A couple of ST220 questions

Howard

Howard

Howard

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I know they're rather popular here..

Are the cheaper, older ones a liability like BMWs, for instance are claimed to be?

I rather fancy one, and I'm not hugely fussed whether it's pre or post-face lift, or should I be? (speaking of which, how can you tell besides looking at the centre console?) http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...g/page/1/keywords/st220/radius/1500?logcode=p this strikes me as excellent value, but should I be wary, or will one that's been decently looked after with "high" mileage like that one, continue to offer trouble-free motoring?

Any mechanical weak spots that are likely to give trouble, or is it just a 'mostly spend money on consumables' affair? :)


Why should I or shouldn't I buy one? :D

Ta!
 
I wouldnt have thought a higher mileage ST220 would be a liability at all, provided it's been well looked after. Really you're looking at worn suspension components, like the notorious rear subframe bushes. Check the bottom of the doors for rust on older cars too.

Facelifted ones have a much nicer interior and thats the main reason to buy one, but other differences are slightly different wing mirrors and grille, a smaller printed IPS badge on the window rather than a sticket etc.

Do it :)
 
Thanks Iain.. That's a point.. Is rust going to be an issue or is it very occasional? I know Fords of old are a little notorious for it..

I'm not hugely fussed about build quality and interior this that and t'other (hence why I don't really want a BMW) although I like it to be reasonably refined and comfortable. I'm sure it's better than my Accord in this respect anyway. The pre-facelift interior looks fine to me

Tim, essentially it'd be to replace the Accord as an every day car with a bit more poke and being newer with more toys. MX-5 ain't going anywhere yet
 
Some of the early cars did suffer from rust on the bottom of the doors, although provided the car has had the inspections stamped by a dealer, Ford replace the doors under the anti corrosion warranty.

The interior is a personal taste thing, I think it looks too much like an old Escort on the prefacelift, but other than visually you're not going to miss out on much.
 
Ok :)

I might aim for a saloon, I think they look nice and there's that tiny little bit of extra quirkiness/exclusivity factor :)
 
The Mk3 saloon does look good :)

Presumably you dont do enough miles to worry about the fuel economy?
 
iaind said:
Facelifted ones have a much nicer interior and thats the main reason to buy one, but other differences are slightly different wing mirrors and grille, a smaller printed IPS badge on the window rather than a sticket etc.
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Not exactly the only differences, when the facelift came in they introduced the 6 speed gearbox with a slightly diff flywheel and clutch which is a lot more reliable than the earlier design.

Suspension components and bushes will likely need replacing on an older more travelled model and check for rust on the bottom of the doors as iaind said, I recently had one of mine done under warranty but if they haven't gone by now they will be fine. This mostly affects 2003-2004 models.

To be honest though apart from those things there aren't any things like the older BMW's that are documented, obviously these cars arent as numerous as the x30i BMW's so you won't hear as many tales of woes but they seem to be mechanically sound.

They will go through front tyres in 8-10k depending on your usage, just check its been serviced on time (12.5k/yearly) on the older ones check the spark plugs have been changed at the 75k mark as its a pain in the bottom job due to the location of them on the back side of the engine.

For the price they are bargaintastic and as Fox usually mentions his heart ruled his head and for the price you can't really beat them.
 
iaind said:
Presumably you dont do enough miles to worry about the fuel economy?
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Nope, unless the urban economy is stupidly, unnecessarily low!

Thanks Paul, so it's mostly consumables as I thought, that's cool :) I'll probably aim for a facelift version as tbh by the time I'll be in the position to buy one (although this isn't a dreamy "What car shall I buy in 3 years" thread ;) ) they should have dropped in price a bit more.

Tyres shouldn't be too much of an issue, it's mostly sedate motorway and town commuting although I'm sure I won't be able to resist a bit of hooning here and there, but ultimately the MX-5 is the toy :)

I think the first step is to get behind the wheel of one and see what I think!
 
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Absolutely great cars and from what I could see when I did my homework they were very, very reliable cars with no (facelift onwards at least) real weak spots that were likely to cause wallet busting pain.

Just be careful of used ones because fast Fords attract the sort of people you wouldnt want to buy a car from. Buy one off a lovely chap who has had it for years.
 
Howard said:
Nope, unless the urban economy is stupidly, unnecessarily low!
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Not especially bad I get on average 26mpg, which is mostly my drive to work which is 5 miles motorway and 1.5 miles of 40mph road at each end, doesnt get a chance to warm up, don't do too much town driving but its not horrendous and i'll get 32-34 on a sensible run, think it does something like 31mpg at 85.
 
Hardly any less economical than my Accord then, excellent.

Glad to hear your research yielded the same conclusion, Fox!
 
Running a 54 plate facelifted model - so 6 speed, Sony hu with 6 cd changer. No rust on the doors and runs like a dream. Mpg is a bit lower than I'd like but I'm coming around to a service so I expect that to pick up.
 
daveydave said:
Running a 54 plate facelifted model - so 6 speed, Sony hu with 6 cd changer. No rust on the doors and runs like a dream. Mpg is a bit lower than I'd like but I'm coming around to a service so I expect that to pick up.
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How low is low?
 
Would it be logical to get an st220 over say, an 04/05 plate ghia 2.0 for a fair bit less as a purely daily driver? especially if you have the mx5 already...
 
I've had my MPG drop to 23 when driving around Bristol, but it's usually 27 or over as work is mostly motorway (Although only 9 miles away).

The ST220 can be fun, nothing like a MX5 but it can be a laugh if you don't change gear too early. Plus it's comfy for long motorway trips.

I've got the facelift and I preferred the interior but mines done just over 100k now and still going strong. I'm hoping the fact Ford hasn't released a new Mondeo ST will keeps the value up a bit but that might be a bit optimistic. :)
 
MonkeyMan said:
The ST220 can be fun, nothing like a MX5 but it can be a laugh if you don't change gear too early. Plus it's comfy for long motorway trips.
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Just what I'm after tbh :)

I assume the audio system is nothing too special or complex in that shoving in an aftermarket head unit isn't a problem?
 
It's pretty basic, especially in the prefacelift - just a fascia and adaptor cable job. You can get stalk adaptors for about 35 quid so you can use the steering remote.

The prefacelift is a tad more complex if you have a sony head unit as the console is a different shape - IIRC you need to swap the console to a standard one and install a fascia adaptor then
 
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