Mustang vs Focus RS

Comes down to a simple analysis of what you want from a car.

If you are a B road driver who gets more out of chucking a car around a B road or a track day then the Focus is the Best Buy.

If you prefer a car to use more as a tourer, a distance car, or care more about straight line theatre and performance then buy the Mustang.

Book a day with Ford where you can drive both back to back. If poss find a garage out in the sticks somewhere that can arrange to have them ready for you.

Id go with the Focus. I test drove one as I'm thinking of getting one when my PCP ends on my Fiesta ST and it just felt like my car on steroids. It's an extremely easy car to drive and it handles extremely well. I suppose the exhaust sounds slightly fake sometimes which is possibly more to do with how it resonates through the car, but windows down it sounds fantastic.
 
Chris. said:
Comes down to a simple analysis of what you want from a car.

If you are a B road driver who gets more out of chucking a car around a B road or a track day then the Focus is the Best Buy.

If you prefer a car to use more as a tourer, a distance car, or care more about straight line theatre and performance then buy the Mustang.

Book a day with Ford where you can drive both back to back. If poss find a garage out in the sticks somewhere that can arrange to have them ready for you.

Id go with the Focus. I test drove one as I'm thinking of getting one when my PCP ends on my Fiesta ST and it just felt like my car on steroids. It's an extremely easy car to drive and it handles extremely well. I suppose the exhaust sounds slightly fake sometimes which is possibly more to do with how it resonates through the car, but windows down it sounds fantastic.
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How is a focus any worse at long distance? The seats are just as comfortable, the higher seating position is more useful driving in traffic, the engine can do motorway miles smoothly and being turbocharged has easily accessible low end torque without having to wind the engine up. The RS is also faster in a straight line on the public roads and out performs the Mustang on any B roads.

The Mustang simply has more involvement and drama about it. That's the only reason to choose one over the RS.
 
And the coolness factor, people liking it, how it looks, how it sounds, the interior, etc.
 
There is also the emotional factor, the Mustang does little for me whilst seeing a Nitrous Blue RS for the first time in person put a stupid smile on my face. There is more to cars than facts and figures, it's how they make YOU feel.
 
pioneer2000 said:
The Mustang simply has more involvement and drama about it. That's the only reason to choose one over the RS.
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In standard form, I find the RS the far more evocative and entertaining car - but that's just my 0.2c. Doesn't take much to unlock the Mustang's potential to be far more entertaining, but then you're still in a hefty coupe with a similar footprint to a Mondeo. Swings and roundabouts.
 
pioneer2000 said:
How is a focus any worse at long distance? The seats are just as comfortable, the higher seating position is more useful driving in traffic, the engine can do motorway miles smoothly and being turbocharged has easily accessible low end torque without having to wind the engine up. The RS is also faster in a straight line on the public roads and out performs the Mustang on any B roads.

The Mustang simply has more involvement and drama about it. That's the only reason to choose one over the RS.
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I didn't say the Focus was worse at long distance.

And since when did actual speed matter worth a damn on public roads?

I'm talking about how the cars are set up, and what they are more at home for and how they are designed to make you feel.

While the Focus can probably do most things better on paper (for example it's a better distance car because it's more economical etc etc). My personal opinion (and that's all it is), is that if I had to choose a car for a long cruise on a long open road I'd get more out of the Mustang, whereas I would choose the Focus for the B road blast.

It's not all about facts and figures, hence why I suggested the OP drive them both.
 
In fact that goes for everything car related. Just because something isn't 'as fast' as something else on paper doesn't mean it isn't better. It's all personal preference and circumstantial.

I got more fun out of a few hours hooning about in a Ford Racing Puma (a 1.7 coupe) than I have out of most other things I've driven since.
 
The RS is a car you can use every day for everything. I don't think the mk3 RS will be a classic like the mk2 has become though, going with a "normal" 4cyl engine for a car like that was a mistake IMO.

The Mustang is something people buy to keep forever, it's guaranteed to be a collectable in future. But it would have to be a V8.
 
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Does the new Mustang cope with corners then? The old one made a 3 litre Capri without 5 bags of cement in the boot look like Vettel's blown diffuser RBR car.
 
Being RWD it won't corner anything like the RS. But I don't think it's like the old ones, which would go all over the place when you put your foot down :D

You can still expect at least one brown trouser moment in any powerful RWD car though if you drive it quick.
 
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