Ford’s diminutive Fiesta ST has arrived with guns blazing to take on the competition in this year’s hot hatch shootout – will this pocket-rocket have what it takes to keep up with the stern competition?
The Fiesta ST is propelled by the powerful 2,0-litre Duratec HE engine. This powerplant comes with sequential fuel injection and electronic throttle control, and produces maximum power of 110 kW at 6 000 r/min and peak torque of 190 N.m at 4 500 r/min.
Where outright performance is concerned, this gutsy little highway streaker accelerates to 100 km/h in only 8,3 seconds and records a maximum speed of 208 km/h. Overall fuel consumption is 7,8 l/100 km.
Beneath the surface, the changes to the ST over the regular Fiesta are significant. The front and rear anti-roll bars and the rear twist beam are stiffer for better handling and control. Damper settings have been revised to maintain saloon-like comfort levels despite the added power output.
The Fiesta ST uses a revised five-speed iB5 gearbox with short ratios and a short shift gear mechanism, which has been strengthened to withstand the little car’s increased power output.
Braking (with standard ABS and EBD) is enhanced thanks to larger front calipers and pads – borrowed from the Ford Focus ST170 – and 253 mm rear discs. Wheels are menacing 17-inch light alloy units shod with low profile Pirelli tyres.
The Fiesta ST not only performs and sounds like a hot hatch, it looks the part too with is aggressive and robust styling. The car has new front and rear bumpers with integrated fog lamps and a grille finished in honeycomb mesh. Larger body-coloured side protection mouldings correspond with the body-coloured door handles, side mirrors and rear tailgate release for a sleek and polished exterior appearance. Combined with the 17-inch alloys, the large oval chrome exhaust tailpipe and the new ST insignia complete the look from the rear.
Leather/cloth combination sports seats dominate the interior, and there are aluminium finishes on the three-spoke steering wheel (with leather trim), short shift gear lever and metal sport pedals.
You can read South African circuit racing stars Hennie Groenewald and Philip Kekana’s track appraisals of the Ford Fiesta ST in the January 2009 issue of CAR magazine, in which we put 18 of South Africa’s hottest hatches to the test at Killarney.
Listen to hot hatch exhaust notes.
Download wallpapers from the Track Shootout here: Batch 1, Batch 2 and Batch 3, or Batch 4.
Watch two Ultimate Hot Hatch Shootout videos
You can also view the behind-the-scenes or the Franschhoek Pass Shootout galleries.
