Ford Focus RS : day 521 : Engine failure...again?

Is my engine about to self-destruct? The evidence I have suggests it might!
FFS
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[@zigyrat]

Sorry to hear about the problems you're having with your RS, It must be extraordinarily frustrating. Fortunately I haven't had a single one, I had the HG replaced even though I had no problems before the replacement and I drive it hard and aggresive ( My average gas mileage is 19.3 mpg ). In all honesty, of all the RS owners I communicate with on IG and the Forum there are very few that have had any real mechanical issues, except for maybe the highly modified and often tracked. Issues happen with All vehicles regardless of manufacture, especially a high performance vehicles such as the RS. Even the Type R is dealing with their own major issues, search Type R Transmission problems. I'm not trying to divert attn or say this is better than that, just saying I have had nothing but a great experience with my RS.

[@MarkCup70]

You and many many others Mike have had no problems at all so continue enjoying what is, and always will be, a fantastic and unique car to drive. Sadly it did turn out that the head gasket on my second engine had indeed failed...I sold the car shortly after this video because, well, I'd simply had enough, but the next owner had the work done my Ford in Exeter and I unerstand is still enjoying the car.

[@MotionPlays]

@@MarkCup70 Why did it fail, I thought it was the revised engine with correct gasket? You should make a video on it!

[@MarkCup70]

@@MotionPlays I've no idea why it failed again but it did, Ford Exeter gave it a new head gasket for the new owner...and yes it was the "correct" gasket that failed! No more videos on it from me...I got enough abuse from the Ford community for daring to speak the truth as it is!

[@walther89]

true, so do i, even owning also GTI or R golf, they are amazing, no much problems, but at certain tuning or power (going crazy ) there are problems coming

[@jstnR]

Its been 3 years since your comment that “very few” have had “real” mechanical issues with the RS. 😆 single most expensive and problematic low quality trash car ive ever had. In 30+ years of car ownership by far the worst experience ever.

[@steventonkz]

*Imagine buying an RS in the second hand market... stay well clear!!*

[@andywhite15]

TonkaTruc k one for sale near me with FMP375 and Ghost upgrade. Been there 2 months at least

[@jayrave4]

Exactly this! Only the owners seem to have bought Ford's BS line that the engine failures are down to the head gasket.

[@HEXlCAN]

I just about to do that, now I hesitate

[@azamchaudhri]

Yeah, you would be mad to touch one second hand and especially one coming out of warranty in the future. Sorry Ford, but this has just been a big own goal with this Rs. Was this not the car as well that was tested extensively in the USA and Ford USA signed it off??

[@totowolf9716]

So I’m thinking values will tank when the warranty periods are up in 2020/2021.

[@moc1man]

Mark, I suggest you do two things. 1. Purchase an access port handheld, like Mountune, COBB, dream science, etc. 2. Datalog a few pulls at 3000-6000 rpm, then have a tuner analyze them for you. Even if you just keep the logs for yourself, you can easily examine them using a spreadsheet program. Oil seepage doesn't typically cause power loss like you are experiencing. The turbo blow-off valve has been rumored to leak, which will definitely cause power loss.

[@herpderp1662]

Mines at 400awhp/tq at the moment and has been so for about 5000 miles without issue. Couldnt give 2 fucks less as I have a built 2.3 on standby. You do know its only slightly more to get one from tune+ or mountune than it is to get a shitbox oem shortblock.

[@AndyC2_]

Love your videos, and this is not meant to be offensive in any way I just hope you are not letting this RS take over your life in terms of its issues. It’s so easy to become obsessed and worry about little else. That can be a misery for those around you. My thinking is, it’s just a car, just drive it and maybe not so much time bothering about it. Unless it’s just for You Tube content then fair enough, just don’t let it take over your life If it is, then get rid quick 😂

[@Curi0u50ne]

Get n A45

[@fishatethecat]

Worrying loss of boost. Hope it's nothing major but Ford really need to sort their shit out. So many issues with the ST and the RS engines. Will the new models be any better in terms of reliability? My ST was a blast to drive but the engine issues put a downer on the whole ownership experience. Sad to say I've gone German now and hopefully will be able to drive it hard without the constant fear of issues.

[@thebatlemasterdave]

The RS is built in Germany but I know what you mean hahaha.

[@riccccccardo]

Germans even worse my last three German cars were horribly unreliable I want Japanese car right now but I’m to broke fixing my Audi b7 all the time. Latest thing to go front control arms and air bag light on. 😪

[@jim6807]

Haven’t heard many problems with the 2.0 ST... Pretty reliable as far as I know and hear.

[@Goodchappy]

I was informed that a coolant pipe made of inferior plastic was causing a coolant leak and engine overheating and in some case fires if the oil got in the wrong place but otherwise the ecoboost engines seem to be good. I see so many videos of people especially with the Fiesta ST upgrading the turbos and thrashing their engines without issues. I don't know about the other ecoboost engines but the Fiesta ST 1.6 ecoboost seems extremely reliable.

