Ford Focus RS vs. Volkswagen Golf R - Track Review ONE TRACK MIND - Ep 1.
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TechTranscript
00:00You
00:30If you watched my road review you would know that I found the Focus RS to be much more exciting
00:35Now I think that we can agree that the Golf is the much more compliant daily driver and potentially the better all-around package
00:42It is the nicer interior and a better ride, but personally I care about driver engagement
00:47So my plan is to give these two a fair whooping on the track to see which one really brings the thrills
00:53Now I am going to focus on the driving experience and the cars dynamics
00:57And then a special guest is going to set some lap times
01:11Welcome to Toronto Motorsports Park
01:14Ontario's premier drag strip and driver development track
01:18This is a very big facility and it's where I first cut my teeth in proper track driving
01:23It's where I bring my own car to test mods and practice driving technique
01:28So it's a great spot to find the best and the worst of each of these cars
01:38Now the reason that I've chosen this track is because it has a little bit of everything
01:42We've got high speed corners low speed corners some straightaways so you can use the horsepower
01:47But the thing that I like about it most of all is that there's nothing to hit
01:50Which is important for someone driving someone else's $50,000 hatchback
01:54So I'm going to put these cars through their paces on the racetrack
01:56But first we're gonna go to the drag strip now obviously I need another driver to drive the other car
02:02So I'm happy to announce a brand new partnership with the pinnacle advanced driving Academy next year
02:07They're going to be doing track days here introducing driving enthusiasts to the world of performance driving and motorsports
02:13But in the meantime, they've loaned me a racing driver
02:20He
02:25Asked that I keep his identity a secret and alter his voice
02:29Because he doesn't want his employer to know that he's moonlighting as a driver for pinnacle driving Academy and now reviews with TH
02:35But I still wanted to know more about him, so I asked him a few questions, and I'll be honest
02:39He seemed a bit arrogant
02:41So you can't tell me who your employer is no
02:45Do you race cars can't tell you?
02:48Do you race carts can't say that either? Are you a fast driver? Yes? Are you faster than me? Yes?
02:58Let's find out
03:17Oh
03:31That launch control is violent
03:35holy
03:37It just bangs and crackles and the exhaust explodes, and you just rock it off the line very much like a GTR actually
03:45Well, I lost there you go all the golf fanboys are jumping up and down right now
03:54Now because science we swapped cars and in the golf I still lost
04:00So that tells you with the manual golf anyway these cars are close enough on the straightaway that it comes down to the driver
04:06But now of course it's time to see which one is better at bringing the smiles on the track
04:14I have an open racetrack. I have a Volkswagen Golf R, and we're going to see just how fun this thing actually is
04:25All right straightaway
04:31130 140 150 160 170 whoo
04:36And yeah, it's rotating you if you lift off at the right time it will rotate I can feel the front diff
04:44Constantly working to pull me back in
04:47I like the downshifts nice gurgle from the engine when you do that, too
04:51apex
04:53Apex it I can feel it. Just pulling me towards the apex
05:00Well that was impressive
05:02Well that was impressive at first I found that it eventually clouded the driving experience of it
05:09It's still you know what it's doing a lot of work for me like a lot
05:15Even with everything turned off. I don't think I can turn any more off than I have turned off right now
05:19So I'm just trying to experience the car as it is
05:21But there's a constant sense of the car kind of wanting to wash now if you drive it
05:27Within the limits of what it can do
05:30This is a really good car like a very very good car
05:34For all you Volkswagen guys out there that gave me a hard time for my road review
05:39Yeah, this is for you. I like this. I'm having fun
05:42That could have a lot to do with the fact that I have my own racetrack right now
05:46But I'm still having a good time in this car. I
05:49Thought that I would be going out of this and then running back to the focus to give that a go as I push
05:54The Golf R more and more I really started to notice its strengths and its flaws
06:00When you really load up the steering it feels much better
06:04Okay, I've got
06:06Significant weight through the corner. It's actually kind of numb in terms of feedback, but it's waiting up well
06:12Yeah, right. Yeah, I can feel a
06:15distinct heaviness under load and then
06:18When you start to feel the understeer build right there
06:22I don't get that much communication of the understeer. I'm actually getting more from my ears
06:27Hearing the tires start to chatter in the front and then the feeling in my back of not going towards the apex and that for
06:34Me anyway robbed some of the fun from it
06:37down the second
06:40If I stand on the gas
06:42It under steers. I can't I can't get that back to go under throttle at all
06:48I can go here and then lift off. Yeah, and then we slide
06:52That's fun that don't get me wrong that's fun, but it reminds me of a front-wheel drive car
07:00Yeah there see I can get the tail to go a little bit
07:05It's very front-wheel drive in its behavior
07:08Very much like the power delivery
07:11You don't really notice that much turbo lag to be honest
07:15It has a really nice sound a very refined sound it's not a super
07:20Exciting sound it just sounds good. Sounds very very German sounds very much like my BMW in terms of nice growl
07:28shift
07:30growl again
07:32It's nice
07:34170
07:37Brakes
07:42All right lifting off there goes tail, yeah
07:44There goes tail, yeah
07:48It's fun i'm having fun i'm having fun can't really complain golf car on a racetrack it's a good day so far
08:00So again the first thing I notice right after literally getting out of the golf car stepping into this and driving away
08:07Is that everything feels sharper?
