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Clio 4 RS VS Fiesta ST EcoBoost
- Thread starter Slammed172
- Start date
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- Tags
- clio
Fpmsl! Surely you just uninstall the net at that point? It can go no further.
Fletcher
ClioSport Club Member
I personally couldn't care less TBH.
I did wonder why Chris Harris didn't notice the apparently slow downshifts that other reviewers have been complaining about...
I suspect this will be the view of most people. Even from those who previously hung on every word from the press.
This is my first post here on the forum so hello everyone!
I am going to buy a hot hatch soon and Clio RS and Fiesta ST are the main contenders so this thread was a really interesting read to me. I am waiting for a local dealer to provide Fiesta for a test drive but in the meantime I was lucky enough to try the new Clio RS 200 EDC (that's how it's called here where I live) and I can provide some first impressions.
I have to say straight away that I found the car amazing. I have tried a few hot/warm hatches before (Suzuki Swift Sport, Citroen DS3, the previous Clio RS) and none left me that impressed as the new Clio. Sure, I have read all the complains about it (AT, 5 doors, turbo-charged engine) but actually driving the car left all the worries behind. In low revs the car is a perfect daily driver - comfortable even with the Cup chassis (don't know how they did that - the car perfectly irons out all the holes and bumps on the local B-roads after winter) but as soon as you put the throttle down and switch to the Sport / Race mode, it changes the character and is really a hot hatch that sounds great and provides a lot of fun. It was a thrilling experience.
One thing that I did not like - and did not like quite a bit - are the mechanics of manual shifting. Don't confuse this with the AT / EDC itself - I have no problem with the fact that car isn't a manual (race cars aren't either though I don't want to get into this discussion). But the gear lever, though having plus and minus in the "right" direction (to the front for downshifts, to the back for upshifts), is not designed very well - it is plastic rather than leather and for upshifts, the lock on the lever (also made from plastic) is in the way. So that makes shifting with the gear lever unpleasant. As for the paddles, I simply think that having them mounted on the column is wrong / much worse than having them on the steering wheel. There were a couple of occasions where I wanted to upshift / downshift and the steering wheel was in an angle where I couldn't reach the paddles (surprisingly, this happened to me mostly in low speeds - say between gears 1 and 2 where I needed to avoid some hole or something - in low speeds you need to turn the steering wheel quite a bit which gets your hands out of position). Also, they have a weird plastic feel, are prolonged only upwards, not downwards and generally I think this thing could (and will) be "facelifted".
Other than that, the car is fantastic. The steering wheel is great (thick just about right), it provides good feedback from the wheels, is adequately stiff, the Cup chassis is a miracle, feeling more comfortable that the previous standard chassis yet very capable when cornering, I am just amazed by the all-aroundness of the car.
I am really curious about the new Fiesta ST and how it compares. Couldn't find anyone on the internet who has driven both cars and shared their thoughts - if you know someone please let me know.
I am going to buy a hot hatch soon and Clio RS and Fiesta ST are the main contenders so this thread was a really interesting read to me. I am waiting for a local dealer to provide Fiesta for a test drive but in the meantime I was lucky enough to try the new Clio RS 200 EDC (that's how it's called here where I live) and I can provide some first impressions.
I have to say straight away that I found the car amazing. I have tried a few hot/warm hatches before (Suzuki Swift Sport, Citroen DS3, the previous Clio RS) and none left me that impressed as the new Clio. Sure, I have read all the complains about it (AT, 5 doors, turbo-charged engine) but actually driving the car left all the worries behind. In low revs the car is a perfect daily driver - comfortable even with the Cup chassis (don't know how they did that - the car perfectly irons out all the holes and bumps on the local B-roads after winter) but as soon as you put the throttle down and switch to the Sport / Race mode, it changes the character and is really a hot hatch that sounds great and provides a lot of fun. It was a thrilling experience.
One thing that I did not like - and did not like quite a bit - are the mechanics of manual shifting. Don't confuse this with the AT / EDC itself - I have no problem with the fact that car isn't a manual (race cars aren't either though I don't want to get into this discussion). But the gear lever, though having plus and minus in the "right" direction (to the front for downshifts, to the back for upshifts), is not designed very well - it is plastic rather than leather and for upshifts, the lock on the lever (also made from plastic) is in the way. So that makes shifting with the gear lever unpleasant. As for the paddles, I simply think that having them mounted on the column is wrong / much worse than having them on the steering wheel. There were a couple of occasions where I wanted to upshift / downshift and the steering wheel was in an angle where I couldn't reach the paddles (surprisingly, this happened to me mostly in low speeds - say between gears 1 and 2 where I needed to avoid some hole or something - in low speeds you need to turn the steering wheel quite a bit which gets your hands out of position). Also, they have a weird plastic feel, are prolonged only upwards, not downwards and generally I think this thing could (and will) be "facelifted".
