Car Review: Ford Fiesta ST
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the Focus ST and I went on (and on) about how much I liked it. I was hoping to say the same about the Ford Fiesta ST, but alas, it was not meant to be. It’s not to say that I don’t like this car, nor does it mean it is terrible in any way, it’s just that I wasn’t as pleasantly surprised as I was hoping to be.
With that said, there are so many good things to highlight in this car, but I think I should start with the bad news first. The ride! When you feel like you should be wearing a sports bra in order to feel comfortable enough to drive a car you know the ride is too firm! I didn’t expect it to be so hard and with all hot hatches these days, striving to find the perfect balance between comfort and performance, I think the Fiesta hasn’t found it’s sweet spot just yet. It could take some getting used to and I get that it adds to the ‘fun’ of driving a hot hatch, but for every day living, on our not-so-great South African roads, it was too firm for me and my now tender kidneys.
Ok, bad news out of the way, now for the reason that even despite the ride, I had so much fun driving the Fiesta ST. This little pocket rocket with it’s 17-inch alloys, fixed boot spoiler, lower ride height and three-door body style just looks the part. Then you climb inside and are met with comfortable Recaro bucket seats that just keep you in place when you are having a little too much fun in the corners.
Speaking of corners, this little guy feels as if he is stuck to the ground no matter how quick you turn in to a corner. The grip is just excellent! The standard ESP (Electronic Stability Programme) ensures that even if you have to steer sharply, braking is balanced between each individual wheel and power will be reduced from the engine. This means it counters understeer and oversteer so the car is more stable and easier to control. The steering is fast and responsive which makes it a breeze (and a lot of fun) to drive around the tight city streets and traffic circles.
The turbocharged 1,6-litre EcoBoost engine is mated to a six-speed manual transmission and with its 134 kW and 240 N.m of torque you have enough to play with when hopping from robot to robot or even on the open road. And it sounds great too…which is part of the fun really isn’t it?
It will set you back R274 900 but you are getting a very hot, hot hatch. I am not sure whether it would be my first pick in this rather competitive segment, but it would most certainly be one that I would drive again and again, just for the fun of it. Just not every day…my kidneys would need the break!