Do you own a Ford Focus RS?
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Sounds like a nightmare once the warranty is expired. Between that issue and the Automatic Tranny issue on the Focus and Fiesta, sounds like the best choice is a Mustang.
There are ways built into the ECM to detect if a tuner has been installed. Some tuner mods are easier than others to detect. So be VERY careful. If you can remove the tuner and then run the car a bit, it is much harder to tell. But if the engine locked, then the evidence is much more obvious. They can and will legally deny warranty, and you have no recourse.
Expect used ones that have been incorrectly fixed on the cheap to be around. Be careful, many ford dealers will look in their computer to see if they have record of problems, and there is also car fax. Be careful.
Rod
I've read it's really common for the Focus RS to blow the head gasket.
With the quick advancements in technology and the rush to get vehicles out to the market to satisfy different regulations, it seems many new designs are not tested thoroughly. This is clearly a design flaw.
I'm not sure what is worse. A problem like this that surfaces on a brand new design not thoroughly tested, or something like Subaru where head gasket problems continue to occur for years on the same engines and never seems to be corrected.
So let me get this straight. You buy a car, you tune the car and it blows and somehow it's the manufacturer's fault? And that causes a "massive defect"? I'm not following. Once you tune it's all on you no matter who the manufacturer.
Having watched the whole yt video, did I miss something? Did it say said car was tuned? Did it also say that 'only' tuned FFRS exhibited the issue? If so, I must have missed that part.
What I saw said that if one had the FFRS tuned, better remove it as Ford will be looking for any reason (or excuse) to deny warranty service for this issue. Only seems logical. Perhaps better advice imo might have been, if one hasn't tuned their FFRS yet, don't.
So to answer the topic question, no. And based on this yt, I wouldn't do so either.
Originally Posted By: itguy08
So let me get this straight. You buy a car, you tune the car and it blows and somehow it's the manufacturer's fault? And that causes a "massive defect"? I'm not following. Once you tune it's all on you no matter who the manufacturer.
Lol. Manufacturers still have a lot to learn about dealing a head to a block.
A buddy of mine has a 17 ecoboost F150. Roush intake with a custom tune. He likes to go fast. Me on the other hand don’t mind going fast but not on a new truck that’s under warranty unless already equipped.
The latest issue of Grassroots Motorsports has a Tech Tips article devoted to the RS. It mentions the head gasket issue as well as the fact that some cars have a penchant for activating the rear drive shutoff even when the unit is not overheating. Despite Ford's assurances to the contrary, I'm guessing that more than a few dealers will use HPDE participation as the justification for denying warranty coverage- whether the car is modified or not.
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I was VERY close to getting a 2017 RS. I mean REAL CLOSE.
It came down to just being in debt again, didn't like that idea.
What is interesting to me is this problem isn't happening on the Mustang 2.3 ecoboost like it is with the RS which puzzles me since they are basically the same motor with a tweak here and there. Since the RS runs more boost than the Mustang, these 2.3's well cant hold their boost haha.
As much effort Ford put into this RS why on Earth would they use an Open Deck Design on a car pushing this much boost?
The AWD system is also very weak on these cars I have found out. Rear Dif over heats quite easily and its not really a full time AWD system like the Subaru's are.
So after doing my research, and the fact I didn't want to make car paymetns again.....I passed.
Seems I made the right decison..............For Once.
Much Respect to Ford for Importing this car to us folks here in the USA though...Very Cool Car...Just need to iron out the wrinkles.
Jeff
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Originally Posted By: Jeffs2006EvoIX
I was VERY close to getting a 2017 RS. I mean REAL CLOSE.
It came down to just being in debt again, didn't like that idea.
What is interesting to me is this problem isn't happening on the Mustang 2.3 ecoboost like it is with the RS which puzzles me since they are basically the same motor with a tweak here and there.
As much effort Ford put into this RS why on Earth would they use an Open Deck Design on a car pushing this much boost?
The AWD system is also very weak on these cars I have found out. Rear Dif over heats quite easily and its not really a full time AWD system like the Subaru's are.
So after doing my research, and the fact I didn't want to make car paymetns again.....I passed.
Seems I made the right decison..............For Once.
Much Respect to Ford for Importing this car to us folks here in the USA though...Very Cool Car...Just need to iron out the wrinkles.
Jeff
Any amateur Honda turbo lover could have told them that open deck and high boost don't play well together, but the guy in the vid is probably right about some pencil neck or bean counter overriding the engineers.
With all of the manufacturers who have run afoul of head gasket issues, let alone these issues on boosted motors, you'd think they would build these things like vaults.
Nope.
Originally Posted By: Jeffs2006EvoIX
What is interesting to me is this problem isn't happening on the Mustang 2.3 ecoboost like it is with the RS which puzzles me since they are basically the same motor with a tweak here and there. Since the RS runs more boost than the Mustang, these 2.3's well cant hold their boost haha.
.
WhimseyOriginally Posted By: Delta
Originally Posted By: itguy08
So let me get this straight. You buy a car, you tune the car and it blows and somehow it's the manufacturer's fault? And that causes a "massive defect"? I'm not following. Once you tune it's all on you no matter who the manufacturer.
Originally Posted By: itguy08
but seemed to be quite sly about the tuning question.
The fact it has a stock intake and exhaust tells me it can't have been tuned much, if at all.
But as previously stated. You could go back to 1996 and find out from an average Honda boi back then that you don't want to turn up the pressure on an engine with an open deck block.
I would not even want to beat on that thing stock. Any engine that is going to be beat on (track, etc.) needs to have some massive margins. When operating at 10/10, but our issues that wouldn't even be noticed on the street will end a car on the track.
This engine sounds like it has no margin at all. No thanks.
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