Focus ST 3 or M135I
Discussion
Im currently looking at the above 2. bmw will be used 24-26K and the ST will be new. I like both cars and test drove both but im stumped. It will be the OH daily Sevenoaks to Bromley round trip and mine on a weekend.
Has anybody had this choice or is the M135i the winner?
Sat Nav, Parking sensors and 5 door are must have.
Has anybody had this choice or is the M135i the winner?
Sat Nav, Parking sensors and 5 door are must have.
Thanks for the input
Seat Leon is a good shout will look in to it.
As for choosing the cheapish there both about the same for insurance and it will be a long term keeper Her current car is a V reg Clio so it wont matter come re sale
. MPG wise it will be driven like miss daisy Mon-Fri then it will be more thoroughly enjoyed Sat-Sun.
Seat Leon is a good shout will look in to it.
As for choosing the cheapish there both about the same for insurance and it will be a long term keeper Her current car is a V reg Clio so it wont matter come re sale
. MPG wise it will be driven like miss daisy Mon-Fri then it will be more thoroughly enjoyed Sat-Sun.I went from a MK2 Focus RS to a MK3 Focus ST-3, had the ST for 21 months now.
Haven't driven the M135i but can't say the ST has impressed me. Had a LOT of problems with it when it was new (which involved a bare wire touching the gearbox casing, car had to be recovered from the side of the road twice, in winter, dealers were TOTALLY incompetent) but no major problems with it in the last year.
Good points:
1 - Compared to the MK2 RS the ST interior I find is a nice place to be. Good, comfy seats, good stereo, sunroof is a nice-to-have.
2 - Performance is fairly decent, especially now my car has done just over 15K. I've often thought about getting the Mountune kit on mine but at the moment it's fine the way it is.
Bad points:
1 - LOTS of people reporting problems (including me) on the STOC forum with the SYNC part of the stereo (pairing with your mobile for bluetooth and playing music through the stereo from the phone). I've had to pull a fuse on mine a couple of times now, and it can be a bit 'glitchy' most weeks.
2 - If you go for the Style Pack (darker alloys, red calipers + illuminated sill scuff plates) then beware of problems with the sill plates - water gets in behind them (as they are on the outside of the door rubber) and they end up blowing a fuse which also protects most of the dash lights + all the controls on the drivers side door card. I've ended up disconnecting the illumination part of my sill plates, other owners on the STOC have had to have the scuff plates replaced under warranty. I would rather the dealer didn't touch my car unless it is absolutely necessary.
3 - Reports of problems on the STOC of wandering cars (steering rack replacement required) and the DRL's flickering - both issues I haven't had with my car.
4 - MPG - I am getting around 30mpg, but I do tend to drive it fairly hard.
5 - It sounds BORING. Nothing even close to the nice growl from the 2.5 litre 5-cylinder lump that was in the MK2 RS.
6 - Bonnet/bumper gap - EVERY ST I have seen (mind included) has a huge gap between then bonnet and front bumper. This can be adjusted slightly by turning a couple of rubber 'pillows' on the slam panel, but never enough to bring the gap down to an acceptable level (in my opinion). Shoddy tolerances from the factory.
This is a fairly quick post, I am at work and need to nip out for lunch!
Haven't driven the M135i but can't say the ST has impressed me. Had a LOT of problems with it when it was new (which involved a bare wire touching the gearbox casing, car had to be recovered from the side of the road twice, in winter, dealers were TOTALLY incompetent) but no major problems with it in the last year.
Good points:
1 - Compared to the MK2 RS the ST interior I find is a nice place to be. Good, comfy seats, good stereo, sunroof is a nice-to-have.
2 - Performance is fairly decent, especially now my car has done just over 15K. I've often thought about getting the Mountune kit on mine but at the moment it's fine the way it is.
Bad points:
1 - LOTS of people reporting problems (including me) on the STOC forum with the SYNC part of the stereo (pairing with your mobile for bluetooth and playing music through the stereo from the phone). I've had to pull a fuse on mine a couple of times now, and it can be a bit 'glitchy' most weeks.
