Nurburgring: Ford Focus 1600 Diesel vs Sierra Cosworth

[BileMonkey]

Nice! Smooth and very quick for a cvt 1.6 diesel!!! Shows the difference between old and new how you took tens or yards out of the cossie under braking and held a much higher pace through corners. Great job!

[andylaurence]

@BileMonkey I don't think it tells us much about either car. Clearly, both drivers were inexperienced at this circuit and the biggest factor in the relative performances. Still, it was a lot of fun!

[gradxg]

sounds like a damn generator running cvt's are awful just because of the engine noise in my opinion

[andylaurence]

@gradxg - Surely the fact it's a diesel is more of an issue for the noise than the CVT. If you want something that sounds nice, don't buy a diesel or an automatic. In fact, don't buy a bottom-end Ford Focus!

[gradxg]

@andylaurence well theres nothing wrong with them but cvt's on a diesel just isn't right to me

[miatageekscott]

I wish they had more diesel vehicles in America, I deliver food for a living, and the MPG would help, and I don't want to be driving something embarrassing, like a Prius

[tomstickland]

10 minutes is a good time.

I've taken my 1997 Golf 1.9 TDi Estate round the ring a few times. It took me about 11min 30s though.

[markaj123]

awesome. i too have a focus estate 1.6 tdci, a 2005, and i am amazed someone has uploaded a vid of one at the ring. i'm going in the middle of next year and now I have a benchmark time!

[andylaurence]

Have a good time next year. Just take care - Armco is expensive!

[andylaurence]

It's worth remembering that game designers try and make things feel faster to make them more exciting. Oh, and this isn't a Ferrari (a Porsche is more apt at the 'Ring, anyway), it's a 1600cc diesel. I'm sure it'd be well under 10 minutes with the right driver, which isn't too shabby.

[tomwatson14]

omg, that looks so bleeding slow! especially compared to games like Forza Motorsport 2 haha but i guess those you can do in Ferrari's ;)

[ld309]

Nice. Shame about the auto box delay in the corners, but good nonetheless.

[mickeymoose76]

how could you have done the nurburg in 10 mins with a 90 horse focus full of people when jeremy clarkson struggled to do it in 10mins in a 200 horse Jag S type???

[andylaurence]

Because Clarkson isn't a particularly fast driver? Who knows. I'm sure I could've got that Jag round in 9:40. My best lap so far is 9:19 in a Golf GTi.

[tpvalley]

clarksen is a hypocrite..hear about his huff on "have I got news for u" because he couldnt take a joke about being called a shofer (cant spell!).

CVT auto, why dont they fit a propper auto box?!

[andylaurence]

Proper automatic? Isn't that an oxymoron? The best I can think of is the VW DSG 'box, which isn't really an automatic. CVT 'boxes are a million times better than a slush 'box; they keep you in the power band without sapping all your power.

[ZisisGR44]

sierra for ever

[stunty123]

its got to be a cosworth, were u going flat out

[andylaurence]

If the wheel was straight, my foot was to the floor.  Often, it was to the floor anyway.

[S2Mick]

yawn

[S2Mick]

Your in a deisel 1.6 you cock! a 318 would whoop your arse in abliet a mighty slow race!

[andylaurence]

That's diesel, you fanny. As you can see, I wasn't overtaken by a 318. The key point you're missing is that the Nordschleife is not a drag race but a demanding road course. I'm not saying the crappy Focus was a better car. It wasn't. I'm saying I was lapping quicker than some others. I was.

[tomstickland]

Youtube is full of armchair experts who've never been the ring so have no idea what's involved.

[S2Mick]

WTF thats not an M3 either, look at the badge on the back - at least 3 digits up there.... and the rear light clusters!?! white indicators accross the top.

Wank

[andylaurence]

Not sure how you can see the sticker on the boot from this footage. Clearly your eyes are better than mine. When I look at the original footage, it looks very much like an M badge on the bootlid. Not that it means much. It flew past me at the end of a straight and I was flat out meaning it was hardly a 318!

[nitromad1]

Perhaps the V6 then, did you actually meet the guy afterwards and find out?, your in a 1.6 diesel which at higher speeds are slow to accelerate (and like you said yourself the gear changes + acceleration afterwards was slow), any car with a 2L petrol engine would seem quicker in comparison.

The guy in the M3 "rocketed away", if that was a cossie its either knackered or needs a more confident owner!

[andylaurence]

I didn't meet the guy afterwards but, if it wasn't a Cosworth, it was an impressive replica. He certainly pulled away a lot quicker than a 2L Sierra would. My car had around 20-30bhp less than a 2L Sierra, which would make little difference.

The M3 rocketed away because he knew the track. That was a blind right hand bend taken at well over 100mph in the M3. The M3 also has 340bhp, versus 200bhp for a Cosworth. I'd be very surprised if it was anything other than a Cosworth engine.

[cortinamatt]

I know that car and its a 2.0 dohc 8v with a turbo technics conversion. I spoke to the bloke who owns it when I was at the Nurburgring. He said its about 160BHP which would seem about right. He really can't drive though as your video proves!

[andylaurence]

Ahhh, I see. That'd explain it then. Interesting conversion though. I'd heard of the Turbo Technics twin turbo kit for the V6, but not for the 2.0 DOHC lump.

[nitromad1]

no way was that a cossie, perhaps badged as a cossie, perhaps a 2L at best!

[andylaurence]

You're right, it could have been a 2L with a Cosworth body kit, lowered suspension and a highly tuned engine. One thing's for sure, it wasn't a standard Pinto engine the way it rocketed away from me in a straight line.

[discovery300]

i have a 4x4 cos and her indoors has got a focus ghia est 2.0 16v its nothing compared to my cossie obviously,but does give you plenty of confidence when driving,cou can throw them anywere. dont tell her that though. lol

[hypertension2007]

so a sierra cos has got better handling than a standard focus.

[stuhunt]

Ive been looking to buy a diesel estate for when i can drive :-) Im so glad someones actually taken a focus round this track :)

[andylaurence]

I'm not the only one. It is a road afterall.  The coaches are the interesting ones!

[hypertension2007]

is the focus's handling so better than the cosworths that he couldn't keep up?

[andylaurence]

Yes. I could beat a McLaren F1 in that Focus it's so good. Diesel power!

[hypertension2007]

are you joking?

[andylaurence]

I'll let you figure that one out yourself!

[Matatsowey]

that guy in the cosworth can't drive for shit! the line he was taking was crap. nice vid, gona do the ring myself next year.

[stunty123]

the cossie man could at least put his foot down on the end straight

[AccAkut1987]

nice vid, diesel ftw ;)