[@richarddale76]

Not just the petrol cars.. my 6month old transit is on its 2nd engine and 3rd turbo! The engine was fitted and 11days later the turbo blew because it used every drop of oil in the engine. I was told this was my fault for not checking and I was charged £960 for a new turbo, fitting and oil. In the process of rejecting the van.. NEVER again shall I touch ford

[@shootingcham]

Cars these days are built like shit, I'd of got shot of it after the first gasket. If an engine fails that early on alarm bells should ring about the quality of the manufacturing

[@nickmanhota324]

Your so wrong fords have always been shit to be honest from my dads xr4i 4x4 to today fords have always had there higher percentage of issues in high performance cars because they are built cheaply there no m3.

[@nickclark6001]

@@nickmanhota324 Ford have been world leaders in cost cutting since the 1960's They bought Volvo in 1999 , Raped their technology and dumped it in 2010. In 2008 they started making the 5 cylinder diesel in the Bridgend and made some design changes shrinking the cylinder block around the top to save some Alluminium, this resulted in the outer edge being undercut about 14 mm and only 3mm of alloy supporting the edge of the head,this caused quite a few cylinder liner and coolant loss issues resulting in new engines. These engines were bullet proof before ford started messing with them.You can see the results of other cost cutting through the range from 2005 onwards.Starter motors,alternators,water pumps,wheel bearings,clutches,etc From 2010 to 2017 all Volvo's new problems were Ford based, Thank god Ford have gone now and once again Volvo are top quality,having record sales for the last 5 years whilst other manufacturers are down, just get a V60 polestar Mark and have a trouble free life and no more being bounced around in that seat !

[@royalstevep68]

Seems only Audi, bmw, Lexus are made well now. Honda and merc aren’t great, not in my experience anyway

[@PakiBoy1987]

None of you obviously know what your talking about, maybe you should all go back to school and learn the basics again because you all sound think as shit!

[@colemorgan5079]

Seany Hughes telling us to go back to school, when you struggle with your spelling, ironic 🤔

[@kevin-l7r7p]

Look forward to finding out what this leads to...just had got mine back 2 days ago having had the work done! This fills me with confidence......M2 Competition anybody?!

[@filiplaskovski9993]

Remove spark plugs grab a Bore scope and start looking for a super clean cylinder and piston!! Best way to check for head gasket leak!

[@charlesf2684]

Just to balance out all the negative Ford comments - I have an RS with the Mountune FPM375 tune which has not missed a beat pre-gasket change and afterwards - not a single problem despite a couple of track-days too. Also my wife drove another Focus - a mk3 diesel which was also completely reliable and well spec'd for the price. I think the RS delivers outstanding performance at a price that is not matched by the competitors. The gasket issue is unfortunate and should not have happened, but clearly was not picked up by Ford during testing otherwise they would not have launched it with a known fault......

[@SPURTIS00]

You said your RS is mod free so it should make 350 hp at the flywheel (brake hp). So when the dyno read 347 wheel hp, it was wrong; perhaps out of calibration or something. Has anything about the dyno changed since your RS was last on it? Regarding boost, it does appear you may have a boost leak based on your video, but were the conditions the same for the two runs? I would say trust your feel of the car as well. You say it doesn't feel different, it probably is not. Best of luck.

[@robtaylor3335]

reckbody probably running Morrisons petrol.

[@blower1]

You would expect it would at least do the BHP it's being sold at - but ford always exaggerate....VW/Audi always underestimate. Golf R mk7.5 - official 306 BHP, usually comes up as 330 on dyno's. Official 0-62 DSG - 4.6 seconds, however it will consistently do 4.2-4.3 seconds in testing with a vbox. Btw all his dyno figures have never been WHP they have been BHP - you can see there is a correction factor CF file running on the dyno.

[@SPURTIS00]

What a crock of bullshit. If you are saying that a Golf R puts 330 to the wheels, you are full of shit. BTW, good luck with that pos when the odo hits 75k or so and stuff starts falling apart. Mark my words.

[@SPURTIS00]

Like I said. A crock of bullshit.

[@wazon8]

I've got Seat Leon Cupra 300 which has 300 HP according to producer and delivers 315 HP according to dyno. So, today one may expect that producer declarations will find confirmation in dyno test. Focus RS was my favorite due to driving experience but its unreliability moved me to 4x4 Leon Cupra. The chose was not bad. 60k km with no issues so far.

[@ashcosmo3854]

Lol without being too harsh but you'd have to have rocks in your head to own one of these cars. These cars are ticking time bombs, from coolant leaks to warped blocks you'd have to be clueless to ever buy one of these without warranty. Owning a performance car but being too afraid to put your foot down is insane. They sure did drop the ball with these cars.

[@michaelgoodwin593]

Should have kept the Clio 172.... I bet that F4R still running to this day.

[@Verknechter]

My Clio 200 F4R engine exploded at 30000 km and 3. gear syncro started to wear out the second time around 70000km xD Never trusted this car anymore. Better buy a F4RT Megane 3 RS. Very reliable engine.

