Fiesta ST3 - some advice please!

[Spikecast]

Hi guys,

Seen a nice example ST3 in Molten orange with all the extra's (Rear Camera/Adjustable boot floor/parking sensors/extra headrest for rear middle seat) Sep 2016 plate with just over 2k on the clock at a dealer for £14,700, drove it for a good 20 mins and I've been impressed. Been offered a keen price of £1700 for my 59 plate corsa which isn't in the best of nick! Anyway I have a few questions I wanted to ask prior to making the purchase -

 

Generally how to people find the MPG on average with sensible driving? 

 

Would it be preferable to use V-Power fuel? 

 

Can you buy official ST mats? 

 

What tyres do people use once the bridgestones have worn? I've notice a lot of people switching brands.

 

I've been offered a tyre and wheel insurance as the dealer claims ST's are prone to being curbed and damaged, looking at the policy it seems a bit limited, has anyone used it? Been offered it for £160 for two years cover.

 

Any other useful info that you guys have would be beneficial.

 

Thanks!

[Dan P]

I've got an ST3 and absolutely love it, although I have done quite a few mods. Have a look at my build thread for BaSTian for more info on the mods and my thoughts on the car.

MPG is not bad at all. I get an average of around 35 (calculated accurately, the trip computer is a little more optimistic with the figures it gives) with a mix of regular school runs trips via motorway to visit family and going out for some fun on some more interesting roads. For long boring motorway journeys cruising at 65mph I can get mid 40s, for spirited B road driving low 20s.

I only use premium petrol so can't comment on how much better it is than 95RON.

Ford don't do branded ST mats but their velour mats are incredibly nice.

Haven't worn out a set of tyres yet as I am approaching 10k miles.

Haven't got wheel insurance but have sadly kerbed an alloy!

[Spikecast]

Thanks Dan. I don't suppose you could point me to those mats online?

[Luke4efc]

First of all, I don't own an St, but I can help with some questions.

1 hour ago, Spikecast said:

Would it be preferable to use V-Power fuel?

You probably would see a little gain as you are now, but you would see more of a power gain with a remap. You pretty much have to use it then.

1 hour ago, Spikecast said:

What tyres do people use once the bridgestones have worn? I've notice a lot of people switching brands.

I use uniroyal rainsport 3's all round now. Incredible tyres for the price (I got mine fitted for £70 a corner). Also has some mean looking tred too lol. Continentals are the other preference for a more "sporty" or summer tyre.

1 hour ago, Spikecast said:

I've been offered a tyre and wheel insurance as the dealer claims ST's are prone to being curbed and damaged, looking at the policy it seems a bit limited, has anyone used it? Been offered it for £160 for two years cover.

All 17 inch fiesta alloys are easy to kerb (I bought some zetec-s ones with ever so slight curbing, covered it right up though once I got them powder coated). The tyre wall is so thin it can hardly be seen. You could get some of those rim protectors, but I wouldn't bother with insurance. However I'm one of those people who don't understand how people can curb them in the first place. It's not that hard to not drive into curbs.

[Spikecast]

Thanks for the advice people, keep it coming! Does it use the same oil as standard ecoboost engines?

[Luke4efc]

I'd check first, but I believe 5w-30 is standard now for the fiesta. Every other model is 5w-30. Only exception is the Focus RS and KA.

[Zico]

I've had my ST3 for 2 years and 3 months and have done just under 16,000 miles.

My daily work commute is ~18miles each way with mixed 30/40/50/60mph A roads and I've accurately calculated 41mpg over the total mileage (trip computer is reset on each full tank and the readout on it is 45.1mpg as of yesterday). I've only used premium fuel, mostly Shell V-Power (30 tanks), Esso premium (14 times, mostly full tanks with a few top-ups) and 1 tank of Tesco Momentum 99 (which gave me a noticeable drop in power/mpg).

I have some ST car mats but can't honestly remember if they came with the car or if I bought them online (haven't actually used them as I kept my previous Zetec mats which are still going strong).

I'm still on the original Bridgestone Potenza's which at my last service at the end of March had ~6mm rear and ~4mm front.

Unfortunately I've slightly kerbed both passenger front and rear alloys within 6 months of getting the car (both times when attending medical appointments so I must be cursed when doing so ). I didn't take out the dealer insurance cover though I should have sorted out some kind of third party cover which would have been better value. Still, since kerbing them, there has been no more damage so I will get them sorted out before deciding on either keeping or returning the car next March.

Last but not least, the oil for the Ecoboost petrol engines (including ST) is 5w-20 though 5w-30 is also listed in the handbooks. I picked up 5L of Castrol Magnatec Professional 5w-20 for £28 before my service and it knocked £100 off the cost!

 

[Spikecast]

Thanks Zico, that's been very helpful! My local mechanic uses all original ford parts anyway so I have no concerns re warranty. 

[MarksST]

It should come with its standard got mats but if they been lost (in which also make sure they wheel nut key hasn't been lost)

http://www.fordpartsuk.com/shop/ford_fiesta_st_front_premium_carpet_mats_set_from_2012_onwards_f_1947557.htm

http://www.fordpartsuk.com/shop/ford_fiesta_st_rear_premium_carpet_mats_set_from_2012_onwards_f_1805917.htm

put whatever petrol in your happy with, I've always used v-power, standard and mp215 about 40mpg, been mr230 for a few days so has gone down a little. Depends how you drive really, same with tyres I get about 18k and change the at 3mm seen some people complain that they only get 4-5k.

michelin PS3 are probably the most common tyre to change to but they have gone up from £70 to & £90+ recently (hopefully PS4 coming out in the correct size soon), I've had Goodyear Assy 2 & 3 on, ride is better, grip in the wet and dry is better, quieter, but the best you can afford or are happy paying.

the grey alloys are hard to match, make sure the policy covers them properly, wheel and tyre cover might be cheaper with someone like ALA or GAPdirect, get GAP insurance but not from a dealer.

add extra security, disklok is a good deterrent, move the OBD port up behind the dash (takes a few minutes).

