Ford Fiesta ST Beats Toyota GT86 on the Track in EVO Test

[vh_supra26]

It’s not the first time the Toyota GT86 (Scion FR-S) is compared with a front-wheel drive hot-hatch and it’s not the first time it loses when it comes to speed. In this latest test from the UK's EVO magazine, the GT86 proves to be slower round the Bedford Circuit than the Fiesta ST by a significant 1.2 seconds.

I know everyone says how fun the tail-happy Toyota is to drive, but doesn’t speed matter at all for all the GT86’s fans? If I were to buy a €29,000 ($37,990) rear-wheel drive sports car, I wouldn’t like it to be slower than a less-powerful €20,000 ($26,200) front-wheel drive hot hatch. I would probably hate it, to be honest.

Returning to the test, EVO’s Richard Meaden praises the GT86’s playful nature, but the pace and fun factor of the little Fiesta ST also impress him.

So what would you choose, a RWD Toyota GT86 with thin tyres that make it lose grip virtually anytime you want it to, or a €10,000 ($13,100) cheaper Ford Fiesta ST that is faster and still manages to be fun to drive?

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKJ0eNHu5vk"]Ford Fiesta ST vs Toyota GT86 | evo TRACK BATTLE - YouTube[/ame]

http://www.carscoops.com/2013/06/for...a-gt86-on.html

[PRORICAN]

Hey I know you^^^ welcome to the forums!

Ps just realized you've been here for a while either way is cool to see more H-I peeps in here!

[DylanFRS]

Thanks for the post. Very interesting video and definitely not a surprise. That ST looks pretty fun. Definitely looking at that or the Focus ST for my wives next car.

On a side note, that has got to be one of the only cars I have seen that will lift the inside rear wheel stock (and not from maxing the droop). Nice job to Ford on the setup.

Now for the:

"Yeah, but FWD..."
"FWD is for losers"
"But you gotta drive a ford"
"A real driver would be better in the Toyota"
etc
etc
etc...

[P@ul]

There's a $13k price difference over there??? OUCH! Please tell me that's fully loaded versus a base. That's insane.

[Lonewolf]

Yawn....stock tires on the FT suck...change those...results change

Plus the Fiesta looks like a babyshoe...I don't care how fast it is

[RurumariGhost]

Meh for articles like this take it with a grain of salt, there was one comparo with the twins on stockers for the first race and it lost badly vs a mustang and a 370z i think? then they put the twin on similar spec tires to the competition and it won handily...tires make a huge difference on the track

[DylanFRS]

Originally Posted by P@ul

There's a $13k price difference over there??? OUCH! Please tell me that's fully loaded versus a base. That's insane.

It doesn't work exactly like the exchange rate. I was in Ireland a couple weeks ago and something that costs $5 here costs about 5 Euros there even though 1 Euro is worth $1.3. So yes, it would cost you $39k to transfer into Euros to buy that car over there, but for them, it isn't like buying a $39k car is to us. If that made any sense at all?

[DarkSunrise]

Another comparison done by Evo where the GT86 loses. How surprising

[Noob4Life]

Their logic is flawed the 86 is sexier.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2

[SuiSid3l]

Not to mention, few bolt ons and stickier tires is such an easy fix for this issue and rwd > fwd and the 86 is probably the sexiest car you can buy IMO anywhere near its price range.

[mad_sb]

yup, tires. That is all he managed to review is the poor stock tires on the 86. 225 ad08's and it would wipe the st off the track.

[topazsparrow]

Originally Posted by SuiSid3l

...and rwd > fwd.

Excuse me for playing devils advocate here, but what empiracle evidence do you have to support this?

I think if you took the exact same car and made two versions of it, FWD and RWD, there would be a negligible difference in track times.

I think this mentality derives from the fact that most economy (cheap) cars are traditionally FWD because they are cheaper and more production friendly. The cars are not necessarily geared toward a specific purpose (like track ability) like many RWD cars are from the drawing board.

[P@ul]

Originally Posted by DylanFRS

It doesn't work exactly like the exchange rate. I was in Ireland a couple weeks ago and something that costs $5 here costs about 5 Euros there even though 1 Euro is worth $1.3. So yes, it would cost you $39k to transfer into Euros to buy that car over there, but for them, it isn't like buying a $39k car is to us. If that made any sense at all?

I'm not making the comparison for exhange rates. That's the the price difference for people in the UK (€10k). I know that Americans get both cars for less money than that. That's an insane difference in price over there.

[RAWR BRZ]

Car reviews should use standardized tires (same brand and model) for reviews.