2015 Ford Focus ST diesel becomes brand’s most efficient performance car ever

The ST diesel, which has been ruled out for introduction to the local market, was revealed at the weekend’s Goodwood Festival of Speed alongside the upgraded petrol-powered Ford Focus ST hot-hatch, which will go on sale here around the middle of 2015.

Powering the 2015 Focus ST diesel is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo engine with 136kW of power (at 3500rpm) and 400Nm of torque (from 2000-2750rpm) – down 48kW on the ST petrol but up 40Nm. Its outputs compare closely with fellow diesel hot-hatches, such as the Mazda 3 XD Astina (129kW/420Nm 2.2-litre) and Volkswagen Golf GTD (135kW/380Nm 2.0-litre) – the former due locally from September, the latter off the table for Australia.

Ford claims a 0-100km/h sprint of 8.1 seconds for the front-wheel-drive, six-speed manual diesel ST, trailing the petrol version by 1.6sec and the GTD by six tenths (Mazda hasn’t released a 0-100km/h time for the XD Astina).

The diesel’s 4.4 litres per 100km combined cycle fuel consumption significantly undercuts the petrol’s 6.8L/100km rating. It also betters the 5.0L/100km of the Mazda 3 though falls short of the Golf (4.2L/100km).

As with the upgraded petrol ST, the Focus ST diesel is equipped with stop-start engine technology, helping keep average CO₂ emissions down to a near hybrid-rivalling 114 grams per kilometre.

The ST diesel looks the same and is equipped identically to the enhanced Focus ST petrol. Subtle styling tweaks have targeted a more dynamic exterior appearance and interior revisions bring a cleaner dashboard and added technology.

Ford has also revised the car’s front suspension and electric steering set-ups in the pursuit of improved ride and handling performance.

A new Stealth dark grey paint colour has been introduced exclusively to the upgraded Focus ST, joining Tangerine Scream, Frozen White, Panther Black and Race Red.