Originally posted by EsCoRtLvR
Good idea 
The SVT had all the suspension goodies, which the S/R compared to. I'm not sure about the regular focus though. I would bet they are pretty close to the same. All the reviews from edmunds etc had the base Escort ranked higher in handling than almost anything in it's class. Remember, at one time the Escort was European too, originally built in around 1968, so it's not like The "euro" styling just came out or something 
Aren't the Mazda 3's a bit heavier than their not so distant cousins though? From what I've read the 3 carries a 2850 curb weight and the focii are about 200lbs lighter....
I'm not saying the Escort is a piece of crap. The Focus really picked up where the Escort left off. I'm sure the Focus will eventually go the way of the Escort in another 10-years and be replaced by something else.
Yeah the 3 is a bit portly. The 4-door 3s weighs in just under 2800lbs, which is about 150-200lbs heavier than the US Focus. I'm not sure what the European Focus on the same platform weighs.
The extra power (160hp, 155tq) and more aggressive final drive ratio (4.08 I think) make up for the extra weight. Today in my boredom between sending out resumes I plan on testing out the Mazda 3s with a stick so I can compare it to the 4-door Focus ST I test drove on Monday.
