Fiesta ST?

BennyC · 12 Aug 2010 at 12:47

Personally I've never been a fan of the Fiesta ST interior , irrelevant of the fact I drive a 182 FF, the vents, gear gaiter, entierly plastic door cards all just looked and felt a bit cheap in my friends. No idea if it changes with the facelift or which model he had. The seats were good held you a bit better not that you fall out of them in the 182.

Really disliked the 'blue' dashboard from what I remember in his, again this could have been an optional extra and the general styling of the dash I wasn't too impressed with.

Haven't driven one yet though had a passenger ride in one about a year ago. It is a nice looking car though.

The 182 is still bags of fun to drive but can''t compare them until I've driven an ST unfortunatley.

Looks like you got a good deal though

Relentless81 · 12 Aug 2010 at 12:59

Mr^B said:
The Fiesta ST has a nicer interior than the Clio, but isn't as nice to drive.

Are you always this slow on the uptake?

Yeah pretty much, especially with ridiculous comparisons

I see "nice" to drive being confused with speed, i'll bet the Fiesta is just as "nice" to drive as the Clio and people see straight line performance as the be all and end all, to me there is always a bigger fish and I lost interest in pub bragging rights long ago, I would have made the same choice as the OP given the same choices and so can see why he made the decision

I highly doubt the fiesta is horrible is horrible to drive and i'll bet with a few mods its much improved as I hear they are highly restrictive from factory to keep insurance down etc

Barks · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:20

Relentless81 said:
Yeah pretty much, especially with ridiculous comparisons

I see "nice" to drive being confused with speed, i'll bet the Fiesta is just as "nice" to drive as the Clio and people see straight line performance as the be all and end all, to me there is always a bigger fish and I lost interest in pub bragging rights long ago, I would have made the same choice as the OP given the same choices and so can see why he made the decision

I highly doubt the fiesta is horrible is horrible to drive and i'll bet with a few mods its much improved as I hear they are highly restrictive from factory to keep insurance down etc

Renaultsport cars have a reputation for sublime handling, it's not all about pace. In fact I remember watching a video review where on a track there's little between the latest Renaultsport Clio 200 and the Focus RS, the RS burns it on the straights but the Clio's handling and braking is sublime.

Even Mini Coopers are fun to drive. Anyone who disagrees is simply wrong. They're not that fast in a straight line but you can chuck them round country lanes and have plenty of fun.

Mr^B · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:39

Relentless81 said:
Yeah pretty much, especially with ridiculous comparisons

I see "nice" to drive being confused with speed, i'll bet the Fiesta is just as "nice" to drive as the Clio and people see straight line performance as the be all and end all, to me there is always a bigger fish and I lost interest in pub bragging rights long ago, I would have made the same choice as the OP given the same choices and so can see why he made the decision

I highly doubt the fiesta is horrible is horrible to drive and i'll bet with a few mods its much improved as I hear they are highly restrictive from factory to keep insurance down etc

I already explained that speed is merely a side effect of having a light car with a powerful engine.

Unless you feel that in some way the handling and performance of a car have nothing to do with how nice it is to drive...

BennyC · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:44

I remember watching that comparison video.

Clio 200 got left behind on the straight but through the courners I'm pritty sure it had to actually slow down for the RS because it couldn't courner as fast :cool:

Stopping distance is shorter than the porsche cayman if I recall?

Relentless81 · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:46

Mr^B said:
I already explained that speed is merely a side effect of having a light car with a powerful engine.

Unless you feel that in some way the handling and performance of a car have nothing to do with how nice it is to drive...

No its not, you can have a heavy car with a powerful engine and associate it with speed

This argument is pointless, is it even an argument or are you just spouting absolute rubbish

A car is a whole package of different features and benefits some excel in areas more than others and the buyer basis their decision on what features and benefits of a particular cars overall package suits them most

In this case, the buyer went for interior over performance, I really cant see what we are even debating about

Mr^B · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:53

Relentless81 said:
No its not, you can have a heavy car with a powerful engine and associate it with speed

I never said you couldn't - I didn't say that power and handling were the ONLY things that determine how nice a car is to drive.

This argument is pointless, is it even an argument or are you just spouting absolute rubbish

You started the argument. I merely said (in a roundabout way, which you apparently STILL don't understand) that the Fiesta has the nicer interior, but the Clio has better performance & handling. I apologise if that was confusing to you, it apparently wasn't confusing to anyone else.

A car is a whole package of different features and benefits some excel in areas more than others and the buyer basis their decision on what features and benefits of a particular cars overall package suits them most

Yes, and?

In this case, the buyer went for interior over performance, I really cant see what we are even debating about

Neither can I, so I suggest you stop.

redeye_uk · 12 Aug 2010 at 14:53

I think it was the 'boy racer' comment and excluding clio's on that basis

Relentless81 · 12 Aug 2010 at 15:26

I'll be honest I have no idea what we are debating about, its knocking minutes off my afternoon though, strangest thing is, we actually agree on the point that the Fiesta has the nicer interior and when you think about it the debate is ridulous anyway :confused:

pdw8 · 12 Aug 2010 at 17:48

Lets put this back into context.
My wife is 36 and currently drives a 3.0L A4 Avant. She can and does rag it around a bit but is sensible on the whole as she mostly has our kids in the car with her.
To her, the looks, driveability fuel consumption and to an extent comfort are what she looks for. She wants something that looks nice on the school run but can have a bit of fun in as well.
So she fell in love with the ST, the colour, interiour and rims all helped. She has no interest in the 0-60 time, top speed, what mods can be done etc. If it was me buying this 10 years ago then I probably would have got something like a Clio or Seat, something that can be modded etc.

