Solo's Garage: Fiesta ST (Round 2) The Top Gear Star

[Solo]

Well, now that I'm in an interesting car I figured it's time to start a thread!

My prior car was a 2014 1.0T EcoBoost 100PS Fiesta Zetec, which I had for just over a year and put 13,000 miles on the clock. It handled the trip down to Le Mans this year superbly. Beyond that it was a brilliant run about and an ideal first car, I could highly recommend one to anyone looking for a cheap no-nonsense runabout.​

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I was craving something a little faster though, a better drive and generally just a bit more modern. The old Ford interior has not aged well. So as soon as the order books opened I rang a few dealers and got myself with a build slot for one of the all new Fiesta ST's. I've gone for an ST-2 with the optional Performance Pack, that includes a Quaife LSD, and the full LED headlights. It's a 1.5T EcoBoost 200PS 3 cylinder engine mated to a six speed manual transmission.

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My first impressions have left me feeling absolutely over the moon with it. I've put about 350 miles on it now and I'm seriously impressed at how comfortable it actually is. I was fearing the worst based on my time in the prior generation Fiesta ST's but this is a vast improvement. Up and down motorways no problem and it handles the rather uneven roads around home with aplomb. The only time it gets unruly is when under acceleration on a broken road the front gets a bit darty as the diff is adjusting the power deployment to the wheel with the most traction.

The interior quality is such a vast improvement over the old car too, with NVH being drastically reduced at all speeds even with 2" larger wheels and the sports suspension. A Bang and Olufsen sound system comes as standard on the ST-2 and it is fantastic too, although I've not found myself listening to it that much as the sound of the engine and exhaust are more than enough to keep me entertained.

More photos, maybe a video, and a write up with more about the driving experience to come!

 

[Solo]

First Impressions - The driving experience

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I'm no writer, so bear with me if this is a bit of a scattered report!

Moving into the Fiesta ST was a huge step up for me the only car I'd regularly driven was the blue Zetec in the above post, I've had short go in a range of other vehicles but none enough to form a true impression of. The first thing I noticed was the seating position is a significant amount lower and that's exaggerated by the Recaro buckets which you feel like you're sitting in in rather than on it. The pedal box is spaced nicely but lacks a true dead pedal next to the clutch at the same level as it. With this missing it took me a little while to adjust my left foot resting position but after a week I'm used to it now although I still find it less comfortable and that I can't brace myself in the car as easily if I'm on a spirited drive.

On the move the pedals have a wonderful weighting and the steering feels very direct. The gear shift is short and snappy but for me the gear lever is just too far from the wheel due to the shortness of the lever itself. The more I drive it the more natural it feels but it did surprise me that the sportier car had the gear lever further from the steering wheel than the base model! I've not driven a current generation Fiesta Zetec but I'd be surprised if the gear level was as short as in my ST. The way the it gains speed though is something spectacular, it's smooth and composed but just keeps on pulling from one gear to the next. I won't be able to find the limit of this speed or where it doesn't pull on the public roads. The biggest thing the power change has meant though is on motorways I'm able to accelerate in any gear to overtake, or avoid a wayward driver where as before I'd have to change down at least one gear and even then it'd take a while to build the speed to pass.

Ride comfort was my only concern in purchasing the ST and running it as a daily compared to my old car, the Zetec was running on 15" wheels with 60 mm side walls and comfort suspension vs the 17" wheels with 40 mm side walls and some pretty trick sports suspension and a far stiffer chassis. But the ST actually manages the bumps in the road on my commute far better than the Zetec due to the additional body control it has meaning it doesn't crash around as much as my old car. It feels as though it's cornering virtually flat from the amount I've pushed it so far which combined with the bucket seats just fills me with the confidence to push it further, but again I won't be finding these limits on the public road. The cornering speed is helped by the LSD, but the LSD does cause the car to be darty over very broken or when moving across a crest in a road as it shifts power quickly from one side to the other and back again.

Oh and the sound, that's intoxicating. It has me grinning ear to ear just starting the car and hearing it burble away, putting it into sport mode changes the sound drastically. Under acceleration it'll crack and pop on the upshift and then on the overrun and the way back down the gear box when decelerating. But more of that later when I get around to making a vide.

If anyone has any questions I'll endeavour to answer them so fire away. Or tell me I'm talking utter nonsense, that's also welcome.

 

[homeforsummer]

I won't be able to find the limit of this speed or where it doesn't pull on the public roads.

Around Goodwood it was still pulling at 120 before I had to brake...

Glad you're enjoying it, and nice pics!

 

[SPhilli911]

Thanks for the write up and congrats on the new car. As an owner of the previous generation Fiesta ST, I've been curious how this new one compares (despite the fact that we will not be getting it in the U.S.). I do like that these things have a Quaife LSD from the factory and by the sound of it the car is a step up from the old one in nearly every way. Sounds like a blast to drive, I would love to try one.

The interior definitively looks like an improvement over the old car, but still not sure how I feel about these "tablets" sticking out of the dash like that. Granted the screen on the old car wasn't that attractive either. But overall it looks like a higher quality interior. Looking at the Ford UK site, all seat options are Recaro sport seats now, even in the ST-1, how do those feel when driving in a spirited manner? In the old car, the Recaro seats were quite snug, some people love them some people hate them.

Also, you might be able to get a dead pedal online. The old car lacked one as well, but some guy was custom making them online (at fiestastforum.com), maybe someone is making them for the new car as well.

Enjoy it!

