Ford Focus Wrc on The Road of Success

The Ford Focus RS( Rallye Sport) WRC(World Rally Car) is built by M-Sport for the BP Ford Rally Team and based on the Ford Focus Climate 2 litre production hatchback, developed to compete in the World Rally Championship.

In 1999 the first version of this car appeared,replacing the Ford Escort WRC. It debuted in the Monte Carlo Rally and since then was immediately on the pace, setting many fastest stage times. However,he use of an illegal water pump disqualified the two cars from the event. McRae gave the Focus its first major win on the Safari Rally Kenya finishing over 15 minutes ahead of the second placed Toyota.The WRC’s car’s suspension was designed by the same engineer who designed the base Focus.

Jost Capito,director of Ford Special Vehicle Engineering in Cologne,says: “It means motorsport gets the latest technology and knowledge of the cars we are working on. It’s also great motivation for engineers who normally work on standard cars. If they’re quick and have expertise,they can work on performance programmes.”

One upshot of this could be that they take the experience of different work style and mindset back into mainstream engineering. It may not appear very,but approach seems to work well for a racecar.

A new design of Focus WRC appeared in 2003, named Focus RS WRC 03. The car had most of its parts redesigned. It had a distinctively lighter body shell and a new aerodynamically enhanced front bumper and wing. It was Markko Märtin,an Estonian rally driver,who drove the car to two world rally victories.

The 2004 and 2005 Focus WRCs were marvellous outcomes based on the RS WRC 03. The Focus RS WRC 04 won three events. Again it was Markko Märtin who made the victories possible.

By 2005, the car became quite uncompetitive and had no major wins. This lead to the development of a brand new model the Focus RS WRC 06,fitted with a Duratec engine. This car underwent a series of incremental improvements in both the engine and body to get around 20kg off its weight. This allowed the team to position ballast in areas where weight distribution was needed. This optimised both the handling and balance of the car,resulting in twelve world rally wins, starting with the 2006 Season opener Monte Carlo Rally. This time it was Marcus Gronholm behind the wheel.

The Focus RS WRC 07 is based on the 2006 model. Ford’s technical director Christian Loriaux says, “The changes on the new car are mainly to save weight and to improve efficiency, driveability and performance at the bottom end of the range.”
The car debuted very successfully at the Finland rally in July 2007,collecting the first and second place. In the subsequent German event,its performance extended Ford’s lead in the constructor’s championship to 143 points,41 more than Citroen. Later at the 2008 Swedish Rally,it made history when Jari Matti Latava used the car to become youngest-ever driver to win a world rally.
The Focus RS WRC 08 is based on the 2007 model. The car with its new front aero design was seen first at the Rallye Deutschland 2008 Shakedown. It not only includes design style changes but major improvements in the engine too. The revolutionized design gave it four rally wins in 2008.

The 2009 version of the Focus RS WRC includes some style changes to the lights frame and rear bumper. Capito says: “To be competitive you’ve got be close to the limits of what’s possible within regulations early on-after that only small steps are possible.”
Today Ford Focus, WRC is regarded as one the best sports cars in the world, and among the fastest ever European production car. Modifications in the design has helped it extend its lead in the rally championship. From 1999 till 2008,it has ,on its credit,a total of 36 victories and hopefully will continue to grow in future.

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