Get your ST ready for the winter! Tire selection and prep tips.

[BRGT350]

I put together a few videos over the weekend for selecting winter tires and how to prep your ST for the winter months.

[video=youtube_share;avwOcNXCXm0]http://youtu.be/avwOcNXCXm0[/video]

[video=youtube_share;JZBWAvvbokQ]http://youtu.be/JZBWAvvbokQ[/video]


2015 Ford Fiesta ST prepped for winter by Bryan Redeker BRGT350, on Flickr


2015 Ford Fiesta ST prepped for winter by Bryan Redeker BRGT350, on Flickr


2015 Fiesta ST winter prep by Bryan Redeker BRGT350, on Flickr

 

[Harvick]

Great videos, thanks for doing this.

 

[Xtreme545]

Putting my snow tires on tomorrow 😞 I hate winter

 

[BRGT350]

we are looking at getting an additional 10 inches of snow tomorrow. It should be a great test for how the ST does in the deep stuff. Picked up 5" on Sunday, but the ST was sitting nicely in the garage getting an additional 3 coats of wax.

 

[dalecooper]

So I'm at a fork in the road - do I buy snow tires. I don't necessarily need them in central ohio, but having had snow tires in the past - once you have them, you realize how nice they are.... Plus I hate snow impeding my day to day life so the peace of mind is generally worth it.

or do I not buy winter tires, and instead buy a $5000 toyota camry which I can use in winter or in other situations where I don't want to drive the fiesta....

hmmmmmmm

 

[airjor13]

Nice Video! Love the rally look!

 

[BRGT350]

The ST is a blast to drive in the winter, so I would go for the winter tires and enjoy the car in every season. What does suck is the salt exposure and the fact the car is never clean. I used to subscribe to the winter beater idea until the cost of keeping the POS going in the winter was taking money away from modifications and I hated driving the POS.

So far, this winter (fall technically) has already started breaking records. Below zero wind chills, school closings, roads coated in ice, feet of snow on the ground, and questionable visability. The ST continues to do outstanding. Even on icy roads, the TC never turns on. It takes a lot of feathering of the throttle, but it can be done. Throw it into sport mode on the side streets and step the rear out for a great time.

 

[ryst]

Throw it into sport mode on the side streets and step the rear out for a great time.

This is definitely my favorite part of the ST in the winter. I can always 'fix' understeer with a little lift off oversteer. People who see me on the streets must think "is that thing RWD?" (not really, they probably don't care )

 

[BRGT350]

Last winter with the Fiesta Movement ST, I had the neighbor kid stop over and say he had never knew the Fiesta was RWD. He was behind me on the road and saw the rear stepped out for most of the drive.

 

[ryst]

Last winter with the Fiesta Movement ST, I had the neighbor kid stop over and say he had never knew the Fiesta was RWD. He was behind me on the road and saw the rear stepped out for most of the drive.

Off topic (but kinda on topic for winter stuff). How did you mount your mud flaps? I'm making some white ones out of a big NAPA TRUCK flap and my plan is just to basically just do the same setup as rokblokz does except I'm using machine thread stuff instead of sheet metal stuff (I already bought the hardware)

We'll see how the White flap/Black car looks, I literally couldn't find ANY examples on the internet, which leads me to believe it's either going to look awful or amazing. The NAPA flaps are 4mm thick, so pretty heavy duty, I just need to cut the 24"x36" flap down into 4 pieces.

 

[BRGT350]

I used self-tapping sheet metal screws that have a decent size flange under the head instead of an additional washer. I am pretty sure they are a #8 by 1/2" long screw. On the front, I put in the upper corners of the mud flap directly into the inner fender line, one down low into the side skirt, and another 1 or 2 inboard down low near the area where the inner fender starts to turn parallel to the center line of the chassis. The rears are mounted with one screw right into the rear bumper cover near the rivet, and then I used a small bolt to secure the flap to the fabric inner fender. Added a few zip ties to pull the flap away from the tire. For vertical placement, I usually use a 2x4 on the ground and place the flap against the inner fender and on the 2x4. I mark the flap with the outline of the fender and skirt, jack up the car, remove the wheels, and re-align the flap using the marks. I install the self-tapping screws and call it done. For horizontal spacing, I think I spaced them 2 finger widths out from the fender on the front.

Pretty nasty winter we have been having so far! I have had to make 2 trips to and from the GR airport this week. The ST has been doing great in the conditions, but it sure isn't fun on the highways. I do enjoy hooning around the side streets and parking lots!

I might have my ST up on jack stands next weekend to install some extra underbody protection. If I get time, I might do a quick YouTube video on how to install the mud flaps. I get asked alot for tips and help and a video might help others.

