Ford Fiesta ST

If ever a machine only made sense when you’re completely on it, this is it. Just 300 examples of the Edition, the priciest ST you can buy, will make it to our shores, bringing with them a three-door only bodystyle, suspension upgrades and bespoke styling tweaks which set them apart from the regular car.

So, the extra bits you gaze at include exclusive Azura Blue paint with contrasting gloss black rear diffuser, roof spoiler and ST badges, and flow-formed 18” alloys. And the extra bits you play with comprise two-way adjustable coilover suspension which reduces ride height by 15 mm at the front and 10 mm at the rear, and offers a bewildering 12 compression and 16 rebound settings available for fine tuning.

The Performance Pack is also standard fit on the ST Edition. This comprises a gently holy trinity of go-faster gear; a Quaife limited-slip differential on the front axle; a launch control system with which to demonstrate, and ultimately pay for, your lack of mechanical sympathy; and shift prompt lights for those who struggle to read a perfectly good analogue rev counter.

Though it’s still unlikely to be winning design awards any time soon, the ST’s interior is a significant improvement over that of its predecessor. For starters, the driving position’s far better thanks to the ability to drop the snug Recaros -bolstered like an amorous flatfish- further south, and a helm perfectly sized both in diameter and rim.

All else, though hardly the last word in style or tactility, gives no cause for ergonomics-based griping. Though the lack of a clutch foot rest plate is something of a pain, lengthening the floor-to-pedal travel of the foot more than somewhat.

The big news under the bonnet is that there’s a cylinder missing; the 1.6 litre four pot of yore making way for a 1.5 litre triple based on Ford’s award-winning 1.0 litre EcoBoost unit. No matter, because the engine’s an absolute belter; fizzy, busy and armed with a terrific arsenal of all the right noises off, whilst still behaving sensibly enough to drop a cylinder out of the equation in the cruise in the interests of frugality.

Now, this is a car that needs to be driven with considerable vim to iron out a few wrinkles. At pottering speeds the clutch is like a switch, the steering feels far too fast and the ride is tough as biltong. Don’t even think of trying to use the touch-screen on the move…

Once large portions of vim have been added to the mix, however, the thing’s an absolute riot. The steering’s meaty and communicative, and the reservoir of grip seems almost bottomless. Quite what you have to do to provoke understeer I never found out. The ST allows you to drive clean through the zone of fluid, flowing progress and on into the realms of serious chucking about without ever bunging in so much as a hint of being about to bite back.

But we do need to talk about torque steer. On Mudfordshire’s dubiously cambered, invariably rough-riding roads I confess to finding its arrival rather too frequent and often decidedly off-putting.

The last thing you want from a car with steering this quick and accurate allied to the ability to change direction with the alacrity a rubber bullet fired into a squash court is it demonstrating a mind of its own under gouts of heavy throttle. Indeed, I found myself consciously backing off the gas on occasion in the interests of maintaining the precision and poise for which the ST is rightly renowned…

An interesting chat with a Car magazine colleague revealed that when he drove the ST at Ford’s Lommel proving grounds in Belgium, where the company sorted the car’s dynamics, there was no hint of said torque steer throughout his session. Perhaps, then, Ford should be expanding the range of driving environments their cars are put through during the development process?

Back on British roads, though body control when you’re working hard is very good, and the chassis clearly brilliantly sorted, even the Performance Pack’s trick suspension cannot disguise the car’s properly firm ride characteristics. Interestingly, this will bother you far less when tackling your favourite B road with appropriate gusto (when you’ll be far too busy to notice) than in will at more modest cruising speeds, wherein relentless bounce and joggle can become tedious.

No matter. As discussed, this is a machine that rewards in spades when driven wholeheartedly. And, had I not recently driven Toyota’s GR Yaris, I’d undoubtedly be telling you I haven’t had as much fun behind the wheel for as long as I can remember.