 

[Solo]

1500 miles​

So I've just ticked over 1500 miles in 3 weeks of ownership thanks to a trip to the Lake District and back. It was the first time I'd had 3 passengers in the car for any extended period of time so I was a little nervous that it might not be the most practical car for a week in the lakes ferrying my friends around. I was however looking forward to testing it out on some more twisty and challenging roads.

Previously I've mentioned how surprised I was by the ride comfort but the reduced NVH vs my old car made the long motorway slog surprisingly pleasant, the Bang and Olufsen sound system helped there too. The two rear passengers had no complaints about space despite one being 6'5" tall, all round it was a far more comfortable long distance drive than I'd expected and I average 44 mpg which I'm more than happy with! That average dropped to 37 during the week though, which isn't as bad as I'd expected it to be. The long drive gave me a chance to really focus on the engine and try and detect the cylinder deactivation at work, and the only way I could tell it was working was when the instant mpg figure on the dash would jump, theres no audible or physical feeling of the cylinder shutting down and then reactivating.

The narrow, twisty roads of the Lake District were a great test of the car and it certainly handled everything I threw at it. Being so easy to place and responsive it meant that what could have been pretty hairy moments with oncoming traffic were mostly avoided as I could stick so effectively to my lane where other traffic was not doing so. Although that may say more about the quality of tourist driving than it does the ST. Putting it in sport mode a few times when I was alone in the car and pushing on when the roads were quiet allowed me to test the performance of the car a bit more. The additional weighting of the steering in sport mode takes a moment to get used to vs the neutral balance it has in 'normal' mode, but the exhaust note change more than makes up for that and hearing the pops and bangs echoing off the walls lining the road never failed to make me grin. I never reached a point that I felt the front end wasn't going to grip and it'd take a far better driver than I am to really get the most out of this car. I need to do a track day....

Whilst at the hotel I found another magnetic ST, pretty slim chance of that at this stage in the product launch so we met up one evening for a few photos. The owner of the other car had a small lip kit installed that I quite liked but I'm in no hurry to start drilling into the body of the car.

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The interior definitively looks like an improvement over the old car, but still not sure how I feel about these "tablets" sticking out of the dash like that. Granted the screen on the old car wasn't that attractive either. But overall it looks like a higher quality interior. Looking at the Ford UK site, all seat options are Recaro sport seats now, even in the ST-1, how do those feel when driving in a spirited manner? In the old car, the Recaro seats were quite snug, some people love them some people hate them.

The interior truly transforms the experience of the car vs the outgoing model, it's actually a nice place to be now. The Recaro buckets are fantastic, my work colleagues who've sat in mine to compare it to their mk7 ST's say that the seats are a little wider but still as comfortable. Personally I'm pretty tall and slim and I find them to provide support in all the right place and never became uncomfortable. As for driving in a spirited manner they keep you perfectly in place.

Around Goodwood it was still pulling at 120 before I had to brake...

This is just reinforcing my desire to take it out on a track at some point.

 

[Solo]

From the a very early MK8 ST-2 above, via a 2019 Focus ST-Line X, to the new ST Edition:


Improved suspension and a few cabin trim tweaks makes it feel like a completely different car. I won’t be selling this one in a hurry again.

 

[Solo]

15,000 miles and almost 2 years later I still love it. No matter what else I drive getting back into this is a real treat. I've taken it to Dublin and northern Italy in the past year, and it's proven to be an incredibly competent road trip car too averaging nearly 50 mpg over a long run.

As I said in my last post, I won't be selling this one. Especially as Ford no longer make a 3 door Fiesta ST and this has the 3 way adjustable Ford Performance (re-branded KW) coilover suspension as standard fitment which significantly improves the ride over standard.

 

[RedRockValley]

As I said in my last post, I won't be selling this one. Especially as Ford no longer make a 3 door Fiesta ST and this has the 3 way adjustable Ford Performance (re-branded KW) coilover suspension as standard fitment which significantly improves the ride over standard.

Definitely don't sell it now...

 

[Solo]

Well it’s been a while and long over due an update. I still have the Fiesta ST Edition but it doesn’t get driven as much now due to having a company car too.

However, it had a good year in 2023, including featuring in Top Gear magazines 30th Birthday Celebrations. The Ford of Britain press office needed to borrow a mark 8 Fiesta ST and I was more than happy to lend them mine.

More images here and here.

Now even more attached to it than I was before and it’s great to have a magazine with my car featured in it.

 

[SPhilli911]

Absolutely awesome, congrats getting your car featured! Should get some of those pictures framed and never sell your car.

We got ripped off in the US not getting most of the cool Fords, but I am happy we got some at least. I know that my MK7 Fiesta ST is a car I will never get rid of, having owned it for nearly 9 years I still believe it's the most fun car I have driven.

 

[Rossell2]

I have a Mk7 1.0 which sadly is coming to the end of our time today together due to needing a bigger car. But I have to say immense fun and pleasure to own. Congrats on the car feature that must be feel pretty awesome.

 

[Solo]

Absolutely awesome, congrats getting your car featured! Should get some of those pictures framed and never sell your car.

A friend bought me a framed set of the photos from the mag and it’s up in my office at home. Never selling it, despite the temptation to go into a new Mustang when it’s released in the UK…

I have a Mk7 1.0 which sadly is coming to the end of our time today together

Great car, and I’m sure you’ll miss it when it’s gone. Despite having a couple of Focus and a Kuga over the years I keep coming back to the Fiesta.