RE: Fiesta ST: Then and now

RE: Fiesta ST: Then and now

Friday 8th February 2013

Fiesta ST: then and now

This morning's news that production has started on the new Fiesta ST got us rifling throught the classifieds



Ford has announced this morning that production has commenced on the new Fiesta ST. We brought you news last month of its promised low price, 180hp 1.6-litre engine and six-speed manual box, and while there was a generous amount of appreciation for the new model on the comments thread, we noticed there was also plenty of love for the previous-generation car. So we went for a root through the classifieds to see what's about.

ST was a real giggle to drive fast
ST was a real giggle to drive fast
You can see why people fell for Ford's last fast Fiesta. A series of well-judged body addenda deftly turned the standard Mk6's slightly frumpy shape into something a whole lot more appealing. Power came from a torquey 2.0-litre Duratec engine that felt quicker than its 150hp headline figure would suggest, but the real hook was the ST's handling. It was a laugh riot; supremely chuckable, light on its feet, and effortlessly nimble, with meaty steering that provided vast amounts of feel and feedback.

There was more, though. Ford's approved aftermarket supplier Mountune developed a series of upgrades that have proven extremely popular with ST buyers. 185hp could be had while still retaining Ford's warranty (or 200hp without) by means of a set of cams and a handful of other upgrades, giving the Fiesta the sort of grunt it needed to become a credible rival to the Clio 182.

Can we have this one please?
Can we have this one please?
Of course, those upgrades can be applied retrospectively, which is rather good news when ST prices have dropped off as much as they have now. As little as £2,550 gets you intoone, if you're willing to live with a slightly daggy Cat D. Spend a little more, though, and you can end up in a super-clean pre-facelift or even a post-facelift example that looks straight and relatively unmolested, albeit seemingly without a service record. We'd plump for the former, bearing in mind the facelift amounted to new lights and a smattering of detail cosmetics around the car. Or we'd spend £500 more and end up with a good, clean example that comes with history. Of course, if you've money to burn, this low-mileage facelift with Mountune's full-fat 200hp kit and a plethora of other upgrades should be a hoot.

In other words, if you fancy a slice of Fiesta ST but haven't quite got the folding to fritter away on the new model, don't fret - the old one still has plenty to recommend it, and at these prices it seems a cracking deal.

Author
Discussion

ucb

Original Poster:

939 posts

211 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I certainly dont remember steering full of feel. Evo commented at the time about a 'glassy' front end which was spot on IMO. It's nowhere near as good as the Puma it replaced in our household

Edited by ucb on Friday 8th February 18:45

BorkFactor

7,257 posts

157 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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A mate of mine has one of these - takes all the abuse that can be thrown at it and does drive very well. Kept up with my ST24 fairly well!

I didn't realise there was so much aftermarket stuff available for them though, why didn't Ford just put it on straight from the factory so it was more of a Clio 172 / 182 rival?

Froomee

1,417 posts

168 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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A few pics of my old one (i also had a white one with blue stripes two years prior) a great all round car esepcially for the money (around £10 new, near £11k for the ST500).........




FWDRacer

3,564 posts

223 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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Handling isn't as good as previous Gen Zetec-S. Then there was the Puma also off previous MkIV/V platform...

Frp'

35 posts

163 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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BorkFactor said:
A mate of mine has one of these - takes all the abuse that can be thrown at it and does drive very well. Kept up with my ST24 fairly well!

I didn't realise there was so much aftermarket stuff available for them though, why didn't Ford just put it on straight from the factory so it was more of a Clio 172 / 182 rival?
It wasn't supposed to be a rival. It was to sit below the pure hot hatch line. Think ST/RS. Lower insurance, tax etc.

It was a very good car but the new one will be special. I've driven quite a few mk7s now and the steering is simply brilliant. From 1.25 upwards.

They really need another Puma and hopefully one day a Fiesta RS. All about cost as everyone knows.

Merp

2,220 posts

251 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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The new shape has won me over eventually after seeing a red prototype on the road.

I've had mine for almost 4 years now, been a great little car and as commented many of times, very chuckable. The only problem being is the lack of power from the engine as standard, many upgrades are available to push it closer to the Clio 182/197 etc, but the money in my opinion wasnt really warranted.

