Considering switch from 370z to ST

[AT-ST]

I too had a Camaro, 2013 RS convertible. by no stretch of the imagination do I consider it a sports ca. r overweight, blind spots, too damned big. It took tug boats to park the thing. t'was a beautiful car though. driveway jewelry is what it is.
love the fist, good riddance to the camaro

I agree, it was a looker. I did get a TON of attention in the Camaro. And I really enjoyed staring at that thing in the garage. (I get next to none in the FiST) Nobody wants to talk about the little hatchback. And most have no idea that it is a performance car. Unless they are enthusiasts. The FiST really flies under the radar.

But yeah, there is no getting used to how terrible the visibility was.
The size issues & parking I think were largely due to a combination of factors... (basically the whole car worked against visibility).. How long the front end was, the fact that you sat so low to the ground, the doors practically went to the roof and you had these slits to peek out of, and you couldn't see basically anything out of the rear. Heck I couldn't see stop lights without leaning over the steering wheel to look up, and had to put my head out the window to shoulder check. But yeah, it felt like a boat or a submarine.. I did love the torque. It had a lot of get up and go.

The Camaro imho isn't THAT big....but it sure does feel gigantic from the inside. My opinion is definitely swayed by the fact that I have spent most of my life driving trucks along with several years in a SUV + Van. All much bigger than the Camaro.

However... Parking my Raptor felt more like parking a car than parking the Camaro did. It had great visibility and a great turning radius in the supercab. It was funny to me how much easier it was to park a truck that size compared to the Camaro.

But yeah, I loved looking at it in the garage. And feel about the same as you do otherwise.

I was worried jumping down to a little hatch that cost half as much as my other rides... But it never ceases to amaze me how much more fun it is.

The FiST hands down feels more sporty and lively to drive. I absolutely love corners. Brings me back to my days of playing super Mario kart... because I could almost swear if I hop in my seat, I could jump the car and powerslide around those corners..lol

But with it's power/weight ratio, the overall dimensions/size, and the handling capabilities... It's a serious recipe for sporty fun even in regular DD duties. Sometimes you gotta do a lot of running around and everything could seem like such a chore... But then I get in the drivers seat and I'm all smiles again.

I haven't had the pleasure of tracking it yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

But yeah, as mentioned earlier... Everything is always going to differ from individual to individual... Take both out for a test-drive, and consider how you're going to use your vehicle.. And what you need out of it. Cost of ownership. Fun. Practical needs. etc...

Good luck making your decision OP !

 

[CriticalmassGT]

2010 Camaro 2SS/RS ---> 2010.5 SVT Raptor with the 6.2L -------> 2014 Fiesta ST (over a year now.)

I don't miss the Camaro one bit to be honest. Driving the FiST is way more fun for myself personally. It's cheaper on gas+insurance+purchase price, more practical, absolutely love the handling. Sure it has less power, but I was never nearly as happy in the Camaro as I am daily in the FiST.

I do miss my Raptor. I would love to have it back. I hope to get another in the near future.

Zero regrets buying a FiST though. I don't see myself tiring of it anytime soon.

To me, the Camaro was the hot chick that just lay there and dug holes in the wallet. Whereas the FiST is the super fun cute chick, with never ending energy and all the right moves.. but somehow still low maintenance. One's a keeper, and one was a fun while it lasted memory.

Here's the thing with big horsepower. It's hard to find places where you can run it. The ST's allow you to take the car to the edge even on your daily drive home from work, and that is always fun. That said, I love my Mustang. (2014 GT Premium, Pony Package, Shaker 1000 w/sub, Brembo Package, etc.) Her name is Rose and she's paid for. And since some people love Top Gear. (Yes, I do as well, funny as hell). James May is right. Being able to take a car to the edge is often more exciting than what some numbers on some paper imply. That said, he does own a Ferrari 458, so take it with a grain of salt. I do take issue with them saying Mustang's can't corner and aren't fast. My car corners extremely well and is very quick/fast indeed. Ford, over 50 years, pulled every trick out of their book to get the best performance out of the SRA in that car, and did a fantastic job of it. But alas, the Camaro, The Mustang, The Challenger, these are muscle cars. not sports cars.

People also have to realize that only now are Hot Hatches taking off in the U.S. (and with fuel prices so low here in the states at this moment, that may be waning again). Every time the fuel prices drop, SUV sales skyrocket over here, then six months later when fuel prices go up, the used lots are loaded with nothing but trucks and suvs. Some Americans are stupid.

As to parking the Camaro. That seems to be a huge complaint on some Camaro forums. Owners seem to struggle with parking their cars straight for some reason.

 

[CroneOne]

I went from an 07 350z that I took from base model all the way to modded track machine - to a base model FIST that I've now owned for about 3 weeks.
Living in a small city, with small roads, hills, crazy parking and slow ass drivers the Z just made no sense. I couldn't drive it the way that it was meant to be driven. Plus paranoia of dinging and scratching it which happened more times than should have.
Another thing that I wanted to experience was a light, nimble car rather than a heavy one. I had the s2000 in mind. I also liked the civic type R ep3 which apparently outperforms the FIST according to zeperfs. Then I started reading and watching the ST reviews. Didn't matter who it was, every reviewer drove it with smiles. Fun was the word.
I'll tell you the main difference is that when I got the Z there were some things I didn't like about the drive. Throttle lag, long gearing, high clutch engagement to name some. It didn't feel immediate and its weight doesn't help. All of those things were fixable though.
With the ST I have no problems at all right off the bat so every mod is going to make it that much better. Its seriously fun and go-cart like. Second gear is so fun, even ripping up hill. Light and nimble. Steering is immediate. There's a bit of throttle lag that I notice when trying to blip it but I'm hoping there's a way to tighten that up. Boo e-throttle.
But seriously take one for a test drive and try and find some curves and hills to torque into. The drive is so different and in ways better to a Z that you may just join the club .

 

[XuperXero]

Another ex-350z owner here.

But as priorities changes in life, ST is a much more suitable car for most scenarios that life throws at you and a lot cheaper to own. I do miss the sound of a VQ though.

 

[Hijinx]

I went from a lightly modded/tuned '10 Genesis Coupe 2.0T to FiST. It's definitely more fun. I thought I loved a car until I met my FiST.

 

[Sourskittle]

A lot of you guys in the same boat as me.
I came from a 2003 G35 coupe.
I needed more than 4 seat belts.
I needed tires that weren't $300+ a piece ( even if the fist does need tires nearly as often ).
Brembo pads were stupud expensive. Fiesta sT pads are like $100 (or $35 in my case ).
Expendables, cheaper to operate in every way. More practical. Way more sleeper. And shockingly.... My fist is WAY WAY faster after a little love. My G35 ran 14.4@96mph. My fist went 13.3@104.5mph.

My G35 served me well. But the fist is just better and more rounded. Now.... Stock vs stock, the G35 is slightly faster,. Unlike the fiesta sT, the G35 was not worth modding. Wanna add power to a VQ? Its cheaper to just buy a built 10sec mustang. Lol.