[McRib 1s Back]

Sorta...

Until yesterday, I hadn't driven a FoST. I drove a mildly tuned FoST and here are a few thoughts of my back-to-back drives.

The FoST has a ton of power! I knew it would have torque steer, but frankly it surprised me just how much. I think you'd get used to it, but wow. This is considered an evolution of the MS3 chassis, and benefits from some changes that make it better. I just figured it would be a lot better, maybe it is?

It sounds great with a Mountune exhaust! I hope our car comes out sounding that good too.

It feels huge! I thought of my car as 7/8ths a FoST, but that doesn't feel quite right, now.

The FiST is a lot stiffer! Ford really was more aggressive here.

While I can be tricked to believe I'm seeing a FiST in a quick glance, I'd never think I was driving one from behind the wheel of a FoST.

It's nice to have choices, but I'm happy I have a FiST.

 

[RodMoe]

Bout what I thought of the FoST when we test drove them.
Glad i went with the FiST but its all good

 

[JP6]

The size was what got me. I felt like I was driving a boat in the focus. That's what pulled me to the FiST.

 

[djdennehy]

I owned a 2013 focus SE stick shift before the FiST, and loved that car very much. Good handling, power, and storage. It didn't ever feel overly big, just the right size for a normal daily driver. The FiST is simply much more powerful, lighter, tighter and more focused. I have driven FoST's as well, I prefer the FiST... Both are great performance cars though

 

[AdrianBrewster]

I actually went to test drive a focus st before I knew the fiesta st existed! I wasnt overly impressed by any stretch. It felt big, but definitely manageable. The real issue that I had was the lack of response i got from the car. It had very little clutch feel, quite a bit of torque steer, and everything was just "soft." The fiesta feels like a miata on steroids to me, very tight and responsive. Hands down a better car as far as im concerned. Thats not to hate on the focus st, compared to the competition its great. But the fiesta is genuinely something special.

 

[Mikeygti]

[
The Focus is a bigger car. My wife has one ( not an ST) and on car wash day, hers definitely has more surface to clean


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[RKTFiST]

Bout what I thought of the FoST when we test drove them.
Glad i went with the FiST but its all good

I'm with you on this point. The FoST has a turning radius that is more comparable to my F250 than any car I've owned yet. While the FoST is far better sized as a daily driver, you are utterly aware of that weight penalty to get that space every time you get behind the wheel, and that large feeling is what ultimately led me to choose the FiST.

 

[kvetcha]

I think the Fiesta has much cleaner styling and more attractive proportions. Otherwise, I agree with what folks are saying here. It's a great car, but it's also very obviously a larger and heavier car.

 

[Monochrome]

My only real complaint about the focus is the size. Just sucks when making U-turns.

I hadn't heard of the fiesta ST when I went to check out the Focus. They had one of each on the lot. I checked them both out and bought the focus purely because of the looks, power and the rebate put the focus cheaper than the fiesta.

Regretting that decision now as the focus is just too big for what I need it for. Driving in the crowded parking garages is a nightmare! I love the power of the focus but don't need it...

 

[kvetcha]

My only real complaint about the focus is the size. Just sucks when making U-turns.

I hadn't heard of the fiesta ST when I went to check out the Focus. They had one of each on the lot. I checked them both out and bought the focus purely because of the looks, power and the rebate put the focus cheaper than the fiesta.

Regretting that decision now as the focus is just too big for what I need it for. Driving in the crowded parking garages is a nightmare! I love the power of the focus but don't need it...

I prefer the shifter position in the Focus, but yeah, dat turning radius.

 

[Monochrome]

You know... I didn't have any issues with the shifter or the ride in the Fiesta. I have fairly long arms too...

An, just remembered. I liked the subwoofer and gauges in the focus too.

 

[McRib 1s Back]

The FoST may have a bit better fit and finish too. It's the subtle things like in-dash display, sprinkling of leather bits, etc. Those FoST gauges? I'm glad it didn't make the leap to the FiST! If we were talking German cars, I'd be all over this -- but it just doesn't matter to me in my FiST! I'm actually fixated on making this thing lighter.

 

[spangenb]

I have a '12 Focus SEL. I never thought of it has large or heavy til I got the FiST. The most telling piece for me is, believe it or not, the HATCH! Lowering the hatch on the Focus feels 3x as heavy as the hatch on the FiST. The doors feel heavier, the folding back seat, etc., etc. I have had light cars ('90 miata, '98 neon ACR) and heavy cars (various Mustangs). The big powerful cars have their own attraction, but you are acutely aware of that extra heft every time you have to panic stop or try to throw it around a corner onto an onramp. Even the C5 Z06 'Vette I had the privilege to autocross for a season felt heavy when the chips were down. Yeah it drove much lighter and more balanced than a Mustang, but the weight was still there when you had to brake or transition. Now there are people who can make big heavy cars dance like a ballerina (Sam Strano). That is a magic skill that I don't possess I keep coming back to lighter, smaller cars. The FiST may not qualify as "simple" because of the turbo and all the electronic doo-dads, but I think it tries to reverse the current trend and apply Colin Chapman's philosophy for Lotus to a practical everyday car: "Simplify, then add lightness".

