Biggest problems with the fists?

[Stkid93]

What are the biggest reliability problems with the the fists? From what I’ve read cooling was the biggest problem but that’s pretty easily solved with a radiator and intercooler. Also supposedly ford fixed the cooling issue after 15/16 model.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

The biggest problem I’ve found is that ford doesn’t make them anymore!
Seriously though, paint issues and blend doors are definitely problems that I hear about a lot. I’ve heard about cooling issues but never experienced them myself.

 

[Business6]

Mechanically? Easily cooling. I still have to baby it during the summer and really only get to genuinely drive my car about 2 months out of the year.

Otherwise the rust and water intrusion are the most blatantly obvious ones that nearly everyone will be impacted by at some point.

 

[Stkid93]

@Business6

you got stock intercooler? If so that’s ur problem I’m upgrading to whoosh v3 in a couple weeks

 

[rallytaff]

My '14 stays out in all weather because I can't get it in my garage. Car is lowered and the ramp entrance is STEEP, just ask Dpro as he's seen it! It has NO paint problems or any sign of rust anywhere.

 

[Intuit]

The road salt here is unreal. It was one primary reason for staying on two wheels until I got rear-ended at 60+ this past December. Rust may be hidden behind the front headlamps, beneath the rear bumper, seams of the hatch and hood. Sound dampening material underneath could be hiding some as well. Keep an eye on that ledge in the rear wheel well. Breaches in the paint for the springs are especially troublesome.

Lousy service centers but that's not exactly unique to Ford or Fiestas. I agree with @FiestaSTdude , biggest problem is they only sell them outside the states now.

 

[tri-pedaler]

Clutch slave cylinders are known to go - the brakes and clutch share the same fluid system so it’s a good idea to bleed both periodically (reminds me I need to do that…)

 

[jmrtsus]

I replaced the radiator with a Mountune after summer trip to AZ. Never cooling issues in the SE USA. Blend door died but replaced under warranty. Only costs other than oil change and tranny fluid change was brakes and tires for less than $1K. Cheapest car to drive I've ever had.

 

[Business6]

@Business6

you got stock intercooler? If so that’s ur problem I’m upgrading to whoosh v3 in a couple weeks

No, Whoosh V1.

During the peak of summer and before I reach halfway on my commute (so around 10-12 miles of highway) my charge temps will be around 110° at a cruise control of 75mph. Stock was north of 130° at times and I saw a few 150s the first summer I had an access port.

I may consider the V3 but, if I ever get a larger turbo, I'd definitely lean towards the bravo alpha as the smaller ones wouldn't cut it.

 

[foodtruck]

I nominate various grades of water ingress in the hatch area.

 

[Sam4]

This should get some replies...Tires every 20,000 miles. (positive - we get to post so many reviews!)

 

[Stkid93]

@Business6

I don’t know much about the v1, but there’s clearly a reason they came out with the 2 and 3 and made them both larger and more effective. Maybe the 1 wasn’t cutting it , or maybe they saw people were pushing more power and needed more cooling. Regardless, 110 degrees cruising at highway speeds with any aftermarket intercooler is unacceptable in my opinion. cruising like that with a Cobb intercooler it was maybe 3 degrees above ambient

 

[Clint Beastwood]

What are the biggest reliability problems with the the fists? From what I’ve read cooling was the biggest problem but that’s pretty easily solved with a radiator and intercooler. Also supposedly ford fixed the cooling issue after 15/16 model.

They're built to a price, so you have to learn to accept a certain level of general... shittiness.

For me?

1. Driver side door unlock button just randomly stopped working. Probably because it just randomly unplugs inside the door, but how the shit is that a problem that just happens? Locking connector anyone?
2. Spots where paint randomly falls off sometimes. Has been that way since the week I bought the car.
3. Undersized radiator, so the cars always hot... even when its cold.
4. Various things are cheaply made and kinda just fall apart.
5. EVAP system has been fixed 4 times. I have 34k miles and am now OOW. It's started to die after filling up with fuel again, so.... evap system again.
6. Grinding/whirring noise randomly from the trans, there since new and dealer can never hear it... but anyone that rides in the car asks what that noise is when coasting in first gear.
7. Dealers are pretty consistently awful, at least for me so far.

At the end of the day its a cheap fun car that is kinda quick-ish and serves my needs. Set your expectations to "it's a fiesta but quicker" and you'll be fine. It's never bothered me hugely because the car was dirt cheap, but my tolerance for shittiness is high due to also having owned an Alfa Romeo Giulia and a couple fiats. I've started to get rid of it a few times but I'll go out and drive it and think "eh I don't drive it often this is still kinda fun". Remember, you like things for your qualities, but you love them for their flaws

I like that I can beat the tits off my fiesta and still not really be going fast enough to get into serious trouble. When I had my giula and my wife had her stelvio, you could never actually use either of them without risking jail time. Also, the tires for the QF were absurdly short lived and expensive.

