Cupra 300 vs Fiesta ST ?

[silles]

I have a Cupra 300 2018. I really like it but We need a second car ... so

Anyone with a Cupra driven the Fiesta ST MK8 (2018+) yet? just wondering how it compares. ( I know it's a different class, size, etc)

I know it's one of the best if not the best when u are in the mood for a hooning but

- How is the ride (when u not in the mood, just want to get from A->B ) compared to Cupra in comfort ?
- How is it as a daily driver on bumpy B roads?

Cheers

 

[Mr Pig]

Do you want to look like a Ned/Chav? Do you want to deal with Ford build quality and don't give a monkeys dealers? Have they made an engine that doesn't blow up?

 

[LR231998]

I’d personally look at a polo gti/ Audi TSI A1 if you’re looking for (I guess by the question) a nippy, Comfy, practical second car?? Or an Audi A3/S3.... VW golf GTD/ GTI. Wouldn’t get a Ford Fiesta especially the new one, but I’m not sure what you want from it.... you have a Cupra 300 so do you want an economical comfy daily or another “fast” second car?

 

[silles]

I’d personally look at a polo gti/ Audi TSI A1 if you’re looking for (I guess by the question) a nippy, Comfy, practical second car?? Or an Audi A3/S3.... VW golf GTD/ GTI. Wouldn’t get a Ford Fiesta especially the new one, but I’m not sure what you want from it.... you have a Cupra 300 so do you want an economical comfy daily or another “fast” second car?

fair point, so what I'm looking for is
- an exciting to drive, nippy, with good engine/exhaust sound, second mini hot hatch, has to be manual.

polo gti, a1, vag groups seems quite boring based on the reviews watched on ytube

i also shortlisted the Suzuki Swift Sport (with some upgraded exhaust later)

 

[LR231998]

fair point, so what I'm looking for is
- an exciting to drive, nippy, with good engine/exhaust sound, second mini hot hatch, has to be manual.

polo gti, a1, vag groups seems quite boring based on the reviews watched on ytube

i also shortlisted the Suzuki Swift Sport (with some upgraded exhaust later)

Hyundai i30N, Civic Type R, Focus ST, Clio RS would be my suggestions.although I suppose they aren’t “mini” hot hatches. Best thing to do is short list a few options, test drive each and make a decision based on how they drive, what the spec is like and the value for money. Don’t discount the peugeot GTI range or the KIA GT range either. Think you can get a KIA Ceed GT which is fairly fast (?) and I do believe with every Kia you get a 7? year warranty....

 

[Nora2004]

No idea what other people are talking about, but the new Fiesta ST's are great little cars, I wasn't a fan of the seating position but apart from that I liked it! Ride quality is far superior to the Mk7, although to be fair doesn't take much as they were rock hard! I had expected the engine to be underwhelming but I was wrong, makes a decent noise to!

 

[Damo H]

fair point, so what I'm looking for is
- an exciting to drive, nippy, with good engine/exhaust sound, second mini hot hatch, has to be manual.

polo gti, a1, vag groups seems quite boring based on the reviews watched on ytube

i also shortlisted the Suzuki Swift Sport (with some upgraded exhaust later)

Only one answer. A mini. Petrol version. Even the slow ones are a hoon to drive

 

[BigJase88]

Hate fords but the fiesta has won multiple awards so must be a decent motor and worth looking at for sure.

 

[SRGTD]

The Fiesta ST does seem to have a bit of a reputation as a chav-mobile, frequently seen congregating in the local McDonalds car park. I don’t know if security has been improved on the mk8, but the previous generation model seemed to be a prime / easy target for theft - quite a few mk7 owners over on fiestastoc.com have had their cars stolen.

Top of the list for me would be a current generation Polo GTI+. It’s DSG only, but that wouldn’t bother me. In fact, its likely to be the replacement for my previous generation 2016 Polo GTI later this year. Good performance when you want some fun, but practical enough to use as a daily driver. The ‘plus’ version is very well equipped, and there are discounts of around 15% (allowing for VW’s current £1,250 deposit contribution) to be had if buying new.

 

[BigJase88]

Just had a look at a new polo gti. That dash is disgusting

 

[GaryPL]

Avoid Ford like you would any tropical disease. Awful company. The car will go wrong, the dealer network will shaft you, and the head office will go in for sloppy seconds. And I'm not even exaggerating the hell that this company has put me through in the not too distant past.

And don't believe the awards either. Their 1.0 EcoBoost engine won every award going and it is by far one of the most unreliable engines of the last few decades. Even the most minor of issues with the cooling system will usually result in catastrophic failure of the whole engine. Even Vauxhall's infamous early 2.2s or Rover's K-Series cannot hold a candle to it.

Second the MINI if you don't need the back seats or a proper boot. Cooper is pretty brisk.

 

[LR231998]

It really is just a decision only you can make. End of the day, I hate minis and I hate the fiesta ST; doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not decent motors; a few people on here have recommended them.... I’m sure some people hate the seat leon Cupra elsewhere in other forums. It’s just personal taste and only you can choose for yourself.

 

[Mr Pig]

A friend of mine worked for the local Ford dealer for thirty years. She's a lovely woman but she didn't have a good word to say about them. Strongly advised against buying a Ford, and she worked for them!

Fiestas get stolen because that's what the kind of people who steal cars want to be driving. Tells you a lot.

I looked at the previous Swift, also supposed to be very good to drive. Build quality was cheap but it was the driving position that nailed it. Terrible. New one may be better though. Still an ugly car.

