Just make sure you have £36,295 lying around somewhere
Ford has announced a limited-run Focus RS in the UK called "Race Red Edition." The name comes from the Race Red body color of all 300 units, and it's a hue that reminds of Santa Claus' costume.
However, the Focus RS Race Red Edition replaces the white elements on Santa's clothes with a series of black accents for a more dramatic look. Those include the black-cast 19-inch alloy wheels, black roof, black mirror caps, and black rear spoiler.
Also qualifying as exterior goodies are the black surrounds of the taillights and grey-finish Brembo brake calipers. Since Santa is usually generous, the Focus RS Red Edition also comes with partial leather Recaro seats in Ebony and carbon fiber trim in the cabin (door handles, handbrake lever, and auxiliary dials bezel).
The front mechanical Quaife limited-slip differential (LSD) is also on the list of standard features — to get it on a normal Focus RS you have to spec the Option Pack (Europe) or Limited Edition (US). The LSD limits the engine torque delivered to a wheel that encounters reduced traction and redistributes torque to the wheel with more traction.
Other standard equipment includes privacy glass, rear parking sensors, electric folding mirrors, cruise control with speed limiter, heated steering wheel, Active City Stop, and Ford KeyFree system.
The 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine is untouched, delivering 350 hp and 440 Nm (325 lb-ft) of torque to all four wheels via the Ford Performance All Wheel Drive system. Dynamic Torque Vectoring for the rear axle and Torque Vectoring Control for the front axle help the Focus RS stay on track no matter how hard the driver pushes it in corners.
As with the regular Focus RS, the Red Edition sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds using Launch Control, and can slide its tail around corners thanks to the Drift Mode. The Ford Focus RS Red Edition is available to order now through Ford UK dealerships for a £36,295 starting price (that's about $48,700 at the current exchange rates). Production begins in February 2018.
Check out our review of a "regular" Ford Focus RS right here.