Fuel consumption is reasonable, I have a full Miltek system fitted along with a simple K&N57i, achieving 35mpg on a daily A-Road Commute.

I also fitted the 35mm lowering Ford Eibach kit which improves the stance considerably, along with removing the stripes it looks slightly more tasteful now.


Arun_D

2,302 posts

194 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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I never remembered the steering as being 'meaty' with 'vast amounts of feel and feedback', but I enjoyed having mine for just shy of 3yrs. It was responsible for getting me into hooked on track driving and getting my National B sprint licence.

They're a good way of accessing warmish fun for not too much money, and respond well to the plethora of aftermarket parts available. The Mountune kits provided the answer to those wanting Clio type power whilst maintaining warranty, and have been very popular.

Cpt Flashhard

114 posts

133 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I have to disagree about the handling-I ran one of these back-to-back with a stock 2000 Caterham 1.8 VHPD Roadsport having come from a 98 Alfa GTV 2.0. Have since owned a 355 Spider, and the Fiesta was at least as much fun to drive, incredibly pointy, across back roads it was bullet pace point-to-point. The engine was unburstable! took dog's abuse but started on the nose every day, and Ford servicing costs every 10k miles were a pittance. Can't believe I swapped it in for a Skoda Fabia Estate. It was a diesel. I blame the ex

roystinho

3,767 posts

174 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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I'm not really into bashing cars, but I never thought the fiesta ST was any good. Handling did nothing for me, indeed my brother had one and raved about it, so we swapped cars over when I had a Clio Trophy at the time. Needless to say his perspective of good FWD handling changed very quickly. He didn't keep it long after that.

Though I thought the interior of the ST was nicer than the Clio, and the seats were great too compared to a non-Recaro 182. I'd imagine if you wanted a warm hatch for day to day they're a good car

stoneyV6

78 posts

217 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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Really liked mine, quite lively handling on track which made it fun to drive.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vHwwofpgdEA

scholesy

143 posts

161 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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This model was a real dissapointment for me. I test drove one before I bought a focus st (the turbo one) thinking it would be better on fuel and might be an economical alternative. It did drive well I can't fault that, but the lack of a 6 speed box was criminal, and it just lacked about 20-30hp as standard, and the fuel economy was pretty dire in relation to the performance too.

I think it was just a case of Ford strangling it so it didn't show up the focus ST, with the 200hp it should have had, and a 6 speed gearbox, it would have been up there with other legendary fast fords. I would certainly have gone for fiesta if it was more like that, it would probably have been a fiesta RS though with the sort of performance it would have had.

I imagine a tuned fiesta ST would be pretty entertaining, but then why not just buy a faster car in the first place with the extra money!

Cpt Flashhard

114 posts

133 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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scholesy said:
This model was a real dissapointment for me. I test drove one before I bought a focus st (the turbo one) thinking it would be better on fuel and might be an economical alternative. It did drive well I can't fault that, but the lack of a 6 speed box was criminal, and it just lacked about 20-30hp as standard, and the fuel economy was pretty dire in relation to the performance too.

I think it was just a case of Ford strangling it so it didn't show up the focus ST, with the 200hp it should have had, and a 6 speed gearbox, it would have been up there with other legendary fast fords. I would certainly have gone for fiesta if it was more like that, it would probably have been a fiesta RS though with the sort of performance it would have had.

I imagine a tuned fiesta ST would be pretty entertaining, but then why not just buy a faster car in the first place with the extra money!
Agreed it needed a sixth-70 on a motorway was painful on the ears and meant that 300 miles was max per tank. Wasn't the loss in power from the ST170 powertrain something to do with the engine having to be tilted back by 6 degrees to get under the bonnet?

r1ch

2,866 posts

195 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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Think the article suggests they are better than they are. Nice steering feedback and sounds nice. Wouldn't get excited about the rest of the car though tbh.

LuS1fer

41,069 posts

244 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I bought a facelift (better looking IMHO) 2007 model with 34k on the clock at the end of last year. Performance Blue is a great colour.

I love the chunky styling which has a touch of timeless/classlessness about it which I think the new "waspy" version lacks. It has that reserved tasteful appearance that doesn't go overboard "boy-racer". I like that.

I began looking at Clio 172/182s but couldn't live with their flimsiness and they seemed dated inside.

