Thanks for the info. I just bought an ST 3 days ago and it'd the first Ford I've had in 20 years. It's good to hear from someone who knows the systems.
I'm getting ready to buy a 2016 st, and honestly your videos have been so helpful in deciding on wether i wanted to modify it or not, what my first mods will be, and just general information, so thank you.
I just got an ST3 about a week ago and i've put about 330 miles on it, the steering and suspension is so amazing (but I did come from using an 03 dodge dakota for about 3 years). Can't find a single thing to complain about this car, handles amazing and is stupid quick in my opinion.
Kevin Z just be prepared for the paint chips on the hood. Buy some touch-up paint! It has VERY thin paint. My ‘17 ST isn’t even a year old yet and has MULTIPLE paint chips on the hood. My 2012 Speed 3 after 5yrs, with mountain driving and being on a race track, had less chips. Hopefully they put the money saved into the engine and suspension tuning ...lol. ...But I am loving my ‘17 ST. Compared to the Speed 3, the ST feels more confident and buttoned down. The Speed 3 will put you in a ditch or into a car when passing on full gas if you aren’t paying attention. That torque steer.....WHEW!!!
Kevin Z no problem! oh you work at a dealer? Do you personally see ST’s coming in often for certain repairs/replacements or anything? Just wanting to know some info on possible future issues even though I have a 6yr warranty on mine. Or maybe if you’ve picked up on any negative mechanical issues regarding the ST? (not including the thin paint..lol). .
Yes I'm a porter so I always see what's coming in for service, fortunately ST's rarely ever come in, and it's only regular maintenance. unfortunately, I've seen about 4-5 RS's come in in the last month, for head gasket issues, so that's serious haha
I'm with you on this. The longer I've had this car (and the increase in power it has now) some adaptive controls would have been nice. But a LSD should have at least been an optional upgrade from factory
1970borntorun it’s the install that’s expensive. I’m pretty sure you have to drop the entire engine block and most shops will charge for over 24 hours of labor
@@frightenedsoul Umm, yeah. TOTALLY not worth it. If we were talking about a High-End car like an Alfa Romeo or Porsche, then I could justify that amount of labor involved.
@@amonGustavo07 I mean, somehow our grandparents survived the muscle car Era without stability control. I think we can handle a focus without the nannies bro
I'm getting a 2018st in a couple weeks and the only car I've had my whole life is a 2004 impreza RS so I think I'll be fine without adaptive steering lol. I agree it would be a plus but the upgrade I'm already getting is enough for me. Good vid by the way!
as long as the car is stiff with tighter steering out of the gate (which the focus ST is with its stiffer ride and fairly poor turning radius) then I'm happy it doesnt have adjustable ride and steering settings. You bought a car that is manual only. Screw your comfort. I dont drive my ST to have good gas mileage and a soft ride. I drive it because its fun and I can blow past sheep Prius drivers. If there was a setting to make the car even more aggressive then I would take it but until now im happy with my fun car zipping through LA traffic at 19 MPG.
John Stramiello what are you comparing the ST to when saying it has a poor turning radius? Imo my new 18’ st has a great turning radius, better than my foxbody coupe, and yukon xl lmao. Its not bad at all imo
I have a 10th gen Si it’s not as great as it seems the LSD isn’t the best the wheels constantly spin, the adaptive dampers are kinda nice until you get a check engine light for no reason at all 🤦♂️id rather have a focus ST
Had my 2015 st-2 55k miles just under 3 weeks now and I literally have a smile non stop every time I drive it. Beautiful pulling power for the motorway overtakes, and the sound even stock, although not 100% natural makes you smile from ear to ear. decent fuel too half a tank for 5 days of 70 mile + trips from work is amazing even with a heavy foot!
6 лет назад
I have a 2017 Focus ST Ecoobost and for me the adaptive steering and damping it´s not a must have. I like the car the way she is and would be more expensive for that.
Thanks bro! Helped out a lot! I subscribed! And I just brought my first car, a Mitsubishi Mirage 2017! And it had sports mode so I was just curious about it exactly what it is and what if my does. Keep up the great work
I have a 2017 Focus ST and I'm not at all upset that it doesn't have adaptive steering or suspension. The suspension and steering on my ST are fantastic! What really upsets me about this car is that there is no LSD. And not only that, but there was no option from the factory. IMO this is the weakest point of the car. When accelerating aggressively out of a corner, the inside tire lights up. Ford's "brake vectoring" is their solution to the problem, but it's not great, and, as you said, it's very intrusive to the fun factor. My car is currently nearly stock, but a helical differential will be my first major mod. Likely before I even tune the engine, because what good is the extra power if it can't be used!
I own an st now and love it, however I feel the term sport mode is being misused, unless I don't understand its meaning. I say this because I owned an m3 back in the days it came with a "sport mode" button with it. When activated, one could feel the torque power increase as well as suspension damping control. It also had the "dsc" button which technically allows less restriction in stabilizing the vehicle when punching the engine. If I understand the specs of the st correctly, disabling the "little car with skid mark" button only disables "dsc" hence the freedom to steer more freely, but I don't think it boosts performance or dampens/stiffens handling. (Edit) I wanted to say I experienced the sport mode on it. I want aware the module informs you of the sport mode on the st. Basically if I understand it correctly it disables traction control and keeps stability control on. Thanks for your great video bro!
yea sport mode is traction only with stability on, but if you hold down the sport mode button for 5 seconds then the focus st turns on Track Mode which turns off stability as well.
