Ford Focus RS WRC

ford
Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen at the Rallye Deutschland 2008 with the Ford Focus RS WRC 08
Focus RS WRC
Production period:	1999-2010
Class :	race car
Body versions :	Station wagon
Engines:	Otto engine : 2.0 liters (220 kW)
Length:	4152 mm
Width:	1770 mm
Height:	1420 mm
Wheelbase :	2625 mm
Empty weight :	1330 kg
Previous model	Ford Escort WRC
successor	Ford Fiesta RS WRC

Jari-Matti Latvala - 2010 Rally Finland winner

The Ford Focus RS WRC was a rally vehicle from Ford Europe and the M-Sport company , built for the World Rally Championship . The rally car was based on the Ford Focus Climate 2.0-liter gasoline engine production . The Focus RS WRC model took part in the World Rally Championship in an almost annually modified form from 1999 to 2010 . With the Focus RS WRC , 44 world championship races and two world championship titles were won by the manufacturers in 2006 and 2007 . The Focus RS WRC has been replaced by the Ford Fiesta RS WRC .

development

The Ford Focus RS WRC 01 at the 2001 Rally Finland

The Ford Focus RS WRC had all-wheel drive and not just front-wheel drive like the road car. From the 2007 version a 2.0 liter Duratec engine was used. As with most rally cars of the time, power was boosted by a turbocharger. The 2009 Ford Focus RS WRC also used a Duratec engine with four in-line cylinders, 16 valves and a Garrett turbocharger. The all-wheel drive, the six-speed gearbox, the electronically controlled differential and the brakes were developed and maintained by M-Sport and its partners. The engine developed 300 hp (approx. 220 kW) at around 6000 revolutions per minute.

history

The first version of the rally car was built for the 1999 World Rally Championship and replaced the Ford Escort WRC . On their debut in the Monte Carlo Rally , Colin McRae and Simon Jean-Joseph drove the two new cars. The Focus WRC was fast and even set the best times. However, they were disqualified because of a non-compliant water pump. McRae then won the Safari rally by over 14 minutes over a second-placed Toyota with Didier Auriol at the wheel. Ford ended its first season with the Focus WRC in fourth place in the manufacturers' championship.

In 2003 Ford released a redesigned Focus WRC , called the Focus RS WRC 03 , for the second half of the season. The car was built from scratch with a lighter body and aerodynamic improvements. Markko Märtin won with it in Greece and Finland .

The 2004 and 2005 models of the Focus RS WRC were further developments based on the RS WRC 03 . The Focus RS WRC 04 won three rallies with Märtin at the wheel in 2004 . In 2005 the car was no longer competitive and Ford had had a winless season. The Focus RS WRC 06 was used for the first time at the last World Championship run in Australia in 2005 . In 2006 , Marcus Grönholm and Mikko Hirvonen won the manufacturers 'championship for Ford with eight wins. In the drivers' world championship they were second and third behind Sébastien Loeb .

The Focus RS WRC 07 was built on the 2006 model. With the new vehicle, the focus was primarily on weight reduction and weight distribution in order to improve the car's handling. At the first rally in 2007 with the new car in Finland , Grönholm and Hirvonen took first and second place. Also in 2007 they won the Manufacturers World Championship.

At the Rally Sweden 2008 , Jari-Matti Latvala was the youngest driver to win a world championship run with the RS WRC 07 . The 2008 version of the Focus RS WRC made its debut at the Rallye Deutschland . The engine of the RS 08 has been improved and the front has been adapted to the Focus RS Mk II street sports car. With this vehicle, Ford could only achieve one victory in the Rally Japan .

The 2009 version of the Focus RS WRC made its debut at the Sardinia Rally . Latvala won the rally ahead of his team-mate Hirvonen. From the 2011 season , the Focus was replaced by the Ford Fiesta RS WRC . The Ford Focus RS WRC took part in 173 world championship races, won 44 rallies and the RS WRC drivers made the top three podiums 142 times.

WRC victories

No.	season	rally	driver	Co-driver
1	1999	Rally safari	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
2		Rally Portugal	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
3	2000	Rally Catalonia	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
4th		Rally Greece	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
5		Cyprus rally	Carlos Sainz	Luís Moya
6th	2001	Rally Argentina	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
7th		Rally Cyprus	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
8th		Rally Greece	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
9	2002	Rally Argentina	Carlos Sainz	Luís Moya
10		Rally Greece	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
11		Rally safari	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist
12	2003	Rally Greece	Markko Märtin	Michael Park
13		Rally Finland	Markko Märtin	Michael Park
14th	2004	Rally Mexico	Markko Märtin	Michael Park
15th		Rally France	Markko Märtin	Michael Park
16		Rally Catalonia	Markko Märtin	Michael Park
17th	2006	Rally Monte Carlo	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
18th		Rally Sweden	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
19th		Rally Greece	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
20th		Rally Finland	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
21st		Rally Turkey	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
22nd		Rally Australia	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
23		Rally New Zealand	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
24		Rally Great Britain	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
25th	2007	Rally Sweden	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
26th		Rally Norway	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
27		Rally Sardinia	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
28		Rally Greece	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
29		Rally Finland	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
30th		Rally New Zealand	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
31		Rally Japan	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
32		Rally Great Britain	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
33	2008	Rally Sweden	Jari-Matti Latvala	Miikka Anttila
34		Rally Jordan	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
35		Rally Turkey	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
36		Rally Japan	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
37	2009	Rally Sardinia	Jari-Matti Latvala	Miikka Anttila
38		Rally Greece	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
39		Rally Poland	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
40		Rally Finland	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
41		Rally Australia	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
42	2010	Rally Sweden	Mikko Hirvonen	Jarmo Lehtinen
43		Rally New Zealand	Jari-Matti Latvala	Miikka Anttila
44		Rally Finland	Jari-Matti Latvala	Miikka Anttila

Web links

• http://www.wrc.com
• http://www.m-sport.co.uk/

Individual evidence

1. ↑ juwra.com: Ford Focus RS , accessed on September 10, 2015