Well I suppose I'd put the SRT-4, WRX(non-STi), Cobalt SS, Mini Cooper S as competition. Maybe these are considered out of the price range of the SVT Focus.

 

How about having 100% if its torque from 1800 all the way to 5200 or 5500 RPM? These are turbo VW and Audi engines for you.

For NA, 85% of peak torque to arrive at 2000 RPM is impressive indeed, but most factory cars that are turbocharged come with smaller turboes that take very little to almost no time to deliver peak boost, and that is why their peak torque is available at such low RPMs.

Swapping for a bigger turbo will produce results you're describing -> aka Supra.

 

Its competition was Acura RSX, Toyota Celica GT-S, Nissan SE-R Spec V, Civic SIR. All were naturally aspirated, and all delivered similar HP output, save for the RSX which had 200. Most were higher priced, and SVT's handling was unmatched. I'd say that back in its day all the way through to now it delivers against its competition.

 

Actually, RSX in the base trim has 160 hp. The 205hp RSX-S is around $21-22k. The Celica GT-S did beat it by about 10hp, but didn't have anywhere near the handling prowess. The only thing that kept me from buying the SVT Focus was that it wasn't being made when I got my new car.

 

SVT was a nice little car, but it needed more punch.

Sad how a sweet Focus was ALREADY available overseas in the form of the turbo Focus RS. This car is said to be one of the best handling front wheel drive cars in the world market. And it looks good too. I'd take it over any other FWD compact (SRT-4, Cobalt SS, Ion Redline, RSX, etc...) any day of the week.

The Euro Turbo RS should have been our SVT from the start.
http://www.rsportscars.com/eng/cars/focus_rs.asp

 

So whats the point in 91 octane then?

 

To many others, YES - Ford is getting some buzz in the community. I grant you that most of it is about the Mustang, but I also get lots of hype about their new trucks and SUVs too. I have been asked by coworkers and a few friends about the LS, the Mustang, the Ranger, the Excursion, and the new Mercury SUVs - all bu guys ready to buy. They value my opinion because I am into cars (Fords). They had already done some looking or seen ads on TV, and wanted my advice on these units. In the last 2 months, my boss paid cash for a new Lincoln LS, one of my personal vendors wrote a check for $48k for a 2005 Excursion diesel, my god-father bought a new 2005 Explorer XLT (burgundy), a retiree I have contracted back in for consulting work just bought a 2005 Explorer Limited (pearl), The Electrical Engineer sitting across from me bought a new 2004 Ranger XLT ext cab 4x4 in October, I have another co-worker waiting for a new Mustang, and an extremely wealthy aquaintance who is expecting his Ford GT (red without stripes) to be delivered in January.

My point is not that I have a lot of wealthy friends, but that these folks are all very excited and pleased with what they had to choose from, and every one of them asked me what I thought about the xxxxxx car/truck before they bought it. They shopped on their own, I didn't send them to shop, and I didn't hedge them to buy either. I simply told them what I knew about the vehicles - good and bad.

You are right too - it is certain that only Ford "insiders" and enthusiasts are really excited and happy about whats going on. I agree that Ford is in a bit of funk at this particular moment, but as that "insider" I DO know what's coming and it looks GOOD. If Ford can maintain high levels of quality and service with it's bread and butter cars over the next year, the special editions and high-end units that are coming will be icing on the cake that will boost sales and interest on all fronts.

AT LEAST I KNOW FORD IS WORKING ON THESE SPECIAL EDITIONS AND UNIQUE NICHE CARS.
Ford may not be so brash (or stupid) as to leak photos or details, but you can rest assured that there will be a Shelby Mustang, a Shelby Expedition, an Eddie Bauer Explorer, an SVT Five-Hundred, an SVT Lightning, an SVT Cobra, and several other units in the next 2-4 years, and I have a high confidence factor that they will be successful and appealing to their target markets. I am not being asked to "have faith", only to wait a year or two while the engineers and production guys do their thing - much more appealing to me and easier to swallow as a car nut than "have faith".

Again, I admitted that DCX has indeed beaten Ford to the dealer's lot with these types of cars - their SRT program is on a roll, and even the (un)Hemi marketing concept has been a huge success... all while Ford is doing a complete model lineup overhaul and is somewhat dead in the water at this moment. But in 2 years, if the 300 and Magnum are not facelifted, there will be a half-million of them on the road and they won't be "new" anymore, so if a buyer wants a new niche or unique car, the timing should be great to go to a Ford, SVT, or Linc/merc dealer and check out the 06/07 units that will be fresh on the lots. Same argument that was used for an 07 Camaro entry when the current Mustang design will be going on 3 years old.

