In 2011 Ford Showed off the Ford Focus ST-R, a full race prepped version of the ST that would come in 2012.
I wanted an ST back in 2012 when they launched. I ended up buying a 2013 MazdaSpeed 3 in 2015 over an ST because I worked for Mazda and I thought it was the better car. I was SORELY wrong.
I autocrossed the Focus RS( 2 different ones, both with RE71R's) in January 2017 and was able to see what a capable chassis this is. I drove an ST 5 months later and I sold after that.
Fast forward 11 months later to December 2017 and life happens to make buying an ST the right decision, and in the process I can right a wrong.
Now present Day March 2019.
Car has 45k miles and I absolutely love it. It has problems, but I absolutely LOVE to drive it. Cruises effortlessly to work every day and is very confortable.
Over the past 15 months Mazda Deuce and I have found the flaws of the car as it was built from the factory.
#1 The lack of a mechanical differential.
Well known issue is how these cars cook brakes with repeated hard use because the front pads will go nuclear trying to keep the wheels from spinning at "low" speeds. I want to install a mechanical LSD. Quaife or M-Factory to help with this brake issue and give the car more low speed mechanical bite to pull out of corners.
#2 Front Brake Cooling Paths.
The Stock Rotors pull air from the outside instead of the inside making it impossible to blow air into them from cooling ducts. You can see it in the above photo.
I want to be able to take this car to a track for an HPDE and have no issues with brake temps. I have done 2 sessions in the car at MSR Cresson and the brakes are a liability. Pads needed to be upgraded already and Fluid will be getting a major upgrade as well, Car uses Motorcraft DOT 4 stock.
I also want to run an oil cooler to keep the oil happy on track, it starts getting warm already with laps at Mineral Wells at the TnT course.
The upgrades I'm looking at will bump the car into SCCA's STH (Street Touring Hatch) class for Autocross. Since the racecar was the ST-R, I figured i'd dub my car the Focus ST-H for obvious reasons.
Now, that brings us LITERALLY to today
Thanks to the wonders of cost cutting the front knuckle designs on the RS and ST are identical. This means the RS Brembo Brakes are a direct bolt on.
I scored a pair of the calipers today from an RS owner locally who bolted on the ST snowflakes to his RS and scratched them. It was worth the couple hundred bucks for him to buy new ones for his RS with 1100 miles. and he sold me the scratched ones for $50 each!
I just have to run a 3mm spacer with the Stock wheels, and this will leave proper amount of thread on the stock studs. So I don't have to upgrade to ARP's immediately.
My Score!
Dang, that's a great deal for you!
This is going to be an interesting project. The brakes/diff are what's holding the car back right now. There isn't any reason to add power or suspension until it can be driven as is without turning the brakes into molten goo.
Rock auto didn't show a caliper bolt from Motorcraft and with the stories here I elected to find OE ones. Tasca Parts had no listing for them though.
Dialed up my local ford dealership Grapevine Ford while I was leaving work tonight and sure enough they had them in stock for $4.62 each. Ran over and scooped them up.
Next up are
3mm spacers
RS Brake Hoses
Pads
Rotors.
I daily drive a Sho and always wondered how these were to drive. Have heard really good things
Picture of bolts because it wouldn't load in the grocery store when I tried to upload it earlier
Norma66 said:
I daily drive a Sho and always wondered how these were to drive. Have heard really good things
They're awesome cars. They'll run 87 or 93, just delayed throttle response on 87 which you'll only notice if you drive it as much as I have and switch between the 2.
Fits 4 full size adults but the front passenger seat is a bit tighter on leg room. Knees seem to be closer to the dash than most like. But I'll take myself and 3 Co workers to lunch in the car all the time.
I have also fit 10 17" 245"s and 255's in the car at one time.
One of the things I did this past year was install a solid phone mount that could survive autocross.
I copied a setup Mark Scroggs used on his DS 2017 Camaro.
Proclip base with a RAM Mount Ball screwed to it and then a double female arm and a X mount for my phone. Been very happy with it.
It's also got rubber webbing behind it to REALLY help hold the phone in place but I've never felt I needed it.
Man this makes me miss my FoST so much. I love my FiST too but the FoST was just so much more car/practical. The FiST really is too small when I have my kids in the back seat but 99% of the time I am in the car alone so I will resist the urge to go back to a FoST. Keep up the great work! I am loving your plans for the car. Should be awesome!
I wish my local ford dealership had had one of these or a FiST in stock when I was shopping. They did not so I bought a honda. Now I have turbo envy.
karplus2 said:
Man this makes me miss my FoST so much. I love my FiST too but the FoST was just so much more car/practical. The FiST really is too small when I have my kids in the back seat but 99% of the time I am in the car alone so I will resist the urge to go back to a FoST. Keep up the great work! I am loving your plans for the car. Should be awesome!
Thanks man! Size is part of why I have a focus. I also don't like the thought of getting a car on 2 wheels. I also couldn't slide between the Fist Recaro and the wheel. So that ultimately killed it for me.
barefootskater said:
I wish my local ford dealership had had one of these or a FiST in stock when I was shopping. They did not so I bought a honda. Now I have turbo envy.
