2002 Ford Focus ST170 from UK and Ireland - Comments

So far nothing serious has gone wrong, only a few squeaks and rattles from the interior.

The Honda Civic Type-R is definitely quicker in a straight line, but when it comes to the corners, I'd rather be in the Focus.

Performance from the 170BHP engine is definitely good enough to see off most other cars.

Handling is delicious- but turn off the E.S.P., because it does tend to stop the fun a little too quickly.

Unbelievably comfortable for such a fast car- it is good at pootling about as well as blasting down back roads.

I was lucky enough to have one of the first in the country.

I am surprised at the amount of attention the car has received, as well as the number of people who immediately know what it is.

People say this car is expensive- spec. up a Civic Type-R to the same standard, look at the list price and see what you think.

Only real down side is that the build quality is not what I expect of a £16000+ car.

I believe the ST170 makes a better all-round ownership propersition than its competitors, that is why I bought one!

I have had my ST170 for 7 weeks and agree totally with your comments.

Bags of fun with or with out ESP on.

I have had many sports cars in the past mainly Renault turbos and 16V, but this is the best handling sports car I have ever had the plesure of driving.

I'm glad you like your ST too. As an addition to my review, mine seems to be getting a lot smoother and faster as it matures (3600 miles ish at this stage). Interestingly, it is definitely smoother and easier to drive with the ESP turned off. Can't wait until 10000 miles have passed- it should absolutely fly!

I've learnt how to drive in the Focus ST170, my dad got it a couple of days after the new registration plate 02 came out. I love going out in it, the amount of ‘boy racers’ who underestimate the speed it goes are left weeping at the traffic lights. Unfortunately it goes back in 2 months, it’s only a demonstrator. I will be very sad to see it go. Glad to see there are a lot of positive reviews of it. Enjoy.

After 3,500 miles mine just keeps getting better, the ESP is superb and allows fast accurate cornering at unbelievable speeds, you can't turn it off!!, but you can reduce the setting for the traction control portion of the system. For me, the car is solid and worth every penny, there have been 3 recalls so far, for minor software ECU updates, but the car is a pleasure. One persistent problem is hesitation at 2,500 revs and a vibrating accelerator pedal, I am currently still waiting for the fixes.

I have had my ST for a year and am finding that it gets better every day. After 15000 miles the engine is smooth and responsive. It definitely runs better on super unleaded, the increased economy on motorway runs easily outweighs the extra cost. My only gripe is that the interior has more rattles than Mother-care, but I have managed to sort most of them. The dealership have been pretty useless and I have found it easier to track them down myself.

Great car, waiting for a superchip!!

Rubbish. My 2003 ST 170 has poor handling and against the clio and type R it is poor. I am changing it for a type S, its about the same performance and far less to buy, with a better build quality.

My st170 was a replacement for the seriously flawed peugeot 307 xsi it has nearly 50 more bhp and now 20000 miles on the clock. The car is seriously able on mountain pass or autobahn I have seen 145mph on the speedo in Germany of course!! if you can afford an RS get one, but there's not a lot between them as I've raced a lot of RS's and rich boys have no bottle!!

I posted this review in the first flushes of joy... Unfortunately my experience of the ST170 was sullied by the car's appalling build quality (I reckon I got a Friday car), but after faults with the brakes, throttle cable routing, hesitation at certain revs (never really cured by software upgrades), and general rattles creaks and thumps, I was ready to give up on it. All this was compounded by the fact that the car was dull to drive in everyday conditions. I still loved it when screaming along, but how often can you do that these days? Selling it and losing a large chunk of money was the final insult- I've gone back to a Fiesta Zetec-s, which is fun day in, day out, reliable and I don't mind the odd rattle, because you can find them and cure them, and also the car cost 9K new not 17K!

I bought my st170 1 month ago very pleased With it. drove to Italy what a drive (beast).

Top speed is 130, speedo inaccurate.

Top speed in a standard ST 170 I'd say is more like 142 MPH as this is the speed I had registered on my New Road Angel. The car speedo is approx 6 to 10 MPH out dependent on the speed you are going (i.e. if you're going 16 MPH on the car speedo you're more likely to be doing 10 MPH).

All in all the ST 170 is a beast, and I'd say it has much the same handling as the new Focus ST 3.

I am looking to, but a st170..from all your comments it sounds great...

I doubt if the speedo would be that far out at 16 MPH, they tend to be more inaccurate at high speeds. I know not all cars are the same, but I've got a new road angel installed in my impreza and even at 80 the speedo and the angel are within about 1 MPH. I haven't looked at 140 odd MPH cos I don't do it often enough and it never crossed my mind at the time. But road angels should be very acurate, they're distance is calculated over 1 second intervals.

I've had my ST170 since February 2005. I love the car to bits! The handling, the general ride, everything! Although blokes don't seem to like a girl driving these cars (joke). Never had problems with the interior; it is kept very clean, with no squeaks or rattles. Same with the outside, although it is slightly modified. I would advise NOT changing from a panel filter to a cone filter if you into modding; not worth the hassle. Good petrol consumption is not to be if you stick to speed limits; drive it like you stole it, and your money will have burnt a hole in your pocket!

I have required a new VVT sensor and a new coil pack...but still have a hesitation at about 2000-3000 revs (only in the cold on start up).

Overall - a good car.

Carrie.

I've had 2 ST170s, the first one had so many problems with it, I got my money back of the garage that sold me it. It put me off for a while until I went out in a mate's one, so I went out and got another one. Don't get me wrong, they are good cars, but they do have some bad bits wrong with them. Nothing major; throttle cables need re routing, vibrates on pedal, rear hub bearings suffer bad, a whirring noise at the rear, management lights come on, this is the lambda sensors.

Mine's an 02 in silver, with 5 doors. I'm very happy with this one so far.