wants to compete well with the other cars of this genre.

Other questions: Will the car have good value retainment? STIs hold their value extremely well. I can’t speak for Golf R owners (the Mk 7 isn’t yet released to the US public). Will the car be reliable? Will the car be expensive to maintain? It may be good to ask a Focus ST owner those two questions, since the RS will be new to the US.What of modifying the RS? Does Ford condone modifying Focus STs as far as warranty is concerned? Are the cars difficult to modify? Is the aftermarket as vast as Subaru’s? If anyone has answers to those questions, please comment!

Subaru STI & Fuel Consumption


I thought this was a pretty cool read. I’ve been seeing a lot of guys complaining about the fuel consumption of their STIs lately…I’m wondering if it’s due to the influx of “new blood” (ie, owners that are new to sports cars and have just purchased an STI) or hipster activists (which Subaru tends to attract). But the gist of the article is, why buy a sports car of this caliber and complain about it’s fuel consumption?

I decided to embed the Google+ post vs. posting the URL…it’s more eye-catching.

Enjoy the read!

? Drive Plus – VW Golf R v BMW M235i – Chris Harris on Cars

Drive Plus – VW Golf R v BMW M235i – Chris… by boobiesr4squeezing

Your thoughts on the upcoming VW Golf R?  I’m less concerned about the M235i, since the 2015 STI has already been matched up with that particular car (see this post for more insight).

My thoughts?  This is just another VW Mk VII Golf R video.  This is also another Golf R video that is non-US-spec.  This is also another video touting its Haldex system.

We keep seeing videos of this car but only in it’s EU-guise.  It makes me wonder if there will be a US version (of the same car, not a watered down version).  Also, everyone keeps talking about how smart the Haldex system is — it was initially debuted in the Golf R on an ice track.  Subaru has been doing that for YEARS.  As well, Haldex isn’t true all-wheel-drive…it enables power to the wheels only when needed.  Yes, that is more efficient.  No, that doesn’t make it better than dedicated AWD systems.  I’d like to see the car handle and see drivers such as Randy Pobst test that car on a track.  Yes, Chris Harris gave the car ‘the beans’ in the video, but I’ve to see much more of this car than the last 8 months of videos before I become intrigued by this car’s technology.  And then there’s the euro stigma about technology.  Will this car be expensive to service and maintain?  Will there be non-stop electrical gremlins that plague the owner experience?

No, I’m not yet smitten.  Keep trying to woo me, VW.

Please Don’t Defraud Subaru of America!

Read the following thread today:

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/gr-general/272848-13-sti-cyl-4-missfire-other-problems-need-help.html

Read it and see why I have a problem with it.

Basically, the OP stated that he’s at stage 2+, has 20K miles on the car and the car is exhibiting symptoms of cracked ringlands.  Some responders tell him how to check for further symptoms (smoke coming from oil cap opening).  Smoke was exiting the opening.  In the next post, the guy states that he has his car on a flatbed and it’s on the way to the dealer.  He states he’s reverted back to the stock tune (and that the dealer also stated he should do this).

Wow.  I see these at least once a week on the forums.  Some guys end up pannicking when they realize that Subaru of America (SoA) sometimes correlates such posts to real-life people and deny the claims.

IMO, issues such as these constitutes fraud.  I’m a firm believer in “pay to play”.  People who can’t afford to fix their car because they took it beyond the limits of Subaru’s design should not modify their cars.  Shit like this is what makes it difficult for the guys with real/legit repair issues to get them fixed.  Also, someone has to pay for the fraudulent claim (and it’s usually not the dealer nor SoA)…it’s usually other Subaru owners (the dealer spreads the cost to all Subaru owners by raising costs of other services).

I hate crap like this!

EDIT:  here’s one from last week (pay attention to post 6)

4-cylinder Boxster and Cayman Video Footage at NBR??

I just saw the following posted on Facebook:

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-videos/this-is-probably-the-flat-four-cayman-at-the-nurburgring

I also posted awhile back about the fact that Porsche was considering using the flat-four layout in upcoming engine options for the Boxster and Cayman.

I then saw the videos provided on that page.  First, they posted a baseline video, so that people know how a current Cayman sounds:

Then, they posted a Boxster andCayman with what’s unarguably a flat-four motor:

I prefer the sound of the flat-six, but the flat-four isn’t bad.

EDIT:

There’s quite a bit of uproar with the Porsche “purists” on R&T’s Facebook page…check out the comments: