Hi Guys,

Just got 2007 Ford Focus ST, with 23,000 Km.
Got sunroof, heated seats, 6 disks MP3 with AUX, loaded.

Previously had 2003 Toyota Matrix XRS, an amazing little rocket with 6 speed manual.

Here are my first driving impressions.

FF ST pros:
- Better handling
- Better steering feel
- Better clutch feel
- 5 speed manual are very smooth compare to 6 speed XRS tranny
- Torque down low

FF ST cons:
- Matrix had softer plastics inside ( has nothing to do with driving)

ST impressed me with the solid feel on the road, great acceleration, I found that shifting can be a pleasure

Matrix XRS is an amazing vechicle with great 1.8l engine with 8200 rpm readline, it really comes alive around 5000 and at 6200 rpm "lift" kicks in, feels like turbo,
However, this powerband is very narrow and high, does not suit my driving style very well.
I will miss Matrix utility, however I believe I will be happy with ST.

Hope it will be reliable..

Alex

Welcome to the boards... your like the 5th person (myself included) to have picked up an ST recently....

They are great cars! You will love yours...



I had an 02' ZX3 Hatch previously so I felt very comfortable and right at home in the ST and the extra power and torque was like night and day with the 2.3L Duratec. Feel free to post some pics!

Before I got my ST, I had a '98 Eclipse. I love my ST so much more. Handles beautifully stock.

Welcome to the boards.

welcome to the Focus World

[welcome] [ffrocks] Welcome to the forums. Yeah the ST puts out TQ only a FI 2zz could dream of lol. Did you have any mods done to your Matrix? Ever take it the track? I always liked the XRS's. Was the gearing has bad has they say it was? Just curious to know more about your XRS you had.

bienvenido

My Matrix was stock, never took it to the track..., I had it only for a year.
The thing is that so called "lift" opens at 6200 rpm and creates awesome "turbo" effect, which lasts to the red line at 8200...,
My buddies were all amazed feeling this for the first time
However you truly have to be a virtuozo with that manual to shift from first to second and to the third without falling below the "lift" rpm...,
There are many complains about that gearbox,
I drove quite a few manual boxes and this one was the worse by far. My 98 corolla had very rubbery feel, but it was still better.
I put Red Line synthetic in XRS manual and it got better just a little. Many owners at matrixowners.com complained about the same thing...,
It was a good car, no doubt, but from pure driving perspective I personally like ST better.

^^yeah I know all bout' the "lift" at 6200rpm. I don't know why car companies make 6speed trannies and then gear the first few gears so tall. If it was me I make it awesome and have some great accell in the first few gears with a nice tall over drive to get the best mileage. I surely don't know why toyota would make a gem of a motor and then kill it with a horrible tranny. Makes no sense to me. Not that the SVTF is much better but I do believe it's tranny is better than the toyota's well at least we have some TQ to pull throught gear lol.

The thing is that so called "lift" opens at 6200 rpm and creates awesome "turbo" effect, which lasts to the red line at 8200...

...It was a good car, no doubt, but from pure driving perspective I personally like ST better.

Ya that's the one thing about the ST that is really awesome is that the "lift" Factor comes on much earlier in the RPM range then 6200rpm's and IMO that's one of the best things about the car.... I drove several differen't cars before the ST...

SVT Focus, The new Civic SI, Previous civic SI (2005), Corolla S... and a couple others. The ST just feels so much better having that torque much earlier on in the powerband and being that it's a focus and shares most of, if not the same suspension for the most part as the SVT is definitely just feels more confident at the steering wheel than the opposing competition as well. I did come close to buying the new SI... But ended up test driving my current ST that ended up being the deal closer...

I'm really happy with my decision and I am confident that you too will really fall in love with the ST. I can understand how some people might feel a little skeptical... Myself included at first... but it's definitely a great car for the money and as many people have mentioned it has TONS of potential.