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Ford reveals 345-horsepower output for new Focus RS [w/video]

When Ford revealed the new Focus RS at the Geneva Motor Show, it promised it would deliver "well in excess of 315 horsepower." It didn't say exactly how much that would come to, but now it has. On the eve of its dynamic debut at the hands of Ken Block at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Ford has confirmed that its new hot hatch will pack 350 metric horsepower. Those reaching for their calculators will find that works out to 345 horsepower by our standards. The power output is backed up by 324 pound-feet of torque, capable of being boosted up to 347 for up to fifteen seconds at a time. Those figures come from a retuned version of the same 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbo four as the one available in the Mustang, but produces over ten percent more power thanks to a new turbocharger, upgraded intake and exhaust, and a larger radiator. All that muscle will be channeled to all four wheels through Ford Performance's new all-wheel drive system with dynamic torque vectoring, launch control, and selectable drive modes, including a Drift Mode that (as you can see from the video below) allows the hot hatch to get more than a little sideways. Ford still isn't saying what those specs will translate to in terms of measurable performance figures, but as far as output goes, things are looking pretty good. The 30th Ford RS model already packs more power and torque than the new Honda Civic Type R (306 hp, 295 lb-ft), Volkswagen Golf R (292 hp, 280 lb-ft), Subaru WRX STI (305 hp, 290 lb-ft) or the Nurburgring-conquering Renault Megane 275 Trophy-R (271 hp, 266 lb-ft) and Seat Leon Cupra (276 hp, 258 lb-ft). It even respectably holds its own against the more upscale BMW M235i (320 hp, 330 lb-ft), Mercedes A45/CLA45 AMG (355 hp, 332 lb-ft), and Audi RS3 (362 hp, 343 lb-ft). Whether it'll outshine them all in real-world conditions remains to be seen, but we're looking forward to finding out whenever Ford deems fit to drops those performance stats on us. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Watch how Ken Block spent his weekend in Barbados

Regardless of what you think of his skill as a racer, Ken Block is an expert showman. At this point, he has a career of showing up around the world to do vehicular stunts, and he's still able to go racing as well. It's a pretty sweet niche to carve out. Recently, Block was in Barbados to participate in Top Gear Live and the first event of the Global Rallycross Championship season, and Ford Racing produced a short video to show off his exploits.
It looked like a great show. Block got to race Lewis Hamilton in a Mercedes-Benz Formula One car and had a very weird crash during a Rallycross race that put his Ford Fiesta on its roof. Top Gear also released an extended look at Block and Hamilton's spectacle with the two of them expertly sliding around. Scroll down to watch the videos and get a taste of Block's tropical racing adventure.

Shelby GT500 laps N"urburgring in under 7:40?

A couple of weeks ago we brought you footage and official times of the new Chevy Camaro Z/28 lapping the Nürburgring. With a 7:37.47 lap time, the Z/28 emerged as the fastest muscle car ever to lap the circuit. But what was missing from that picture was how fast the king of all Mustangs, the Shelby GT500, could manage to lap the Nordschleife.
Ford never released any information or footage of the GT500 on the Nürburgring that we were aware of - that is, until the guys at SVTPerformance.com put in a request for Mustang videos. Among the clips they received was never-seen, in-car footage of the Shelby GT500 lapping the circuit. And boy did it hustle.
Although not quite official, the video seems to show the GT500 lapped the venerated German track in a touch under 7:40. That would make it a tick or two faster than the Camaro ZL1 - but what of the Z/28? By Chevy's quoted time, the Z/28 is still faster than the GT500, but SVTPerformance suggests GM may have fudged the numbers a bit and scrubbed half a second or so off their lap time.