[@mikehakett9779]

That wobble steering would drive me nuts.

[@jinxed_jinxed_3443]

Mate it's not the steering that's wobbling, it's his fucknig arms :O

[@TonyLeach-airguntech]

Mark, its a hell of a journey you are on, my Mrs and I were on the same journey up until June where we got shut of the RS, lost a packet on it because of all the issues BUT just bit the bullet and said well thats it, RS done and dusted and we moved on. You probably know what i am going to say now...its time to get shut IMO, you are going to be reporting issues over and over instead of enjoying the car. Honestly the best Focus i have had was the Mk2 ST, rebushed with poly bushes, big intercooler, spaced intake, blue flame cat back and a dreamscience map, we ran it at around 285BHP. 44k miles and over 7yrs old it just needed a major service with new brakes etc and we traded it for a mk3 ST, should have kept it sorry to say. The moment Ford moved to ecoboost and away from the 5pot Volvo lump the issues started. That mk2 ST made me smile and was so less stress than the RS was, and this video just proves to me they are continuing to get it wrong and are just pushing the cars along till warranty runs out on them. I hope its something minor...no Im praying is something minor on your car, however my gut is telling me that head needs to come off right now.

[@spainter1985]

Honestly quite ridiculous at 18k miles, the whole point of these cars is for fun and reliability without the worry. Next step - a compression test? That would at least give you some peace of mind about that oil leak.

[@61js]

Aside from Marks specific problems with his RS , there is an official recall by Ford .Countless examples and testimonies of other owners problems . Can someone explain why another well known you tuber with nigh on 1.5 million subs , basically denied any problem existed with the RS as he unloaded his standard model for a Red Edition , which now looks like a tarts handbag (no offense to any tarts out there) and then collects his one of only 50 Heritage Edition model's ? Oh, and not forgetting the GT that that he managed to secure . Ummm 🤔

[@kevin-l7r7p]

Because the 99% of owners haven't had any issues. Mine had to have the recall done but I didn't have any issues before or after. It's not surprising that Tim is one of the owners that have had zero issues. It's highly probable.

[@61js]

@@kevin-l7r7p So why have the work done then ? My point was that the incorrect gasket was fitted to a run of engines which was acknowledged by Ford and has led to engine problems . How many , who knows . Was the 1% figure a guess or a Ford stat ?Anyway , the point was to seemingly deny the issue and brush it off as inconsequential when it was indeed a fact . The probable reason being not to p**s Ford off when they gave you the opportunity to buy 2 rare and appreciating cars .

[@kevin-l7r7p]

It's a preventative measure that was why to have the work done. All cars produced up to mid 2017 are part of the recall due to 'incorrect gasket' or poorly designed/not fit for purpose gasket etc. So a huge percentage of produced cars have had to have the recall work done but only a fraction of those actually had an issue but clearly the more time that passed the more failures there would have been. The FRS does get a lot of attention in the media/social media so the level of issues is exaggerated. But trust me this isn't an appreciating car...sadly...If you know of any coming up that'll cost less than 50k let me know!

[@cerberus_uwu]

Maybe because shmee who shall remain nameless can suck a golf ball through a garden hose?

[@blackflagpirate3444]

The BHP on the RS is 345 mate but some seem only to have 339BHP. The car is outstanding performance wise but seems to be unreliable.The only thing I can think of is that they rushed it though production mate.Sorry to here your having problems 😢 Think the Mustang engine is a bad egg mate.This car is designed to be driven hard.Shouldn’t be having problems like this on a 2015 performance car with 18.000 miles on the clock Mark.

[@cerberus_uwu]

Hahahahaha shite ford!!! Everyone said so and we were all fools or haters... well, whose laughing now #FixOrRepairDaily

[@misterPheng]

wow.. didn't know Fords were that bad. thought the focus was ok ne of the better cars too, but seems its leading the fleet with problems. Makes the Golf R the top of the pack for me then. Staying clear of the Focus.

[@amylouise4228]

There was a head gasket recall on the 2016+ rs’s, did you not get this done?

[@MotoRobee]

This is just way to sad.... Ford built a performance car what can not handle performance...... :((

[@kevhulme8595]

Hi mark just had a look at head gasket focus rs mk3 17000 miles , seems a little dirty underneath , thought let you know mate .

[@benbennit]

Part of the reason ford has decided to stop making these sort of cars.

[@jollibee_racer]

Could it be a boost leak from the stock plastic recirculation valve?

[@leethomas3263]

Upgrade to the MK2 😊

[@walther89]

your gasket is good, its a dust coming in and maybe some upper engine vapors mix it and its blown around it, when ever car runs and doesn't leak like crazy or donsnt sound wrong, i don't touch it. Over servicing car is pointless.

[@watfordfc0]

Mark,,....... this should have the publicity it deserves ...., get you're money back ...., this car has no legacy its a dud !!!!!

