Mk 3 Focus ST alternatives

Soldato
Joined
22 Nov 2006
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23,304
Funnily enough my wife has a mk3 focus st and is asking the same question, outside of gogolf or a3, all I could come up with was an a45 or the latest type r (some man maths here lol). It's quite a limited market really.

Impreza WRX STI :D

They also hold their value well.
 
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Caporegime
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20 Oct 2002
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Wish i was in a Ramen Shop Counter
I have to admit, I'm a little lost/confused about the need for a massive boot with kids. I appreciate that things have gotten bigger with safety, but when I was a kid I remember families coping with original minis and kids - hell, my dad had a 2 seater X1/9 when I was a baby and he only got a 5 door when my brother was born.

Surely a pram will fit into any hatchback??? I moved from a MX5 to a 1 series in the fear that the gf was talking about kids - and now we're expecting one, I'm a little confused why the mention of kids suddenly moves towards estates and SUVs... yes, I fully expect to be eating these words when I'm wrestling with multiple bags and just wanting to chuck items into a space, instead of pack semi-methodically.

back to 1 series boot-space - tbh, I find it massive (but, then, I could pack a weeks shopping into a MX5 boot) and arguably more usable space than the gf's Countryman, with the 1 series lacking the height axis.

Some of these prams are quite big, although i suspect people don't want to spend ages in the car park trying to play boot space Tetris and just want something large enough that it fits in when it's just thrown randomly into the back.
 

LiE

LiE

Caporegime
Joined
2 Aug 2005
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Milton Keynes
Some of these prams are quite big, although i suspect people don't want to spend ages in the car park trying to play boot space Tetris and just want something large enough that it fits in when it's just thrown randomly into the back.

This. Also if you go on holiday it can be fun fitting everything in the boot. Even just a pram and a food shop can be a challenge.
 
Associate
Joined
17 Apr 2018
Posts
898
Just thought of one more, I wouldnt but its an option
308GTI
The depreciation on them is horrible so if you can find one it could end up being quite cheap for a relatively new / low mileage one. 270BHP etc (think may be one slightly more even)
Its same segment as Focus/Golf etc

eg, slightly over budget but look at age spec etc
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201901083737420

One thing to bare in mind with the 308GTI is they require regular oil change like the Mazda 3 MPS(3000 mile interval), my other concern is if they have upgraded their high pressure fuel pump unit. They are known to fail on the 208GTI and if they do, the car will go into a limp of running and then not running properly.
 
Soldato
Joined
7 Dec 2011
Posts
10,401
This. Also if you go on holiday it can be fun fitting everything in the boot. Even just a pram and a food shop can be a challenge.

This is pretty much it for me, we used the Fiesta with our first but it was far too much of a faf to do anything other than running around locally doing the shopping. Even that becomes a pain if you have more than one car seat in the car as the pram takes up pretty much every available ounce of boot room. Keep in mind that a Focus hatch doesn't have all that much more usable boot floor than a Fiesta (real world, not measured litres)

We then have a lunatic dog with cage to add to the mix which makes even my Focus estate a relatively tight squeeze if it's to be filled with mutt and two kids.

Everything is manageable, but why not make it easier for yourself?
 
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