Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
I have a '16 base in Shadow Black and I love it. I think I would have liked the Recaros, but I kept reading that bigger guys felt uncomfortable in them and the $2000 price tag was a bit rich for me.
I learned to drive stick in mine and drove it home from the dealer 40 miles away after only watching YouTube videos and 20 mins with the salesman in the car. Except for moving from a start and the 1-2 shift being a little jerky, if I'm not careful with the clutch, this has to be one of the easiest manuals to drive. It wouldn't win any drag races, but the power from the 1.6t is awesome once boost kicks in. It picks up speed on the highway without problems. Like you, I also notice how planted it feels on the highway. The NVH also isn't bad for the size of the car. It could use some sound insulation around the wheel well and floor pan area for road noise that comes from the tires. Before I looked at the car, I expected it to feel chintzy because it's based on a cheap econobox, but it feels solid, which is nice to know when driving next to large SUVs and trucks. The doors feels heavy and close with a nice thud.
I haven't modded mine. Might get an accessport and an intake at some point, but probably not much else.
I'm at about 11,500 miles and the original Potenzas still have about 6/10 of tread left with one rotation. Not bad for 140 rated tires.
The sound system isn't amazing, but I would say it's adequate. I have Sync 3 and installed the update that allows for Android Auto/Apple Carplay. Definitely useful for road trips since I don't have nav.
My only complaints are the cheap interior and how thin and soft the paint is. The interior in the 2018 Fiesta looks much nicer.
Knowing that the 2018 won't be sold here, makes me love my car more.
Great points asiancivicmaniac, (great username) I basically agree with everything you had to add regarding the clutch/ transmission and even the seats. Im a skinny twig so the seats are probably a bit more comfortable for me than a larger person.
I’m jealous regarding your tire life. Stick with the stock Potenza’s they seem to be the best bang for the buck especially regarding traction. I have some Yokohamas on right now and they are so-so grip. As im sure you will agree, Rotations seem to be the key here regarding tire life however I don’t feel like visiting Americas Tire every 3 months.
I am jealous of your Sync 3 as I’m really getting tired of the Sync 2 system. If I had the desire to keep the car for awhile I’d probably consider picking up a 17 model just for the sync 3 and those black wheels are awesome.
I see a lot of comments regarding the modifications on the vehicle so I figure I’d touch on that. The basic mods that I have done really really wake up the car especially where it counts in the mid-range. I bought the car expecting a certain level of performance and the basic (all completely reversible) additions to the car really have woken it up and have made it a hoot to drive. As stated, there have been 0 drivability/ reliability issues engine wise with this set up and I couldn’t recommend more to Fiesta ST owners looking for a more lively ownership experience. I hear custom tunes are even more exciting however I have stuck with the off the shelf tunes.
Originally Posted By: MCompact
Great review! I considered an ST but couldn't find one with Recaros AND without a hole in the roof. And, while Ford claims HPDEs won't void the warranty, I didn't want to try and argue the matter with my local dealers, none of which inspire much confidence.
I hear these are pretty rare actually although they were made per what I've read on fiestastforum.
I have a '16 base in Shadow Black and I love it. I think I would have liked the Recaros, but I kept reading that bigger guys felt uncomfortable in them and the $2000 price tag was a bit rich for me.
I learned to drive stick in mine and drove it home from the dealer 40 miles away after only watching YouTube videos and 20 mins with the salesman in the car. Except for moving from a start and the 1-2 shift being a little jerky, if I'm not careful with the clutch, this has to be one of the easiest manuals to drive. It wouldn't win any drag races, but the power from the 1.6t is awesome once boost kicks in. It picks up speed on the highway without problems. Like you, I also notice how planted it feels on the highway. The NVH also isn't bad for the size of the car. It could use some sound insulation around the wheel well and floor pan area for road noise that comes from the tires. Before I looked at the car, I expected it to feel chintzy because it's based on a cheap econobox, but it feels solid, which is nice to know when driving next to large SUVs and trucks. The doors feels heavy and close with a nice thud.
I haven't modded mine. Might get an accessport and an intake at some point, but probably not much else.
I'm at about 11,500 miles and the original Potenzas still have about 6/10 of tread left with one rotation. Not bad for 140 rated tires.
The sound system isn't amazing, but I would say it's adequate. I have Sync 3 and installed the update that allows for Android Auto/Apple Carplay. Definitely useful for road trips since I don't have nav.
My only complaints are the cheap interior and how thin and soft the paint is. The interior in the 2018 Fiesta looks much nicer.
Knowing that the 2018 won't be sold here, makes me love my car more.
Great points asiancivicmaniac, (great username) I basically agree with everything you had to add regarding the clutch/ transmission and even the seats. Im a skinny twig so the seats are probably a bit more comfortable for me than a larger person.
I’m jealous regarding your tire life. Stick with the stock Potenza’s they seem to be the best bang for the buck especially regarding traction. I have some Yokohamas on right now and they are so-so grip. As im sure you will agree, Rotations seem to be the key here regarding tire life however I don’t feel like visiting Americas Tire every 3 months.
I am jealous of your Sync 3 as I’m really getting tired of the Sync 2 system. If I had the desire to keep the car for awhile I’d probably consider picking up a 17 model just for the sync 3 and those black wheels are awesome.
I see a lot of comments regarding the modifications on the vehicle so I figure I’d touch on that. The basic mods that I have done really really wake up the car especially where it counts in the mid-range. I bought the car expecting a certain level of performance and the basic (all completely reversible) additions to the car really have woken it up and have made it a hoot to drive. As stated, there have been 0 drivability/ reliability issues engine wise with this set up and I couldn’t recommend more to Fiesta ST owners looking for a more lively ownership experience. I hear custom tunes are even more exciting however I have stuck with the off the shelf tunes.
Originally Posted By: MCompact
Great review! I considered an ST but couldn't find one with Recaros AND without a hole in the roof. And, while Ford claims HPDEs won't void the warranty, I didn't want to try and argue the matter with my local dealers, none of which inspire much confidence.
I hear these are pretty rare actually although they were made per what I've read on fiestastforum.
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