According to carscoops.com, the manufacturer sticker came affixed to the air-conditioning unit of a standard, non-ST Focus, which merely states “Focus ST 2.3 L GTDI “, effectively confirming a report by Britain’s Autocar last month that the Blue Oval’s Golf GTI rival will pack a bigger engine.

Initially reported to be receiving a reworked version of the standard Focus’ 1.5-litre EcoBoost  and then later continuing with the current 2.0-litre EcoBoost, the new ST will however produce 184kW output not 350kW as the RS, as it will continue to send its grunt to the front wheels.

The Autocar report also claims that the ST will only be available with six-speed manual gearbox and not with an optional automatic as alleged by Australia’s carsales.com.au, aiming it squarely at the manual-only Honda Civic Type R.

Due out in 2020, the next RS though will reportedly go the other away in dropping the aforementioned 2.3-litre mill for the 2.0-litre four-pot, albeit backed-up with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system that could produce as much as 298kW, the same as the imminent Mercedes-AMG A45 and BMW M140i.