08:11No matter what you say no matter what you try and convince me of
08:14This is a sharper car the throttle response the clutch the steering the suspension
08:21The handling the weight transfer everything is more immediate
08:25more aggressive
08:28So I have it in track mode i'm going to try that first
08:32This makes everything pretty much as rock solid and responsive as we possibly can make it
08:36Which means that the ride is terrible. This is a there's a few bumps in this track
08:40This is a very very smooth racetrack
08:42There's a few spots that go up and you feel it way more in this than you do in the golf turn
08:47Oh my god turns in so fast
08:53That is just that is a that is an exciting feeling that just
08:56Simmers through your arms you turn in and you just get this
09:00Massive front end kick and it just goes right in towards the apex actually quicker than you think it should
09:06Yeah, well I had to back off a little bit
09:08And downshift into second hard on the gas
09:14Yep
09:19The back comes around a little bit there under power and there goes the back under power
09:24Woo, this is an awesome car. Yep. It's more fun than the golf
09:35Third gear turn in
09:38Apex. Yep. There it is
09:41catches
09:44Just a little four-wheel slide all the way out to the exit
09:48So far in my life, I think this might be one of the most impressive cars that i've driven on a track
09:54There goes the tail down into second there goes the tail
10:01There goes the tail
10:04Oh
10:06Man it's just
10:07It's just there. It just does exactly what you want it to right when you want to do it
10:12The steering is very very very sharp
10:15And there is tons of feel and there's a lot of feedback, too
10:18When you start to get that front end shatter of the understeer as it builds
10:22You can feel it vibrating through the steering wheel
10:24You feel it catch and pull and catch and pull and catch and pull and catch and pull
10:27And then you can pull off a little bit
10:29On the lock to try and straighten it out lift off the gas let the front dig back in and off you go
10:35That makes it easier to drive it fast. I was very impressed, but I did find one or two issues
10:41Yeah, I wish that in race mode. It was a little bit more planted
10:46Damping wise it's very very bouncy
10:49That would be my biggest gripe about it. I think
10:52Though the torque vectoring and all-wheel drive is more advanced than the golf's it still had its issues
10:57If sometimes you can feel the front end
11:01Kind of
11:03Get confused as to what it's doing. It doesn't happen in every corner. It depends on how you set it up for the corner
11:09But occasionally with a little bit of a bump it upsets it
11:13it tries to do something with
11:16The torque vectoring and it it kind of ruins the the line through the corner
11:22But that could be fixed with a better driver
11:24So i'm going to go right ahead and say it
11:28if you're looking for
11:30a really hot hatchback an all-wheel drive hot hatchback
11:35I can tell you that
11:36There are some sacrifices that you do make with the focus
11:41But it's so worth it I said this in my last film it's so worth it
11:48The way that it feels how balanced it feels in the corners
11:52This one this is the one you want
11:54This is an easier car to drive fast
11:58I am very excited to see what my paddler racing driver is going to do with these
12:05I've got a feeling we're going to see the rs do a faster lap. Now. I know everybody will be wanting to see me do
12:13drift mode
12:15but
12:17Tires are expensive. I'll put it in drift mode and i'll kind of show you what the car feels like
12:22It softens everything up actually immediately I can feel
12:26It leans a little bit more in the corners. It's not so jostling over the bumps
12:30It's so that it can dial in the amount of grip in the front and the back to give you that perfect angle
12:37So i'm going to show you just how easily the rear comes out when it locks those rear diffs
12:42We've got 70 of the torque heading to the rear
12:45And that's enough to get the tires spinning and do
12:48Power oversteer I can get the golf to oversteer by lifting off. That's lift off oversteer. That's different. This is
12:56power oversteer
12:58That's the fun one in case you didn't know
13:01All right
13:02Yep sliding sideways
13:06Turn in on the power i'm sideways
13:08Sideways turn in stand on the throttle and i'm sideways
13:18God you could be a complete idiot and drift this thing
13:24Yeah, it let's go with a tail so easily for a car that has cup twos on it
13:30Stand on the gas and sideways
13:34That's it
13:35Yep, this is awesome. Love this car. Let's give it to the racing driver. See what he can do
13:42So, let's take a look at the golf r first
13:44So our racing driver went out and did repetitive hot laps until he set a time that he was satisfied with
13:49You will see the fastest lap of each here
13:51Remember this golf has michelin pilot super sports, which is quite an upgrade over stock
13:56Which will make it a very close match to the rs. Let's find out
14:05So
14:35So
15:06So
15:19A 1 24 5 not bad. Let's see what the focus rs can do in the same conditions with the same driver
15:35So
16:05So
16:35So
17:06So
17:09A 1 23 dead
17:12The focus edged the golf by a 1.5 second margin, which is a fairly significant amount on a track of this size
17:19The racing driver told me this was due to stickier tires and a better all-wheel drive system that staved off the understeer
17:26Overall it turns out that the volkswagen golf r and the ford focus rs are very closely matched on the drag strip and on the road
17:33course
17:35However, when it comes to pounding around on a back road or on the track the focus rs is simply a more exciting car to drive
17:42Now most of you will convince yourself to buy the more comfortable and practical car the more sophisticated car
17:48And I won't fault you for that
17:50But if I was going to buy one of these I think I would embrace my inner child and choose the rs
18:05Foreign