Bought a Ford Fiesta / what wheels should I get?

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NutBucket

Lifer
Aug 30, 2000
27,046
564
126
No offense JohnP but the current body Focus has only been on the road for about 2 months....vs over a year for the Fiesta. A bit hard to make that comparison, no? Especially given the fact the new Focus is completely different from the outgoing model.
 

John P

Platinum Member
Oct 9, 1999
2,426
2
0
No offense JohnP but the current body Focus has only been on the road for about 2 months....vs over a year for the Fiesta. A bit hard to make that comparison, no? Especially given the fact the new Focus is completely different from the outgoing model.

I'm not a car guy so I plead ignorance . I'll probably misquote him if I try to explain any further. I'll ask for specifics when I talk to him this weekend.
 
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TechBoyJK

Lifer
Oct 17, 2002
16,699
60
91
I did look at the focus. I liked it, but I just felt better off going with the Fiesta.

I actually closed the buy this morning. I'll post pics soon.
 

Arkaign

Lifer
Oct 27, 2006
20,736
1,377
126
'Grats. Good car.

Reversing the earlier suggestion, you could keep the Fiesta (and eventually, some other car in a few years?) as your commuter, leaving the door open for a real crazy weekend/sporty car. Something like a E36 CSL M3, whatever, that can be bought and if maintained, will hold value pretty solidly, maybe even gain value over time. Those things are crazy fun. The US E36 M3s with the 3.2L can be given the Euro conversion without much trouble, giving 333hp iirc. And you'd have a damned good reason to learn the proper way of using three pedals :p

Anyway, nice car, and a super good choice for a daily driver, particularly with the great warranty coverage, good safety ratings, and outstanding fuel economy.

edit : oops, Euro-spec 3.2L E36 M3 was 316hp, not 333. Although probably 333hp and beyond easily possible with a couple of dinan parts.
 

PhoKingGuy

Diamond Member
Nov 15, 2007
4,685
0
76
'Grats. Good car.

Reversing the earlier suggestion, you could keep the Fiesta (and eventually, some other car in a few years?) as your commuter, leaving the door open for a real crazy weekend/sporty car. Something like a E36 CSL M3, whatever, that can be bought and if maintained, will hold value pretty solidly, maybe even gain value over time. Those things are crazy fun. The US E36 M3s with the 3.2L can be given the Euro conversion without much trouble, giving 333hp iirc. And you'd have a damned good reason to learn the proper way of using three pedals :p

Anyway, nice car, and a super good choice for a daily driver, particularly with the great warranty coverage, good safety ratings, and outstanding fuel economy.

edit : oops, Euro-spec 3.2L E36 M3 was 316hp, not 333. Although probably 333hp and beyond easily possible with a couple of dinan parts.

The leather seats in the Fiesta are some of the most comfortable car seats ive ever sat in, no joke. Zero fatigue at all on any type of drive.
 

Arkaign

Lifer
Oct 27, 2006
20,736
1,377
126
The leather seats in the Fiesta are some of the most comfortable car seats ive ever sat in, no joke. Zero fatigue at all on any type of drive.

I agree. I'm flat-out impressed with the absolute total conversion of Ford during the past few years. Flash back to the '90s, and remember with dismay the tin-box Escorts, fish-eyed Taurus, and just general underwhelming everything.
 

TechBoyJK

Lifer
Oct 17, 2002
16,699
60
91
I bought one off the lot. It was a pretty close match and they offered me more for my trade than they did originally. It has cloth, but they are going to install the leather. It's after market though. I felt a sampler and it was really really nice.

http://www.katzkin.com/

Now I need to decide on what wheels I want.
 

punjabiplaya

Diamond Member
Nov 12, 2006
3,495
1
71
I agree. I'm flat-out impressed with the absolute total conversion of Ford during the past few years. Flash back to the '90s, and remember with dismay the tin-box Escorts, fish-eyed Taurus, and just general underwhelming everything.

Alan Mullaly ftw
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
96,907
16,174
126
I bought one off the lot. It was a pretty close match and they offered me more for my trade than they did originally. It has cloth, but they are going to install the leather. It's after market though. I felt a sampler and it was really really nice.

http://www.katzkin.com/

Now I need to decide on what wheels I want.
It's a fiesta, whatever wheel comes with it is fine.
 

John P

Platinum Member
Oct 9, 1999
2,426
2
0
I'm not a car guy so I plead ignorance . I'll probably misquote him if I try to explain any further. I'll ask for specifics when I talk to him this weekend.

Talked to my bro again. He basically said the Focus is a much more mature model line and they've got most of the kinks worked out vs the Fiesta that's a brand new (year old) model. The Fiesta has had a few problems with the transmission and various other smaller problems inherant to a new model line.

I did a quick google search after I talked to him and found this:

http://www.fordfiestaforum.com/index.php?/topic/347-automatic-transmission-blubbering/

Talks about the 2011 Fiesta model, maybe they've made changes with the 2012?

I'm sure there's more info out there....
 
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Throckmorton

Lifer
Aug 23, 2007
16,829
3
0
Is the gen III Focus really new, or is it an update of the gen II? (the one we never got in America)
 

PhoKingGuy

Diamond Member
Nov 15, 2007
4,685
0
76
why, the auto on it is superb.

