2002 Ford Focus ST170 from UK and Ireland - Comments

Whos telling the truth here. got a st170 myself. nice car.quick enough for me. racing type r's.there fast. thinking of buying mondeo st220 any comments apart from high fuel bill?

I just picked up my ST170 today and it's a great all round package. I have owned quite a few hot hatches including a Focus RS and Civic Type R and I can safely say that this car is the most satisfying of the lot (and an unbelievable bargain too!) Don't let anyone tell you that its slow - once you wind it up past 5k and all the way to 7.5k it really flies! (and it makes a very similar noise to the vtec in my old CTR) This is a seriously underrated car and I predict it will become a future classic.

To the one thinking of geting a st220 - I was in the dealers on Saturday morning having another go at Ford cos my wonderfull 170 has got a leaking power steering pump, and my alarm sorted which has crashed again. Anyway, all sorted, well until I got home only to find my trim on the front bumpers is coming away.

My advice - stay clear of Fords full stop, my next vehicle will be a Yamaha R1, then I'll whoop all your asses on the road.

I wrote this review, and am pleased I have started a bit of a discussion. I really have to say I think I had a car with the bluefin power upgrade, and I had an induction kit fitted. The car also had over 10,000 miles on the clock, and these engines loosen up a treat!

The performance I got from the vehicle was genuine, and I have driven lots of cars in my time (I'm a Saab salesman) and the cars I have driven have ranged from Subarus, Porsche's, Ferrari's etc, and still feel the ST170 with a few tuning mods was still very impressive for performance and handling.

I apologise if I over rated the car, I reviewed it not long after getting it and all the other problems came along which made me get rid of it within 6months! It was terrible.

All in all, a fun car built by monkeys.

I own a focus ST170 and I do believe it has a massive tuning potential if that's your bag.

I'm a bit of a petrol head and enjoy tweaking cars and have done so with my focus. no idea what the 0-60 might be on it now, but I'm prety sure it's a little quicker than the official 0-60.

194.8BHP @ 7200RPM (114MPH) 162 lbft @ 5050RPM dyno proven.

All you need to do is: Unichip, K&N Typhoon induction, Powerflow cat back exhaust, Magnecor ht leads, Piper adjustable exhaust cam pulley (de-cat for track days takes it well over the 200bhp)

Oh the handling is v. good standard, but for a bit more sticking power : Eibach 35mm lowering springs, Eibach Camber alignment kit and Eibach anti-roll kit.

Brakes are good, but you can do better: Wilwood 6 pot calipers on front ebc discs and pads all round.

Maybe I'm a boy racer, I wouldn't put myself in that bracket. But if you would like to see just how quick an ST170 can be see you on the track, oh 2.8 BMW owners need not apply...

I've had my st 170 8months and I've had a few minor probs so far, but now I'm noticing a vibrating noise coming from the dash, but can't pinpoint it I've heard the air cleaner has caused tis in other cars, but how do I sort it any 170 0wners out ther can help.

It always makes me laugh when people start of by talking about tuning and then go on list a whole range of bolt on products that they believe will make a standard car faster.

In reply to the 6th Dec 2006 comment;

K&N induction kits, powerflow exhausts, HT leads, etc etc, will make virtually no difference to the performance of a modern car!

Do you seriously think Ford or any other car maker will take years and spend millions of pounds developing a car and engine that can have it's performance increased by such large percentages just by bolting on a few hundred quids worth of cheap tat?

De-cating a car may make some difference, but then you would be illegal on the roads, and yes the police do occasionally check. (although you would be unlucky...)

Personally I think the st170 is a good car, for a warm to semi-hot hatch.

It will get thrashed by any serious performance car, so considering the insurance ratings and the customer base I really don't understand why Ford didn't just go ahead and make this car a standard 200bhp, it is fat and bloated, that extra 30bhp would make all the difference.

And it makes ME laugh how ignorant and thick some people can be. Manufacturers design their cars to be all rounders, to appeal to a wide range, they could easily make their cars with that much more power and better handling, but they have to think about other things like fuel consumption, emissions, noise, reliability, comfort. You really can gain power from these simple modds because modern engines are so good, but are strangled by all the EU regulations, so it doesn't take much to free them up a bit.