I am not saying Ford has it all 100% perfect, but I am saying that I think they are doing OK right now, and I have every reason to think they will do better in the next 2 years and beyond. It's purely my .02 .

 

I'm not seeing how your situation is any different in real ways from a person well-connected with GM who knows what they are up to. But maybe they have a better relationship with their GM friends and know not to spill a lot of details about upcoming models. Has Ford announced that they will have an SVT 500? If not, how do you think Ford feels about you chatting it up here in public? Could it be, GM has different standards for discussing future products, maybe even due to different constraints (like relations with the CAW, as I've read herein)? So sniping at GM for asking people to have a little faith is a little unfair, especially when it comes from a well-off collector with over a dozen Fords in his personal collection

So fine, feel free to post here about your wealthy friends awaiting their Excursions and GT's. Just don't expect a lot of friendliness when you make oblique swipes at GM fans who ARE keeping the faith.

 

I don't recall ever mentioning anything about 91 octane. However, if you mean why does the SVT Focus use it...then I'd say because they wanted more power out of that setup (higher compression). The 4 cyl. in the SVT Focus was a Ford motor and IMO not the best one they could have used. Mazda had a much nicer 4 cyl.

BTW, as a former owner of Subaru WRX, I know all about small turbo spool up. I also know that our SVTF would own the WRX on an autox course. I've driven both quite a bit. I enjoyed my WRX immensely, but in the end, it had to go

 

TO simply paraphrase what you said, you and those in the know are excited about Ford's upcoming models, mainly through SVT. That is good news, I am glad Ford is planning on bringing some excitement.

That is referring to the future. Not the present. At present, Ford does not have anything exciting, "gotta have" cars/trucks other than the Mustang, Lincoln LS, and maybe some truck variant. It is not any different from GM. You grouped Ford and DaimlerChrysler together because of the excitement they offer, and excluded GM.

Right now, GM has more excitement to offer than Ford. Cadillac is one example. Variuos other divisions have their excitement as well, GTP, GTO, and what not. If we apply your formula to 2-4 years, I bet that GM has at least as much excitement as Ford, if not more. There are plenty of RWD vehicles planned, there is Solstice.

The only "keep the faith" vehicle is the Camaro. That's the only one. Besides it, there is a lot more in the pipeline. And while Ford may have excitement with SVT products, I don't see them bringing to market whole car models that are exciting.

 

Well, Subaru offers peak torque at 4000 RPM, rather high for a stock vehicle. Until it delivers maximum boost, that engine is probably pulling with 160 HP, what NA Impreza offers. YOu many know all about small turbo spool up from the WRX perspective, but I pointed out that there are small turbo vehicles (such as Volvo and Audi/VW) that bring 100% of torque at 1800/1900 RPM. Way short of the 4000 you mentioned.

 

AMEN to that.

 

Camaro is only one car? It's THE car that GM makes (well, made) that's worthwhile. Sorry, you can shove all of the electronic doodads into a FWD V6 car you want, I'm not going to get excited about it. Cadillac is the brand I'm supposed to get excited about?

I want something RWD, with good horsepower, handling, and sporty styling. I don't have more than $30,000 to spend. Nissan can offer me one. Ford can offer me one. I'm going to go buy a Comp G over a Mustang? Yeah, ok. I think the difference between posters on this board is that when some of us are looking for a car, we look for the best car we can find for our money. Other people, they look for the best car that is offered under the GM umbrella of products that they can afford. I guess that's the attitude GM banks on, and why they've been sitting on mediocrity for so long now with most of their cars.

Only the Camaro? Call me crazy, but I love the Camaro. I don't think it's an "ONLY" car. Unless you mean the ONLY car that really matters from GM is the Camaro. I'm not going to go into some FWD excuse for a sports car just because GM decided they didn't want to make the car I love anymore. I'll go buy what's best for me. But don't **** on me and tell me it's raining, telling me to go buy something "cool" like a Grand Prix.

 

That was my point. Why have to hassle with premium gas when its just a go-getter.
Another problem I have with it (the SVT), it was too 'Honda'ish in its styling, but then again, I guess I'm not a part of this current honda-loving generation.

 

Why hassle? Because I liked it. My wife liked it. It gets 29 mpg even though Ford said it would only get 26 mpg. Who wouldn't want a sporty little car like that for a work car Actually the Focus was Euro, not Japanese. I just don't see any Japanese in it.