Contemporaneous road tests suggested the Zetec S was the better handler but I haven't driven one and have nothing particularly negative to say about the ST's steering. It is firm, weighty, sharp and while it may lack feedback, the car is so chunky that you can't fail to feel what it's up to.

It has GREAT visibility, unlike modern cars. It is short, compact and has THREE rear seat belts, a massive bonus for 3 child families.

It is not perfect. The build quality is not great and it squeaks a bit. The grey instruments look a bit naff. The dash layout isn't great. The Ford heated windscreen is the last gen version so works "in parts" but it's better than nothing (our 2009 Mondeo is vastly better). the key is the old Ford "stick" (Mondeo is the traditional flat blade).

The stereo is not great. It took a while to realise it was a 6CD changer but they have a propensity to not eject (piece of card required)so I stick to one CD (no issues).

The main bugbear is that it is fairly low-geared so it is not a motorway car and some might consider it noisy (it is a hot hatch).

Mine is averaging around 32mpg which is not much better than the 09 Mondeo which uses the same engine but certainly seems to have a beefier clutch and gearbox. HOWEVER, the fuel tank is small and requires filling a lot because of that.

The other issue can be the brakes which had cheap pads in when I got mine as they felt like glass but a set of EBC Green Stuff pads (£107) restored confidence though they are still not as good as the Mondeo's.

Only other "complaints" is the seat belts are a long way back if you're short and the single note horn is extremely embarassing (often replaced by a Focus item but you have to take the headlight out to access it). Taking headlights out to change bulbs is reqired too but it's DIY-able.

So after several months ownership, am I delighted or disappointed? Well, I confess I love the car, it has character in spades, it's a hoot to drive and chuck about and park, has a nice gearbox, it looks great and 150hp is really more than enough to ensure enjoyability - you don't get much in the way of unruly torque steer (not that I think the clutch would stand a huge amount of abuse) and I like the handling even though, being short, the rear end will happily let go (easily caught with the reasobaly quick rack).

I think it suffers next to higher powered hatches but I did find that makes them harder to sell so you can get a bargain if you haggle hard enough.

I did have a front spring break and that lathed off an inch of tread and I have had a rear wheel bearing replaced (sqeaking like a stamped rat).

Edited by LuS1fer on Friday 8th February 12:36

Deadlysub

509 posts

157 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I bought one new in March 2005, Colordo red and loved it for the three years I had it, yes it was slightly under powered but I thought it handled well and the steering gave lots of feedback and it was great to chuck about. It also looks great imo, was a really good car

morebhpplease

16 posts

161 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I also have an St in Colorado red and after 4 years of ownership I have to say its been bulletproof.

The engine was restricted from the st170 by a strangling air filter box and a restricted flexi pipe in the exhaust. Replacing these with a Miltek flexi and a K&N 57I filter lets the car breath a lot easier and will give the car another 6-7 bhp, not much I hear you say but it feels so much better for £150.

Try and get the full leather with heated seats and it feels a lot more grown up inside.

Chain instead of cam belt saves you a bit of money to.

My only complaint is the turning circle at low speed, we went from a 1.25 zetec
which was like a London taxi to having to aim it to get it in the drive!

chillbill

131 posts

139 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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I was looking into these last summer when choosing a fun to drive car with reasonable running costs. However, as there were no good examples for sale here in Estonia I opted for a ph2 Clio 172 instead. Gives a rawer driving sensation and comes with a less plasticky interior. Gotta love the understated looks of the ST as well as the built quality, though.

nipsips

1,163 posts

134 months

Friday 8th February 2013
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The ST170 is a blacktop derived engine with VVT the ST150 is a Mondeo 2.0 chain driven Duratec which is pulled from a Mazda IIRC smile

LuS1fer

41,069 posts

244 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
I looked at air filters but read an article that said the capacity of air from the standard air box was still in excess of it's requirements to make max power which, as I comprehend it, means an air filter alone is of no advantage without additional tuning.

Dave200

3,515 posts

219 months

Friday 8th February 2013
quotequote all
Arun_D said:
I never remembered the steering as being 'meaty' with 'vast amounts of feel and feedback'
Classic bit of PH journalistic revisionism... It was mediocre and over-assisted, as attested many reviewers, but don't let that get in the way of article writing.