Man I sure do miss that Fiat 500 Abarth though... every day was an adventure... "is it going to start today?" "are any parts going to fall off today?"

 

[tri-pedaler]

Remember, you like things for your qualities, but you love them for their flaws …
Man I sure do miss that Fiat 500 Abarth though... every day was an adventure... "is it going to start today?" "are any parts going to fall off today?"

This is just right. It’s why MGs are loved by so many - learned to love them by constantly working on them…

Had a Fiat 500, can relate to that feeling of “will it start?” FiST is a Honda compared to that.

 

[Clint Beastwood]

This is just right. It’s why MGs are loved by so many - learned to love them by constantly working on them…

Had a Fiat 500, can relate to that feeling of “will it start?” FiST is a Honda compared to that.

: push start button:
:happy burbles:
... bart started! it's gonna be a good day lol

 

[Stkid93]

You know what I love,

Every problem listed here for the most part are small problems and some of them aren’t even the cars fault such as bad dealers and service. If you asked this same question on a Subaru forum everyone would be saying

-ringlands
-motors blow up
-rebuilt motor and it blew up again after 10k miles
-weak motor
-have to spent 15 grand to make the motor reliable

but over here.. it’s small shit like water in the hatch, small paint stuff, etc. aside from the cooling thing was was mostly fixed after the first couple model years and can be completely fixed with a radiator swap. Nothing like having to completely rebuild your motor with the top of the line internals just to get it to run

 

[rallytaff]

I guess I'm one lucky owner. The only problem I've had with mine is the blend door actuatoe (twice). No paint problems, no leak problems. Maybe mine was a Wednesday build and not a Monday or Friday one!

 

[Business6]

@Business6

I don’t know much about the v1, but there’s clearly a reason they came out with the 2 and 3 and made them both larger and more effective. Maybe the 1 wasn’t cutting it , or maybe they saw people were pushing more power and needed more cooling. Regardless, 110 degrees cruising at highway speeds with any aftermarket intercooler is unacceptable in my opinion. cruising like that with a Cobb intercooler it was maybe 3 degrees above ambient

Road surface temps get hot enough here to literally have roads explode as they exceed their expansion joints. We're talking 150-170° and I'm nearly a mile up where everything is harder on cars.

I specifically chose the V1 to minimize the pressure drop as, at stock, my FiST only produced 160whp and it dies off even faster than sea level. I've also seen local people sell off their Cobb and CPE intercoolers because it introduced more lag than they wanted and I don't doubt I'd feel the same.

 

[M-Sport fan]

You know what I love,

Every problem listed here for the most part are small problems and some of them aren’t even the cars fault such as bad dealers and service. If you asked this same question on a Subaru forum everyone would be saying

-ringlands
-motors blow up
-rebuilt motor and it blew up again after 10k miles
-weak motor
-have to spent 15 grand to make the motor reliable

but over here.. it’s small shit like water in the hatch, small paint stuff, etc. aside from the cooling thing was was mostly fixed after the first couple model years and can be completely fixed with a radiator swap. Nothing like having to completely rebuild your motor with the top of the line internals just to get it to run

Yes, it is sometimes perplexing how loyal, and just how many Scoobie fans/owners there are out there (you REALLY see this at the ARA events, where fully 3/4 of the workers/spectators are in some form of WRX/STI/NA Imprezza/Forester/etc., and it used to be more than half of the competing field before the Fiestas came about) given the above major problems with that marque.

They even have (or had??) that whole "Subaru Ambassador" program at the ARA rallies, giving them special status as spectators, and big, rally car like side door stickers to put on their rides.

I guess that is due to them being the ONLY actually affordable AWD CARS still available nowadays (albeit that is even going away soon, it seems)??

 

[M-Sport fan]

As for mine; the blend doors, the paint (albeit really minor right now), and the compass going out in the touch screen, along with the CD getting stuck in the player when the whole system goes down, and it claiming there is NO CD in there when hitting the eject button, but it eventually does eject after turning off the ignition fully, and restarting everything), were my only problems so far.

The only things I do not like about the whole platform as delivered by Ford are; no 2 door option (like the UK/rest of world), the aforementioned lack of wheel well/under fender space for bigger donuts, and no limited slip option offered, at all.

The rest I LOVE, yes, despite the lack of AWD, and solid rear axle/strut instead of wishbone front suspension setup.