[Zico]

As Mark has posted, I must have got the premium mats with the ST3 and bought the mats for my Zetec.

I picked up this steering lock which adds a little more of a deterrent (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CMQZ64K/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ).

I've also disabled the OBD port.

 

[Spikecast]

Cheers guys excuse my ignorance but what is the OBD port? Is that for diagnosis machines usually?

[Spikecast]

Also who would you suggest I get the GAP insurance with?

[Dan P]

My GAP insurance is with Easy Gap chosen based on combination of best terms, price and term (I wanted 5 years).

The OBD port is the diagnostic port and the easiest way to steal a Fiesta. You can disable the port by pulling a fuse, relocate it by getting an extension, fit a dummy port or do any combination of the above. Additional security devices such as steering locks and clutch pedal locks can also be utilised and a cheap tracker can easily be installed.

[Zico]

1 hour ago, Spikecast said:

Cheers guys excuse my ignorance but what is the OBD port? Is that for diagnosis machines usually?

Yes. You can use it to plug in devices to read various outputs etc. but all I do is enable/disable it before a service.

1 hour ago, Spikecast said:

Also who would you suggest I get the GAP insurance with?

I never took any GAP insurance but I did look at ALA and another third party.

[Spikecast]

18 minutes ago, Dan P said:

My GAP insurance is with Easy Gap chosen based on combination of best terms, price and term (I wanted 5 years).

The OBD port is the diagnostic port and the easiest way to steal a Fiesta. You can disable the port by pulling a fuse, relocate it by getting an extension, fit a dummy port or do any combination of the above. Additional security devices such as steering locks and clutch pedal locks can also be utilised and a cheap tracker can easily be installed.

 

 

Thanks mate, can I ask how much it cost you over 5 years? I've taken a small loan over 4 years for the car so I would want it to at least cover the term. Cheers for the advice :)

[Ad@m]

The ST doesn't have a true Ecoboost engine. It's the same old 1.6 unit used in many vehicles going back to 2010. Back then it was always listed at 5W-30 but simply for fuel economy figures Ford decided to now recommend 5W-20. Personally in this engine I do not use 5W-20, you are compromising protection for a very marginal improvement in fuel economy.

7 hours ago, Zico said:

Last but not least, the oil for the Ecoboost petrol engines (including ST) is 5w-20 though 5w-30 is also listed in the handbooks. I picked up 5L of Castrol Magnatec Professional 5w-20 for £28 before my service and it knocked £100 off the cost!

 

[Dan P]

My policy was £228 which is quite pricey for gap insurance but that's because it's for 5 years and it's a vehicle replacement policy (which I think is only available for a new car). Most gap policies insure against the difference between the insurance payout and the price paid for the vehicle. My policy is for the difference against a replacement vehicle so covers subsequent increases in the price of new vehicles.
Getting gap insurance through a third party is easy and considerably cheaper than anything you'd get through a dealer. Have a look on moneysavingexpert.com and there should be some good recommendations and info there.

[iantt]

1 hour ago, Ad@m said:

The ST doesn't have a true Ecoboost engine. It's the same old 1.6 unit used in many vehicles going back to 2010. Back then it was always listed at 5W-30 but simply for fuel economy figures Ford decided to now recommend 5W-20. Personally in this engine I do not use 5W-20, you are compromising protection for a very marginal improvement in fuel economy.

either grade of oil is more than satifactory on thev1.6 ecoboost engine. 

essentialy it is the old sigma engine but a  few changes.

• Direct petrol injection instead of the conventional inlet manifold injection.
• Exhaust gas turbocharger to increase torque and power.
• Four separate direct ignition coils instead of the shared electronic ignition coil.
• Demand-dependent control of the coolant temperature via
  -

  a bypass solenoid valve and
  -

  a shut-off solenoid valve.

[Jethro_Tull]

Its a very neat, tidy and robust design. A gem of a motor.

[Spikecast]

Thanks guys, it appears to be around £150 for 4 years gap insurance.

[Spikecast]

One last thing - can I purchase GAP insurance at any time after buying the car? 

[MarksST]

Yes, if it was new you would need to take the policy out within 90-105 days if getting VRI, I'd still get it as soon as you can though.

[Spikecast]

Thanks this will be second hand so I just need to find a policy I'm happy with. I'm not sure how long to get it for really, the car is a year old in September and taking depreciation into account I may do it for 3 years rather than 4. 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi,

Just to let you know that we offer a product called Total Loss Protection. Whilst it's not exactly the same as your traditional GAP insurance we feel for some customers it can make a cost effective alternative.

Please feel free to take a look if you wish.

https://www.adrianflux.co.uk/extras/total-loss/

Regards,

Dan.

[Standard Looks]

On 08/07/2017 at 6:03 PM, Zico said:

Yes. You can use it to plug in devices to read various outputs etc. but all I do is enable/disable it before a service.

I never took any GAP insurance but I did look at ALA and another third party.

Excuse my ignorance, but how do you disable and enable the odb port?