I would have bought a Chevy SS instead of the RS, if any dealer could have gotten me one in Orange Blast metallic with a manual — Chevy kept throwing those 20% off summer clearance cash at them! But no one could get me one, so I ended up with an on-the-lot RS instead. And no regrets there, to be sure. Fortunately, I…

Former Focus ST owner who is now a Focus RS owner. If anything happens to that, I am basically screwed. I don’t consider the Golf R to be an alternative, thanks to the Haldex. Not sure what direction I would go, because I really love the feel of the AWD system in the RS.  (Well, everywhere but in a parking lot, that…

I can't stand Schumer, but I have to admit that this was extremely well played on his part.

I lived in North Minneapolis back in the Nineties and ate at Pho 79 three days a week. I ate at other places on Eat Street the other four days. That restaurant was my introduction to Vietnamese food, so I will always have a soft spot for it, but it is not my first choice these days. Quang is wonderful, but my go-to…

If you are on the Minneapolis side, find Eat Street, which is the stretch of Nicollet Avenue that runs a few blocks north of the interruption on 29th, and the North Loop. Or in St. Paul, either Frogtown (the stretch of University west of the capital) or the whole Selby/Grand area on either side of Dale south of 94.…

I doubt that there is a whole lot of training on expecting one to roll at you sideways, or to fall off a truck.

I am reasonably confidant that they did not do so laterally.  

I am wincing just imagining what would have happened if the soldiers to the side had not gotten out of the way. Sure, pretty much any vehicle rolling over you should kill you — even something as small as a Miata. But can you imagine how awful having something that big roll over you would be? Or would it be better,…

Previous articles this week make it pretty clear that there is no love for Bulworth around these parts, but any best of 1998 list that does not include it is automatically invalidated. Bulworth was my favorite movie of 1998, and that is even accounting for the fact that Rushmore is my favorite Wes Anderson movie, so…

“My wife did it” must be the “I’m sorry that you took offense” of 2018. Can’t wait for the new non-responsibility excuse & fake apology of 2019!

I have always loved the, “You write too much,” response. It’s clearly intended to say, “my time is valuable, and I wasted it reading your thoughts,” when in fact it ends up screaming, “my time is valuable, so I spend it reading and bitching about gaming blogs and the comments appended thereto, thus demonstrating that…

I ended up with Cup 2s on my RS because the one that I bought was fully loaded with all options, but while I pretty much don’t drive it in the winter at all, even summer rain can be a little comfortable — I have felt them slipping when going around roundabouts at even a moderate rate of speed. The Super Sports would…

Running Cup 2s on an AWD high powered car in the rain is very scary. (Source: RS owner with Cup 2s.) But no, going to the other extreme with no-season tires is not the right alternative. No tire can do everything. I have so-called all season tires on the Fusion that I drive for work, and they are terrible in the ice &…

They are fun indeed. Not the quickest car in the world, but much more fun than a lot of cars which are quicker. No matter how good you are, the manual costs some acceleration time, but the extra fun factor more than makes up for it.

Interesting, because I have never liked round shift knobs.   I cannot tell you why.  So many people seem to love the knob in a Golf R/GTI and I just do not get it.  A lot of the aftermarket knobs that I have seen for the Focus RS/ST are round, too.  I actually prefer the stock knob to any of the replacements that I…

No, what I had read about it was wrong, and it is definitely a replica.  But it was free, I see no reason to get as upset about it as some people seem to be.  I drove an ST for two years and it was a helluva car, and have had the RS for a year now and it is even more of a helluva car.  No quality issues whatsoever --…

Why not indeed, but it appears that I was wrong about that -- or rather, what I read about it online after receiving it was wrong.  But it does seem silly to go to the trouble of making a replica in this case.  I suppose that that materials are somewhat cheaper, but it cannot be that huge of a difference compared to…

Yes, you are correct.  I have never looked at it as closely as some people seem to be obsessing over it on this thread.  After I received it in the mail unexpectedly, I looked it up online and read somewhere that it was a production knob, but that was definitely wrong.  That is what I get for relying on something that…

Not sure if  I want to know.   Don’t ask, don’t tell.

Actually, a Focus ST knob painted blue.  But that is shared with the Fiesta, yes.  Most of the interior parts on a Focus ST and a Focus RS are identical, save for the colors (and that is mostly just paint & stitching.)