My Daily has changed a few times while owning the Viper; from a '07 Honda to a '12 Audi to a '14 Focus ST. No question the Audi was the fastest and most luxurious (S4 with 6MT) BUT... each day I'm more impressed by the FoST.

Here's my take on the 2014 Focus ST after my first 5,000 miles.

numbers - 252hp 270tq

Turbo lag is almost non-existant.. acceleration is okay if you can get any grip in 1st or 2nd gear.. 3rd and 4th make a pull from 50-100 really satisfying. (in Mexico of course)

The engine intake sound is channeled back into the cabin with a "sound symposer" -- the effect can give you good growl inside the cabin without getting too loud in the exhaust itself. At highway cruise with light throttle the symposer closes up so the car is fairly quiet inside. For a daily driver I think that's a good thing, but there are plenty of exhaust options to make it loud later.

The handling is really the jackpot for this car - although the weight is anything but balanced, the handling setup is balanced really nicely! It actually gets tail-happy mid corner with a little trailing throttle... enter corner a little hot, it doesn't push. Want to rotate a little extra, just lay off the gas, tail comes out, gas back on and you're on your way. A few video reviews I watched before buying suggested the setup was nearly perfect for a front wheel drive car but I didn't really "get it" until driving it. It's awesome and I'm not missing the Audi-understeer at all haha.

Styling is subjective of course, but I think the interior can't be argued at the sub 30k price point. Mine has Recaro seats that are stock on the up-trim interiors (ST-3 is what I bought) The Recaros are incredible, really snug and comfortable with good leather and heat. Stereo is solid for what it is (okay, there I'm missing the Audi's B+O system for sure)... Navigation system is good and some of the touch screen graphics have impressed my Mercedes buddies.

My only complaint from day one was pedal placement. The gas was so far below the brake that heel-toe was basically impossible. 80 bucks for some nice aluminum parts to space up the pedal mount and problem solved. That will probably be my only "mod" for a while :-)


What inspired me to write this today was my drive home... the FoST was a little twitchy in spots and tram-lining a little here and there and then it hit me: This thing keeps you awake! The ride is stiff and the wheelbase not very long, the steering responds instantly to moves off-center and the seats have you gripped in there. As much as I loved the Audi's comfort and explosiveness, it never felt like i needed to be "on my toes" because the car had everything under control. Neither is anything like the Viper, but this does require heightened attention almost all the time and it doesn't play nice with ham-fisted inputs... keeps me in the right mindset for spring :-)

And the other reason I would take the time and use forum space to put this...
Ford is releasing an RS version of the Focus next year. 320 hp and AWD. If the handling setup retains some of the character of the ST then the SRT-4 Dart has some serious domestic competition.
I would certainly hope SRT Engineers have had plenty of seat-time in the FoST already and will get an RS as soon as possible... I'd need a really compelling package to leave the FoST and I really hope that the SRT-4 will be it in a few years.


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