2015 Ford Focus ST: A Bigger, More Fun Fiesta - Ignition Ep. 131
 

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qsovZ1BbYc"]2015 Ford Focus ST: A Bigger, More Fun Fiesta - Ignition Ep. 131 - YouTube[/ame]

Great car, but between the head unit issues and the numerous turbo/wastegate issues, plus the insanely horrid customer service at various Ford dealerships, we'll (my wife and I) will never own a Ford again.

its still wrong wheel drive

Cool story bro.

A fwd civic type r just lapped the Nurburgring faster than the GTR you supposedly own.

You may be excused now.

dont come in here with your valid albeit anecdotal reasons against a ford and then bring up objective evidence negating every fanboys fwd vs rwd "argument." this is ft86 club. we'll have none of that

?? got a link. last i saw the civic type r ran a 7:50. Stock '09 GTR did a 7:29.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZN1aP1o_m8"]Drivers Republic - Driving Techniques - Controlling a FWD car with Martin Rowe - YouTube[/ame]

not sure what that video is proving. you can slide any car. with fwd you are throwing the weight forward, chucking it in, and dragging the back end around.

from a performance standpoint fwd is at the bottom. there are other reasons why fwd and focus st is a good car.... since there is no driveshaft you get more leg room., and cost is less as there are less moving parts, better efficiency as less is lost thru the drivetrain. The whole 'better in snow' thing is bogus, depends more on having a good winter tire than your drivetrain.

FWD isn't too bad when it is a lightweight sporty chassis. I hate the fact that modern hot hatches feel higher though

Also I just realize this car has similar acceleration to a BRZ/FR-S. So I'm guessing folks are gonna say that a minivan will smoke this car too?

I fail to understand why the Focus ST "works outta the box" versus the FR-S.

My guess? Torque and Practicality. He prefers the FR-S platform though.

Yeah, I understand to some extent. . . but you can't mod your way to a 4 door hatch. In which case, there is no real comparison for the two.

As others have stated, the similar 0-60 times makes me wonder why you'd want more torque, if you are satisfied with the Focus ST performance characteristics.

Either way, glad that the Focus ST exists :D

Fun cars, I am trying to get my girlfriend into a FiST or FoST for auto x since she is tiring of her Jeep.

Yeah, I imagine her jeep doesn't do too well at autoX.

Nah she just doesn't want to drive my Miata because its "gay" and there's no way in hell shes getting the keys to my BRZ... :D

The seating in most small cars is intentionally higher because it give the driver the illusion that they are in a bigger car. We live i the era of the SUV and pick-up truck. Most people freak out if they are in a small car and traveling among those behemoths. But let them sit higher and they feel more in control and less intimidated by the monsters that cruise out highways. It is an illusion but it is one that auto manufacturers have discovered works to sell small cars.

On a more practical note, taller small cars are also easier to get in and out of.

Dat Drift Button Doe!

Don't care about the ST, but will care when it goes AWD as the RS!

I have a feeling the AWD one will feel like a heavy beast since the ST is around 3240 lbs. AWD plus more content will make it a near 3500 lb hatch which sounds stupid for a hatch.

Evo X curb weight: 3440 lbs

Current WRX STI curb weight: 3386-3458 lbs

Seems roughly in line with the current two most popular AWD budget performance cars.

I think a Fiesta RS would be a better car as it would weigh 2900-3050 lbs with AWD and more power while being a bit cheaper. Sounds like a win if they do it.

I think I'm going to keep my eyes on the 2016 Mazdaspeed 3. Skyactiv 2.5L turbo + AWD??? Going to be a pretty fun pocket rocket, but who knows if the AWD rumor is true.

He doesn't want an FRS because he would tinker with it until he broke it, so he likes the Focus ST better.

That makes sense. That's what makes a good driver's car; the desire not to play with it.

It's funny he said that because in a video 3 years ago he said to the tuners out there not to screw the FR-S up as he found it perfect in stock form. :thumbdown:

Auto-journalism.

Fancy term for car salesman. There is no "journalism" in auto-journalism. There could be, but there isn't. Not the way the industry functions. You simply won't last a day if you maintain journalistic integrity.

Anyone making a living in auto journalism in the USA should start every video with, "I make my money painting this car in a positive light... now let's continue to the review!"

Like with any rule, there's always exceptions but...


edit: I wouldn't mind being a professional (paid) automotive journalist but then having to be dishonest all the time... I may as well work for Comcast, Monsanto or Dupont.

british journalism > american journalism.

He never used the word "perfect" to describe the FR-S; he used the word "balanced".

And I agree.. The FR-S is very balanced out of the box. I think what he's saying is that for the money, the ST offers a more versatility. I agree with that as well, as I'll take the ST on any trip over the FR-S for a handful of reasons.

I think some people on this forum just can't stand it when somebody reviewing their car chooses another car over it. Everybody was raving about his FR-S review a couple years back and said how great of a review it was, and great of a journalist he was... Now that he's said that he prefers another car over it, people start questioning his integrity within his reviews lol.

I mean, it is what it is. Different people have different opinions, but it's comical to watch and read the comments/reactions from people on this forum whenever somebody says they don't like something particular about the FRS/BRZ.