Ford is making no effort to conceal the fact that the introduction of its diesel based Focus ST has been inspired by the success of rival VW, which has been doing brisk business in Golf GTDs in recent months.
Those among our breakdown insurance customers who love hot hatches, but who also love spending less on petrol (and doing less harm to the environment) may find the ST appealing.
TheUSfirm has revealed that the car will be available toUKbuyers from March of next year and will be based on the PSA/Ford four cylinder diesel engine – which is manufactured in Dagenham,London.
In terms of styling the new ST will feature a larger front grille and a number of other body modifications.
Bhp figures have risen from 150 to 185 in this unit, while torque is likely to put a grin on hot hatch stat-junkies everywhere, standing as it does at 295lb ft.
Ford says the ST will hit 62mph from rest in 8.1sec, delivering a top speed of 185mph.
This looks agreeable next to the more expensive Golf GTD (£26,420 for the five-door), which boasts 0-62mph in 7.5sec and a 143mph top speed.
The German car's 67mpg and 109g/km of CO2 does outstrip the 64.2mpg and 114g/km CO2 of theFocus ST– but clearly, not by a huge amount.
Ford has not revealed any prices for the ST yet, but the petrol version retails from £22,295, so a diesel unit is unlikely to differ too much from this figure.
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