A Hatch That Makes Me Feel Twenty Again
The Fiesta ST is based on the facelifted Ford Fiesta Mk6 in three door hatch form. This means that it gets the same large gaping front grille as the normal Fiesta but with a honeycomb mesh instead of that Aston Martin-esque grille. There is a sportier front bumper/splitter, side skirts, a tailgate spoiler and a diffuser-like rear bumper with twin tailpipes. 17 inch wheels and 205/40 series tyres finish up the looks. I have to say that the overall look is quite understated. Not many people would take a second glance at the car as it just looks like a slightly sportier looking Ford Fiesta which already looks sporty as it is. I know as I drove it in traffic, to shopping malls, to places where people hangout and you don't really get the heads turning if you know what I mean. A 1.6-litre Ford EcoBoost engine powers this car. The 1.6-litre turbocharged engine churns out 180hp and 240Nm of torque. Inside the Fiesta ST you get Recaro front seats, a slightly nicer looking leather wrapped steering wheel, different gear knob and aluminium pedals and kickplates that raise the bar slightly.
Not much. Only Slightly aside for the superbly comfortable Recaro seats. You get Ford SYNC multi-media system for entertainment but no sat-nav. All of the above for RM149,000 or thereabouts. The 'ST' monkier. This is the most important thing about the Fiesta ST. The ST moniker is all about being the enthusiast's car. The quality of plastics are very, how shall I say, still supermini in terms of quality. There is a soft touch dashboard top but the rest is the same sort of quality most superminis have. Nothing unusually grand here. I have to also note that the smallish infotainment unit screen could be made larger and the function menu made simpler. Ingress to the rear seats are adequate, the Recaro seats are able to tilt and also move forward on its rails. The boot size is like normal Fiestas. Things can go into it. But I stopped whining right after I first started to put it through its paces.
The car has 180hp and 240nm torque. It actually does 0-100kmh in around 7 seconds on most of the timed runs I did (here, the torque vectoring system helped as no visible torque steer was present most of the time). The 6 speed gearbox is slick and accurate. Its been a while since I had tested a brand new car that had a manual transmission unit and it is a breath of fresh air. Or was it nostalgia as most manufacturers do not sell manual cars here in Malaysia these days. The manual shifter is crisp and slots in and out of gears easily. The clutch is light and easy as heck to modulate. Being stuck in traffic on the Federal Highway during rush hour did not get me leg cramps. Easy to drive in traffic due to its supermini size too with no apparent blindspots. The overall feel of its performance is that it is adequate for its class. The exhaust note is rorty and sporty. It feels slightly manufactured but makes the car feel slightly special.
The note is not droney or irritating at all speeds with just the right amount of bass to it and there's a decent level of cabin refinement at speed. No adversely loud tyre roar or road noise or wind noise too. Power delivery is smooth and linear. There is only a little hint of turbo rush when it hits 3000rpm but its a smooth power unit with little lag. 160Kmh is quickly seen on the speedometer if you gun it. But being a supermini hot hatch, it feels adequately fast, not crazy fast. Much like the other cars in this class. But its the interaction between car and driver which makes this ride a special one. This car somehow has the right amount of everything. The steering, at 2.4turns lock to lock is very quick and accurate. It actually has some feel to it. Turn in is fast and actually reminded me of the steering turn in of a Lancer Evo VII.
In terms of steering weighting and speed, the ST's one is one of the best I've had my hands on recently. The suspension may just be a modified version of what underpins normal Fiestas but it does not feel pedestrian at all. The ride is hard, with a certain solidity towards it. Everything moves in cohesion yet there is still tolerable levels of ride here. This is also a rare front wheel driver that could be persuaded to enter into a four wheel drift in a high speed bend if there is enough road to allow it to do so. This car is balanced, agile and fun. On a tight B-road, that 180hp is more than enough to put a smile on your face. It is not a car for the straights, although I did see speeds of over 180kmh on the highways but the fun is at the bends in this car.
