Fiesta ST (3-door) is coming! Australian Media Coverage (Links)

[barra240t]

Originally Posted by MISTA FIESTA

Everything about this car (Sans the test drive) is exactly what i have been waiting for. If you say to me just picture it as an updated/modern XR4 with 33% more powers and 100nm torques and will keep my giggling like a 16yo school girl then i know it needs to be mine.

Its the xr4 with the power it always deserved pretty much, and much more!

[DJM83]

One thing i may point out i dont like (Picky i know) but unless you have got euro plates its gonna look a little silly i reckon.

[MISTA FIESTA]

Originally Posted by barra240t

Its the xr4 with the power it always deserved pretty much, and much more!

Statement of the day. Deal will be done. I excite

[barra240t]

http://www.themotorreport.com.au/572...t-drive-review

http://www.carsales.com.au/reviews/2...st-drive-38481

http://www.caradvice.com.au/249166/f...a-st-review-2/

[ConST]

Nice.

Here's where I'm hoping someone will come out with a short shift kit soon!

[barra240t]

The shift is fine, I don't know what the big deal is to be honest.

[MISTA FIESTA]

Originally Posted by ConST

Nice.

Here's where I'm hoping someone will come out with a short shift kit soon!

http://www.mountunestore.com/Product...--Quick-shift-

[ConST]

Ordered!

Sent from my HTC_PN071 using Tapatalk 2

[MISTA FIESTA]

Originally Posted by ConST

Ordered!

I like your style.

After reading the three reviews above, the common topic was the long gearing between 2nd -3rd. Why would this be a problem?? it should still punch close to 100 in second i assume?

[ConST]

Originally Posted by barra240t

The shift is fine, I don't know what the big deal is to be honest.

I hear ya. Just that pretty much all three of those articles mentioned the long hear throw between second and third.

I do like a short shift. But not at the expense of a snapped cable!

Sent from my HTC_PN071 using Tapatalk 2

[ConST]

Originally Posted by MISTA FIESTA

I like your style.

After reading the three reviews above, the common topic was the long gearing between 2nd -3rd. Why would this be a problem?? it should still punch close to 100 in second i assume?

I like a short weighted shift. Just my preference.

It's actually out of stock so I can't order it. I've sent them an email to see when it will be back in stock. I'm keen on it.

Official confirmation from my dealer that my wheels have been painted black. Tomorrow all they have to do is put the tyres back on, detail, and slap the plates on. Picking it up Saturday morning!

Sent from my HTC_PN071 using Tapatalk 2

[NanoDuke]

Originally Posted by MISTA FIESTA

I like your style.

After reading the three reviews above, the common topic was the long gearing between 2nd -3rd. Why would this be a problem?? it should still punch close to 100 in second i assume?

Does this answer your question?
http://youtu.be/i4fLIjh3Ez0?t=26s

They get it to 95km/h before hitting 3rd.

[NanoDuke]

Just took one for a fang, molten orange.

My thoughts:
The brakes are excellent - compared to my three door Echo lol
The sound symposer sounds great coming from the front on throttle and the exhaust "drone" from behind sounds sweet too.
Gear box is silky smooth.
Hill hold works as advertised, but made my launch a bit funny lol. Need to get used to that.
Molten orange colour is nice in the flesh, but I don't see it any special over mars red or chili orange.

In saying that, it's not right for me. Drove an FG turbo afterwards and my grin was just that much wider, so the fez won't be for me...

[bassboy]

My new toy boys and girls.
http://s807.photobucket.com/user/bas...tml?sort=3&o=0

[NanoDuke]

A bit more info now that I'm sitting down and thinking about it:

Rear view mirror visibility is pretty good. The mirror view covers the whole back window.

As I quessed what would happen, I bloody flicked the windscreen wipers five times in the space of 3km test drive haha.

