A feisty FIESTA of fun!
(for fast-moving young families!)
hold, primarily due to the fact that the whole interior is stylish, sporty and well-equipped. The controls and equipment are clearly marked and well laid out, with the odd exception of the engine start-stop button, which is mysteriously hidden by the steering wheel and indicator stalk. Very un-Ford-like.
Crucial stuff such as the climate controls are easily adjusted with minimal distraction to the driver, and the centre function screen has every feature you’ll ever need, again clearly marked and easily navigated. The Bang & Olufsen premium sound system (an excellent value option fitted to our car at a cost of £350) does what it says on the tin, with connectivity to match.
Not sure about the Performance Shift Lights, though, which come with the £850 ST Performance Pack. I can’t remember hankering after that level of optional information as a fully paid-up boy racer more than 30 years ago.
Finally, to the main event and the incredible alchemy with which Ford has created 200hp and 290Nm of torque from a twitchy threecylinder, 1.5-litre, turbocharged engine. ‘I’d love to know how,’ said Tim, befuddled by such miraculous wonder. Of course, there is no one thing responsible. It’s down to a combination of engineering talent and Ford’s tenacity where turbo technology is concerned. And what about that exhaust note? How do they make something sound so deep, rasping and fruity when it’s coming from a penny whistle?
Of course, none of the above would matter in the slightest if nothing much happened when it came to applying the gas. The good news is that it does. The car feels very quick and capable in any of its three driving modes: Normal, Sport and Track (Track automatically turns off all electronic driving assistance by the way – you have been warned). Wind this latest ST package up in any of the above configurations and it’s like trying to control a creche of three-year-olds who’ve been let loose in a warehouse full of M&Ms. There’s heaps of sophisticated power being channelled through a relatively rudimentary front-wheel-drive system and the gearbox is super-tight and precise with a racy short throw.
‘Peter! With great power comes great responsibility,’ Spider-Man’s uncle said just before he croaked. Which may be true when it comes to handling a super-power to vanquish evil, but not when it comes to this insane hot hatch. For that’s what we have here. If you haven’t yet experienced severe understeer around an unexpectedly tight turn, with reverse camber and a mixed hedge (or, even worse, a dry stone wall), you have still to transit one of life’s most hair-raising rites of passage.
Go all the way and switch it to Track mode and you are jiving with the devil. Stand by to exit roundabouts on full opposite lock with full throttle understeer. In this mode, the ST is barely controllable, but then again anyone driving like this is probably out of control generally.
Running out of talent is one thing, running out of technology is another, but when the two get together to scare the undercrackers off you it’s the wake-up call to beat all wake-up calls.
Ease off a little, however, save Track mode exclusively for, er, the track and there’s tons of fun to be had, with the added thrown-in bonus of perhaps even staying alive.
At no point, not for even a millisecond, did I find driving the Fiesta ST a pleasant experience. It was, however, permanently engaging and exciting. Which is exactly what this car is meant to be. Plus, at just over £21k as standard (the one I tested was just under £25k with a few choice options), I think it’s pretty much worth every penny.