Ford Fiesta ST 2020 Review – Australia

The all-new 2020 Ford Fiesta ST is priced at $31,990 plus on-road costs, a hefty rise of $4500 over its much-loved predecessor, which departed showrooms in 2018.

The ST is the only example of the seventh-generation Fiesta to be sold in Australia. Like its predecessor, it is built in Germany, whereas mainstream members of the old Fiesta range were assembled in Thailand.

When that source dried up, so did Australia’s prospect of continuing with cheaper versions of Ford’s smallest model.

Developed by the Blue Oval’s global race and road car tuner Ford Performance, the new Fiesta ST swaps from three doors to a five-door body in Australia, extends its overall length by 93mm to 4068mm, is 20kg heavier at 1217kg and adds an additional 21 litres of boot space, growing it to 311 litres.

Under the bonnet is a new 147kW/290Nm three-pot turbo-petrol four-cylinder replacing a 1.6-litre four-cylinder.

The old engine made the same outputs, but only on overboost for 20 seconds at a time. While Ford makes a big deal about the new engine having cylinder deactivation – yes it can run on two cylinders – official fuel consumption ratings are a teeny bit worse at 6.3 versus 6.2L/100km for the prior model. Premium unleaded is the recommended fuel.

A Quaife mechanical limited slip differential is new, but a six-speed manual without rev-matching looks a bit 20th century compared to the ST’s primary competitors, the $32,490 Volkswagen Polo GTI that is fitted with a six-speed dual-clutch auto. The other obvious rival is the $30,990 Renault Clio RS, but stock in Australia is pretty much exhausted ahead of the new generation model’s arrival.

The standard equipment list includes LED headlights, 18-inch alloy wheels, Recaro sports seats, keyless entry and start, a flat-bottom steering wheel, Ford’s SYNC3 infotainment system including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a 10-speaker B&O sound system. The spare tyre is a space saver.

The Ford Fiesta ST comes with a five-year/unlimited kilometre factory warranty. Service intervals are 15,000km/12-month, while logbook services for the first four years/60,000km are set at a maximum of $299 per service.

It’s taken almost two years to get the new Ford Fiesta ST on sale in Australia. Much of that delay has been put down to the local division’s insistence it come here with standard autonomous emergency braking (AEB).

Unlike some other far more expensive cars, the ST’s camera-based AEB will bring it to a complete stop, operates from 3km/h to the 232km/h top speed and detects pedestrians (up to 80km/h) and cyclists.

Other Ford Fiesta ST driver-assist systems include lane-keeping, blind spot warning, cross traffic alert, traffic sign recognition, rain-sensing windscreen wipers and tyre pressure monitoring.

SYNC3 includes a function that dials 000 emergency services in the event of a road traffic collision. The ST also gets six airbags and a 2017 five-star Euro NCAP rating.

The new Ford Fiesta ST’s triple-cylinder engine employs an aluminium block and head. Peak power is delivered at 6000rpm and peak torque between 1600 and 4000rpm.

It uses both port and direct fuel-injection in an attempt to deliver better response and economy, twin-independent variable timing of its 12 valves, a low-inertia turbocharger, an integrated exhaust manifold and an active exhaust.

The engine combines with the short-geared six speed manual (it has a 4.313 final drive and runs at just under 2500rpm at an indicated 100km/h in top gear) and launch control (turn it on, flatten the throttle, release the clutch, chirp the tyres, go) to deliver a claimed 6.5-second 0-100km/h time. That’s 0.4sec better than the old ST.

While the ST’s fundamental front-wheel drive B-Car platform has been around for more than decade there’s been some significant updates. The MacPherson strut front suspension’s resistance to wheelspin and torque steer is aided by the Quaife diff, torque vectoring, Tenneco twin-tube frequency-dependent dampers and a 48mm wider front track.

Aiding the torsion beam rear-end are a mono-tube version of the Tenneco damper along with new directionally-wound ‘banana’ springs to provide a claimed improvement in both ride and cornering, while saving around 10kg compared to a traditional Watts link solution.

The 2020 Ford Fiesta ST employs a unique steering knuckle design, unique calibration of its electric-assist steering system and a super-fast fixed 12:1 steering ratio. The downside of this unique set-up is a substantial – by light-car standards – 11.0m turning circle (standard Fiestas turn in 10.4m).

The final steps in the dynamic package are 278mm vented front and 253mm solid rear discs (same size as before) braked by single-piston callipers. The ST rolls on excellent Michelin Pilot Super Sport 205/40R18 rubber.

The ST now comes with three drive modes: Normal, Sport and Track. Adjusting them affects engine mapping, traction control, stability control, exhaust sound and steering weight. Obviously, Track mode is the most liberal in terms of wheel slip.

The ST in the Ford Fiesta ST name stands for Sports Technologies and in the Blue Oval lexicon that means a car that’s fun to drive without eschewing all-round liveability. If you want extreme, then a hype-hatch like the Ford Focus RS is your thing.

If you can put up with a manual gearbox and a firm-ish ride then you really could live with the Fiesta ST every day. You can even fit kids in the back if you need to, although those tombstone Recaros do take up plenty of potential rear legroom.

Thankfully, the seating position is lower than the old ST, which drivers consistently complained felt more ‘on’ than ‘in’. That substantial improvement is complemented by a modern collection of dials, instruments and gauges. It’s busy but mostly makes sense. The clarity of the 8.0-inch touch-screen is outstanding and the trim materials a step-up from the old car’s hard plastics.

Nestle into the supportive Recaro seat, grasp that chubby steering wheel and head to a sinuous road or even a racetrack and the ST really comes into its own.

The front of this car is truly confidence-inspiring. At turn-in with or without brake, mid-corner with steering lock wound on or at corner exit under full throttle there’s no bump steer or rack rattle and only the vaguest occasional hint of torque steer.

The diff, the dampers, the wide track and the wonderful tyres do an inspiring job of conquering turns then surging out the fast side.

Lift-off the throttle and you can induce some swing from the rear, but it’s less pronounced than the lively old ST. Keep it straight and the Fiesta will cock its inside rear wheel clear of the deck on tight corners. Cool.

The best bit of the engine is the meaty mid-range that eliminates the need for constant gear shuffling. Second is only required for the tightest hairpins.

With the help of a sound symposer, the engine sounds bigger and more potent than it really is, while the exhaust pops and crackles appealingly – if a little distantly – in Sport or Track mode.

You don’t pay at the pump for this performance either. On 95 RON the ST averaged about 8.2L/100km while we had it, including some hot laps at Winton Raceway.

There are other things that also don’t quite satisfy as much. The gearchange throw is too long – a Mazda MX-5 ka-ching next time please – and the clutch travel could also be shorter for snappier shifts.

Brake and throttle pedal placement aren’t optimal for heel and toe downchanges. You can adjust, but there’ll be some porpoising under brakes until you do.

When cruising, the steering has a rubbery feel and seems desperate to self-centre. But that disappears when cornering speed and frequency builds, bringing feel and accuracy with it.

What a great car the new Ford Fiesta ST is! Brilliant handling, enthusiastic engine, a comfortable and modern interior. The old car’s rough edges and harsh bits have been pretty much buffed out.

Yes, there are elements of it that could be better, most of them centring around the manual gearbox. But it’s still a hard package to argue with at a price that is high for the class but still delivers huge bang for buck.

The 2020 Ford Fiesta ST is refreshingly functional and fantastic fun, just as it is meant to be.

How much does the 2020 Ford Fiesta ST cost?
Price: $31,990 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 147kW/290Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Fuel: 6.3L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 144g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (EuroNCAP 2017)