2005 Ford Fiesta ST150 from UK and Ireland - Comments

The 197 is out now so can ppl stop going on about the old 182. Its old news now.

Not until the 1st of july mate!

Author of the original review here.

My my, this seems to have degenerated into the mother of all willy-waving and slanging matches.

How many of the Renault owners slagging off the Fiesta have ever driven one?

How many of the Ford owners slagging the Renault off have ever driven one.

I drove both cars and my comments were based on actual experience. I preferred the Fiesta to the Clio. You can argue about it if you like, but at the end of the day it was my call, my money, my consequence to live with and that's the end of it. Feel free to do whatever you like with your money.

I would love to know how many of those posting inane "mine's bigger/better/faster/harder than yours" comments have actually driven either of these cars? There are some people on this site that really need to grow up!

I acknowledged the Clio (182) was significantly faster. Why are you arguing about it?

Nobody knows how good or bad the new 197 is. I've read one first impression which says it's not as much fun as the 182. Even so, why are you arguing about a car that hasn't even been widely reviewed in the press yet?

Max power, fast car and redline say the handling of smaller engine models handle better than the st150.

Official times are:

0-60 8.3

0-100 29.8

129 top end.

0-60 is 7.9 and once run in much quicker about 7.4. 7.9 is fords official time.

Whatever, you'll never get anywhere near the 7.5 sec mark.

Yes you will. I bought mine from new and it's far quicker now than when I bought it, and 0.5 sec quicker is definitely a fair reflection.

OK, it's fair to say there are too many Clio fan boys on this web page. I've had a Clio 172 for the last 2 years, it was a 2002 with 36000 miles on the clock and almost all the options!

Yes it was fantastic, very fast and fun to drive with exceptional handling! Build quality was a joke - I must have spent over 2k just keeping the thing together! I spent a lot on new tyres, brakes etc and had a few minor engine mods, had it rolling road tested at 186bhp.

The new Clio admittedly has better build quality than the older cars, this can be said for all manufacturers nowadays as they all share parts etc with each other anyway. But £16000 for a new Clio without any good kit at all, I mean everthing is optional! If you want all the goodies, you're looking at £17500 for a Clio!!! Which will be worth half that in a few years!.

My point is yes, Clios are great cars, but the new one I feel has priced itself out of the market! I can get a Megane F1, Astra VXR or Focus ST for a few grand more! So technically it's priced next to the faster end/larger cars.

Also my Clio was group 16! And the Fiesta ST is 13, 3 groups less for a difference of 22 bhp!

Official 0-60 times are as follows:-

Fiesta ST - 7.9 seconds

Clio 172 - 7.0 seconds.

OK, yes the Clio is faster, but you're comparing an old car to a new one! In my opinion 150 bhp is quick enough, all I have to do is have my Fiesta remapped to give me 165 bhp, add an exhaust and induction kit and there's 172bhp! Quite easily.

So those people on this site who say the Fiesta ST is hard to tune, you are very much mistaken, the engine is by far easier to tune than the Renault engine. The Duratec engine is highly and easily tuneable!

I've bought a Fiesta ST For the following reasons, I'm not interested in racing Clios all day, that's not the point in driving! I wanted a cheaper car to insure and run and maintain!

The performance is good enough for me, if I want that bit extra I will have a few minor mods done to compensate, but for now I'm happy with it.

I've got a brand new car, almost all the options, with 3 years warranty and 2 years free servicing for £12k, and after 3 years I'll simply get rid of it, but the way I look at it is, Ford parts are cheap, warrenties are free, this Fiesta isn't going to cost me much at all if things go wrong.

Now if I was in my Clio I'd be forking out a fortune, and I'm speaking from experience as I've had one! I also looked at 182s and yes they are nice cars, but they're old now and they are going to lose money faster than a sinking ship!

Overall the Fiesta ST is a gorgeous car to look at, good enough performance for most people, plenty of kit (in mine) and a good price for a new car! Bargain.

If I could afford it I would have gone for a Focus ST or maybe even a New Clio 197, but £17k can get you a lot of cars!!

My Fiesta ST is utterly shocking and I will never buy a Ford ever again - lots of problems. I also had the Clio 172 from new before the ST. That was also shocking.

The Clio 172 was miles faster and handles better, however.

My best mate has a VW Golf GTI and that's superb.

Ford/Renault do not make quality cars full stop.

Can't beat the Germans for quality.

That comment was true 20 years ago. Now it's not.

I bought a Golf mk4 GT TDI 130PS new, and it was without a doubt the worst built and least reliable car I have ever owned. In 12 months:

The door glass fell off its regulator and smashed inside the door.

The pipe carrying washer fluid to the rear wash/wipe split and leaked washer fluid all over the interior headlining.

The CD player went up in smoke (literally)

The Mass Airflow Sensor failed.

The boot leaked

The interior buzzed and creaked from 5,000 miles onwards.

If this "can't be beaten" we are really in trouble.

Hi I am a fan of the ST 150 and I know it's a strange question and not mportant, but does any one know what a ST 150 does in MPH on the clock in 4th gear. (on a test track not on public roads).

Cheers.

I have a mate with an st and another mate with a 182. obviously I have been in both. yes the 182 is faster and does look a bit better. however I think inside the 182 it looks like a cheap French car. witch it is (French not cheap) but the st looks like your getting way more quality. I have a bmw 320d 03 reg and I played less than both them. fair enough it is about 1sec slower 0-60 but it is still fast enough for me (as I am only 19 and don’t want to kill myself). it has far better build quality, you are getting much more car for your money, and I also pay way less on fuel as it is a diesel. also when your in the pub and someone asks what you drive I can say bmw and for more money they are still saying Clio of Fiesta.

The comment above is silly! What would you rather own 2 future classics in the shape of the 182 and the ST or an ordinary diesel burner of an BMW?

The comment about the bragging rights down the pub made me laugh though as when you reply to someone you drive an BMW they will probably reply now that (90% of people drive them as they are so common now, so woopie do mate).

Did you tell them that it is a diesel burner? Probably too embarrassed I think!!

My 172 Cup drives me crazy, it has only done 23000 and it squeaks, rattles, knocks and bangs all the (insert expletive) time. The driving position is terrible, the carpets are awful, the air con won't clear the front screen and insurance costs, oh dear!.

The worst thing however is that every so often you get to a bend and you nail it and you starting think how good the dam thing is, how well it turns in and how quickly you can actually go round the bend. You start to be a bit of a hooligan keeping your revs up over the magical 5000 rpm and you realise how fast this cheap (£12500 new with a/c) little car is. Also you know that you can't get quicker without spending a lot more. You know you are stuck with it!!

Maybe I should have got a Fiesta ST if people say it is more reliable and easier to live with, I don't know.

The Clio and I share a love hate relationship so maybe I would not hate the Fiesta, but I doubt I would love it either!

Just for the record on the new Clio 197. I have test driven one and all I thought was DULL! DULL! DULL! I so wanted it to be like a 172/182 but with no drawbacks. They were almost there, but they took the fun out too!