Hi guys!
I guess this is the best and most appropriate way to document and share yet another journey of a Fiesta ST owner... Hope that wherever you're at, this will be an interesting read and I can't wait to learn more and more as I go!
How it all started
I'm based in Sydney Australia, and started learning in a 2005 Honda Civic GLi Automatic and learnt a lot from my first 2 years in that car. I've always been into cars as a boy, playing all the video games, getting the silly steering wheel set ups and spending hours and hours building stands with paper and tape (as you do!). I never got into the "mechanical" side of cars, just more an appreciation like "wow that looks cool" and "it's so fast". I was terribly excited to drive and when I finally got my license, it was magic!
In New South Wales, Australia, the drivers license goes from Learners to Provisional 1, Provisional 2 and then full license with restrictions at each level. I did my test in Learners in Automatic so no manual cars during my P1 year until P2.
My mother and father have always kept a manual car at home so I already had one to take over as soon as I got my P2: the mighty (slow) 2007 Toyota Camry Sportivo (or the SE, in other places). 5 speed, 2.4L engine, and the easiest car to heel-toe downshift. I haven't driven a car with better pedal placement yet (or is it because I got used to this set up first??).
That was in early 2016 and as the year rolled on, I learned how to drive manual from *almost* scratch (had some idea from the video games), started looking up manual driving techniques (mainly just cool downshifting) and naturally, looking into what car next.
So as you can imagine, plenty of youtube tutorials, plenty of tanks of petrol (or gas!) later and some spirited practice runs through the famed "nasho" and other "driving courses" around the area and I was convinced that this family saloon wasn't the answer.
If I'm honest, the Fiesta ST wasn't the first car at the top of the list however... And I didn't think I'd be able to buy a new car until after I graduate from uni (or "college", in places haha). But somehow things changed, I pushed to sell the Camry, my dad didn't believe I'd be able to do it so I did it HAHA and now to my surprise (and especially my dad's surprise looool), it was REALLY time to buy a car
After considering many other cars, mostly awesome used cars because couldn't afford them new, things changed and decisions moved in a way that we started looking at *new* cars instead (unfortunately...), mostly for warranty purposes. Concerned and sensible parents... so basically boring Mazda's or a Toyota, and other similarly "sensible" choices...
...Until I think my family got sick of me saying I wanted something fun, and knowing that I was going to put my own money into it, I convinced them to take a chance and I bought a dealer demo (that was more just sitting in the lot) with a bit of financial help from my father; 2016 Oxford White Ford Fiesta ST (June build, I think), 10km on the clock, and I haven't looked back...
So what now?
I've just done my 3000km inspection (at 4800km haha) and I'm super excited to share what happens from here on! I don't expect much of a following but I know I'll have a good laugh when I look back on this thread when the dust settles and stuff
I guess this is the best and most appropriate way to document and share yet another journey of a Fiesta ST owner... Hope that wherever you're at, this will be an interesting read and I can't wait to learn more and more as I go!
How it all started
I'm based in Sydney Australia, and started learning in a 2005 Honda Civic GLi Automatic and learnt a lot from my first 2 years in that car. I've always been into cars as a boy, playing all the video games, getting the silly steering wheel set ups and spending hours and hours building stands with paper and tape (as you do!). I never got into the "mechanical" side of cars, just more an appreciation like "wow that looks cool" and "it's so fast". I was terribly excited to drive and when I finally got my license, it was magic!
In New South Wales, Australia, the drivers license goes from Learners to Provisional 1, Provisional 2 and then full license with restrictions at each level. I did my test in Learners in Automatic so no manual cars during my P1 year until P2.
My mother and father have always kept a manual car at home so I already had one to take over as soon as I got my P2: the mighty (slow) 2007 Toyota Camry Sportivo (or the SE, in other places). 5 speed, 2.4L engine, and the easiest car to heel-toe downshift. I haven't driven a car with better pedal placement yet (or is it because I got used to this set up first??).
That was in early 2016 and as the year rolled on, I learned how to drive manual from *almost* scratch (had some idea from the video games), started looking up manual driving techniques (mainly just cool downshifting) and naturally, looking into what car next.
So as you can imagine, plenty of youtube tutorials, plenty of tanks of petrol (or gas!) later and some spirited practice runs through the famed "nasho" and other "driving courses" around the area and I was convinced that this family saloon wasn't the answer.
If I'm honest, the Fiesta ST wasn't the first car at the top of the list however... And I didn't think I'd be able to buy a new car until after I graduate from uni (or "college", in places haha). But somehow things changed, I pushed to sell the Camry, my dad didn't believe I'd be able to do it so I did it HAHA and now to my surprise (and especially my dad's surprise looool), it was REALLY time to buy a car
After considering many other cars, mostly awesome used cars because couldn't afford them new, things changed and decisions moved in a way that we started looking at *new* cars instead (unfortunately...), mostly for warranty purposes. Concerned and sensible parents... so basically boring Mazda's or a Toyota, and other similarly "sensible" choices...
...Until I think my family got sick of me saying I wanted something fun, and knowing that I was going to put my own money into it, I convinced them to take a chance and I bought a dealer demo (that was more just sitting in the lot) with a bit of financial help from my father; 2016 Oxford White Ford Fiesta ST (June build, I think), 10km on the clock, and I haven't looked back...
So what now?
I've just done my 3000km inspection (at 4800km haha) and I'm super excited to share what happens from here on! I don't expect much of a following but I know I'll have a good laugh when I look back on this thread when the dust settles and stuff