[@1970borntorun]

This is absolutely despicable of Ford, and all their vast Engineering resources just rub salt in the wound. I'm not claiming to be an expert on this subject, but I have heard from a few sources that the basic architecture of the engine goes back to the ARCHAIC 2.3 liter Pinto block from the 70s !! Gee Ford, do ya' think a highly-sophisticated Hot hatch like the Focus RS/ST might deserve a specially designed engine to handle all that torque and crazy boost?? Wow!

[@rs5001988]

How is it ford made better engines in the 80s than 2018? Ford went down hill in the 90s even the old leaky C.v.h was better wtf! #designedtofail cost us money. Like pretty much everything nowdays! the world is backward more tech more crap.

[@Bobbrians]

Oil weeping around gaskets indicates high crankcase pressure which is to be expected if you drive in a spirited fashion on a turbocharged car (the PCV system cannot keep up when the vehicle is under high boost), this can be corrected with a simple crankcase breather that allows excess gases to escape. Installation is simple as it just replaces the factory oil fill cap. CFM performance makes one that has a built in checkvalve so you wont get a check engine light. www.c-f-m.com/performanceparts/pc/CFM-Baffled-Billet-Valve-Cover-Breather-Kit-for-2016-18-Focus-RS-847p6243.htm UPR makes one as well www.uprproducts.com/billet-one-way-crankcase-breather-kit.html

[@ronanwood6891]

I have no prejudice against ford I loved my mk1 fiesta. But after the service I received with a faulty car they are just terrible.. Please save your time, money, and stress. Buying a ford is just not worth it. Even Kia are making better cars nowadays.

[@Toby_the_Glen]

Am I the only one that is irritated by this guy driving at 30mph and looking like he's twitching his way through some apex's at 100mph? All those delicate litle steering inputs as he threads the car beautifully between the van and the bus?

[@pressrolls]

FORD probably remapped all cars with engine replacements to make less power to help them limp through the warranty period then its your problem. ....and hoped you wont notice.

[@buzz1629]

What’s the point spending all that money on a Rs & having to worry about these issues all the time. I owned a 2017 focus st & long story short after six weeks of issues I finally got my money back also bad customer service. Ford are discussing in my opinion if you pay over 30k for a car you don’t expect issues ie HG failure and so on. Personally I will never own a ford again! The Rs & st engine are crap & the 1L economy engines are even worse, nothing but issues ford should be ashamed!

[@doskidyohdothethird7083]

Had my st tuned for three years and beat the piss out of it with no issues. Im willing to bet my RS will just as reliable.

[@buzz1629]

Doskidyohdo The third hope Your right I wouldn’t want to bet 25-30k on it tho

[@doskidyohdothethird7083]

mitman c its under warranty bro so even if something does it’s covered.

[@chrisvig123]

Not to mention all the Ford Mustang GT engines blowing up and Ecoboost V6 engines failing everywhere

[@censorshipBS]

I don't understand why people buy them with the issues that they have ford's are shit even the RS they look like something that your nan hangs on her Xmas tree FFS just buy a bmw

[@kylecasey3072]

The Focus Rs needs to be dyno'ed in 2wd mode if not the torque vectoring loses its shit and will cause your numbers to be low because its thinks the car is slipping about the road

[@jasswear8911]

I was just about to buy one this week used good thing I came across this video. This motor is a piece of shit, no thanks.

[@jasonlycett8132]

When are you gonna learn ford's are shit....... Its simple don't hate me for saying it hate Ford for building shit

[@allnewpauly]

This is strange isn’t it. You could imagine a gasket problem if you’d just had the gasket replaced - but on a new engine? That’s worrying. Did you get a new turbo too? My engine passed the pressure test so I didn’t get a new engine or even a new head. Everything was running fine after the recall as far as I knew. In fact, the previous oil usage I’d witnessed had stopped after the recall. It was using around 300ml of oil per 6k miles before the recall. Anyways, 5000 miles after the recall I bought a Mountune sports cat and had an independent local RS expert mechanic fit it. He noticed oil collecting at the side of the sump, almost like a misting of oil collecting at the bottom of the timing chain cover. This was something that hadn’t happened previously, I’d changed my oil on the driveway at 6k myself and there was no evidence of any leaks. 2 trips Ford and they identified it as an oil feed pipe to the turbo. The o-rings can get crushed when they’re re-connected after the recall. So there is kinda general oily grubbiness all over everywhere under the bonnet now. Maybe you’ve had something similar if they kept your original turbo? Might be worth getting underneath and getting the under tray off for a look?

[@waynejames6596]

Even if the engine passes the pressure test it requires a gasket if it drops over 4 psi in 5 hours it needs a head if there is coolant down the bores and if not it's a gasket.

[@waynejames6596]

I work at a ford dealer the rs engine is dog shit done a few of these head gaskets in my opinion ford took advantage of the rs heritage and put some fancy bits on a standard car and over priced them.

