The Focus RS500 signals the end of the Focus RS production as the last cars are built in September 2010.The original Focus RS production was forecast at 8000 units and due to the massive demand of this brilliant car have taken numbers to over 11000 in total.The RS500 build  is only 500 cars for 20 European markets and only 101 are coming to our shores in the UK. Each car will have a metal hand engraved unique ID number from 001 to 500 and demand will exceed supply by a considerable margin. We don’t expect to have our order fulfilled here at Perkins but you never know and we will keep our fingers crossed for the phone call.

The Focus RS delivers impressive figures already of 305 ps but the RS500 goes a step further. With 350 ps at 6000 rpm the 0-60 sprint is now 5.4 secs and the top speed is 165mph and the torque has been increased from 440Nm to 460Nm delivered across a wide speed range from 2500 to 4500 rpm. The engine has been handed a comprehensive upgrade to the breathing and combustion with larger air-to -air intercooler, a larger air filter box for increased airflow, a larger diameter exhaust downpipe, uprated fuel pump and new software calibration to optimise the new engine performance. The engine modifcations are down to Ford’s partnership with Mountune and these can also be fitted to a standard RS Focus to get the same power upgrades. We can arrange for your RS to be upgraded at Mountune for you as we are power upgrading Focus ST, Fiesta ST and New Fiesta Zetec S with Mountune performance upgrades on a daily basis at our Great dunmow dealership.

You will have noticed that the RS 500 is a matt black colour and interestingly the finish was developed in partnership with 3M to create a matt black foil surface. All RS500 vehicles will be painted in  Panther Black metallic and then the cars will be shipped to a dedicated facility near Frankfurt in Germany, where the special foil film will be applied to the bodywork to create the matt black effect. The film is extremely durable, and is specifically designed to resist superficial marks and scratches. Also the performance of the car has been tested to the limit. There are a very small number of pre-production vehicles produced for internal Ford use (product development cars and press demonstrators) and these models have been subjected to a series of durability tests which have focused the cars on track capabilities. Within this development program, 3 Ford employed racing srivers worked shifts to complete 10000 kms of non-stop driving at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany.

Thankyou for taking the time to visit www.perkinsgarages.co.uk hope to see you at the dealership soon.

With  the reduction of CO2 emissions being the at the forefront of any governments political agenda, individuals who drive a more efficient car are now being rewarded through lower Benefit in Kind Tax. With the latest Capital Allowance rules, the Government is to incentivize car drivers whose vehicles emit less than 160 g/ km CO2. At Perkins we have a great selection of Nearly New Ford cars that have lower emissions for company car usage. Fiesta /Focus /Mondeo / C- Max / Kuga / S-Max / Galaxy all have models in the range to get you under that 160 g/ km Co2 Rating.

If your business purchases a vehicle that is over 160g/ km then you will only be able to write down 10% of it’s value each year on a reducing balance basis. If however your new new purchase has emissions of 160g/ km or less, the write down allowance (WDA) is 20% which allows the business to claim back the cost of the vehicle more quickly.

Here is is a fairly simple set of calculations that Ford have supplied us with.

Taxable Value of petrol car £16000 (example) - CO2 Emissions of 165g/ km = 22% - Employee tax level = 40% - - - - -£16000 x 22% x 40% = £1408 Tax payable (for tax year 2010/2011)

Please note that there is a 3% surcharge for a diesel car.

We hope this helps you company car users out there a little bit.Remember please that you save thousands on a Nearly New Ford at Perkins and we can help you to make the right choice for your needs. Call us for any motoring advice you may need on 01371 87 6622 for Dunmow or 01376 550899 for Rayne.