I don't know if you knew but when you touch the button it goes into sport mode but if you hold down the same button it doesn't go into sport mode but turns off stability control only
I just got my 2017 st yesterday and I am just inlove with the car. The best purchase I've made. I am in Dubai and I realized the entertainment dash is diffrent to that of the US spec
the focus st does mitigate torque steer by reducing power to the steering rack. tvc as stated in the manual is never turned off because ford says it doesn’t hinder performance
Standard LSD > active dampers. Haven’t felt the need to mess with my suspension at all. Having driven cars with an LSD it makes a huge difference in high torque FWD cars
Unfortunately, LSD installs require a ton of work including dropping the whole transmission out of the vehicle. Unless someone has their own shop, it doesn’t make economic sense to put an LSD on a Focus ST. The part itself is a couple of thousand dollars, then the install is another couple of thousand dollars. By that point, I’m almost at half of the cost of my vehicle when it was brand new! That said, when I move on to my next car, I’m going to check out ones that come out of the factory with an LSD on it.
After some engine mods the focus is at 415Bhp on the wheels so to try and compensate I added a LSD which pretty much just means it lights up both Tyres instead of one.. Anyway at that point switching of the traction control by holding it down for a couple of seconds is a requirement unless you like the brakes & diff having a mini war every time you step on it.
TCS off in snow is great since it prevents the brakes from engaging while trying to pull out of an intersection when its slick. ESC off in snow is pretty much asking for an accident to happen
Yeah just don't be stupid and know how the car acts. These things are awful in snow. I always have ESC off in the snow but imo the car is more comfortable and the brake vectoring isnt going nuts when i pull the e brake to help rotate around a tight corner or if i oversteer into a corner to keep momentum.
They're a lot of fun in the snow when you've got dedicated snow tires... the active brake management makes the car a lot of fun provided you get the traction... Lots of fun on a dirt road with snow tires
Sport mode also cuts the engine loose...the car makes more boost (guess its the overboost feature) and you will hit 5000 and beyond rpm sooner in each gear. The first time I used Sport mode, was late at night, and I went onto a ramp onto the 417 here in Ottawa, in 2nd gear. I put the spurrs to the car in second gear from a rolling start, and proceeded to start incinerating my 215/50 17 Snow tires in 2nd, and then in the bottom of 3rd. I was already hitting triple digit speeds after going into 3rd, and had to back off, because I was gaining too quickly with other traffic that I wanted to merge into. Since then, I only use sport mode once in a while as to not destroy my winter tires in a single season...lol. My Wife's 2011 Ford Flex Limited with the 3.5L twin turbo ecoboost and awd also has a sort of sport mode...turn the ESC off, and put the transmission into manual mode, and thats all you need. The car behaves more like an awd, as it will send closer to half the torque to the rear, instead of favouring the front wheels (which it does like 90 percent of the time). Funny thing is, a lot of people arent expecting a 2+ ton Lunchpail to be as fast as it is, even bone stock. The ST is the same way for the un-educated. Besides, the ST gets a lot of street cred anyways to anyone thats a petol-headl, with or without sport mode!
The cars do have adaptive steering, which is based on rolling speed, as its not a 100% electric steering rack (as far as I am aware). I also find my '14 has worse torque steer in sport mode, but the behaviour become predictable and almost makes the car more engaging to drive because of it. The torque steer is because the sport mode allows the car to make more boost or power. I think that there were some tweaks to the setup of the ST's built from 2015 onward (revised spindles/knuckles, steering rack programming, etc), which made them more refined overall.
Normal mode makes for a nice smooth drive when going up north through the mountains. I turn it all off on the reservation though. I feel like rough roads mess with the braking.
I don’t mind that my ST doesn’t have the adaptive stuff, especially considering the car was designed in 2011/12. The car rides really well all the time. The only reason you would want adaptive steering and suspension is if the car is too abrasive during normal driving, the ST is a great balance.
My 2018 st is so fun to drive. I like it better than my 2018 wrx premium. I haven't even taken it out of normal mode... I'll try a different mode once this snow melts.
I've owned a svt focus and didn't think it needs it. Drove a ST focus and it felt slow and darty, but it's something I would have to live with and no they really don't need them, just a factory lsd
Hello, I need help with my 2014 st. It recently started idling higher than normal, about 990rpm. I only have a few bolt on mods so far. Does anyone know why the high idle?
Personally if my car my Focus ST had adaptive settings and the steering and suspension areas it would be a downfall for me because it changes the soul and the character of the car it's not so much a true Driving Experience that point
Well I do care that it doesn't have focus steering and sport suspension block system cradle rack bump blinders with track grip idle steering and suspension boost with torque converting alt breaking. Cause it always never happens that the auto road sensor cuts off when it's not turned on. So there.
