Red Bull Ford Focus

[Guido]

Oh and Welcome to AF

[935k3]

She did a nice job on the Focus. Oh and so did you. It must be cool to have girlfriend who builds too.

[joecwlaw]

looks cool .

Just wondering 2 things:
- First is that the intake at the side of front bumper come with the kit?
- Second, do the OZ rims come with the kit, or from fujimi or aoshima???

Looks really good job.

[Bobj]

nice lookin cars , just got the tamiya focus myself cant wait to build it.
Regards Bob.

[Forhod]

The undecaled ford looks nicer..

But anyway.. welcome to AF and great job on it, and your GF too

[Daryl]

They are both exemplary models... kudos on some great builds and welcome both of you to AF

[Jay!]

You make a cute couple (of foci! )

[potsie]

Thanks for the responses - always appreciate a bit of praise!

To answer a few questions:

1. Both Hasegawa and Tamiya kits are nice. Hasegawa has photo etched bits (such as bonnet clips), metal aerials (so much nicer), and full seat belts. Also has parts for the 1999 Focus WRC, so you can adapt it if you need to.
Tamiya kit though is much better in terms of quality and detail of pieces, for example the Tamiya has full exhaust and drivetrain, whereas the Hasegawa has them moulded into the chassis - a pain to paint nicely. The Tamiya kit feels twice as heavy as the Hasegawa, and just feels more "solid".
However, the transfers for the Tamiya 2001 Focus are a real pain. To get the colour right, the ink is quite thick, and the transfer are EXTREMELY brittle - similar to the 2001 Impreza WRC but so much worse. The Hasegawa transfers are easier, though slightly the wrong colour. Also, the Tamiya has quite a complex masking job for the blue rear end, the Hasewgawa large decals. Done right, the painted version looks better.
Overall, I think the Tamiya kit is much better - though be careful with the decals!

2. The paint on the Red Bull Focus is TS-50 Blue Mica (Impreza WRC Blue) according to Studio 27. I painted it an automotive paint equivalent, which turned out slightly darker than TS-50 - though the darker shade is closer to the real thing.

3. The wheels used on the Red Bull Focus were straight from the box. The wheels should actually be the 5 spoke jobbies as on the Team Focus. I had a spare set from a Peugeot 206 (to be done in Team Bastos livery) but they are about twice as wide as the Hasegawa wheels, so stuck out from the wheel arches. This is a pain as the Bastos Peugeot actually needs the wheels from the Red Bull Focus - aaaahhh!

4. The air vents on the side of the front spoiler are the correct ones for the 2000 spec Focus WRC, and are straight from the box.

Cheers.

[primera man]

Two outstanding models...well done to you both