 

[ryst]

I usually use a 2x4 on the ground and place the flap against the inner fender and on the 2x4. I mark the flap with the outline of the fender and skirt, jack up the car, remove the wheels, and re-align the flap using the marks. I install the self-tapping screws and call it done. For horizontal spacing, I think I spaced them 2 finger widths out from the fender on the front.

So are your flaps 1.5" off the ground or 3.5" ? (2x4 long ways or short ways)

 

[BRGT350]

I shoot for 1.5", unless I am planning on lowering springs, then I find something in the garage to raise the flaps vertically to make up for adding springs to lower the car in the future. My ST flaps are a little higher than normal to adjust for the Mountune springs I plan to add later. The rears are mounted higher to keep them from getting trapped under the tires when I back up. If you do a Google Image search for the Fiesta R2, take a look at their mud flaps. They put their fronts touching the ground, but I found that causes them to wear out and get really close to the rear of tire when backing up. The rally car mount the flaps behind the inner fender (closer to the door) to avoid them getting caught up in the tires.

Here is a tip, spray the inner fender and mud flap with cooking spray or tire dressing to keep them slippery. It greatly helps snow and ice from sticking to the flap and inner fender. Mine are so abraded from 15 winters that the spray doesn't help much anymore. It does work good on my wife's Escape since her mud flaps are new.

 

[BRGT350]

Fiesta ST UHMW underbody protection by Bryan Redeker BRGT350, on Flickr


Fiesta ST UHMW underbody protection by Bryan Redeker BRGT350, on Flickr

Added 12" x 48" sections of UHMW on the rear half of the skirts to provide additional side and underbody protection. Also lowered the front mud flaps using .063" thick rubber sheets. The snow has melted away and none is forecasted in the long range outlook, so I am not sure when I will be able to test out the latest modifications.

 

[ryst]

Finished my DIY flaps

 

[rooSTer]

Bravo...great job Ryst. What material did you end up using?

 

[ryst]

Bravo...great job Ryst. What material did you end up using?

http://m.napaonline.com/parts/PartsDetail.aspx?k=TWR8235055_0132031948

Just one of those cuts into 4 flaps. It's REAL thick (4mm) and stiff. When it hits the pavement you hear it but it should be pretty durable. At first I had it 1.5" off the ground like BRGT350 suggested but I ended up making them 3/4" shorter so they rub less (2.25"). They still occasionally rub when I'm going in and out of driveways or cornering really hard, but the cornering/rubbing is probably a function of really soft snow tires with big sidewalks (15" wheels)

I basically copied RokBlokz installation method using their installation video, but used machine threaded stuff with rubber inserts or body panel clips. It took me a while to custom fit everything but it's mounted really solid now. After doing it all custom I would highly recommend using a kit

I searched high and low to find anyone with white flaps on a black car but found nothing. As far as I can tell mine is the only one in existence. Also in the future I might go to a red flap, since all it would require is cutting new flaps and I already have the template

With the theme of the thread, flaps make a HUGE difference with snoe/ice/gunk buildup on the underside of the car.

 

[rooSTer]

Thanks Ryst

 

[BRGT350]

looks good Ryst! If you ever decide to add the underbody protection like I have, let me know as I kept the template to make more of them if needed. The RokBlokz installation is pretty clean and straight forward. I was impressed with how easy they were to install, so copying their method is a solid way to go.

Happy to hear you agree that the mud flaps make a huge difference in keeping debris/ice/snow from the lower part of the car. I got into an disagreement with a Focus ST owner from KC who claimed the mud flaps do nothing and are just rice. 15 winters of using them, I am convinced they make a difference and help protect the car. My dad had a 2002 SVT Focus for a winter with winter tires and come spring time, the side skirts needed to be repainted from all the abrasion. I used mud flaps on my 2003 SVT Focus for 3 winters and they still looked good. They really do make a difference.

 

[ryst]

Happy to hear you agree that the mud flaps make a huge difference in keeping debris/ice/snow from the lower part of the car. I got into an disagreement with a Focus ST owner from KC who claimed the mud flaps do nothing and are just rice. 15 winters of using them, I am convinced they make a difference and help protect the car. My dad had a 2002 SVT Focus for a winter with winter tires and come spring time, the side skirts needed to be repainted from all the abrasion. I used mud flaps on my 2003 SVT Focus for 3 winters and they still looked good. They really do make a difference.

My guess is that they don't get 4 inches of snow buildup on the bottom of their car behind their front wheels in KC (Kansas city?) The flaps 100% prevent that from happening. I can see how you would think they weren't useful if you live in California and the only debris on the road is a tiny bit of rain twice a year ... In my neck of the woods, we get salt, sand, chunks of road, and snow, and it all sprays the crap out of the side and underside of the car.