All-Wheel Drive Hot Hatch Showdown – Ford Focus RS v Volkswagen Golf R
Genuine game-changers generally come along in broad intervals. With hot hatches, however, the pace of change is thrusting forward like a turbo engine piling on boost. Three years ago the Volkswagen Golf R finally muscled its way past its Golf GTI sibli
Genuine game-changers generally come along in broad intervals. With hot hatches, however, the pace of change is thrusting forward like a turbo engine piling on boost.
Three years ago the Volkswagen Golf R finally muscled its way past its Golf GTI sibling to offer 206kW and deliver 5.0sec 0-100km/h performance for around $50K. Its all-wheel drive system finally sent more power to the rear wheels, and its adaptive suspension could be tepid or tenacious at the press of a button.
It made traditional foes, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X and Subaru WRX STi, seem needlessly harsh with precious little reward. It also made the Renault Megane RS – which three years earlier re-wrote the front-drive handling rulebook – feel like it was superb for $43K, but less so for $50K-plus. This was the big league for small cars.
Enter the Ford Focus RS. It produces 257kW and claims a 4.7sec 0-100km/h for $50,990 (plus on-road costs). It also boasts an all-wheel drive system that can assist the driver to slide the vehicle as though it’s a rear-drive muscle car in a hatch outfit.
And look at the jutted jawline of the Nitrous Blue five-door. Beside its Pure White foe, with its mere licks of matte-silver trim, there hasn’t been a greater contrast between two candidates since the US presidential election. Like that disparate duo, it’s hard to believe these models emerge from the same country – in this instance, Germany.
TESTEDFord Focus RS ($50,990 plus on-road costs)
Volkswagen Golf R ($55,490 plus on-road costs)
|
OVERVIEW
Volkswagen recently added leather trim with front seat heating to its Golf R, which is now priced from $52,990 (plus orc) with a six-speed manual or $55,490 (plus orc) for the more popular six-speed ‘DSG’ dual-clutch automatic as tested here.
Our test car also added a $1500 driver assistance package with adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitor and low-speed automatic emergency braking (AEB), and an $1850 panoramic electric sunroof. Total? A hefty $58,840 (plus orc).
None of the above is available in the Ford, but don’t otherwise look to the standard features list to separate this pair.