I've been tweaking the cargo area over the last few months, and I think I'm finally happy with it.
The (not quite) "full size" spare had to go, but I still prefer an actual spare over a can of slime. So, like a few others on here have posted about, I swapped in a lightweight, aluminum spare (eBay) and retainer (Tasca). It took some fiddling to get the stock jack to fit underneath, but it worked out fine in the end - nice and secure, with no rattling.
I planned to use the WeatherTech mat for non-ST Fiesta's, but wasn't sure what to do about the upper floor perches (the ones against the back of the seats). I wanted every change to be completely reversible, so cutting the plastic wasn't going to work for me. But removing the outer, plastic part left the bare metal perch, with some rough edges I wasn't happy with. The kids and I put a lot of stuff in the cargo area daily, and I figure it was only a matter of time before the perches snagged something. So I swapped in a pair of rear seat hinges from a non-ST hatchback (Tasca). I also saw a post with a close-up of the TB Performance trunk bar - something I'd been considering anyway - and unlike the Pierce and Mishimoto bars, the TB looked like it might actually fit with the lowered, stock floor.
And indeed it does!. As an added bonus, there's still plenty of room under the floor and around the spare for a few tools, first aid kit, etc.
With the WeatherTech mat in place, you'd never know the trunk bar was even there.
The only remaining issue was the now-larger gaps in the side panels around the hinges. I was going to just leave them open, but then opted to (sort of) fill them with the no-longer-needed pocket dividers. Good enough.
I've been running the lightweight spare + WeatherTech combo for a couple months now, and it's easily my favorite (and by far the most useful) mod I've done to the car. I should have done it as soon as I took delivery.
The hinges swap is just for peace of mind, and the hinges were only ~$25 a piece.
The TB Performance bar... eh, the butt gyro thinks it feels a difference, but I have no way of actually measuring it. The quality of the piece is outstanding, it's unobtrusive, and my hope is that it will work well with the other chassis and suspension mods I'll eventually get to.
The (not quite) "full size" spare had to go, but I still prefer an actual spare over a can of slime. So, like a few others on here have posted about, I swapped in a lightweight, aluminum spare (eBay) and retainer (Tasca). It took some fiddling to get the stock jack to fit underneath, but it worked out fine in the end - nice and secure, with no rattling.
I planned to use the WeatherTech mat for non-ST Fiesta's, but wasn't sure what to do about the upper floor perches (the ones against the back of the seats). I wanted every change to be completely reversible, so cutting the plastic wasn't going to work for me. But removing the outer, plastic part left the bare metal perch, with some rough edges I wasn't happy with. The kids and I put a lot of stuff in the cargo area daily, and I figure it was only a matter of time before the perches snagged something. So I swapped in a pair of rear seat hinges from a non-ST hatchback (Tasca). I also saw a post with a close-up of the TB Performance trunk bar - something I'd been considering anyway - and unlike the Pierce and Mishimoto bars, the TB looked like it might actually fit with the lowered, stock floor.
And indeed it does!. As an added bonus, there's still plenty of room under the floor and around the spare for a few tools, first aid kit, etc.
With the WeatherTech mat in place, you'd never know the trunk bar was even there.
The only remaining issue was the now-larger gaps in the side panels around the hinges. I was going to just leave them open, but then opted to (sort of) fill them with the no-longer-needed pocket dividers. Good enough.
I've been running the lightweight spare + WeatherTech combo for a couple months now, and it's easily my favorite (and by far the most useful) mod I've done to the car. I should have done it as soon as I took delivery.
The hinges swap is just for peace of mind, and the hinges were only ~$25 a piece.
The TB Performance bar... eh, the butt gyro thinks it feels a difference, but I have no way of actually measuring it. The quality of the piece is outstanding, it's unobtrusive, and my hope is that it will work well with the other chassis and suspension mods I'll eventually get to.