ST220 vs V6 Ghia X

Is the Ghia 3.0 V6 worth the running costs though, compared to the 2.0 litre?

I own an ST220 and absolutely love it but can only just justify the petrol costs due to the little mileage I do and the enjoyment the car gives me.

I haven't driven the Ghia X but I don't think it will have that same fun factor.

For example does it still open up after 4k revs? Below that the car feels pretty gutless.
 
An ST220 estate has come up for sale today so hopefully I'm going to see that tonight. It is a prefacelift though so we'll see.. Hopefully it doesn't handle like my current estate

edit: s**** that, Autotrader says 27 miles, actual distance is 100
 
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Very nearly bought an Octavia VRS today however after HPI checking it I found it's got 11 previous owners O_O

New cars added to the search criteria:
Toyota Celica VVTL-I 190
Honda Accord Type R
 
Why not have a look at Vectra V6 models too, either petrol or diesel?
They can be had for fair money and from experience are actually pretty good to drive and certainly have decent performance.
The diesel also sounds pretty good!
Even the newer 2.8 v6 turbos are only around £5000.
 
if he's going to spend 5k on a 2.8 vectra then he's as well hunting around for a 2.5T mondeo, they start around that price and thats for a current shape mondeo circa 2007>

mondeo is a better car than the vectra end of story.

veccy petrol V6 is ok but nothign special unless its in vxr trim
the diesel is a rattly old isuzu lump with the reliability of a crack addict. they eat fuel pumps and generally like to break regularly and expensively the 1.9 cdti is the best bet in the vectra(albeit with a remap ) but if your going down that road just get a mondeo. either my personal favourite the 2.2 tdci or the 2.5t
 
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I only mentioned the Vectra as a possible as he mentioned getting V6 Mondeos was proving not that easy and the GSi wasn't too bad?!
Never realised the V6 diesel was an Isuzu unit. Anyway not seen one for while so maybe they have all disintegrated.

Personal taste as to which is better - I don't like Fords! :)

Andrew
 
I paid £800 for my Ghia X, it's drinking fuel at 27.3mpg so far but is reasonably comfortable to waft around town. I'm not convince mine is producing the same number of horses as at new but on a motorway it barely matches most semi modern TDis even though I'm not that big a fan of them.
 
The ST220 is very different from all other Mondeos. I have a 330ci and my mate's ST220 is actually in some ways a more impressive drive. It certainly had a handful more bhp than mine at a dyno day, and that was before it had any mods.
From what I understand the ST was a thoroughly different piece of engineering and a lot of care must have gone into developing that chassis as it is damn impressive. If the Audi A4 3.0 had driven like that it would have made a huge dent in sales of the E46 330.
 
Cairns78 said:
The ST220 is very different from all other Mondeos. I have a 330ci and my mate's ST220 is actually in some ways a more impressive drive. It certainly had a handful more bhp than mine at a dyno day, and that was before it had any mods.
From what I understand the ST was a thoroughly different piece of engineering and a lot of care must have gone into developing that chassis as it is damn impressive. If the Audi A4 3.0 had driven like that it would have made a huge dent in sales of the E46 330.
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I went from a 2.5 V6 Ghia X to an ST220 and the difference is night and day.

Everything about it is sharper, more focused and it just feels right.

Yeah, it's FWD but that just makes it a little more benign on the limit, in fact I feel much more comfortable taking it by the scruff of the neck and really throwing it about than I do my friends 350z for example (and in a straight line drag race there's only about one, one and a half car lengths difference pace wise). There's probably a lot more talent in the ST's chassis than I possess and would be likely to exploit on a public highway so for now, personally, it remains the best price/performance/reliability ratio car out there.

I love mine and excluding the jump up to the super saloons, I wouldn't have anything else.
 
andyp said:
I feel much more comfortable taking it by the scruff of the neck and really throwing it about than I do my friends 350z for example (and in a straight line drag race there's only about one, one and a half car lengths difference pace wise).
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Yeah the steering on seems pretty amazing. What is the distance or speed interval where you lost a car length to the 350z?
My friend's ST220 is a touch quicker vs my manual 330ci over most rolling starts above 40mph.
 
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SoundsGood said:
I ended up buying something totally different.

http://i.imgur.com/VtLk1.jpg[/img

Celica T Sport 190, just over 2 grand with 88 quid a month insurance

Loving it so far :D especially at 7800rpm..[/QUOTE]

A bit different to a Mondeo V6!!!

Enjoy it, sounds like you are.

I want another e38 7 Series, I may just go find myself a Micra.... ;) :p
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OpenToSuggestions said:
I haven't driven one, but surely that is testament to a well designed car? It is better to be able to put the power down the torque steer and/or understeer and/or wheelspin everywhere :p.
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Yes that's true and I wasn't trying to imply that it's a bad thing. The steering, suspension and ride feel spot on to me and when taking corners briskly there is very little roll. The excellent seats also keep you fixed in place.

It's just a case of what you're after. It has a very grown-up feel to it's drive - no drama. It is still a large heavy car and will feel like it sometimes. It's not the quickest off the mark and the braking feels rather normal/average.

Since changing to the ST220 from a Focus 2.0 my driving habits have changed considerably. I drive in a much more relaxed manner now as that's what seems to suit the car. It's a nice cruiser basically which just happens to corner pretty good.
 
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