Ford Focus RS gets 276kW Mountune kit

UPDATE 10:00am 08/08/2016: Officially, Ford Australia says it has no plans to introduce the new 276kW/500Nm Mountune engine kit for the Focus RS. However, given it already offers Mountune kits for both the Fiesta ST and Focus ST in Australia, motoring.com.au understands it's only a matter of time before the Focus RS kit bcomes available here too.

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Ford has developed a new power kit with Mountune that boosts both power and torque for the latest Focus RS hot hatch and slashes the current car's 0-100km/h to just 4.5 seconds -- two-tenths of a second quicker than the standard RS.

The Focus RS's 266km/h top speed remains unaffected by the power kit.

Boosting power to 276kW and torque on overboost briefly to 500Nm (up from 257kW/440Nm), the Mountune performance upgrades raise power and torque of the standard turbocharged 2.3-litre by 19kW/60Nm.

Taking just one and a half hours to fit, Ford says the power gains come from an ECU re-flash, high-flow air filter and a revised cold-air induction kit that includes a low-loss crossover duct and new silicon hosing. The Mountune kit also introduces a new air re-circulation valve.

The Moutune upgrades will be backed by Ford’s three-year/100,000km factory warranty when fitted from new. Kits fitted after sale, meanwhile, will see the balance of the manufacturer’s warranty apply or an extra 12 months/20,000km — whichever is longer.

Available now in the UK, where it's priced at £899 ($A1500), the power kit joins Mountune's other factory-backed performance-boosting options already available for the Focus RS.

They include a lightweight 19-inch OZ Racing wheels, stickier Michelin Pilot Cup 2 tyre and front-mounted limited-slip differential engineered especially for the Focus RS by Quaife

It's not known if or when Ford will start offering the Focus RS Mountune engine kit in Australia.