Wednesday 7th March 2012

Geneva 2012: Ford Fiesta ST

Production version of sporty Fiesta gets Geneva debut

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The three-door production-ready Ford Fiesta ST has made its debut at the Geneva motor show.

The ST was first shown in five-door concept form at Frankfurt last year, and should be on sale in the UK some time in 2013.

Powering the diminutive hot hatch is a 180hp, 177lb ft 1.6-litre turbocharged 'Ecoboost' engine that'll manage a 0-60mph sprint in less than seven seconds and top out at 136 mph

The production version is powered by Ford's 1.6-litre EcoBoost turbocharged engine that's tuned to deliver 178bhp and 177lb ft. The Fiesta ST will sprint from 0-62mph in less than seven seconds and hit a top speed of over 136mph.

The Team RS-tuned chassis is 15mm lower than a standard Fiesta, and the new ST also gets a Focus ST-aping prominent trapezoidal grille treatment, while inside Recaro sports seats are standard.

 

[Hip]

Any hints at the cost from Ford?

[TREMAiNE]

Looks quite beefy but an Ecoengine is just EMBARASSING.
Can't wait for the new Clio Sport reveal...

[Marf]

TREMAiNE said:

Looks quite beefy but an Ecoengine is just EMBARASSING.
Can't wait for the new Clio Sport reveal...

Stupid boy....

Just because it's labelled ecoboost doesnt mean its a green tree hugging car.

Decat, remap, boost increase and wahey, 200hp+.

Is their 3.5l V6 Twin Turbo Ecoboost "just EMBARRASSING"?

[fathomfive]

I quite like that.

[Dave Hedgehog]

soon to be seen glued to your back bumper driven by a kid in a hoodie ...

[A Scotsman]

Price is supposed to be around £18,000 which if correct means they'll sell about ten.

The new Cliosport is reputed to have 220bhp so it should be much quicker.

[mikejg]

i dont like height of rear quarter panel and back end if you get me. makes the wheels look tiny.

[JDMDrifter]

I like fast fords and this is another nice one

[oj121]

It looks good but should be around 200bhp IMO. In this day in age 180 really is the bottom of the pile still.

[Marf]

oj121 said:

It looks good but should be around 200bhp IMO. In this day in age 180 really is the bottom of the pile still.

Less than 7 seconds to 60 is respectable for the market this car is aimed at. Plus I bet there'll be ford approved tuning kits to (incredibly easily) unlock the 20hp needed to tip it over 200hp.

[LuS1fer]

The trick Ford should NOT miss is to offer a 5 door version. I think the long wheelbase actually makes the 5 door a better looker but there are many families for whom 5 doors is a pre-requisite.

[MELLY-WRC]

Was hoping this would be a "new car" alternative to a 3 year old focus rs as they will be roughly the same price by the time the fiesta is launched. Slightly more modest looking and a tad underpowered but how many of these will actually stay standard anyway. How much power it can safely be taken to for not unreasonable amounts of money and how much it weighs will be large considerations as it's nailed on it will handle very well like previous models.

Cheers,
Melly

[jimjim150]

I do agree that the power on these should be 200bhp as standard, however the torque figure on this is decent.

As said by someone else, looking forward to the next Clio as I believe it will be a class leader.

[Chrisw666]

The lower powered eco boost engine made the new focus a hoot on Italian mountain roads and was sort of economical despite my attempts to uncover any race driver DNA that may be inside me, the fiesta is a cracking little thing to pedal in 1.2 poverty spec. This leads me to deduce that the ST fiesta will be a cracking steer regardless of the headling power offered by others.

[Chrisw666]

Nobody mentioned this in the article

'while a Sound Symposer filters that best engine noise from under the bonnet into the cabin'

the very thought of that makes me sad.

[Grovsie26]

Chrisw666 said:

Nobody mentioned this in the article

'while a Sound Symposer filters that best engine noise from under the bonnet into the cabin'

the very thought of that makes me sad.

Maybe cus it's not in the article? I can't see it just the same paragraph repeated. Looks nice, should be a little cracker. 16k and they'll sell loads.

[George H]

A Scotsman said:

Price is supposed to be around £18,000 which if correct means they'll sell about ten.

Why's that then? My Polo cost more than £18k and is one of it's main rivals. A MINI Cooper S costs way more than £20k new. I don't see how costing £18k is going to be its downfall. Why can people not understand that cars cost more now than they did 10 years ago

[Chrisw666]

George H said:

A Scotsman said:

Price is supposed to be around £18,000 which if correct means they'll sell about ten.

Why's that then? My Polo cost more than £18k and is one of it's main rivals. A MINI Cooper S costs way more than £20k new. I don't see how costing £18k is going to be its downfall. Why can people not understand that cars cost more now than they did 10 years ago

Can I be the first to suggest that you can buy a used Focus RS for £18k

I'm not sure some folk understand fully how cars go from being sold new to used.

[marcgti6]

I remember when small cars were actually small. I don't like, it looks like a fecking MPV.

[stuckmojo]

marcgti6 said:

I remember when small cars were actually small. I don't like, it looks like a fecking MPV.

That, and the basking shark mouth.

Personally, I find the standard Focus and Fiesta more sporty and aggressive with the vertical "fins". the gaping mouth looks stupid to me.