[@watfordfc0]

Ford CEO Andy Barrett knows how poor quality this RS is...., Global Shameful Conman

[@tonybradley8465]

It’s difficult to see from the photos but could the oil residue be from when the gasket was changed previously and just not washed off? The power loss appears to be due to boost but it needs plugging in and a look at DTCs as a start.

[@craigmoorcroft950]

I would have sold this car a long time ago! They are poorly engineered and clearly make too much power for the car to be handle it. Brakes failing, head gaskets failing, blocks cracking. Poor show Ford, second hand values will be crap. SELL IT MARK

[@ghp0518]

I don't think the issue is with too much power.A friend of mine got a gen 2 Focus when it was new, it had a 1.6 na engine 110 hp and guess what? he had gasket fail - coolant seep - warped engine block (he still doesn't want to see a ford again). It sure seems like a recurring engineering mistake ford makes in some of their petrol engines - diesels don't seem to have the same problems.

[@Dvd888]

Check yr obd port fuse... mine stopped working and it was the fuse

[@cerberus_uwu]

Marc: regarding your oil seepage... the same thing happen to Evos when you push 400 bhp on standard bolts... the head starts to separate from the block. So it might be worth checking they've torqued the bolts correctly or they are adequate to hold the power.. a good set of ARP head bolts/studs torqued properly should sort it...

[@watfordfc0]

ALL Ford Focus MK3 RS owners ....., pursue a refund through the Ombudsman,..... Consumer Rights / Faulty goods ..... I did and was awarded a full refund

[@the4armedmonk]

What does that mean? I am in the usa.

[@watfordfc0]

In the UK consumer rights are governed by Law. I had an issue with the poor quality of my Recaro leather seats in my brand new MK3 RS after 3 months !! Ford only offered me a seat replacement as a "good will gesture" and not under warranty.... After a year of dispute with Ford, the Ombudsman services (Resolving "Consumer Rights", in the UK) ruled that the seats were faulty at the point of sale and rendered the car of "unsatisfactory quality". Ford could of arranged to have the seats repaired under warranty but didn't, there for I was granted the right to "Reject the car" by law. It is also my understanding that even if Ford had repaired the faulty seats under warranty and the problem reoccured you would also have the rights to, "reject the car", inline with UK consumer rights. Although this advice may not help consumers in the USA,.... its well worth exploring you're "consumer rights", in the UK. I really wanted this RS, expectations set by Ford and Ken Block were really high I invested heavily in this car. Within months of ownership from new the leather seats started to heavily wear. I was also being told I was not the only one with this issue in the UK, the leather quality was a major problem (not sure if it was leather). Then we were hearing we may have to have the engine rebuilt or replaced .... un-acceptable standards for a brand new car worth £36K !! Our UK consumer Law is there to protect the consumer against faulty goods of an "unsatisfactory quality".

[@juniorgraham3554]

Please please get rid of that money pit before your warranty runs out,

[@bgsound2721]

At one point did you suggest that Ford may have detuned your car?

[@pugz16v]

I went out and checked mine and there was none whatsoever of a leak from the head gasket but then I do have a mk2, try boost controller 1st if loosing boost high end rev range!

[@MrRippinonyou]

I wouldn't go near one if these with a 10 foot pole . Don't think u could pay me to own one , theres so many horror stories its gotten ridiculous . I really feel for the poor people getting stung with these lemons ... Ford should do a buy back and completely re-design these failures of so called performance engines . Ford have really tarnished there own reputation with this particular car , even the standard Focus with the dry clutch 6 speed auto is proving problematic overall with a mountain of issues . I know of a lady ( my mates mother ) owns one brought it brand new and its been in the shop over 10 times with the gearbox being totally replaced and still having issues with shuddering and violent gear shifting with no known proper fix they just keep updating the firmware on the gearbox control module with patch updates and its still rubbish Ford this is embarrassing and completely unacceptable !! I get a feeling these were rushed to the market and not thoroughly tested at all ...

[@jessicalivernois9147]

R\S produces less boost in colder weather as it is hunting a torque fiqure stock calibration, not a boost level. I wont even clickbait you into a video to disclose this life changing information. :p

[@benbradbury3665]

Well you have done a track day so your warranty is invalid..

[@LoveGod16]

LOL. Who the fuck told you that?

[@jimflanagan8073]

Interesting, did a little digging on this... www.autoblog.com/2017/02/27/new-car-warranty-valid-race-track/?guccounter=1 '...will be covered by warranty if the vehicle is operated within the limits and guidelines outlined in the vehicle's owner's guide and warranty manual, including when the vehicle is driven in 'track mode,' a feature that is contained on some vehicles, if it is driven on a track in a manner that is consistent with the guidelines.' Sounds awfully discretionary to me. Be interesting to see if this plays a part.

[@jollibee_racer]

Ben Bradbury nope it’s still valid as he wasn’t racing and only spirited driving

[@ronaldderooij1774]

@John Mitchell I am not so sure about that. Misuse is not covered. In my view trackdays is misuse. It is a street car, not a race car.

[@staggabob]

@@ronaldderooij1774 Why would they fit a drift mode if they expected you never to track the car? Think of the negative press if they added all these features and then told owners they had to use them only on public roads!