The Sony entertainment console is bloody annoying. WAY too many buttons. I like the simplicity of the FG ICC. Instead of the piano keys to trigger the screen hotlinks, there's four physical buttons at the very bottom of the ICC. A bit strange that way...
Speakers go off, though. Tethered my Android phone no worries and blasted out the music I wanted.
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD CAN SOMEONE PLEASE POINT OUT THE 7TH AND 8TH SPEAKERS TO ME??? Dealer and I could only count 6?? Unless two speakers are 2-in-1 jobbies?

Black interior roofing is nice.

Seat adjustment and wheel placement is good, too. I'm 6"4' and had to reign in the seat a tad forward (so not all the way slammed back). There's height adjustment of the seat, too.

I'm a novice when it comes to driving a manual, but I found this weird section in the throw of the clutch. Right at the top (clutch out) there's about an inch that pops back on my feet. Kinda like the soft stop when you "floor it" in a falcon, but realise there's an extra kick down. Kinda like that but the reverse. I could gently rest my foot on the clutch and it'd move down an inch before feeling some resistance. Not sure what's going on with that.

It sure has some poke to it. Pulls nicely up hills and sounds good while doing it. Could only hear what was in the cabin, though. I tried to listen out the window but I didn't hear much from the exhaust externally.

The dealer and I both laughed when punching it, there seems to be a very slight little flutter from the turbo when shifting gears.

I didn't like how there felt like some imposed throttle resistance when taking off in first. I thought it was struggling at first (or that I was in too high a gear) until I realised I just had to push just that *little bit* more.



Ummm.. does anyone have any questions I might be able to answer?

[LeadFoot81]

Originally Posted by NanoDuke

A bit more info now that I'm sitting down and thinking about it:

Rear view mirror visibility is pretty good. The mirror view covers the whole back window.

As I quessed what would happen, I bloody flicked the windscreen wipers five times in the space of 3km test drive haha.

The Sony entertainment console is bloody annoying. WAY too many buttons. I like the simplicity of the FG ICC. Instead of the piano keys to trigger the screen hotlinks, there's four physical buttons at the very bottom of the ICC. A bit strange that way...
Speakers go off, though. Tethered my Android phone no worries and blasted out the music I wanted.
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD CAN SOMEONE PLEASE POINT OUT THE 7TH AND 8TH SPEAKERS TO ME??? Dealer and I could only count 6?? Unless two speakers are 2-in-1 jobbies?

Black interior roofing is nice.

Seat adjustment and wheel placement is good, too. I'm 6"4' and had to reign in the seat a tad forward (so not all the way slammed back). There's height adjustment of the seat, too.

I'm a novice when it comes to driving a manual, but I found this weird section in the throw of the clutch. Right at the top (clutch out) there's about an inch that pops back on my feet. Kinda like the soft stop when you "floor it" in a falcon, but realise there's an extra kick down. Kinda like that but the reverse. I could gently rest my foot on the clutch and it'd move down an inch before feeling some resistance. Not sure what's going on with that.

It sure has some poke to it. Pulls nicely up hills and sounds good while doing it. Could only hear what was in the cabin, though. I tried to listen out the window but I didn't hear much from the exhaust externally.

The dealer and I both laughed when punching it, there seems to be a very slight little flutter from the turbo when shifting gears.

I didn't like how there felt like some imposed throttle resistance when taking off in first. I thought it was struggling at first (or that I was in too high a gear) until I realised I just had to push just that *little bit* more.



Ummm.. does anyone have any questions I might be able to answer?

I have a question...why didn't you buy it?! Haha

Thanks for the write up, very interesting.

[NanoDuke]

Haha as I mentioned in my earlier post:
"Drove an FG turbo afterwards and my grin was just that much wider, so the fez won't be for me..."
If I was a hardcore manual driver I'd probably think differently, or if I was in the market for any new car then the Fez would be it at that price.
But realistically, for the same coin I will get a slightly aged I6 turbo which gives me more thrills.