Other than that, the car is fantastic. The steering wheel is great (thick just about right), it provides good feedback from the wheels, is adequately stiff, the Cup chassis is a miracle, feeling more comfortable that the previous standard chassis yet very capable when cornering, I am just amazed by the all-aroundness of the car.
I am really curious about the new Fiesta ST and how it compares. Couldn't find anyone on the internet who has driven both cars and shared their thoughts - if you know someone please let me know.
TTRS & V50
Great little review there BoreKB. I also confused with steering column placed paddles, they should always be on the steering wheel IMO.
Clio 200 Silverstone
There are a few ST's about where i live and they look horrible in the flesh, aston martin rip of front grill yuck plus it HUGE I could park my Clio 4 in that thing. all the new hot hatches are all starting to look the same now tbh, well th 5DR ones do anyone. the the KIA, Focus and the Seat all look the same bar a few small styling tweaks in the bumpers and some added curves. Compared my Clio 4 to a 12 reg Seat Ibiza and for the price of his 2.0 he has all the same as my 1.2 Mk4. they have the same back door handles and the back seats are similar.
Sorry I went of Topic a bit
Sorry I went of Topic a bit
Poopensharten
ClioSport Club Member
Golf R
Are xenons an option on the Fiesta?
Poopensharten
ClioSport Club Member
Golf R
Aye i know mate but i take it you can't spec xenons?
MarkCup
ClioSport Club Member
Nice. That's two of us now with the exact same spec ordered.
Don't hold your breath waiting for delivery, they're going to be quite a while.
Fiesta ST
Saying that, the guy in dealer said they ordered one at the beginning of April and it turned up last week, about 4 weeks. But I'm guessing more and more orders will be being placed as they come in to dealers which will slow things down.
Same with most cars TBH. Depends on your spec. Seems like they're not necessarily built to order only. Which means random spec cars will get put into the schedule. Sometimes your car will already have been built. Sometimes it'll be built to order.
I agree with that, Ibiza Cupra was doing what Renault/ford/Peugeot are just releasing now since 2009.
alternatively 18k could buy a M3, a tts, s3, 135i, GTI etc.
Bluebeard
ClioSport Moderator
Whichever has fuel
Shame the ibiza is about as involving to drive as a playstation game.
Oh, and hi-5 for spaktardery on comparing a brand new warm hatch to a secondhand M3. Well done.
Here you go http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/rolls-royce/all-models/rolls-royce-silver-shadow-ii-4dr-auto/1109858
Fiesta ST or Rolls Royce Silver Shadow?
OR
Check this bad boy out. Fiesta ST money. Can't believe people buy new cars!
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/bentley/other-models/bentley-bentley-others-others-1978/1316916
Fiesta ST or Rolls Royce Silver Shadow?
OR
Check this bad boy out. Fiesta ST money. Can't believe people buy new cars!
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/bentley/other-models/bentley-bentley-others-others-1978/1316916
well you could always just do the ARB's, coilovers and bushes on the Ibiza, and adjust the steering via the diagnostic port.
but anyway, if you want to drive cheap warm hatches all your life be my guest. But when you can pick up a hot hatch with 250+ bhp that gain another 50hp with just a remap, have a decent build quality and interior albeit a year or so old, I don't know why you would want to buy these new generation of small "hot" hatches which have lost the chcharm of predecessors. All they now are is alot slower versions of their bigger brothers in the range.
so would I. Atleast you won't lose 8-10k after 2 years.
Bluebeard
ClioSport Moderator
Whichever has fuel
Ahh, I see. So we should all be driving around in 250/300bhp remapped turbo'd hot hatches. Purchased secondhand of course.
I'll be sure to email my Nan and let her know.
I love the old "lost the charm" and "last of the old school" opinions that always surface in these discussions. You'd expect the posters of such comments to be driving a Model T, and yet it almost always turns out they drive relatively modern cars that were themselves deemed to have "lost the charm" of their forebears just a few short years ago.
Volvo XC60 T8
Maybe some people like having brand new cars? Just a thought.
Lols.
