Mk3 Focus ST - what am I missing?
Discussion
So I’ve finally sold my car and am looking for a 5-door warm/hot hatch.
A couple of my other posts were flirting between a Type R and a Mk2 Swift Sport. The Swift is still in pole position as I do like to keep things Japanese and I love the weight/power ratio, albeit it will be quite tiny inside.
The 5-door Type Rs start from about £17k, which I don’t want to stretch to for now, and the only other option I can see for up to £10k (which is manageable) is the Focus ST. Fords have never really floated my boat, though.
Are there any reasons why I shouldn’t delve into them a bit further? Background - work from home, about 7k miles/year and just about to have our first baby later in the summer.
A couple of my other posts were flirting between a Type R and a Mk2 Swift Sport. The Swift is still in pole position as I do like to keep things Japanese and I love the weight/power ratio, albeit it will be quite tiny inside.
The 5-door Type Rs start from about £17k, which I don’t want to stretch to for now, and the only other option I can see for up to £10k (which is manageable) is the Focus ST. Fords have never really floated my boat, though.
Are there any reasons why I shouldn’t delve into them a bit further? Background - work from home, about 7k miles/year and just about to have our first baby later in the summer.
Will it be the family car? They aren't hugely practical. The rear seat space is not that great in the ST so it isn't ideal for rear facing car seats, I had to put ours on the passenger side with the front seat quite far forward. I've had an ST Estate for years as the family wagon and the boot on the estate is a good size and shape, the hatch boot is quite small though.
Reliable cars though I'm my experience (if you don't start modifying). Not the sharpest of hot hatches ever but still pretty fun as long as you have good tyres
Reliable cars though I'm my experience (if you don't start modifying). Not the sharpest of hot hatches ever but still pretty fun as long as you have good tyres
We bought one of the very last ST3 models new and still got it, it’s been excellent with plenty of long Euro and UK trips along the way. We opted for the diesel as my wife was a home carer at the time doing lots of stop-start stuff. We thought mpg would be poor in a petrol version. It’s been very reliable, regularly serviced and now on 62k. The ride feels a bit hard as I’m an old git now, we might change it for something more sedate and comfy next year.
I had a mk3 ST-3 for about 9 months (with a baby in a car seat). Boot was plenty big enough for all the paraphernalia and luggage and with the passenger seat moved forward there was enough space for his rear facing car seat. Lots of kit (even more so on the facelift), seats are brilliant (even if the position is a little high for my liking), engine is willing, reasonably economical and makes a nice noise.
Suspension is on the stiff side and you can trouble the front end by being aggressive on the power but easy to manage and punt the car along at a reasonable pace. Facelift is marginally better in this respect. Front end also gets a bit light over 120mph if that is a factor
Servicing was annual rather than variable and I’ve yet to find a decent Ford dealer who care about their customers.
However, saying all that, I didn’t find it as enjoyable to drive as the e87 120d I came from which seemed to be a better steer down the fun roads and more planted, and I traded it in for an M140i.
Chris
Suspension is on the stiff side and you can trouble the front end by being aggressive on the power but easy to manage and punt the car along at a reasonable pace. Facelift is marginally better in this respect. Front end also gets a bit light over 120mph if that is a factor
Servicing was annual rather than variable and I’ve yet to find a decent Ford dealer who care about their customers.
However, saying all that, I didn’t find it as enjoyable to drive as the e87 120d I came from which seemed to be a better steer down the fun roads and more planted, and I traded it in for an M140i.
Chris
CzechRS said:
I had a petrol pfl MK3 ST3 and I really rated it. Had a few mountune bits on it - 275 pack, exhaust and dog mount.
Only bad point was turning circle of a hgv which I believe was addressed in the facelift but imo doesn't look as good.
Yes the turning circle is poor, we had a stealth grey one before our current white one..I’m not sure the facelift is any better tbh. We soon got used to it though.Only bad point was turning circle of a hgv which I believe was addressed in the facelift but imo doesn't look as good.
I bought this one today, wanted an ST3 since they're the only ones that come with heated seats and plenty of other kit as standard. Would have preferred an estate but they're about as a common as a sensibly driven Golf R.
I've always thought the pre-facelift looks ugly with that massive panel gap between the bonnet and bumper, like it's been in an accident and not fixed properly. Interior is a mess of buttons as well, which they sorted in the facelift. Although I've only driven it home so can't comment on the ownership experience, other than the power feels readily available and the boot is on the small side.
I've always thought the pre-facelift looks ugly with that massive panel gap between the bonnet and bumper, like it's been in an accident and not fixed properly. Interior is a mess of buttons as well, which they sorted in the facelift. Although I've only driven it home so can't comment on the ownership experience, other than the power feels readily available and the boot is on the small side.
I love mine and really rate it in ever sense. Seats are incredibly comfortable, quick steering ‘rack’ and mine has not been in the garage for anything other than servicing for the last 7 years. Some people complain about torque steer but I never found it a problem (see more in a sec on this).
I had two minor things done which absolutely transformed it:
Getting PDC (Pull Drift Compensation) turned ‘off’ by the main dealer, which stopped what felt a bit like torque steer but wasn’t, and fitting the Steeda clutch spring which made the clutch much more linear and easier to modulate.
As others have said, the turning circle is, in my opinion, absolutely woeful and rear facing car seats are a very snug fit. If you have a wide framed body, the seats may be a little snug too.
I had two minor things done which absolutely transformed it:
Getting PDC (Pull Drift Compensation) turned ‘off’ by the main dealer, which stopped what felt a bit like torque steer but wasn’t, and fitting the Steeda clutch spring which made the clutch much more linear and easier to modulate.
