[Dave07997S]

For those of you who think the Focus RS is going to be in the mid 40K range are wrong. According to Ford it will undercut the Volkswagen Golf R which is at $37k. My guess is in the low 30K range for a decently equipped car. There is no way a Focus RS is going to be in stone throwing range of price of a Mustang GT350 which will start in the $50k range.

A Focus ST fully loaded is $28k...thats before incentives and negotiated price. Easily can be had in the $25K range, so how is the Focus RS going to be $20k more money.

I am going to cross-shop with the M2 and the Focus RS. I own 2 Fords now a Fiesta ST (a hoot of a car) and my wife has a Ford Escape Titanium, both are excellent vehicles. I have owned 2 E46 M3s, 2 E92 M3s and a Porsche 997S. I am thoroughly impressed with Ford as of late. They finally get it that you just can't build trucks.

To be frank I feel the M2 will come within a whisker of the F8X cars in performance. These could be a very good buy for a Marquee brand car. I'm just tired of making $800 month car payments. With the cars coming out today you don't need to, to get a quality car at a good price.

As far as the final hp rating, we will see. The 2.3L Ecoboost motor in the Mustang is 310hp, to be frank I don't like this motor. Power delivery drops off like Mt. Everest after 5500 rpm, tuners are able to rectify this but now you kiss your warranty goodbye. As the FRPP Performance pack will just build more midrange while still making the same amount of power in the higher rpm range. Although companies like Mountune and Cobb are going to have a field day with this car.

Dave