[@STEVEBHPDEVON]

Maybe the recirculation valve it only made out of plastic?!

[@bobthebiker3050]

Ahhh good thinking!!

[@chriss3594]

It is.

[@jamesbayley3797]

I agree, it's made out of plastic, I have the mk3 zetec s and this happened to me. In the end I got a aftermarket dump valve which is aluminium and that fixed the issue. No boost loss after that

[@NikosAl]

Get an Evo :-D

[@bllxy8226]

Ditch it and buy a golf R

[@226sickology]

The ugly civic type r is cheaper and faster lol

[@Iscobroooooo]

Just sold mine. What a nightmare of a car

[@mikeh6096]

Felling sorry for You Mark. Its not nice when something goes wrong. But I just dont know how you guys do it. My RS is bought when issues where sorted and has 127k kilometers and there is zero problems. Car is runned hard (6th set of tres on), been twice on nurburgring. Why Ford is saying about it?

[@mikeh6096]

*what is Ford saying about it?

[@samnaylor1145]

So glad I got out and got rid of mine. Had nothing but issues with literally everything. Had the gasket work done on mine and still issues afterwards. Lovely looking car but probably the worst car I’ve owned.

[@chrisvig123]

Open deck block poor engine design by Ford

[@holeephuk]

Sell this heap of shit and get wrx

[@nikaboka3020]

Mate!!! You dont have it in dyno mode.... that's why your figures are way off come on mate

[@sparkplug964]

I would say you have a boost leak some where, it could be your diverter valve which is alway a good idea to replace, even on stock cars, of a small tear in a boost pipe, your best bet it to get a boost smoke test which will show any leaks from you pipe work, easy test which can save a life time of work.

[@gtlegacy8]

should of gotten the civic type R just saying

[@goclunker]

so the transmission could sefl destruct? Look it up

[@pxidr]

Downsized engine pushed to the limits... 350hp from a 2.3L... What did you expect apart from unreliability?

[@supergrendel]

There are plenty of built 2.0l engines pushing 3x that of the RS so if they can do it Ford certainly shouldn't have a problem making 350 hp.

[@mrhankey8283]

pxidr a lot of golf r owners are stage 1 360bhp from a 2 ltr and their engines haven’t taken a shit ?

[@pxidr]

Yeah but what about longevity? Sure it works, but 25000 miles later, you throw up the engine... Maybe 2 out of 3 engines will last 200000 miles, but that's not sustainable enough for a mass production engine. The previous RS had the 5-cyl 2.5L 305hp Volvo engine, and it is a quite robust engine, because 2.5L for 305hp is still reasonable.

[@chrisvig123]

Other manufacturers do it reliably...Ford is just shyte

[@boywarrick]

@@pxidr, the 2.5 Volvo had liner issues. Certainly not as robust as you'd think. At least Ford are recalling and fixing these cars. Surely you remember the Rover K series and its headgasket issues. A brilliant lightweight engine by design, but sadly flawed. Subaru and Mitsubishi have no problems getting decent power from a 2 litre motor. My 05 Impreza has been running 330bhp from nearly new, it's now on 96k and still shows good compression.

[@gegwen7440]

Know nothing about an RS but watching your video I could not help but wonder about your steering ? A constant need to correct it as if it is almost shaking ? As others have said though I would get shot myself.

[@mattmiller6857]

Bet the ford dealership love you 😂

[@james8287]

Very weird, I would say the boost is normal. Depending on weather conditions and temps the car will fluctuate in the about of boost produced to hit the desired horsepower/torque numbers. Maybe your timing is off post head gasket and that is causing your loss in power.

[@Zadster]

My theory is that it was wet dyno rollers. The 4WD transmission was detecting slip on an axle (remember the rear axle overspeeds slightly on the RS Mk3) and wasa adjusting the torque front/rear. See the oscillation in the power graph? System detects slip -> moves power -> speed increases -> slip continues -> more power moved and so on. Every time the system adjusts, it is effectively applying a brake by a small amount. You wouldn't see that on a 2WD car because it is a solid roller, the slip would be there but the system wouldn't detect it until the slip ratio got quite high.

[@mrheisenberg72]

O shit...not again 😯

[@tonygarces1862]

Geez Mark! So much issues in 18000 miles!!! I would lose my sh&t completely. You are taking this so calmly. My Mk6R is on 35000 miles now and I have modified it with a big turbo kit. At 460BHP, I still have no engine issues and get to enjoy the car. Not worry about problems all the time. You have not even modified this Mk3 RS and it is constantly giving issues. I feel this car is a fail from Ford. The leak on the side from the gasket is not on. That could lead to serious problems later, but I do not think this is related to the boost issues you are having. I presume it could be a cracked or faulty diverter valve leaking boost at high rpm? But needless to say, that leaking gasket is not right.