Crikey! I have an Imperial Blue ST170 that I bought last July. I've always (intermittently) owned Fast-Fords, from a MkII Escort with twin Weber's, to a MkI Escort Mexico. I've owned a MkII RS2000, a MkIII RS1600i, an XR2 and a couple of XR3s. Basically, I like Fast-Fords! They're all like Meccano, in that they are simplicity itself to maintain and fix armed with only a Haynes manual. So... the ST170. In the 7 months I've had it, it's been back for: Engine management light coming on while I was on holiday-meaning I couldn't drive it and had to come home early. Broken electric window motor. Lambda sensor replaced. Dash fuses replaced after all my dash lights went off on the motorway at 11pm. Boot-open button replaced. Climate control repaired. Wiper relays replaced. Er...that's it I think. But I'll tell you what, I love this car as much as it's possible to love an object. No, it isn't rapid, but I knew that after the test drive. My MkI Escort was faster, and I owned that baby 14 years ago. Everyone who owns a ST170 (and subsequently complains about it!) should know exactly how quick-or not-it is after their own test drive. To buy a car thinking it's fast, only to find out later it isn't after signing their hard-earned over for it, is beyond me. It won't beat a Porsche. It'll beat an Evo... if both were raced from a 30mph rolling start in 5th gear, but only because of the Evo's turbo lag. Having said that, a Citroen Picasso would beat the Evo too under the same conditions! I defy anyone to disagree.

At the end of the day, it's all relative. I love my car, but as I've stated above with my brand loyalty, I'm possibly biased. As I get older (I'm 35 now) I don't want a pocket rocket and I'm more than happy with my 'warm' hatch. If you want to drive round looking for a Porsche to race, buy an appropriate car to do it in. The performance figures for all cars are easily found these days. As is booking a test drive. You can't really buy one and then complain about its performance later can you? Complain about reliability, things that go pear-shaped etc by all means, because these things aren't evident on a test drive. To sum up, I like tomato soup, but you might not...

LOL, soo many funny comments on here about the st170. What world do some of you live in where you think it'll beat an evo on turbo lag? And how it has a vtec type thing. Nice all round car, but stupidly expensive for what it is.

I have just bought a Focus ST170 and I am thrilled with both the performance and the look of the car, I mean it won't beat the top boys in a straight line, but what roads realisticly can you race on a straight road, so round bends and turns the focus is up there, the car really seems to stick to the road and for my money it was well spent. The joy of taking corners in this car is amazing.

Just accept peeps this car is fast (ish) and goes round bends amazing and is good fun for all drivers!!!

:)

Had mine 2.5 years only problems i,ve had thermostat stuck open and throttle cable replaced and that's it yous must have bought a turkey. As for going quick it's OK. If you add mods it can seriously shift. As for porsche,evo,subaru quick it only a turbo or supercharger away. Cost approx 3500 pounds.A lot of money i know but u would be paying more for a good porsche,evo,subaru.Due to engine internals, can run 250,260 hp reliably. I like mine good car.Mine cost me 9800 pounds.

An Evo 6 would not be beaten by one of these from 30mph in 5th. That's only the evo 8 mr fq-400 on top gear because of its massive turbo. A proper evo would be to 60 and back before the ST170 even got to 60. How the two cars can be compared is astounding, chalk and cheese... put it this way, same weight ish, not far off twice the power, 4 wheel drive??!?!?!? Get real!

There are far better cars to compare an ST170 to as proper rivals. Forget Evos and Porsches... as the last comment said, it's like comparing chalk and cheese, they are all totally different classes.

Much better comparison would be a Clio 172 or 182, or a Seat Ibiza Cupra R. I have had the pleasure of owning an Ibiza Cupra and I have to say it wiped the floor with a ST170 in a straight line, but to give the Ford its due, they are extremely talented through the bends; no one can deny that they do handle extremely well. Round a track you would actually find that an ST170 would not be that far off my Cupra, or even a Civic Type-R. You would be talking a matter of seconds between them.

In all fareness, the Focus ST170 is a good warm/hot hatch. I would still favour an Ibiza Cupra though, as they handle quite well, and with the benefit of the 1.8 turbo engines, they can be running 220bhp at the click of a button. I favour VAG technology over Ford Duratecs/Zetecs any day!!

St170/ Focus SVT USA.

This car had so many defects that I tried to take it to a mediation board and get my money back for the purchase! No luck. After taking it back to the dealer about 10-11 times I eventually sold it for a 7k loss!

-Now I am driving a 16v VW from 1991. Much better. much cheaper and to be honest more stylish and a classic.

Ford lost their mind on the SVT/170. It was a way to make people pay more money on the standard version, that with minimal work, could be a much better car in all respects if done properly.