Adaptive elements are designed for those who need help driving their car. Personally, I'm a fan of less nanny elements preventing my driving experience.
The adaptive steering would be cool but isn't our steering and suspension always in "badass" mode anyway? I mean, that's kinda what I signed up for with the ST
I got my fully loaded 2014 st3 with crystalline tint new for 26k .... the refresh was coming soon. That was OUT THE DOOR! Really brainless, this is the first sports car, other than my Skyline that I have kept stock. Stock the ST is great, unlike all these other so called sports cars that have all that fancy stuff that make them $37k .
I bought my 2017 ST 2 weeks ago. But ofcourse it has to snow. And i can't have fun driving it. Lol. This summer is going to be lit. I want to do some modes but i don't want to break the bank. Any tips?
Nah... the ST isn’t that bad on torque-steer. Not nearly as bad as my ‘12 Speed 3 was...haha!! WAY more manageable in the ST. Honestly I haven’t really felt it to be that intrusive and I’ve taken my ST to a racetrack, flogging the hell out of it. Held up really well, even with the stock Pirelli PZERO A/S.
I don't know why seeing someone else drive right by a million things I've been so many times is so weird but it is haha. Btw, your channel and others have helped me make a decision to buy a new 2018 Focus ST which is now sitting in my driveway as of 5 minutes ago. Thanks for all the FST content. :)
Holding down that button for 5 seconds is the first thing I do after pushing the start engine button. Wish you could program it to stay off unless you want it.
@RGBGFIVE sport mode also allows overboost and will allow the turbo to achieve a higher boost. Only on 93 octane. My 2016 FoSt3 only ever hits over 20psi in 6th doing 110+. And to turn off ESC hold it for 5 seconds. Then you truly have full control of the vehicle. Take my advice and be careful. Racecar
@@Gjeebs thanks, i was curious why my car felt a certain way (almost like being heat soaked) when doing pulls. i’ll definitely be using it to my advantage now
I put it in Sport mode (hit button, 5 seconds later its in Sport) almost every time im in the car if its not raining out. I am used to raw torque steer/loose rear wheels..i like to control my tire slip. I like to know that in an instant i can give it gas and smoke the tires off a light or through 2nd gear.. i hate how it cuts power/applies brakes if normal mode is on and it starts to spin..its like the car goes limp. I wish you could set the default mode to Sport...but its okay cause Im usually waiting a minute to drive since i dont go until the RPMS drop from warming up.
Exactly. Today was my 6th day of ownership. Normally I disable the two assists. Car felt weak today when accelerating straight line in second gear. Then realized I forgot to hold the button down to disable traction and esc.. Acceleration was back again after disabling. Makes a difference for the enthusiast for sure.
My st does not have sport mode it is a st3 and was special ordered to specifically be a track car only came with upgraded suspension and bigger brakes by the previous owner I am catching he’ll getting it registered at the moment because it hasn’t been registered since it was new in 2014 but i love it and the dealer keeps giving me dealer tags to drive on so it’s ok
They sound like shit and make your cat out too be something it's not. I got so annoyed with mine and it would constantly break up and sound like shit. Thats not how a 2 liter turbo sounds.
The first owner: probably never. The third or fourth? Yep, that looks like a 2000 bill in parts for what will be a 7-8k car. Plus it’d just be an additional $1k tacked on to the new sticker price. They could have it as an option maybe, but when they’re selling ST1s as basic as they are you can see how they were looking to market this thing. Cheap basic fun.
You state that it "stiffens the springs" not happening, correct your description " ride stiffening by shock control". Really need to do the research first, dynamics and the engineering before posting
Well for most "hot hatch" owners really should not worry about the power upgrades cuz for the streets all is nothin but brite flashin lites a day of conference with an older person in a black robe and even more hard earned money for a reason most would hate!!However if theres track days in ur future,like mine,thats a whole different ballgame!!!!!My OPINION....off the dealer lot....ADD A COBB STAGE 1 PACKAGE and the ST is a perfect street machine!!!!!so "no" not worried about the steering or suspension...
A better way to explain it is this: Sport mode allows you to spin the wheels, and reduces felt torque steer by making the brake vectoring less intrusive. In my experience, it only tries to save you if you start to spin. (I have a lot of experience with that on icy roads.) ESC OFF: Hold the button while in normal mode for ~5 seconds, and brake vectoring is almost completely off. I’ve spun the car with this mode, and you’re pretty much on your own.
I would like it if it made noticeable changes to the ride so you could have a softer ride...it would stop my wife moaning and asking me what is wrong with my car and it makes her feel sick...😩
All that sport mode button that changes the throttle response and tightens up steering and stiffer suspension is just a gimmick, The focus ST is set up pretty good period why would I want a button to turn it into a soggy pudding ,
Gjeebs Well ? Splitting hairs on me . I’m happy with the ST just being the way it is the steering feels nice at whatever speed, Never too Hard or too Soft , The Suspension is likewise not overly stiff, But not Like a Nissan bluebird either . Having a Button for comfort mode will turn it into a A Pipe and Slippers Car , And the sport button just to make it feel as what we take as normal ? Rather pointless really .