Fit is a great car, but I definitely hear you. I was very fortunate to be in the market at the right time. But now I'd just buy a used GTi. Great cars as well.
So here is the first conundrum I've been wrestling with.... Wheels and tires...
STH allows up to a 265 for FWD cars up to a 9 inch wheel.
The RS brakes mean my beautiful white OZ's I'm using in GS do not fit. I did a test fit last weekend on my buddies RS and they were a no go. The barrels make contact with the edges of the caliper.
The BFG Rival S 1.5 is available as a 17 up to a 255, 245 is the only STH compliant 18" size.
Stones RE71R top out at 255 in a 17 and 265 is available in an 18.
17's are cheaper in both brands... but the wheels are a bigger upfront investment and the 255 17" BFG is similar in price to the 265 Stones.
2nd part of the issue is 17's are only readily available in a 17x8 that I know will fit. From team dynamics and Braid Wheels
17x8 Braids run $300 each.
Both 17's are around 20lbs
17x8 Team Dynamics are $255 ish
Motegi MR136 are $183
18x8.5
24ish lbs
Interested to see where you go with this. I bought my MS3 after looking at an ST. The electronic brake "differential" system was literally the only thing that stopped me from buying one during the first model year.
I'm half happy to see that my concerns about the brakes having a meltdown when pushed (that no one could give me a straight answer on when questioned) were founded.
The0retical said:
Interested to see where you go with this. I bought my MS3 after looking at an ST. The electronic brake "differential" system was literally the only thing that stopped me from buying one during the first model year.
I'm half happy to see that my concerns about the brakes having a meltdown when pushed (that no one could give me a straight answer on when questioned) were founded.
The MS3 has its own host of issues, like turning consumables into dust really quickly. I'll take a focus ST with an E diff every day of the week. I have no desire to own a gen 1 or 2 MS3 ever again.
I could solve a lot of the problems of the ST brakes with top of the line DOT4 and some crazy pads.
I just want to get beyond that and the Bremo's are an almost identical rotor size. Proper airflow paths for pushing the car at higher speeds are my #1reason for going to Brembos.
Definitely watching this one with interest.
I bought a FoST last May, and have really enjoyed it as a daily driver. I've never autocrossed, and this car is going to be my entry point this summer.
So you'll be taking the Very Experienced point of view, and I'll take the Total Newbie point of view.
How much contact are you seeing between the caliper and the wheel? Small enough that a flap disk could take care of it safely?
I like those Brembos...
This might seem like an odd request, but could you, if you're able to, measure between the bolt locations :|
They appear to be short enough to fit on the rears of my wagon.
TVR Scott said:
Definitely watching this one with interest.
I bought a FoST last May, and have really enjoyed it as a daily driver. I've never autocrossed, and this car is going to be my entry point this summer.
So you'll be taking the Very Experienced point of view, and I'll take the Total Newbie point of view.
Go have fun. The car seems to respond well to aggression if it's applied correctly. You're totally new to autocross this car will leave you lots of room to grow into. Buy a dedicated set of wheels and tires.
Where are you at? edit: I see Denver.
thatsnowinnebago said:
How much contact are you seeing between the caliper and the wheel? Small enough that a flap disk could take care of it safely?
I couldn't fully get the wheel onto the hub to even check. The OZ will require a large spacer as well and that was actually what I was worried about. And I'm not really wanting to install long studs yet. So now I'm just going to cut my losses on the OZ and run something that works better.
FuzzWuzzy said:
I like those Brembos...
This might seem like an odd request, but could you, if you're able to, measure between the bolt locations :|
They appear to be short enough to fit on the rears of my wagon.
Let me take some photos and measurements tonight. see if I can give you what you're looking for.
spacecadet said:
Go have fun. The car seems to respond well to aggression if it's applied correctly. You're totally new to autocross this car will leave you lots of room to grow into. Buy a dedicated set of wheels and tires.
Thanks!
So my 10-second search tells me that I'll be in G-Stock. So that's 200 TW tires right? Any recommendations?
Might be interested in your OZ wheels, if you get rid of them...
TVR Scott said:
spacecadet said:
Go have fun. The car seems to respond well to aggression if it's applied correctly. You're totally new to autocross this car will leave you lots of room to grow into. Buy a dedicated set of wheels and tires.
Thanks!
So my 10-second search tells me that I'll be in G-Stock. So that's 200 TW tires right? Any recommendations?
Might be interested in your OZ wheels, if you get rid of them...
I will be liquidating the wheels. I'd put them at 90% cosmetically. They've picked up a chip on a spoke and some black marks from cones. Perfectly round. I don't street drive on them, Take that back, i street drove on them for 1 week. otherwise not driven on the street....lol
retail is $1100ish new, i got them for less buying the last of the white ones back in november. Probably looking for $750ish+ shipping... but i'm also not a hard firm on that price. Talk to me...
These are what they are.
In reply to spacecadet :
That's the Ultraleggera model, right? What's the size? 18x8?
What tires do you like for GS?