2 - If you go for the Style Pack (darker alloys, red calipers + illuminated sill scuff plates) then beware of problems with the sill plates - water gets in behind them (as they are on the outside of the door rubber) and they end up blowing a fuse which also protects most of the dash lights + all the controls on the drivers side door card. I've ended up disconnecting the illumination part of my sill plates, other owners on the STOC have had to have the scuff plates replaced under warranty. I would rather the dealer didn't touch my car unless it is absolutely necessary.
3 - Reports of problems on the STOC of wandering cars (steering rack replacement required) and the DRL's flickering - both issues I haven't had with my car.
4 - MPG - I am getting around 30mpg, but I do tend to drive it fairly hard.
5 - It sounds BORING. Nothing even close to the nice growl from the 2.5 litre 5-cylinder lump that was in the MK2 RS.
6 - Bonnet/bumper gap - EVERY ST I have seen (mind included) has a huge gap between then bonnet and front bumper. This can be adjusted slightly by turning a couple of rubber 'pillows' on the slam panel, but never enough to bring the gap down to an acceptable level (in my opinion). Shoddy tolerances from the factory.
This is a fairly quick post, I am at work and need to nip out for lunch!
Apart from the niceness of a new car I am not sure why you would choose the ST?
M135i for noise, slick gearchange (with manual and auto), performance, ability to tune easily to 380bhp and likely less depreciation than the Focus.
I would go for a 3 litre 6 cylinder every time over a 2 litre 4 pot.
M135i for noise, slick gearchange (with manual and auto), performance, ability to tune easily to 380bhp and likely less depreciation than the Focus.
I would go for a 3 litre 6 cylinder every time over a 2 litre 4 pot.
oobster said:
I went from a MK2 Focus RS to a MK3 Focus ST-3, had the ST for 21 months now.
Haven't driven the M135i but can't say the ST has impressed me. Had a LOT of problems with it when it was new (which involved a bare wire touching the gearbox casing, car had to be recovered from the side of the road twice, in winter, dealers were TOTALLY incompetent) but no major problems with it in the last year.
Good points:
1 - Compared to the MK2 RS the ST interior I find is a nice place to be. Good, comfy seats, good stereo, sunroof is a nice-to-have.
2 - Performance is fairly decent, especially now my car has done just over 15K. I've often thought about getting the Mountune kit on mine but at the moment it's fine the way it is.
Bad points:
1 - LOTS of people reporting problems (including me) on the STOC forum with the SYNC part of the stereo (pairing with your mobile for bluetooth and playing music through the stereo from the phone). I've had to pull a fuse on mine a couple of times now, and it can be a bit 'glitchy' most weeks.
2 - If you go for the Style Pack (darker alloys, red calipers + illuminated sill scuff plates) then beware of problems with the sill plates - water gets in behind them (as they are on the outside of the door rubber) and they end up blowing a fuse which also protects most of the dash lights + all the controls on the drivers side door card. I've ended up disconnecting the illumination part of my sill plates, other owners on the STOC have had to have the scuff plates replaced under warranty. I would rather the dealer didn't touch my car unless it is absolutely necessary.
3 - Reports of problems on the STOC of wandering cars (steering rack replacement required) and the DRL's flickering - both issues I haven't had with my car.
4 - MPG - I am getting around 30mpg, but I do tend to drive it fairly hard.
5 - It sounds BORING. Nothing even close to the nice growl from the 2.5 litre 5-cylinder lump that was in the MK2 RS.
6 - Bonnet/bumper gap - EVERY ST I have seen (mind included) has a huge gap between then bonnet and front bumper. This can be adjusted slightly by turning a couple of rubber 'pillows' on the slam panel, but never enough to bring the gap down to an acceptable level (in my opinion). Shoddy tolerances from the factory.
This is a fairly quick post, I am at work and need to nip out for lunch!