[@pgtmr2713]

Is any of the loss caused by the pcm learning the way you drive and drive by wire. I.e. would a computer reset return all of the hrsprs. Also, 350 at the crank won't be 350 at the wheels. Pretty sure you knew that already. Is the oil from the valve cover? Carbon buildup before the intake valves?

[@ronaldderooij1774]

A visual inspection only? What?? Is fitting a scanning tool too diffucult nowadays? And the oil coming from the gasket. Well, there is not much to say about that. It is not a good sign, but on the other hand, it might go well for 100.000 miles.

[@danielfl.9347]

So sad to see all these Ford owners paying loads of money for a very well driving RS to see it only fail time after time. I think Ford should compensate you. This car is a mechanical nightmare. Everything on that engine is made out of cheese. I don't get these Ford engineers

[@mr.airgun6921]

Ford don’t do a sneaky boost downgrade on the recall do they? Boost gauge clearly shows a lower boost level doesn’t it. I read a comment from someone saying his had lost the top end overboost after it’d been in for a recall.

[@soundseeker63]

Ahh well, its only 40bhp, not like your car caught fire or anything as has been with the case with various other Ecoboom oops sorry I meant Ecoboost Fords.

[@andresortez6111]

I just passed 25K miles on mine and that includes 8k miles post HG fix. Most of the issues were due to the Head gasket. I agree, Ford fucked up by trying to cut corners and put Mustang EB head gaskets in these engines...but they sent out a fix for it. The second issue was finding a competent Dealer Mechanic. I researched and found a great one. Most of the issues Post-Head Gasket fix are due to dumb ass dealer mechanics that aren't experienced enough to crack open and engine and put it back together correctly. I've heard the horror stories of owners getting their cars back and miss-firing, check engine lights and lemon laws. Its the dealership mechanics guys...you just need to find a good one.

[@ghp0518]

The gasket fail seems to be a recurring thing for ford petrol engines, I have a friend who bought a Focus MK 2 from new 1.6 naturally aspirated petrol and had gasket fail -> coolant spill in the engine -> warped engine block, then heard of similar problems from a fiesta 1l ecoboost owner, now the RS seem to suffer the same issues.. I'm not sure in what percentage these fail occur to be able to judge the reliability, but it looks like they are doing something wrong and keep doing it

[@sarcastixx74]

A cheap way to help the engine relieve some of that high pressure on full boost would be an oil catch system. It wouldn't necessarily fix any boost loss (if that is your problem), but it would stop the head gasket from having an even shorter lifespan. It's so easy for the armchair experts to sit and tell you to sell and move on but I'm sure like most of us performance car owners will know that is always a gut wrenching decision to come to. Luckily my E46 M3 has not let me down like your focus has, but if it did I would still be looking for ways to finance its way back to health! Feel so sorry for the people who have bought into the rebirth of the RS badge and got stung. I grew up in my early driving years with lots of RS cosworths, RS500s and series 1 and 2 turbos kicking about and was excited to see if these next gen models could ever be as good as they were in the days of old. Ford really have fucked themselves and sadly everyone else with the poor engineering that has went into these new generation of high compression units. Second hand prices will also be hit with only enthusiast examples that have been under the care of a decent tuner being exempt. VW, Audi, BMW and Mercedes will be rubbing their hands with the exodus from the loyal ford followers when people will inevitably walk away from the brand altogether. Many reports of fords' customer services letting people down badly. Fingers crossed, it may be a relatively simple fix. Good luck, whatever you decide to do with the car.

[@GRfourfun]

Really feel for you mate. In the States at the moment and got given an ecoboost Mustang. Spanner light came on after 200 miles, got a Camaro and did 3000 fault free miles. Fords suck, good luck with yours.

[@garychivers9726]

Just got rid of mine can't be having all the worry/hassle especially when you buy a car new it's shocking & ford service is awful so all in all glad to be rid now. Gone German now.

[@Bobbrians]

With a factory rating of 350hp I would expect to see dyno numbers of around 300hp at the wheels after drivetrain losses. 350 crank horse power - 12%= 308 wheel horsepower, 12% seems abit low for total drivetrain loss so it is possible that the motor is making slightly more than 350 at the crankshaft. Using the the 347 wheel horsepower you quoted would come to 395 crank horsepower if you used 12% for drivetrain loss, this is well above what the engine is advertised to make, why the motor was making more power than it should raises some questions.

[@andyp8464]

I just wish those clowns would have spent more effort building a better engine and charged more for it. it's not a bargain anymore when it keeps breaking down. it's a pain !

[@paultk77]

Can honestly say I’ve never been so disappointed in a car! Always been into my fords and always wanted an RS I was driving a mk2 focus st running stage 3 spec, 9 years old it never missed a beat went on to a mk3 st which was ok but lacked the rawness of the mk2 so last November i went for it and got the mk3 rs... I loved it but within four months it’s in ford getting a new head and gasket at 2500 miles didn’t see it for over two weeks ... after it come back it just wasn’t the same just didn’t feel right and spending 33k on a brand new car to have its engine stripped down in bits .... nah.... and ford didn’t / don’t give a sh*t ... biggest let down ever... got shut of it at the start of the month before I lost serious money on it .... I now drive a VW and can honestly say as sad as it is I don’t miss it one bit.... and seeing this video now just makes me so glad I got rid ....and that’s something I never thought I’d say.......