As others have said, the turning circle is, in my opinion, absolutely woeful and rear facing car seats are a very snug fit. If you have a wide framed body, the seats may be a little snug too.
Owned a 2013 ST2 hatch for a year, quite practical but fuel economy was poor and steering all over the place on uneven tarmac or overbanding, reliable enough but ended up moving onto a leon cupra which I personally found to be a better car,
Bet the door seal lower rubber will be loose on every one you look at!.
Bet the door seal lower rubber will be loose on every one you look at!.
If it's the Mk3 rather than the 3.5 (facelift) then make sure the bonnet gap doesn't annoy you before you buy. It used to bug me every time I looked at it. How that passed QC and was allowed on sale like that is beyond me. It's not an easy fix either as it's the mounting position of the latch inside the slam panel which can't be adjusted unless you remove it and drill some new holes. The problem then is that your bonnet smashes your headlights when you try to close it. Really, the latch and bonnet are in the right place - it's the bumper sitting too low that causes the gap, but the bumper can't be adusted either because it's already tight under the headlights. It's a totally clusterf
k. They got 4 parts - the headlights, bonnet and bumper and didn't bother to make sure they all lined up properly with each other before saying "yep, I like it, go build them".
I enjoyed mine for the most part but despite having 3000 adjustments on the seat and steering column, I could never find a position that was comfortable
Don't try to boot it away from a standstill on an uneven/patched road as the steering wheel will be promptly ripped out of your hands and it's like trying to wrestle with a python getting it all back under control again unless you end up in the scenery first
. Same goes for overtaking across the painted (raised) white lines on s/c roads - it'll rag the steering wheel if you're booting it.
The brakes are absolutely garbage coming down from high speed (100+) and the disks (genuine Ford) warp in 2 seconds, coupled with a god awful grinding noise (pads were fine).
You won't see more than 30 mpg in the petrol unless you're streamlining trucks at 56 mph. On the flip side, you won't see less than 24 mpg unless you're giving it ten tenths everywhere.
The standard sound system is garbage if you like your tunes. The upgraded system option is definitely the one you want.
Stick your head underneath it before you buy and look at the front and rear sub frames, also rear suspension mountings. Mine was very scabby at only 5 years old.
k. They got 4 parts - the headlights, bonnet and bumper and didn't bother to make sure they all lined up properly with each other before saying "yep, I like it, go build them".I enjoyed mine for the most part but despite having 3000 adjustments on the seat and steering column, I could never find a position that was comfortable
Don't try to boot it away from a standstill on an uneven/patched road as the steering wheel will be promptly ripped out of your hands and it's like trying to wrestle with a python getting it all back under control again unless you end up in the scenery first
. Same goes for overtaking across the painted (raised) white lines on s/c roads - it'll rag the steering wheel if you're booting it.The brakes are absolutely garbage coming down from high speed (100+) and the disks (genuine Ford) warp in 2 seconds, coupled with a god awful grinding noise (pads were fine).
You won't see more than 30 mpg in the petrol unless you're streamlining trucks at 56 mph. On the flip side, you won't see less than 24 mpg unless you're giving it ten tenths everywhere.
The standard sound system is garbage if you like your tunes. The upgraded system option is definitely the one you want.
Stick your head underneath it before you buy and look at the front and rear sub frames, also rear suspension mountings. Mine was very scabby at only 5 years old.
M22s said:
As others have said, the turning circle is, in my opinion, absolutely woeful
Oh yeah, I have the estate and have got into some slight difficulty in some crappy old multi storey car parks before! Well swinging into spaces in general makes you look amateur - reverse parking all the way! Torque steer - I've only had this when full throttle up a hill with a full load in the boot. Tramlining though, yes, when the front tyres get down to about 3mm it feels like driving on ice - but fresh rubber sorts it.
Edited by Hub on Saturday 11th May 23:55
I ran a mark 3 2014 ST for a couple of years as our only family car.
Went from about 38k miles to just over 70k miles. Totally reliable apart from a radiator leak which was picked up during the annual service and needed replacement.
No problem with the infamous bonnet gap personally.
no-one ever complained of lack of space (2 aduts/2 kids) and the car was plenty big enough for family holidays away (and we don't travel particularly lightly). Loading up the boot was a little bit stressful at times though and I did miss my old S max in this respect.
Driving and performance wise I miss it. 250bhp and it felt every bit of that and rarely felt underpowered, even when fully loaded and four people up.
I 'upgraded' to a BMW F30 335d. Boot slightly bigger, quality of build and finish probably a bit nicer Though even at 309bhp the 335d does not feel hugely quicker and I suspect the ST would give it a run for its money.
Certainly miss the ST and certainly would not rule out one in the future.
Went from about 38k miles to just over 70k miles. Totally reliable apart from a radiator leak which was picked up during the annual service and needed replacement.
No problem with the infamous bonnet gap personally.
no-one ever complained of lack of space (2 aduts/2 kids) and the car was plenty big enough for family holidays away (and we don't travel particularly lightly). Loading up the boot was a little bit stressful at times though and I did miss my old S max in this respect.
Driving and performance wise I miss it. 250bhp and it felt every bit of that and rarely felt underpowered, even when fully loaded and four people up.
I 'upgraded' to a BMW F30 335d. Boot slightly bigger, quality of build and finish probably a bit nicer Though even at 309bhp the 335d does not feel hugely quicker and I suspect the ST would give it a run for its money.
Certainly miss the ST and certainly would not rule out one in the future.
Edited by andy118run on Sunday 12th May 15:45
HazzaT said:
Nyloc20 said:
We thought mpg would be poor in a petrol version.
It is quite bad for the performance. I struggled to crack 30mpg average in mine unless I was on the motorway a lotDriven sensibly on dual carriageway/ motorway probably 35mpg to tickling 40mpg.
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