Why did you replace the RS? I almost went for the Mk 3 ST, but for the reason you gave..I much prefer the 5 cylinder engine. It's all part of the experience, and that 'Quattro-esque' growl wins it for me.Haven't driven the M135i but can't say the ST has impressed me. Had a LOT of problems with it when it was new (which involved a bare wire touching the gearbox casing, car had to be recovered from the side of the road twice, in winter, dealers were TOTALLY incompetent) but no major problems with it in the last year.
Good points:
1 - Compared to the MK2 RS the ST interior I find is a nice place to be. Good, comfy seats, good stereo, sunroof is a nice-to-have.
2 - Performance is fairly decent, especially now my car has done just over 15K. I've often thought about getting the Mountune kit on mine but at the moment it's fine the way it is.
Bad points:
1 - LOTS of people reporting problems (including me) on the STOC forum with the SYNC part of the stereo (pairing with your mobile for bluetooth and playing music through the stereo from the phone). I've had to pull a fuse on mine a couple of times now, and it can be a bit 'glitchy' most weeks.
2 - If you go for the Style Pack (darker alloys, red calipers + illuminated sill scuff plates) then beware of problems with the sill plates - water gets in behind them (as they are on the outside of the door rubber) and they end up blowing a fuse which also protects most of the dash lights + all the controls on the drivers side door card. I've ended up disconnecting the illumination part of my sill plates, other owners on the STOC have had to have the scuff plates replaced under warranty. I would rather the dealer didn't touch my car unless it is absolutely necessary.
3 - Reports of problems on the STOC of wandering cars (steering rack replacement required) and the DRL's flickering - both issues I haven't had with my car.
4 - MPG - I am getting around 30mpg, but I do tend to drive it fairly hard.
5 - It sounds BORING. Nothing even close to the nice growl from the 2.5 litre 5-cylinder lump that was in the MK2 RS.
6 - Bonnet/bumper gap - EVERY ST I have seen (mind included) has a huge gap between then bonnet and front bumper. This can be adjusted slightly by turning a couple of rubber 'pillows' on the slam panel, but never enough to bring the gap down to an acceptable level (in my opinion). Shoddy tolerances from the factory.
This is a fairly quick post, I am at work and need to nip out for lunch!
Re: BMW.. Very different cars, if I was doing big miles I would choose the BM
I only had the RS for 5 months, bought in haste (my fault) and it wasn't in the condition it should/could have been. Was having niggly issues, wheel balancing, a couple of punctures, drivers door mirror wobbling about, tracking etc and despite going to various dealers and specialists none of the problems were being solved totally. Also needed (at the time) a 5-door car so when the new Mk3 ST was announced it seemed perfect timing to get one.
Now I wish I had an RS again, no longer need 5 doors (daughter is rarely in my car and if she is then it is only for really short journeys, and she can do-up the seatbelt herself now without me having to climb in the back beside her) but can't seem to find a decent RS (as in decent, unmodified condition).
The interior design/colour scheme/layout/materials of the RS was pretty bad compared to the Mk3 ST, but the RS beats the ST in every other way. Especially the noise!
Now I wish I had an RS again, no longer need 5 doors (daughter is rarely in my car and if she is then it is only for really short journeys, and she can do-up the seatbelt herself now without me having to climb in the back beside her) but can't seem to find a decent RS (as in decent, unmodified condition).
The interior design/colour scheme/layout/materials of the RS was pretty bad compared to the Mk3 ST, but the RS beats the ST in every other way. Especially the noise!
Thanks guys for the input
it seems to me that the dealership has made my mind up. Ford bascily refused another test drive with out a deposit where BMW in TWELLs have given a car for 2 days to try on my commute which is M25. But it helped my father has just put a deposit down on a new 435i series conv
it seems to me that the dealership has made my mind up. Ford bascily refused another test drive with out a deposit where BMW in TWELLs have given a car for 2 days to try on my commute which is M25. But it helped my father has just put a deposit down on a new 435i series conv
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