Overall she is very happy with it and thats what matters. I apologise if I offended the Clio owners here, I didn't mean to. What I should have said was that a 172 is a good car but she didnt like it.

Anyway, any advice on subtle and basic mods

melchy · 12 Aug 2010 at 17:53

You could go for this

http://www.mountuneperformance.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=137&Itemid=55

Or straight for the 185 package.

My friend had an Fiesta ST (bought new at the same time as I bought my 3 year old 182 and we did a bit of a back to back comparison). It was a great little car and certainly had fewer rattles than my French tin can

That being said, the ride on the ST actually felt harsher than the 182. It was certainly good fun to drive and in some ways felt a bit more of a hooligans car than the 182 (friend drove it like he stole it from day one).

lukechad · 12 Aug 2010 at 20:56

a lot of the ST's are at about the 5k mark for average mileage, which shocked me massively.

I'd love a hot-hatch, probably a clio 182 personally but insurance for me still is just sky high.

Looks a nice one, not seen many in that colour. Doesnt say boy racer at all!

mjd · 12 Aug 2010 at 22:54

I owned an ST for a year. Good fun, but the ride really started to get on my nerves after a while and we parted ways. If you dont have too many fillings you should be fine though!

Begbie · 13 Aug 2010 at 00:34

melchy said:
You could go for this

http://www.mountuneperformance.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=137&Itemid=55

Or straight for the 185 package.

My friend had an Fiesta ST (bought new at the same time as I bought my 3 year old 182 and we did a bit of a back to back comparison). It was a great little car and certainly had fewer rattles than my French tin can That being said, the ride on the ST actually felt harsher than the 182. It was certainly good fun to drive and in some ways felt a bit more of a hooligans car than the 182 (friend drove it like he stole it from day one).

So, in real life terms is there much in it?

Johnnytoxic · 13 Aug 2010 at 02:00

The Fiesta is a much better car in all areas bar speed compared to the Clio.

Clio feels really cheap and nasty.

Any car will look boy racerish if you put them god awful stripes on the front. Well done up for getting the ST without stripes.

Fiesta > Clio

pdw8 · 14 Aug 2010 at 15:39

melchy said:
You could go for this

http://www.mountuneperformance.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=137&Itemid=55

Or straight for the 185 package.

My friend had an Fiesta ST (bought new at the same time as I bought my 3 year old 182 and we did a bit of a back to back comparison). It was a great little car and certainly had fewer rattles than my French tin can That being said, the ride on the ST actually felt harsher than the 182. It was certainly good fun to drive and in some ways felt a bit more of a hooligans car than the 182 (friend drove it like he stole it from day one).

I was thinking more along the lines of a £300 induction kit. Its got some good reviews and adds drivability and an sweeter sounding exhaust note apparently.
I cant see the point why anyone would spend £2000 on an 30 BHP upgrade, why not just buy a more powerful car?

B1C3P · 14 Aug 2010 at 15:49

I like them but they are wayy overpriced. You can get an rx8 for cheaper with less miles lol? Coming to think about it you can buy the focus st (new version) for as low as 7k lol.

Peerzy · 14 Aug 2010 at 15:57

B1C3P said:
I like them but they are wayy overpriced. You can get an rx8 for cheaper with less miles lol? Coming to think about it you can buy the focus st (new version) for as low as 7k lol.

I wouldn't want a Focus ST for £7k, you're much better off spending £9k on a good one.

An RX-8 is a totally different type of car, running costs are much more and they are hardly supercar quick themselves.

Silly post really.

melchy · 14 Aug 2010 at 15:57

pdw8 said:
I was thinking more along the lines of a £300 induction kit. Its got some good reviews and adds drivability and an sweeter sounding exhaust note apparently.
I cant see the point why anyone would spend £2000 on an 30 BHP upgrade, why not just buy a more powerful car?

Never used them but is this more the thing you are looking for.

http://www.pumaspeed.co.uk/showdetails.jsp?productID=211

Will · 14 Aug 2010 at 16:46

pdw8 said:
I was thinking more along the lines of a £300 induction kit. Its got some good reviews and adds drivability and an sweeter sounding exhaust note apparently.
I cant see the point why anyone would spend £2000 on an 30 BHP upgrade, why not just buy a more powerful car?

I would recommend going for an induction kit (K&N 57i is probably the best value for money kit on the market) and a bigger bore flexi pipe for the exhaust on the ST, both of which are included in that Pumaspeed 160 kit mentioned above - made such a significant differenceto the car, far beyond what one would usually expect these types of mods.

The standard induction system is incredibly restrictive, and the flexi section on the exhaust just down from the manifold/downpipe is 42mm as standard...the rest of the exhaust system is around 60mm so it really does free it up nicely! After changing my cars induction and putting a miltek flexi pipe in, it feels more eager, revving more easily, and pulling away smoothly is easier as well.

For the cost involved I'd say its well worth it...I won't make any claims for power gain but it does drive a lot better.