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Ford Fiesta ST: Three Magics
FORD FIESTA ST
THREE MAGICS
Words by Marco Rallo / Photos by Andy Williams
Full throttle worshippers, followers of last meter braking and red line fanatics, come to me because in this auspicious day we welcome the new generation of Ford Fiesta ST, the size XS hot hatch par excellence built on the basis of an exceptional city car ready to collect the baton of one of the most rewarding cars that have ever passed through our office and on the roads of the entire planet. Are you there? Are you really ready? So I’ll tell you right away, the new Fiesta ST only has 3 cylinders. Now that we have cut off the bull’s head, before you even throw the magazine in the bin, cursing the blue oval, let me tell you another secret: the ST is even more amazing than before. Does it end like this? If you are in a hurry, yes, otherwise stay a little longer with me and I will tell you more in detail.
We had left the previous generation with the fiercer version of the “simple” ST, the ST 200, a special edition that together with some extra horses carried with it a fair number of options as standard and represented in all respects everything the model had to offer. Now, with the seventh series of the small German hatchback, Ford introduces an element that makes fans turn up their noses, namely the 1.5cc three-cylinder engine. The fact is that the turbo engine delivers the same power as the most powerful ST produced with the sixth generation and is also the most powerful three-cylinder engine in the world. Horses are 200, but as you can imagine, the artillery of the small spicy Fiesta is not only limited to figures and power, but it may be discovered driving it and then, once the necessary confidence is reached, pushing where we thought we had found the limits, a barrier that incredibly continues to move even further, until we find ourselves hopelessly in love with this Fiesta ST, again and against all odds.
Available in both three-door and five-door versions (+ € 750), the Fiesta ST incorporates the more sporty characterization introduced with the ST-Line spec and therefore a honeycomb grille at front, side skirts, rear window spoiler and a set of 18-inch alloy wheels, all in favor of an overall sober look, but that leaves no doubt to those who know what detail to look at in order to understand that it’s not just any Fiesta. The update of the passenger compartment introduced with the seventh generation is obviously another strong point here, especially with an infotainment system that is finally up to the expectations of a predominantly young audience and who cannot give up connecting their smartphone or properly exploiting the good sat-navigation system through the 8-inch screen in the center of the dashboard. Unlike the previous series we have the possibility to go through the driving modes available and therefore choosing between Normal, Sport and Race, with the consequent dynamic variations for steering, suspension, throttle and the sound of the dual exhaust tail-pipes. The latter is able to emit a pleasant mumble, rich in low tones, partly amplified by the car’s audio system. If you can endure this small compromise, every more remote doubt about the capabilities of the new Fiesta ST will be definitively wiped out once you leave one of its many natural habitats – the city – in favor of secondary roads, free of traffic and full of curves.
Using the ST in Sport mode, you begin to perceive the perfect calibration of the suspension, while the 200 horsepower and 290 Nm of torque dispense the power needed to vent the front axle from 1,600 rpm. The gearbox is precise and the reduced run of the ratios makes the driving experience more engaging and dutifully hectic. You have to jump through corners, take advantage of the lightness of the frame and a lower center of gravity than before, which not only gives greater safety when you increase the pace, but allows the mechanical limited slip differential to carry out its work even more effectively. Unfortunately it is not standard, but it is offered as an option and costs € 1,000, but if you have to tick a box, trust me that this is the right one. Thanks to the extraordinary diff, the steering wheel maintains its own communicativeness with your hands and manages to almost completely avoid understeer, even in tightest corners and even when we have exaggerated watering our confidence. The Fiesta ST is not a nervous car, yet it has the ability to change attitude towards the asphalt in front with an inhuman ease. It doesn’t care about downsizing and shows how it can grind kilometers and keep fuel consumption more than acceptable – 6 l/100km, as long as you stay away from the desire to whip the three-cylinder, which a couple of lines ago came as your worst enemy and now awaits your and our excuses, having demonstrated its qualities.
There is space for two friends sitting behind and for the luggage needed for an out of town trip, while the small rear window recommends opting for the rear view camera, but being a sports car – probably the smallest (by engine volume for sure), the Fiesta ST maintains high concentration in terms of entertainment. 6.5 seconds to go from 0 to 100 kph, maximum speed of 232 per hour and a reduced turbo lag (the only real but still small flaw of the extraordinary 3-cylinder engine) place it as the new benchmark in a segment that before my test drive period with it was headed by its close relative, the ST 200. The tasks of hot hatches is becoming increasingly difficult, especially with supercars and traditional sports cars that exploit advanced technologies (hybrid) and must not worry about being affordable for the real world, but as long as we have cars like the new ST, our dreams can sleep quietly and be realized in broad daylight.
FORD FIESTA ST
Layout – front-engined, front wheel drive
Engine – 3 cylinder 1.497cc turbocharged
Transmission – 6-speed manual gearbox
Power – 200 hp @ 6.000 rpm
290 Nm @ 1.600 rpm
Weight – 1.262 kg
Acceleration – 6,5 sec.
Top Speed – 232 kph
Price – from € 26.000
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