[MISTA FIESTA]

NanoDuke - Appreciate your review greatly as you have confirmed a few things i was questioning. I beleive the extra two speakers may be the rear tweeters?? possibly hidden?

I was also questioning why you didnt buy it as your review is very positive, but understand the final outcome has come to personal preference nothing more. You cant deny a I6 turbo is a great Bang For Buck Package.

[Fordman1]

Originally Posted by bassboy

My new toy boys and girls.
http://s807.photobucket.com/user/bas...tml?sort=3&o=0

Love that in Blue Bassboy.

That's the one for me

[DJM83]

My dealer has this.

[Pursya]

Love white.
But the blue wins. Hands down.
Jealous am I.

[WILDB]

I took one for a drive today and was extremely impressed. I've driven the XR4 previously, as well as having owned an XR5 and now a Focus ST.

Although the seats are the same as in the Focus they actually feel more comfortable in cloth only as opposed to the partial leather in the Focus. Entry and egress is far better for me in the Fiesta than the Focus thanks to the longer doors - the cabin also feels a bit more open than the Focus too, mainly due to the design of the console and dash. The buttons on the steering wheel and centre stack are well laid out and fall easily to hand. I much prefer the climate control unit from the Focus though - the unit in the Fiesta looks a bit cheap and nasty by comparison.

Onto the controls - the steering wheel has a very nice feel to it and it sits well in your hands. The pedals are perfectly spaced and I would imagine they would be in the right spot for heel and toe driving.

Out on the road and the first thing I noticed by comparison to the Focus is that the clutch and gearbox are very light - excellent in their operation, but I do prefer the heavier shift and clutch from the Focus hands down. The brakes are excellent, on par if not slightly better than the Focus. The steering is extremely accurate and feels quite nice and there is minimal (if any) torque steer even on hard acceleration. The suspension tune is spot on - noticeably firmer than the Focus, but it does suit the Fiesta's personality. You do notice bumps a lot more in the Fiesta and there is also a lot more road noise in the cabin than in the Focus. The handling of the Fiesta is astonishing, it simply grips and grips without any fuss - going around a roundabout for example, you can enter and exit with considerably more pace than you could achieve without understeering in the Focus. The Torque Vectoring seems to work very well in the Fiesta. Engine performance is quite strong (for a 1.6) and there is minimal turbo lag. The engine note is excellent, I actually prefer it to the noise the Focus ST makes. With the windows down you can clearly hear the turbo spooling as well as some chatter on gear changes.

In summary, this is a fantastic car which is definitely going to sell well. It has excellent performance, handling and equipment levels for a vehicle of this price range and size. I personally think it looks great in Molten Orange, although colour choices are subjective - my Focus is Tangerine Scream, which I know isn't everyone's cup of tea. One thing I wish Ford had done (and this applies to the Focus as well) is offer the grey wheels/painted calipers as an option at least, because they look so much better IMO.

I did like the Fiesta a lot - if I was buying at the moment I would most likely still buy the Focus as I do prefer the extra goodies and power, but there is no denying that the Fiesta ST is a very special car and is definitely going to sell very well. I can only imagine what these things are going to be like with some mods, or even the Mountune kit - they will be an absolute beast.

[LeadFoot81]

Originally Posted by Nikked

Your're new here, arnt ya?

Picked up my ST this morning!

It was cool getting puzzled (admiring) looks from peeps on the way home, I'm sure there will be many more to come in the following weeks and months.

Agree with pretty much everything WILDB just posted.

The drive is fantastic, it looks mean on the outside (molten orange looks fantastic) and the interior is like a fighter jet cockpit with it's charcoal grey trim throughout.

I bought this car sight unseen, and without having test driven one...and I couldn't be happier with it!!!

I think this car is AMAZING value for money and an instant CLASSIC.

[Alan D Segal]

Originally Posted by DJM83

My dealer has this.
image
image

He must be flying under the cops' radar. The dealer in my street gets around in an old laser. What do you buy? You sound like a weed kind of guy.