I'd buy a Ford before I'd buy a Mini! I looked at those too. Very unreliable cars and BMW prices to fix them. Talk to a mechanic if you want to know how bad they are. Know a guy who was a master mechanic for Vauxhall and has one. He said 'it's a great car, love it', then rhymed off all the things he'd fixed! And it wasn't trivial stuff. If he hadn't bee able to do it himself it would've been thousands.

It's annoying as I really wanted a Fiesta or a Focus. They are supposed to be the best driving cars on the road, and they look great, but I just can't get past the issues that have stopped me buying one in the past. Nothing has changed. Which is amazing really.

 

[LR231998]

A friend of mine worked for the local Ford dealer for thirty years. She's a lovely woman but she didn't have a good word to say about them. Strongly advised against buying a Ford, and she worked for them!

Fiestas get stolen because that's what the kind of people who steal cars want to be driving. Tells you a lot.

I looked at the previous Swift, also supposed to be very good to drive. Build quality was cheap but it was the driving position that nailed it. Terrible. New one may be better though. Still an ugly car.

I'd buy a Ford before I'd buy a Mini! I looked at those too. Very unreliable cars and BMW prices to fix them. Talk to a mechanic if you want to know how bad they are. Know a guy who was a master mechanic for Vauxhall and has one. He said 'it's a great car, love it', then rhymed off all the things he'd fixed! And it wasn't trivial stuff. If he hadn't bee able to do it himself it would've been thousands.

It's annoying as I really wanted a Fiesta or a Focus. They are supposed to be the best driving cars on the road, and they look great, but I just can't get past the issues that have stopped me buying one in the past. Nothing has changed. Which is amazing really.

I wouldn’t personally say that they look great... I think they look quite boring and too grown up (sort of how the Leon is going). But yes they are supposed to be the best drive when not in a lay-by with the bonnet up. Think you nailed it on that paragraph - Ford, Vauxhall cheap but unreliable and nasty interiors. Mini - BMW prices - unreliable. Suzuki - well it’s a Suzuki. I’d honestly look at a Hyundai i30N or a German brand.

 

[SRGTD]

Just had a look at a new polo gti. That dash is disgusting

There’s a no cost grey option, so you don’t have to have the red dash insert.

Here’s the no cost grey dashboard option in the picture below;

 

[ChrisM75]

Hate fords but the fiesta has won multiple awards so must be a decent motor and worth looking at for sure.

Such awards are based on a short reviews, and like many awards in many industries, they can be bought. Plenty of very bad cars have been award winners, especially things like Car of the Year.

The Fiesta is a good car to drive, no doubt, and its well thought out as a usable vehicle, but Fords penny pinching means it will likely give issues once it ages

 

[SRGTD]

Such awards are based on a short reviews, and like many awards in many industries, they can be bought. Plenty of very bad cars have been award winners, especially things like Car of the Year.

The Fiesta is a good car to drive, no doubt, and its well thought out as a usable vehicle, but Fords penny pinching means it will likely give issues once it ages

And many of the positive motoring journal reviews on YouTube and motoring websites are based on a relatively short time behind the wheel and / or short blast around a track. IMO, that’s unlikely to be representative of what a car’s like to live with on a day to day basis.

Also, quite a few reports by owners over on fiestastoc.com of poorly fitting body panels, poor paint finish, very thin paint. Dealer’s response in some instances has been along the lines of ‘it’s a cheap car, so what do you expect?’ To me, that’s a totally unacceptable response to build quality issues on a new car, and if that’s typical of Ford dealerships approach to customer service these days, then it’s not for me.

Apart from the slightly dubious image, aesthetically there are things I don’t like about the Fiesta ST;

• beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but IMO it’s not a good looking car; the front is slightly less ‘ugly’ than the previous generation with its oversized grille, but not by much. From the rear, I think it has the look of a mini MPV.
  
• From the side profile, I don’t like the way the corner of headlamps sweep up almost into the bottom corners of the windscreen.
• the tablet type infotainment screen; to me, it’s looks as if Ford completely forgot to include one and just stuck an iPad to the dash as an afterthought. I know this seems to be the current trend, but IMO the Fiesta’s really does look as if it’s been stuck on at the last minute.

I owned quite a few fast Fords in the 1980’s and loved them. The Fiesta ST won’t be on my shortlist when I replace my current car though.

 

[Shaady]

Going against the grain...if I needed a small second car that was fun to drive the Fiesta would be top of my list.

Have zero issues with Fords and they are meant to be great little cars. So much so that when the wife passes her driving test am thinking of 'giving' her the Leon and getting a Fiesta ST myself.

 

[Mr Pig]

I’d honestly look at a Hyundai i30N or a German brand.

I think the Koreans are kinda where the Japanese were in the seventies. Cars are good value and reliable but they haven't quite figured out what Europeans want in a car. If you want a car that's sharp to drive, I've never heard Hyundai mentioned as such.

What about the new Ibiza? Don't think it's as good to drive as a Fiesta but it looks nice, smart inside and driving position seems excellent. Think the engine range is lacking though. I don't see how Seat can be the 'sporty' brand when the Ibiza has no genuinely fast variant. Ford get consistently this right and they sell a lot of cars.

 

[silles]

wow so much negativity against the Fiesta ST. I yet to see a review which is as bad as the feedback here.

I guess I just have to test drive few this spring and flip a coin , lol