[@BoogieMan1599]

Hi Mark, in regards to your first question about you not holding onto the boost like it used to. I had a similar issue with my ST 2016 model (so not a rs). But it turned out to be the knock sensor that was faulty. I would say though that I did notocibly feel the car being down on power toward the higher 4-6k rpm range. It almost felt like it misfired at times. I blogged about it on one of the ST forums so if I find the link to it I'll share it. Thanks for sharing your experience and look forward to hearing what the ford diagnosis is going to be.

[@josephpeterson5755]

Cold weather owner (northeastern U.S.) had the gasket done at 14k miles and sitting on 22k now. No oil showing around the gasket, no collected dust or any residue either and the car seems to be performing the same as the day I got her. Wish I could shed more light on the issue but I'd say the track day may have pushed something (not necessarily the gasket) just a bit too far. Best of luck with the inspection.

[@petergoyer1606]

I would think 308hp at the wheels makes sense for 350hp at the crank... it's the original dyno value that is odd to me, not the latest... if in fact if you have lost 40hp to the wheels you would notice it right away... that's huge and also, according to your graph you've lost it all along the curve, not just at the end... it's interesting to note that if you "normalize" the curves (superimpose them) they are identical up to the very end... and that can be explained by atmospheric conditions... it is definitely possible that hard driving has caused some damage to the turbo system, but the engine bottom end is probably fine... No, I am thinking that there isn't anything wrong with your engine, just the way it was measured the first time (just after the gasket swap)

[@mad4tar77]

As an owner of a faultless 100k kms 2014 Focus ST with the 2.0T engine, it does concern me that Ford are considering a detuned version of this engine for the new ST. Or perhaps the disastrous RS will grant them enough learning to produce a reliable one for the new ST. Interesting to see if Ford do the, "everything is fine, nothing to see here" line when the car goes in for inspection. It's not good enough from Ford

[@harrisj2278]

I think as some have already mentioned Ford rates all their cars to the crank factoring the 13% loss of power through the drivetrain I think 308 is fairly accurate. Someone else has also mentioned the possibility of a calibration issue with the dyno. Now I’m not saying that the oil residue you see isn’t cause for alarm or that their is nothing else wrong with the car just that maybe it’s not as abnormal as you think.

[@chrisbaxter5041]

It's quite a lot of inconvenience for such an expensive car and were do you draw the line ? Think the lesson to be learnt is only to buy from main dealers and also extend warranty once manufactures expires. Maybe worth getting engine cleaned to see what's going on

[@n54twinz91]

I’d get rid,sell it back to ford,not worth the constant worry every time your driving it,these cars are designed to be hammered and clearly ford have made a terrible mistake with them,can’t see the car improving with age to be honest

[@davespooney8472]

From everything you have shown, a simple boost leak is what I’d be looking for. Get Ford to check the gasket, it doesn’t look like it’s leaking to me. That oil is coming from elsewhere.

[@JM-tz1np]

Was that car in DYNO-mode? If not, that is normal reading. Did they clean engine after engine repair? I did have to clean my engine after head gasket replacement. There was lot of oil and coolant outside of block.

[@techo61]

Washers under the head bolts are also too small. I've seen examples where these engines are driven towards their peak performance (just as they've been marketed to their target customers) and the cylinder pressures have lifted the heads due to inadequate surface area under the head bolts. The aluminium gets distorted to the point the gasket can no longer restrain the combustion pressures.

[@shanes6120]

So I had to have the gasket recall done on my car about 2 months ago. I had the same exact problem I had a oil leak and when they did the head gasket the first time after it was done four days later they came out with a TSB for the oil leak because they didn't put silicone on the corners of the head gasket. I literally pick the car up last Saturday from having the head gasket done the second time.

[@DunkyThicc]

Before I had the recall done I had an oil leak from 2 spots in the head gasket. After the they replaced the head gasket my car feels different. I can feel the engine vibrate through my gas pedal and break pedal. I can also feel a little vibration in the steering wheel when going slower around corners. Taking it back in.

[@philanthropist5005]

350 hp at the crank. 308 hp at the wheels is a fair number

[@jimmyjt16]

Watch his videos, it made nearly 350 hp last time it was on the rollers.

[@blower1]

Aye, that chart he shows @ 2:59 is not BHP & WHP, it shows previous run and latest run in BHP (crank) on same chart

[@pugz16v]

Still shit!

[@dlyle]

Has there been any software updates. That may explain some part. Other thing is the head bolts may have stretched. Which will only be a problem under high combustion pressures

[@petermoygannon698]

all these high performance small 2 liter engines trying to keep up with each other for sales ..the best and fastest small hatch ..i went with mercedes for hand built factor m133 two liter turbo ..very high horsepower engine