Ranking Hot Hatches / Small Coupes by Driving Fun

[sinbad666]

I drove my friends Fiesta ST with Mountune last week after he picked it up from the dealer and its a hoot to drive. Feels very much like a smaller mk1 Focus RS, i actually think it feels faster but i did notice the lack of diff (was wet however). It was an ST2 so pretty well spec'd, i can imagine it being pretty fun to own, although for me its too small to use as a family car, for the odd occasion it might be fine though. I reckon it would be quite quick in most everyday occasion as it has good torque from low down and nice power above 4krpm. I was undecided on the sound generator, it does sound nice like VTEC kicking in at 4krpm, but its a wierd feeling knowing its almost artificial. I felt the infotainment system has some nice functions but the screen was small and after just getting out of a brand new M135 as a comparison it seemed pretty cheap. But I guess thats to be expected.

Id say the fiesta felt fun and much newer compared to the 130i, DC5 and FD2, but less grown up..

Good luck whatever you go for!

[ryanthescot]

If you are interested in the Fiesta ST you should also consider the older (non-turbo) Clio 200. It wont be as modern inside as the Fiesta but a mate of mine traded his 200 for an ST and he much preferred to Clio. He ended up only having the ST for 10 months.

[jcelee]

Thanks Ryan, interesting! I have test driven a previous model Clio 200 with Cup pack and found it a better drive than the GT86 I tested but still not quite up to the mark (admittedly I ended up buying a Cayman).

[jcelee]

In some ways head ruled heart but I'm extremely pleased with my newly purchased July 2013 Fiesta ST2 I love the fact that its a proper old skool hot hatch hooligan but with modern levels of performance, tech and build quality. I may well get it Mountuned at some stage but it's eagerness with all that torque (and extraordinarily uncorrupted steering with remarkable levels of feel for an e-pas system) mean I'm not entirely sure (yet!) that its necessary.

I've driven a lot of cars and maybe the RS Fiesta will surpass it but it seems to have all the makings of a future classic hot hatch. Ford have really created a gem in my opinion.