Ford recently announced that the 350-horsepower all-wheel-drive version of the Focus hatchback would cease production in the first quarter of 2018. Although the hot-hatch-loving Sleuth took the news hard, his sources are telling him not too worry: The next-generation Focus that will launch for the 2019 model year will eventually include an RS model. Rumour has it that a 48-volt motor/generator will assist the car’s four-cylinder gasoline engine to produce an estimated 400 horsepower and 394 pound-feet of torque. It should be noted that Ford will also employ similar technology in the F-150 as well as in the Escape and Explorer utility vehicles, and in a revived Mustang Mach 1. On the downside, it seems the new RS won’t arrive until the early 2020s.
Rumour has it that the next Ford Focus RS will have an electric helper motor and 400 total horsepower. (PHOTO: FORD)