 

[jimclark]

I actually went to test drive a focus st before I knew the fiesta st existed! I wasnt overly impressed by any stretch. It felt big, but definitely manageable. The real issue that I had was the lack of response i got from the car. It had very little clutch feel, quite a bit of torque steer, and everything was just "soft." The fiesta feels like a miata on steroids to me, very tight and responsive. Hands down a better car as far as im concerned. Thats not to hate on the focus st, compared to the competition its great. But the fiesta is genuinely something special.

My thoughts almost exactly, except that I knew the FiST existed when I drove the FoST, though I had to wait a few days to drive the FiST. I liked the drive of the FoST. The FiST, though, made me smile.

 

[Monochrome]

Those FoST gauges? I'm glad it didn't make the leap to the FiST!

Sorry.... I like to know exactly WTF is going on with the engine at any given time. Maybe its just me though.

 

[McRib 1s Back]

Sorry.... I like to know exactly WTF is going on with the engine at any given time. Maybe its just me though.

Sure, we all agree! I wish we had gauges, just not that particular implementation. It manages to look old school and be hard to read at the same time.

My APv3 does that and a lot more. OEM boost gauges are notoriously inaccurate too -- can't say about the FoST, but the tiny gauge isn't a great FoV.

 

[silvertoy]

I owned an 11 Fiesta 5 spd SES, then a 12 Focus 5 spd SE, then the 13 FoST and now the FiST. So I now consider myself an expert I don't track my cars and I haven't autocrossed anything in 15 years so all of my experience here is based on my daily driving.

I felt that when I went from the Fiesta SES to the Focus SE that I took a step backwards in the fun department. The Focus was very nice, don't get me wrong, it's superior in the room department (I need to fit a rear facing car seat), it has more power, but rightfully feels heavier.

When I went from the Focus SES to the FoST, all I could think was that they nailed it, they couldn't change anything to make it better (other than the obscene wheel hop that they fixed with the RMM update). I really felt that it was in every way better than either the Fiesta or the Focus.

Now that I've got the Fist, I definitely miss features from the FoST, like all 4 windows having auto up and down, micro-touch sensors on the doors, subwoofer, etc.. The FoST was faster, especially on the highway and pulling out of turns, it pulls more G's (likely rubber related) and steering is sharper, it had a lightning quick turn ratio. Those same tires that gave those higher G's though barely fit in the wheel wells, which hurts the turning ratio as some noted. Also, my wife and I were at first in love with the Recaro seats in the FoST and how well they held us in place, then we took a trip over an hour long and the love affair ended quickly, a lumbar support would have been welcomed.

So what do I like better about the FiST that made me trade? First off, I'm getting about 5mpg better than I did with the FoST. I can do a U-turn instead of a K turn With the FoST, I had to be on a winding back road or where I could open it up on the highway, but the FiST is just more fun to drive all the time, even around town. The FoST was definitely nicer to drive on the highway, the FiSTs lower weight and tighter suspension make for a more exciting ride though - if I wanted a highway cruiser I would have bought an SUV. Essentially, the same threshold of fun comes on at a lower speed with the FiST.

The Fiesta does feel a little more juvenile than the Focus was, I think that is proven by every teenager who pulls up to me at a stop light and tries to race me (to their disappointment). I dunno, maybe they never wanted to race against the FoST because they knew they would lose. I've only had the FiST 2 months and I've had more people try to race me (4 now) than I did in 18 months of FoST ownership (1). It's getting to the point of being annoying.

 

[EvoNiner]

I drove a FoST and loved it! I couldn't believe how well it handled and how tossable and easy it was to adjust mid corner! The power surprised me too.

BUT it was big/heavy. When comparing it to the old SVTF it was just bigger in every way, and then to compare it to my Evo IX, it's nearly the same weight WITHOUT the AWD. I knew I needed something smaller.

But it was a hoot to drive. The salesman definitely knows who I am after our test drive...


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[silvertoy]

I forgot to add that I miss the Gauges on the FoST, ugly as it may be, it was nice to see boost live. Like I said in another post, I bought a cheapy OBDII bluetooth adapter and the Torque app, and I get the same functionality and more. I'm sure there are better solutions as well.