Anyone who’s seen my Mk6 Ford Fiesta ST may have come to the conclusion that it’s not been especially well looked after. The wheels are curbed, bumpers gashed and there’s a whacking great streak down the driver’s side door and wing where it was keyed, all of which occurred while in the hands of the previous owner (honest). But beneath that scruffy exterior is a little hot hatch that’s rust-free and mechanically sound, and because a high-miler like TRV here is worth peanuts these days, I’ve never felt the need to drop four figures on making it look smart.
Any mechanical issues, which are few and far between, have been dealt with swiftly and I’ve made sure, particularly in recent years, to get it serviced every 12 months so it continues being as dependable as it always has been. Having said that, I’ve never taken it to a specialist, mostly because I live in Berkshire and most Ford gurus are based up north. Mountune’s a little closer, but its […] headquarters are still a good six-hour round trip. There is, however, Tremona Garage in Southampton, which has been in the business since the '70s and is lauded on these here forums (plus the Ford message boards), so I decided to pay them a visit for a full service and a thorough once-over.
Think of this as preventative medicine. Because while the occasional mechanical gremlin has been addressed over my eight years of ownership, I’ve never had a specialist comb through the car for any potential issues that might cause financial harm in the future. I’d also noticed that the gear shift was a little stiff when going between second and fourth, so thought a change of transmission oil was in order given there were no records of it being done over the car’s 135k miles and 20 years of use. Admittedly, the chaps at Tremona did warn me this probably wouldn’t alleviate the issue as it’s not a common problem on the IB5 ‘box, but I told them to go ahead with it anyway for peace of mind.
A few hours after handing the keys over, I got the call with the breakdown of everything that is right and wrong with my ST. It’s a call we all dread, and given I’d asked them to spare no detail on the car’s condition, I was expecting the worst. However, the Tremona crew were surprisingly chipper, even going so far as to say it was one of the best high-mile Mk6 Fiesta STs they’d seen, and that’s high praise coming from a team that has prepped numerous concours-winning old Fords.
Aside from the many exterior blemishes, the only bits that needed sorting were a binding right-rear brake calliper, a new washer and retaining clip for the heat shield and a tweak to the handbrake cable. The transmission oil was replaced and the gear change pivot greased up, but the dodgy shifts were actually the result of a defective rubber bush in the linkage. A £10 part that, unfortunately, the team didn’t have on hand, but one I’ve since ordered for all of £5. There were a couple of issues I was already aware of, namely a rattly exhaust flex pipe and worn-out suspension bushes, but I’ve yet to decide on whether to go down the poly bush route on the latter and/or a stainless steel system for the former.
Otherwise, the ST left Tremona with a clean bill of health, a full service completed and peace of mind that it won’t rust to bits anytime soon. The team were just as friendly and helpful as the forum comments had me believe, and I was impressed at the level of detail they went into when looking over the car (how often do you check your exhaust heat shield washers?). Safe to say I’ll be back in the coming months once I’ve figured out where to go with the suspension bushes and exhaust, and after I’ve had the air con re-gassed.
So what of the many cosmetic defects, then? Well, annoyingly, after the service was carried out and these pictures taken, some (expletive) left a sizeable dent in the driver’s door without leaving a note. More annoyingly, this happened at home, while the car was parked, and in an area that isn’t covered by CCTV. So I’m royally cheesed off, and now need to factor in the cost of a new driver’s door into my spreadsheet of things to fix and improve. Ugh. On the plus side, they look relatively cheap to replace, so it just comes down to finding a non-scuffed spare that’s in the right colour.
Once that’s all sorted, attention will turn to a little project I’ve got going on. For the longest time, I’ve wanted to recreate the Fiesta RS Concept that Ford debuted alongside the ST at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show. It’s one of the coolest concepts to never make production, and a little bit of digging suggests it’s a bit of a parts bin special. Aside from the body kit. And the wheels. A ridiculous way to spend money that currently isn’t there? Perhaps, but I’ve always wanted to make a car my own, and this project seems like the best way of going about it.
A lot more research (and money) is needed before the project can get underway. Ford has informed me the car no longer exists, sadly, but questions remain on how far it got before pulling the plug. Was it turbocharged? Did they whack a diff on it? And who did they get to make that achingly cool, JWRC-style body kit? All questions I’m trying to find answers to, but I’ve already managed to identify and source the first piece of the puzzle: an aluminium gear knob that, apparently, was only available on a handful of Mondeo STs. Took me ages to find, too. And it’ll be a while before other bits are stuck on, so for now I’ll make do knowing that it’s one small step closer to becoming the Fiesta RS that never was. Watch this space, albeit with a great deal of patience.
Car: 2005 Ford Fiesta ST (Mk6)
Run by: Cam Tait
Bought in: April 2017
Mileage: 135,005
Last month at a glance: specialist service gears the ST up for an RS makeover
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