It is, in fact most reviews say the car is better with the auto than the manual. The take rate for the auto is ridiculously high according to the dealer when we bought ours.
 

slag

Lifer
Dec 14, 2000
10,473
81
101
For someone coming off a BMW, the one around $20k that will drive the closest to the bimmer is the Suzuki Kizashi. Sizewise, it is a small midsize, or a large compact if you want to think that way. And driving dynamics is the closest to a bimmer you will get in a car of the $20k neighborhood.

Why don't you take a test drive? Nothing to lose.

Not even in the same ballpark. Its a much nicer car and costs a lot more for something similarly equipped to the fiesta. The fiesta is still a sub 20k car with a lot of addons. (I priced one for 16k with everything I would want). The Kizashi is 23-24k. 8 grand is a lot of scratch.
 

slag

Lifer
Dec 14, 2000
10,473
81
101
It is, in fact most reviews say the car is better with the auto than the manual. The take rate for the auto is ridiculously high according to the dealer when we bought ours.

I've found the auto vs manual reviews to be about even. The glaring negative review below really has me questioning if its just the reporter or a transmission that isn't ready yet.

"The six-speed automatic. It should have been a high point but wasn't. It's Ford's take on the dual-clutch, automatically operated manuals that will become common because they use less fuel than older automatics with fluid-filled torque converters. The new style is truly like a manual, but electronics do the shifting. No clutch pedal provided or needed.
Ford argues that it should get dispensation, even from criticism, for offering this new-style, fuel-saving automatic in such a small and relatively inexpensive car.
Not exactly. If you put one in the car, make it as good as they get. It's not.
Some automakers —Volkswagen for one — make their "manu-matics" sporting devices. They shift in snappy fashion in automatic mode, and they have manual modes that let the driver work the gears with panache unlikely using a clutch pedal.
Not so Fiesta. It seemed tuned more for mileage than fun. Downshifts often were reluctant. Without an automatic's torque converter, it was sluggish off the mark.
The former could be fixed by software changes, but easier access to lower gears would lower the fuel rating. The latter could be remedied by changing some gear ratios, but that, too, could erode the 30 mpg city and 40 mpg highway mileage target that Ford cherishes.
Compounding those disappointments, Fiesta's automatic has no manual-shift mode. Customers don't want it, Ford says, and it would add to the price.
C'mon, guys. Get over it. Give us a manual mode, act like you meant it all along, declare victory and move on."
 

NutBucket

Lifer
Aug 30, 2000
27,046
564
126
The Focus implementation has a manual mode....but it's only accessible by a small rocker switch on the shift knob. A bit more useful, but still pretty pointless. I did like the way it drove compared to a torque converter auto though...but it was a 10 minute test drive so obviously not a thorough evaluation by me.
 

TechBoyJK

Lifer
Oct 17, 2002
16,699
60
91
P1140415.JPG

P1140406.JPG


Ok, so I got the car, (tuxedo black) and now I want to buy some different wheels for it. I found this white fiesta on a forum, and I like the way it looks. This guy lowered his car over an inch though. I'm putting on the Ford Racing Suspension Kit, which lowers the car like .6 inches. I'm going to try for tires with a slightly taller sidewall since I won't lower mine as much.

He has Motegi wheels that are 17x7.5, 45 mm offset with 215/40/17s

I found a set that I like, but they are 17x7 and recommend 205/45/17s

Since I'm not going to lower mine quite so much, I'm thinking I can get away with a slightly taller sidewall. So even if I had the same rims as him I would use 215/45 instead of 215/40.

These are the rims I like. These are only 17x7, not 17x7.5, and I'm not sure of the offset yet. Will I really notice that much a difference in width? Or is it insignificant?

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Whee...lse&filterNew=All&filterWeight=All&sort=Brand
 

Throckmorton

Lifer
Aug 23, 2007
16,829
3
0
The Focus implementation has a manual mode....but it's only accessible by a small rocker switch on the shift knob. A bit more useful, but still pretty pointless. I did like the way it drove compared to a torque converter auto though...but it was a 10 minute test drive so obviously not a thorough evaluation by me.

They spent all that extra money on a double clutch gearbox but didn't spring for wheel paddles?
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
96,907
16,174
126
I've found the auto vs manual reviews to be about even. The glaring negative review below really has me questioning if its just the reporter or a transmission that isn't ready yet.

"The six-speed automatic. It should have been a high point but wasn't. It's Ford's take on the dual-clutch, automatically operated manuals that will become common because they use less fuel than older automatics with fluid-filled torque converters. The new style is truly like a manual, but electronics do the shifting. No clutch pedal provided or needed.
Ford argues that it should get dispensation, even from criticism, for offering this new-style, fuel-saving automatic in such a small and relatively inexpensive car.
Not exactly. If you put one in the car, make it as good as they get. It's not.
Some automakers —Volkswagen for one — make their "manu-matics" sporting devices. They shift in snappy fashion in automatic mode, and they have manual modes that let the driver work the gears with panache unlikely using a clutch pedal.
Not so Fiesta. It seemed tuned more for mileage than fun. Downshifts often were reluctant. Without an automatic's torque converter, it was sluggish off the mark.
The former could be fixed by software changes, but easier access to lower gears would lower the fuel rating. The latter could be remedied by changing some gear ratios, but that, too, could erode the 30 mpg city and 40 mpg highway mileage target that Ford cherishes.
Compounding those disappointments, Fiesta's automatic has no manual-shift mode. Customers don't want it, Ford says, and it would add to the price.
C'mon, guys. Get over it. Give us a manual mode, act like you meant it all along, declare victory and move on."

That is a stupid statement to make. The whole point to cars like Fiesta is fuel economy. Is he looking for paddle shift?