Um, have you actually driven limited slip? I had one once and it was so bad on ice I had to park it in the winter. The problem is, both tires do start at the same time, which means on ice, that end of the car spins itself to the lowest point, the ditch or the nearest parked car.
At that time, I took a lot of trash talk when I reported it. Some told me I didn’t know how to drive it. Some told me I simply didn’t know good traction when I had it. THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO AGREED WITH ME WERE THOSE WHO HAD ACTUALLY OWNED POSITRACTION THEMSELVES.
So, if that car had positraction, I well understand why OP wants a different car. Under some conditions, it can be great, but if you can’t turn it off, there are also conditions where it is a total disaster, such as on ice.
The new Focus you saw was the Focus RS with the 300 HP Volvo turbo 5 cylinder. It’s unlikely that it will make it across the pond, since it would likely cost around $33k or more, and there are few people who will shell out that kind of money for a Focus in this country. With that said, we are getting the euro Focus over here in 2011. The current US spec Focus has been largely the same since 2000, it’s had a couple minor facelifts, but the car is outdated. The European Focus is more modern and is considered to be the superior car compared to the north american Focus.
I have driven limited slip in snow and on ice (quite a bit, in fact). With a good set of tires and a gentle foot on the gas it works just fine, better than an open differential.