Ford mulls hot RS Fiesta

Ford's Fiesta ST may not be the quickest version of the company's little shopping basket. Photo / Supplied

While Ford's boy racer brigade is no doubt gleefully awaiting the new turbocharged Fiesta ST, there is potentially far more exciting news on the horizon.

Potentially because it's far from confirmed, but Autocar magazine reports that Ford is considering creating an RS version of the Fiesta instead of a Focus RS.

The reasons swaying Ford in the Fiesta direction, according to the magazine, are that the Focus lacks a sporty three-door body shell and that there would be a better motorsport tie-in with Ford's WRC world rally car being a Fiesta.

What kind of mechanical spec sheet the Fiesta RS would have remains a far-off mystery though.

Naturally it would need to have a lot more power than the Fiesta ST, which is endowed with a 132kW 1.6-litre EcoBoost turbopetrol engine.

But would Ford stretch as far as installing the Focus ST's 184kW/350Nm two-litre turbopetrol? That would depend on the Fiesta chassis' ability to harness all that urge, but it would certainly be the hottest hatch in its class by far.

But if the previous Focus RS could handle 224kW with technologies like RevoKnuckle in place then it's perhaps not too much of an ask.

Just don't get too excited by the Fiesta RS prospect just yet as Ford is reportedly still seriously considering the Focus option. Sounds like lots of white-knuckled fun either way.

- IOL.CO.ZA