Weekend warrior
£2,692 (plus existing MkIV Focus ST)
FOR Snarling personality, added drama
AGAINST You need sharp skills to make the most of it
The pandemic robbed of us of many things chiefly the freedom to move around at will Or sneeze without fear Or not know what ‘furlough’ meant It very nearly cost us Mountune too with the decadesold tuning firm calling in the administrators in after a tough period compounded by COVIDgeddon
Happily the company is now under er old ownership having been taken independent by a group of investors led by original Eighties founder David Mountain who declared “We want to get back to what we do best making power!”
Enter the prefacelift MkIV Ford Focus ST but equipped with Mountune’s M pack that transforms the litre turbo’s bhp and lb ft of torque into bhp and lb ft Crikey The effect of putting that much force through the front wheels is profound duh turning the obedient housetrained ST into a far less domesticated animal
Even at slow speeds the steering tugs about in a bid to escape your hands Squeeze the throttle and you’ll hustle postcodes rearwards Lift off and the exhaust crackles with aggression No social compliance here
Mountune isn’t sure about mph but in the right conditions? Sub five seconds Feels it too You don’t so much drive the M as grapple with it like Jason Bourne in a fistfight Mountune’s demo car rides lower on lighter wheels with Cup s and uprated brake pads upping the ante on the stock ST’s enthusiasm for corners The real challenge is power on exit overdo it and the ESP will scrabble to intervene Race mode disables it so engage with caution
Think of the M as an expansion pack for a muchloved video game only you’re faced with five bits of DIY to either take on yourself or farm off to a garage a sport GPF GPFback exhaust downpipe sports cat and highflow filter all boost airflow Then it’s just a case of reprogramming the ECU with Mountune’s SMARTflash app ¤ ¥ all in plus loose change for Mountunebranded gear
Could you live with it? Sure The broader spread of power through the rev range is useful and tyre noise aside it’s reasonably subdued mpg in daily driving looks possible too Just beware Ford no longer warranties Mountune kits And added power comes at cost to lifespan
Most buyers will be weekend warriors but really this is a track tool that needs talent to fully exploit Got the skills? Meet your new Focus RS Emissions killed it but its spirit lives on