Looks damn fine if I do say so myself.
that exhaust damn 
TRAK DAY!
Streets of Willow Springs, my goal get within 10 seconds of Randy Pobsts time of 1:28.8 with a Stock Focus ST, and I did manage to do just that! On my 4th session of the day after making adjustments to tire pressure, talking with out ST drivers that were out that day, and lots of reflection on the track layout. I managed to turn 1:38.4! I think with what Iāve learned I could push that down to 1:35, or even 1:33, but I have to say I really felt like I was pushing it with the 1:38.4.
Driver mod is a REAL thing.
The Eagles held up really well.
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Thatās awesome, thanks for sharing! Congrats on meeting your goal.
While weāre on the subject of driver modā¦ same thing happened with me when I took the āme tooā car to the track. Couldnāt break 14s all day until finally - I went for it. Chirped tires on the 2-3 shift I was pushing it that hard, and flat-footed the 3-4 shift just before the finish line.
I wish I had the video of it, my friendās GoPro malfunctioned - lost the file.
Driver mod is always the best mod. I may take the FoST out again, that will depend on if I get the CSVT to stop leaking oil and square up the suspension.
You mean Good Year Eagle F1?
Yep, Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetrical 2
Clearly the Focus ST deserves to be wrung out to its limits on a track day, and in doing just that, you have earned some respect for me - performance cars like these deserve to be driven to their full potential on track.
Strange. Maybe they improved on them, but I had a set about 4 years ago, probably a few generations older than yours, and I found it to be dreadful after warmup. On cold they behaved like any michelin pilot sport would, but after they built up heat they just let go and made a drift session of my time attack.
The Asymmetrical (1) was not well received, I happen to like these Asymmetrical 2s I like them more than MPSS, they jave stiff sidewalls and a very sharp turnin response, good latteral grip also.
When I burn up these Iām thinking about a set of Continental or Yokohama.
I am really very partial to Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta, but sadly they discontinue the model. Iām thinking of switching to Vredestein Ultrac Vorti, but still undecided. I usually run Michelin Pilot Sports on the rear axle, they have good grip, but also are predictable after I go sideways, and the behaviour does not change much with wear
Three years, thirty six thousand miles, past the manufactures warranty period. This is the first time Iāve owned a car where I vacuum and detail it, every week. I do not allow drinks other than water into the car, I do not eat, or allow open food in the car. These are things a younger me would never have expected.
Living with the Focus ST for the last three years I have really found the things I like and dislike about the car. I could nitpick about the small design choices I donāt like all day. But at the end of that day none of them are a major issue. The car is a peppy, fun thing to drive every day. If you just be a rational adult it returns 35+mpg every tank, if you want a ting of fun, you stomp the accelerator or throw it into a corner.
The hatchback has amazing utility, Iāve thrown transmissions, engines, car doors, hoods, trunks, so on so forth into the back of this thing. With the rear seats fully stowed you have an impressive amount of room to work with.
The car almost seats four full size red-blooded american adults comfortably. One of my nit picks happens to be driver leg room. There is a massive center console that houses the curtain airbags. I donāt much care for it, there is not much room to put your right leg (Left hand drivers) and this is my only complaint on long drives (200+ mile single direction trips). The radio leaves much to be desired, but that can be said for many OE units, thankfully the interconnect ability with phones works quite well.
Iāve had the car for three years now, and depreciation has hit the Focus ST hard, which to some is a major issue. I do not plan to sell the car so it is a moot point for me, I still feel that buying it outright new was a good choice.
Iāve had a headlight replaced under warranty for the clear coat pealing on the headlight.
Iāve had the rear bumper replaced when I brought it in for a rattling sound.
Thatās it for warranty stuff, the car has had no faults, and any flaws with it at this point are self induced. It is my daily, and it has 14 rock chips in the paint over various parts of the car, my replacement rear bumper has a deep scratch that went through the paint (I was loading an engine hoist on my own, and when I had to lift the final part up and over the bumper, lets just say I should have paid more attention.
The worst part about the car hands down has to be the nanny during clutch engagement at low speed, some engineer though an auto rev system would be needed. There is no way to remove it with out flashing the ECU, it is the only part about my Focus that I well and truly hate.
