So, I knocked out a trackday on Sunday in the ST250.  Must say, im mightily impressed with it.  The previous cars Ive had have been prettyheavily modified and pretty competent on track.  Much quicker than this car.

BUT

I was shocked at how much fun the ST250 was to drive on track.  Despite it not having the best handling, traction, braking or straightline performance and being generally much less of a track tool than my previous cars it was just a hoot to drive.  I think i might have found the first car that is practically perfect for me out of the box.

The turn in is great on the car, the back end is really lively, the steering feels great, traction was pretty good, especially considering it was 5^oC outside and bizarrely despite me initially posting about how i missed the power of the previous two cars, not once did i want any more power at Knockhill, obviously ill still be looking at stage 1 though, that goes without saying  ;-)

A few minor things i noticed which id say would be a worthwhile upgrade.  

Brakes:  I ran stock pads but with Motul RBF600 fluid and i cant say i was impressed with them at all.  Defintie room for improvement. 
Lower engine mount:  Coming out of the hairpin resulted in a bit of wheel hop a fair few times so it would be nice to get rid of that.
LSD:  At the John Weir Chicane i think the car would have really benefited alot from an LSD and out of the hairpin.  Not an urgent requirement, but definitely something i will be considering.

Got a few videos before my battery ran out in the camera
 

 

As for Knockhill.  I really enjoyed the circuit.  Very uneven and bump, but the elevation changes and blind corners make for a really exciting trackday.  Tricky circuit in the cold and damp though as grip wasnt especially good..  Definitely one of my favourite tracks.  Not sure about the organisation though as they split the sessions into "equal" groups, yet my bone stock ST250 was in a class with 911s, Caymens, caged/slick clad track cars.  Im pretty sure that people were just doing what ever group session they wanted lol.

Got a go in some pretty impressive machinery there as well from some of the local regulars.  

Great day out and only £55 for a full day!!

ST3?

ESP on? (first vid shows the tail coming out)

Its an ST2.  It has 3 setting for ESP.  ON - Sport - OFF.  I did most of the trackday with it set on Sport which allowed the tail to get really involved.  The first vid where it rained i left it ON purely as i was still learning the car and i hadnt driven it in the wet at any speed before.  After that little session i found the cra to be more than acceptable in Sport od in all the conditions.  Not tried it in the off position yet though.

Looking good there Sy,

I predict that it will be hard to stick at just a Stage 1 Mountune if you plan to keep tracking it

You'll give in eventually.

Looking good there Sy,

I predict that it will be hard to stick at just a Stage 1 Mountune if you plan to keep tracking it

You'll give in eventually.

 

The thing is mate, the car is exciting to drive already.  More so than my Fabia was even with all the chassis/engine mods I had on it.  Yes the Fabia would have been quicker both around a track and on the road, but the ST is more exciting and fun to drive. With the VAGs they tend to be boring in comparison particularly when stock, hence why ive always looked to power to give that excitement.  Im holding out on the remap front as im waiting to see what REVO come out with on the 2.0T Eco engine before i make my decision on software.

 

The car will be tweaked, but it wont be anywhere near as much as the last two setups Ive had.

 

Sy

Brave boy taking a new car like that out in the wet!

 

Problem i found with the ESP on my Mk2 ST was on it did awesome things into the corner that I just couldnt do, but it couldnt handle the power (300bhp)

So I turned it off and was a bit slower in the corners but much faster coming out with human TC(2-3 seconds a lap)

 

The fords are very well setup cars tho, the mk2 I had was as agile as cars weighing 500kg less.

 

I would recomend an LSD before more power myself, as I said they will struggle to get down 300bhp through an open diff and it starts to ruin the drive.

An LSD would allow you to get on the power much earlier and also allow you to bennifit more by keeping the ESP on.

Plus if the mk3 is anything like the mk2 in its turbo setup a remap will give you a ton of torque that just gets in the way on the track and doesnt add much to the fun.

 

Good stuff, Keep it up

And nice car!

Yeah the Mk3 gives massive torque when mapped.  Stage 2 cars have been getting nearly 400lbft apparently!!

 

Handling wise, i came from a Mk2 Focus ST2 to the Octavaia vRS then Fabia vRS and finally onto this ST250.  This new one trumps the lot for handling out of the box by a massive margin.  But i agree, thisis so agile and pointy.  Just puts a smile on your face.

mountune do some nice packaged upgrades.

 

...an they've recently released upgrade injectors capable of 350bhp   :think:

mountune do some nice packaged upgrades.

 

...an they've recently released upgrade injectors capable of 350bhp   :think:

 

Only required for turbo upgrades.  The Ford pproved Mountune setup is about £1400 for 275ps.  That includes the software, intercooler and intake but you do keep the warranty

 

Stage 2 cars have been getting nearly 400lbft apparently!!

 

yeh thats similer to my mk2, great for motorways but not so great for the track. Its ok if your lazy with the gears changes, infact can work well in those corners where you can get stuck between gears (they will happily pull the higher one), but ultimatly it gets in the way with road tyres and an open diff.

I found any corner in 3rd gear at 50- 60ishmph or less it would just spin the inside like a loon and once it started you had to be very gentle with the throttle for an age to stop it.

 

I was close to buying a mk3 after reading some reviews of it. It does sound like Ford have continued with great setup cars. One review placed it above all the current hot hatches for the sheer fun of the lap.

And your ST would anhialate my 135 in the corners. And thats being generous to the 135!!

I was close to buying a mk3 after reading some reviews of it. It does sound like Ford have continued with great setup cars. One review placed it above all the current hot hatches for the sheer fun of the lap.

And your ST would anhialate my 135 in the corners. And thats being generous to the 135!!

 

 

Every review is the same.  Its not the sharpest or fastest of the top breed of hot hatches, but its the most fun and the best "Hot Hatch" for the road.  

 

 your ST would anhialate my 135 in the corners. And thats being generous to the 135!!

 

I cant see that being true.  Ive driven the 135i and i thought it was spectacular!!