Goodwood Park is an estate in the United Kingdom that has been in the hands of the same family for well over 300 years, and each year they put on a number of special events such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival events among others, including horse-racing events and golf tournaments. Not only are these events held on the premises, the family also hosts weddings, corporate conferences and the like on the massive estate.
The Festival of Speed was this past weekend with live coverage over all three days of the event streamed on Youtube. During the festivities, a brand-new Focus ST made its global debut on the road course, with driver Paul Swift doing the steering duties.
The new 2015 Focus ST has been engineered by Ford to offer substantially improved driving dynamics, made even better due to the Recaro seats, sport steering wheel, and ergonomically-enhanced controls in the cockpit.
Improving the driving experience was the first order of business when it came to developing the new platform, and to that end Ford Team RS was responsible for developing new front springs and more aggressive damper tuning to provide better performance. The car uses electric power-assisted steering, which has also been given a tuneup to improve the driving feel.
The 2.0L EcoBoost turbocharged engine pumps out 252 horsepower and 270 lb./ft. of torque to give the hatchback hot performance to match the hot looks. And slushbox lovers need not apply – the ST is offered exclusively with a six-speed manual transmission.
The car rounds Goodwood quickly and with a minimum of muss and fuss, showing off the new performance that’s been engineered into the platform.
This is one of those vehicles that would surely find a home in the garage if money wasn’t an object. Now, about that lottery ticket..