I hope youāve enjoyed the 3rd year update.
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Very niceā¦ not my cup of tea grant you but its one of the better products to come from fordā¦ and yours is rather clean
Iāve always been Pro-Mopar and havenāt given so much as a glance to the other domestics, but recently Iāve been gravitating towards Ford. I havenāt appreciated these enough, they are truly awesome little cars. Props to keeping it so nice, white looks good on her ;D
As a Speed3 owner, I definitely see the appeal, even if I personally find the Speed3 to be more exciting (although I will concede that the ST is a better daily).
And yeah, the clutch on newer Fords feels pretty weird to me. Not just on the ST, on the normal Focus (and Fiesta, both regular and ST). Feels both stiff and unresponsive at the same time. I canāt make sense of it myself, but it is what it is.
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admittedly, ive always sort of hated the blue oval but some of the cars they make and made are fairly decent in my opinion.
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Yep, Clutch on the Freedom Mondeo is much more liniar than the ST.
Every company makes some cars people like. Thereās even a Mitsu I like, and I hate Mitsus.
My six month plan is to trade in the Focus ST for a Mustang GT.
If i get the bonuses to make it happen sooner, it will be sooner. I know this is contrary to my last post about having no desire to sell it, but my desire for the Mustang GT grows, which is part of the reason I am giving myself several months. To think about if this is just a fling, or a real deep desire.
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Mustang GT: I rented a 03/2019 built GT Convertible, 301a (non Performance pack, 10-speed auto) it had Recaro seats. The 301a is the Sync-3 package and the mode switches. The steering can be tuned to Normal-Stiff-Soft. Normal was quite nice for regular driving. The stiff mode was noticeable, power assist is backed off quite a bit, it was a good feel. I saved that for later when I took the car up a canyon.
The mode switch had Normal-SportĀ±Track-Drag-Snow/Ice. The normal mode was great for normal driving, throttle is slightly dampened so it responds smoothly, the transmission rapidly goes into taller gears, the whole affair is smooth, and easy. There were no surprises, and the car was truly a joy to drive.
Flappy paddle shifters: It has them, they arenāt flappy, instead they fit the wheel trunks nicely. Manual override is available at any time, you can request a lower gear or higher gear and the computer makes it so. If I were so inclined I could downshift my way to a stoplight or 4-way intersection using little or no brake. Upon a complete stop the vehicle will resume automatic control, or you can push the button on the range selector.
Speaking of that range selector, you can lock the vehicle into manual shifting only by going past D and into S (for sport). Doing so will automatically transition the vehicle into Sport+ mode, which tightens throttle response, and on this model, increases volume thanks to the active exhaust.
Driven sanely, which dominated my morning drive with the vehicle. I was able to maintain roughly 33mpg, which is quite a livable figure, as my Focus ST regularly returns 35mpg, and my Contour SVT struggles to break into 30mpg.
Visibility was so much better than I had anticipated. Unlike my Focus ST, a quick head check lets you see most of the way around the car, there is mercifully no blind spots for me. The instrument cluster is functional, gauges are easy to read, and the center display can be customized with additional vehicle information. Live temperature readings was nice to see for Transmission and Cylinder Head.
But finally we move on to the meat and potatoes of this rental. Sport+ Mode: What sort of test drive would this be without one of Californiaās lovely canyon roads. I elected to take Bouquet Canyon road, which is a 15 mile stretch of switch backs carved into the Angeles National forest. At first I let the car do its own shifting, which Sport+ did a good job of holding gears and picking the right gear for the drive, simply letting off the throttle didnāt result in a gear change, it was nice to see how well programmed the sport modes are programmed now. Steering set to stiff at this point also gave more road feedback than I was led to believe from internet reviewers. The car felt quite planted, and was a joy to lightly hoon up and down the back roads with. The active valves on the exhaust allowed me to take in the song of the V8 nicely.
While I never pushed the car anywhere near itās mechanical limits, simply driving it around the way I would my Focus taught me what I needed to know, the GT has earned all the praise it has been lavished with by many enthusiasts, and this test drive cements my desire to own one.
~Fin
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