As we wait for Ford to pull the wraps off of an all-new, fourth-generation Ford Focus compact car this April, Dutch outlet Auto Internationaal claims to have dug up some dirt on the forthcoming small car. The most interesting takeaway is this: the Ford Focus RS Mk IV will reportedly produce 400 or more horsepower, with the assistance of a 48-volt BAS (Belted Alternator Starter) hybrid system.
BAS hybrid technology is compact, inexpensive, and easy to deploy, as it uses a combination starter/generator/motor that takes the place of a conventional alternator, providing electrical power assist to the crankshaft through the serpentine belt. It’s been reported that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is planning to roll out BAS hybrid technology across most of its passenger vehicle lineup (per FCAuthority), and both the all-new Jeep Wrangler JL and RAM 1500 pickup are early adopters.
According to Auto Internationaal, the Focus RS’ BAS hybrid system will be coupled with the familiar turbocharged, 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine, paired with a 6-speed manual as on the current model, or, for the first time ever in an RS, a dual-clutch automatic transmission. The sprint to 60 mph is expected to take somewhere around four seconds.
Auto Internationaal also claimed to have a bit of intel on milder versions of the forthcoming, fourth-generation Ford Focus. According to the outlet, the redesigned compact car will feature a 5-cm-longer wheelbase, with hardly any increase in overall length, and curb weight will be somewhere around 110 pounds less on average than the current version. A new Ford Focus ST, likely to bow at the Paris Motor Show later in the year, will reportedly boast 280 to 290 horsepower from a reworked version of the familiar 2.0-liter EcoBoost.
Of course, it will be a while before we have confirmation on what’s been claimed regarding the Mk IV Ford Focus RS and lesser Focus ST, but other, more basic fourth-gen Focus models will bow at a special Ford event next month. Stay tuned for more.
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