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NEWS
CHICAGO MOTOR SHOW: Ford Fiesta ST racer
Ford unveils first Fiesta ST race car for Chicago show, confirms participation in X Games and global RallyCrossFord may have abandoned the World Rally Championship from this year
, but that hasn’t stopped it revealing a cracking new race version of its upcoming Fiesta ST for this week’s Chicago motor show.
, but that hasn’t stopped it revealing a cracking new race version of its upcoming Fiesta ST for this week’s Chicago motor show.
While the standard Fiesta ST hot-hatch is due for Australian release – in three-door guise only - in the third quarter of this year, Ford Racing will campaign this heavily modified iteration in the 2013 Global RallyCross Championship and X Games events.
Built by OlsbergsMSE, the Fiesta ST GRC will be piloted by Ken Block, Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan following a multi-year deal between Ford Racing and the US tuning outfit.
At the same time, Ford has been announced as the sole automotive sponsor for the 2013 summer X Games, all four global events of which will feature RallyCross heats.
Block, a 2012 X Games silver medallist behind multiple world rally champion Sebastien Loeb, will also campaign a Fiesta ST GRC race car in the 2013 Global RallyCross Championship for the Hoonigan Racing Division, following back-to-back titles for the Blue Oval at the hands of Foust.
“I’m stoked to be able to say I’m going to be continuing to race Fords in Global RallyCross for the next few years, especially with the four X Games events this summer,” he said.
“For the upcoming 2013 season, my team is taking everything we learned during my rookie season last year and applying it to an all-new RallyCross car. It’s going to be a fun season.”
The RallyCross-prepped OlsbergsMSE Fiesta ST will be presented to fans at the Chicago show by Foust and Deegan, who will contest this year’s Global RallyCross title.
The Global RallyCross Championship will have a more international flavour than ever in 2013, when North America is expected to host five rounds in addition to four 2013 summer global X Games, including the traditional event in Los Angeles and new venues in Brazil, Spain and Germany.
“Global RallyCross has been a great series for us to demonstrate what Ford’s small performance cars can do,” said Ford Racing Director, Jamie Allison.
“With great drivers and teams, and now a formal manufacturer partnership with OlsbergsMSE, Ford Racing’s commitment to Global RallyCross is quickly growing. We’re excited about the debut of the Fiesta ST GRC car this year, and it will be fantastic to see Ford’s global performance car compete in four countries around the world this season.
“Global RallyCross and X Games allow us to connect with the next generation of Ford customers and a very important group of performance enthusiasts.”
Ford has released no technical details of its Fiesta GRC racer, but it’s expected to be similar in specification to the standard Fiesta ST, which is powered by a 132kW/240Nm 1.6-litre EcoBoost turbo-petrol four.
Other ST additions over garden-variety Fiestas include a full sports body kit comprising a unique grille, chin spoiler, rear diffuser, tailgate wing, fascia extensions and chromed dual exhaust outlets, plus a 15mm-lower ride height, tweaked electro-mechanical power steering system, Torque Vector Control from the Focus ST and 17-inch alloy wheels.
Fitted exclusively with a six-speed manual gearbox and Recaro sports seats, the Fiesta ST is claimed to hit 100km/h in less than seven seconds on its way to a top speed of around 220km/h.
Ford’s belated replacement for the Fiesta XR4 will be a direct rival for the Volkswagen Polo GTI, Skoda Fabia RS, Suzuki Swift Sport and upcoming Peugeot 208 GTI and Clio RS, with a single variant priced close to $30,000.
The Fiesta ST will arrive as part of a facelifted 2013 Fiesta line-up to be opened by Ford's new 1.0-litre EcoBoost three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine.
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Written byMarton Pettendy
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