The Most Overrated Car Of The Decade? Ford Fiesta ST (Mountune MP215) Review

People love the Fiesta ST. There's no getting away from it. Magazines love it. YouTubers love it. The owners love them. Even non-car people love them. They're everywhere. But why? Are they really that good.

I'm not a Ford fan and I'm not a hatchback fan, so I've taken this Fiesta ST down one of my favourite roads to see if it can do what a hot hatch should - put a smile on my face.

Follow us on Social Media:

LOVE MY CRAZY SHIRTS?

Need oil for your car?

Enter "jayemm10" in your basket at Opie Oils for 10% off your next oil order!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[antschiari]

I’m a 55 year old petrolhead and this IS the best hot hatch ever produced and trust me I’ve owned most of them...

[namronette]

I fell in love with my ST when I first drove it in mid 2015 and I'm still in love.

[simonmiller]

I'm 56 and I have owned over 100 cars. I have some Euro twin turbo V8 and V6 cars that are awesome. But this I bought as just something fun and... to be honest it just makes me feel young again. It's an absolute hoot and nothing I know delivers more smiles per buck. A true modern classic.

[bongodave]

I live in the US. Small cars aren't very popular here in the land of "bigger is better." The most stolen cars are Hondas, some other mid-sized cars and various pickups. One of the things I like about mine is that few people know it's a performance car at all. They just see a Fiesta, and look away. I don't worry about it getting stolen for 2 reasons: It's not in demand at chop shops, and most Americans can't drive a stick shift. There are videos of people trying to steal manual cars, then giving up because they don't know how to drive them.

I got this car for the combination of good fuel economy, practicality, reliability, and of course, the fun factor. Any Fiesta handles well, but this thing is another level. It corners as well as many far more expensive cars, and it makes enough power to keep things interesting without burning too much gas (or petrol, as you would say).

I have the MP215 kit, mountune shift kit and rear motor mount. This has made the car accelerate faster and makes changing gears quicker and more precise. Huge improvements, and not that expensive. I'd recommend those changes to anyone, however you drive it.

So, around here, the FiST is a rare car. you almost never see them. Hot hatches are almost unheard of, except around car guys. Performance cars are just Mustangs and the like. I think a lot of those people might like the FiST if they tried it, but it doesn't look cool or have a V8. Oh, well. I'll just keep this car as long as possible and enjoy the giggles it gives me on any twisty road. It's my little secret.

[Teamoneilrally]

You're spot on, with a limited slip diff they're pretty unbeatable.

[fonz-ysxu]

Yeah, here in the states I'd say this car is the most UNDERrated car out there.

[xiiBuzzinx]

I bought my 2017 ST when i turned 22. I bought the car with the mindset that i would upgrade later to a more "adult" car, boy did i change my mind, i love it and have no plans to trade up any time soon anyway.

[Jabber-igiw]

On paper it looks the closest to an old school hot hatch in the modern era, FWD, small, manual, quick but not stupidly quick, relatively inexpensive( ish), good looking. What’s not to like?

[carllatham]

I came from a bmw Z4 3.0si coupe to my ST. I don't regret it one bit. The bm made me look back at it when I walked away. But i couldn't drive it like the fiesta, and the fiesta always makes me smile every time I hit a corner or drive down some good A and B roads.

[DoktrDub]

When something is overrated, the definition is that it doesn’t deserve the respect and response it has been given… in the fiesta stmk7… it’s very well warranted, a good solid car at good solid value that puts a ton of smiles on your face.

[gryfandjane]

Now you know what we Fiesta ST owners have known for some time... the FiST is an exceptional little automobile. I have the US-spec car, which includes the much larger infotainment screen, Ford SYNC, etc... thus solving the tuning problems you noticed. It’s also a 4-door, since we didn’t get the 2-door in the States, but the added practicality is a fair trade-off. By the way, I’m 62 and retired... but I have a long history with sporty hatches, my previous car being a Cooper S... before that a GTI, a Civic Si, etc. My Fiesta still ticks all the right boxes for me, getting on three years now, and I’m still nuts about it. Of course Ford, in their wisdom, are dropping all passenger cars except the Mustang here in the US, so we’ll never see the Gen 8 Fiesta over here; all the more reason to treasure what we’ve got. Thanks for an excellent review!

[ianbradley]

If I had the garage space, this would be my choice for a small hot hatch. Definitely the best in class by a significant margin. And if you gave me the choice of a Focus RS or the Fiesta ST, I'd probably take the Focus, sell it and buy the Fiesta and a bunch of track days.

[Quinnaaay]

Sold a Scirocco 2.0TSI at the beginning of the year for one of these, did a few mods, remap induction kit, short shifter and a fair bit more and i absolutely love it. So much better than the Scirocco its a blast to drive.

[JamesJones-qquu]

To answer the questions: the steering is electrically assisted and they made about 22, 000 of them. So to put that into context that’s a fair amount, but no where near as many as some of the dull ‘exclusive’ expensive SUVs of today, like a Range Rover sport for example (Nearly 30, 000 of the current gen one of those and they cost £65K!). The ST also outsold the Clio RS of the same vintage by a 6 to 1 margin, but it’s pretty obvious why. I’ve had mine nearly a year now, couldn’t be happier with it!

[rossmiller]

I actually bought a Fiesta ST following your review of this car the next day (watched a few weeks ago). You're spot on. Mine is completely standard, 2015, 60k miles, full Ford service history and it's one of the most (if not the most) fun car I have ever owned. I have only managed a few essential trips but great car. This is against Porsche 911's, VW Golf R's, Ford Focus ST (2015), Mercedes SL500 - to name a few of my interesting mix. The only thing you didn't mention (and if you don't mind me saying, surprised you didn't), the seats are made for people with a very low BMI :-D I need to lose a few stone to feel completely comfortable I think!

[retroman]

The Ford fiesta rules in sub compact cars and is a solid build car and fun to drive..i love mine. 😊

[Phil]

That ST is basically the same as mine, except I got the Mountune exhaust too. I've had it nearly 5 years from new and can't see any point in changing to a different car.

[GR]

* Almost 2019 and the FiST is Still Kicking Ass, The LEGEND Continues . . .

[alexhiggins]

Absolutely loved mine! Still regret the day I swapped it for the Focus ST.... One of the worst decisions I have ever made in my life! Up there with selling my Technics SL1210 MK2's.... 😩

[IAmConorr]

The second I drove one three years back I knew I needed to get one... 3 months later I had this very same one with the MP215. Absolute belter of a car and still puts a smile on my face everyday. Looking at getting rid in the near future for an S3 Saloon, but I know it wont make me as happy as this!