Focus RS Warehouse Shoot

If you follow our social media channels, it should come as no surprise that we absolutely love the Ford Focus RS. With this in mind, we’ve set out to make the Focus RS Best Mods. Custom Performance Engineering started out making parts for the Ford Merkur and later the Focus SVT. Naturally, the RS has been on our radar ever since the first generation. When it was announced that we might finally get this forbidden fruit, we called up our preferred dealer immediately. We actually placed an order before they even knew it was going to be available.

Beginning the Build

This quick action allowed us to get one of the first delivered in the United States. The first year the car was available, it was incredibly difficult to find on dealer lots. Since we were able to get a car quickly, we partnered with Anderson Composites to build the car for SEMA. Once we had the car in our engineering facility, we quickly took all of the measurements needed in what was practically a 24 hour non-stop session. In less than 48 hours of ownership, we had shipped the car off to California for Anderson Composites to begin development of their carbon fiber parts for a SEMA unveiling.

Countdown to SEMA

The clock was ticking and we only had a few months to develop parts based on a car that we had shipped off across the country. First things first, we knew that we would have to make a FMIC for this car and that we would need time to get the castings produced. We used our knowledge from past EcoBoost projects and knocked out the design. Once the first prototype was created, we sent our 3-D print to Anderson to test fit. Luckily for us, the prototype print fit perfectly and we could begin production on the first piece of Focus RS Best Mods. Another nice win was that the engine side mounts worked and the rear engine mount could be produced rapidly.

Continuing the Build: Focus RS Best Mods

With the FMIC sorted and time counting down to SEMA, we used our ROMER data to draw up a downpipe and full exhaust. This became our QKspl™ downpipe – both with a high flow cat and in off-road race configuration. We produced this along with our Austenite™ exhaust and sent them across the country for Anderson to install. We can’t stress enough how much of a challenge it was to produce parts for a car located across the country in such a short timeline. Again, we were glad to hear perfect fitment.

Down to the Wire

The final pieces of the SEMA prep performance parts were our intake system and hot and cold charge pipes. We got lucky here and these were close to our ST products, so we could rapidly produce and ship these out.

While the car was getting performance pieces and lovely carbon fiber, we partnered with Fifteen52 for a set of their classic Tarmac wheels. These were the perfect fit for the car and really had the rally look we wanted. To lower the car, we worked with Eibach for a set of sport springs that function with the factory shocks. The ride is fantastic and drive modes are preserved. The final piece was a Cobb Accessport with a custom tune by our very own, Mitch Levy. With all of the parts together, we finally got to see the finished product at SEMA. We were (and still are) totally smitten with this car and really wish Ford would continue to build these amazing machines.