Any 350 buyers getting a Focus RS?

Makes me further appreciate my dealer, The Ford Store Morgan Hill. No ADM's ever for anyone on anything. That's the way to do business, IMO.
There are many other ways to judge a dealer, obviously, but I think their pricing philosophy gives a good indication of their overall business philosophy. (they're a one-price / no-haggle store). I was a Ford dealer rep / Ford employee for years...so I get how dealerships work. There are lots of good dealerships out there, even if they do ADM's...I just find the practice distasteful even if it is consistent with the purest notion of trade in a competitive market.

Now I'm off to take the R out (after weeks of rain here...hey, we need the rain, but I also need to drive the R ;-)...I'm headed down to the dealership to check out some fresh Raptor meat that just landed...they had a few delivered last night. They're all customer orders so there's no chance I'm taking one home (or even driving one)...I just want to see one in the flesh as I have been considering ordering one. I just have a hard time justifying owning such a beast...more truck than I need...but do I want? you bet.

Yep, my dealer is the same way. They are smaller to mid size. They couldn't get a R for me though they tried...hard.
I brought 3 people to them for 350's and 2 for raptors. Nobody wanted an RS but they sold a few without my help. I'll buy the rest of my ford's thru them. Hopefully they are able to get all that I'm interested in anyway. The son is taking over the business and he is just an unbelievably nice fella. Hard to believe there are people this good in the world anymore. Just top notch all the way around. He turned out to be a good friend. They sell dodge too so he has me first in line for a demon, though I told him it depends on what I hear from ford.

The dollar to fun ratio on this car is off the charts. You shouldn't be able to have this much fun with your pants on.

My only complaint is that I have to stop at the gas station every couple of days.

I have no idea what the current market is for the RS, but if anyone is looking for one, I know of a Nitrous Blue in Delaware that you should be able to at least get for MSRP if not under. Dealer has it listed for 3 over but I can put you in touch with the owner and a salesperson, and I'm pretty certain you can get a good deal on it. PM me if interested.

Steve16 said:

The dollar to fun ratio on this car is off the charts. You shouldn't be able to have this much fun with your pants on.

My only complaint is that I have to stop at the gas station every couple of days.

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I agree! This thing has such a tiny tank :doh: And after installing the BOV it goes that much faster since it seems I've always got it in boost to hear that wonderful sound. Not enough for me though so I'm going to order the Exhale kit with a proper BOV here soon. If anyone's interested I'll have a barely used Turbosmart Kompact 50/50 BOV I'll let go reasonable with the Pink spring already installed. Pink spring is a must for the RS.

Steve16 said:

The dollar to fun ratio on this car is off the charts. You shouldn't be able to have this much fun with your pants on.

My only complaint is that I have to stop at the gas station every couple of days.

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LOL on the gas tank, it is a tiny bugger for sure.

If you think it's a blast as is, try getting the Mountune B3 package and an intercooler....Holy Smokes!! Pure Go-Cart!!

I traded an RS for my Shelby. Loved the RS and great if you need 4 doors and AWD. If not, the Shelby will be better at most things, more comfortable and looks better IMO. I already have a raptor for AWD/4door fun, so no point in keeping the RS

I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around either of the comparisons you just made.

If anyone is looking for an RS, my dealer has two. I think they are both blue. PM me and I will give you his cell. He's a real pro, not a tool.

Loved my RS but just traded it in for my incoming ZL1...

Was sad to let it go, it handled so well and did feel like a go-cart with nice handling and all the right noises and great seats; I even like the upright position

What did it in for me was the fact that it got very tiring on any trips greater than 20-30 minutes because of the bouncy ride even in the standard shock setting and a disconcerting high speed torque reactions under full throttle, although this can be mitigated by alignement. The ride issue was not completely solved by decreasing tire pressure because then handling got sloppy and rolled over tires in aggressive turns

Finally took it to first autocross and got the RDU overheat situation after a mild run where I couldn't select track mode until it cooled down a little. Taking all of these together it suddenly stopped making sense

Still probably the most fun you can have on wet backroads, Golf R doesn't come close, but you pay for it in terms of comfort on even moderate distance trips

picking up my black one tomorrow at 130!

meares said:

picking up my black one tomorrow at 130!

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Forget everything I said

I am also considering the RS. I drove one today and honestly was underwhelmed by the power. Granted I am new to the performance hatch back segment and coming for a 5.0 / GT 350 its a major change. I will say the handling was great. Maybe its just me.