New in Central NC

[Domesticated]

Hey folks, I just traded a friend my fullsize Chevy pickup for his 2016 FiST. He had used my truck to haul his racecar in the past, and was looking for something to tow it permanently, and I was familiar with the car having driven it many times in the past. He bought it new & has kept it completely stock, nothing but brake pads, oil changes & blend door actuators. (Edit: I forgot, it does have an RMM) I no longer needed a truck myself, and the $85 fill-ups were really starting to get to me, so we struck a deal!

The car came on black wheels, and I hate black wheels. So, I snagged up a set of grey ones on FB Marketplace with Bridgestone Blizzaks, which was handy because the next day we got our first snow of the year. I'm on the lookout for a set of forever wheels, debating between 16s and 17s right now. I really would like a set of Rota Titans in 17x7.5, but they seem to be hard to get right now. I might settle for Konig Lockouts & run a 16" tire. Ultimately, I hope to not ruin its DD status but I do want to lightly mod it. Already bought a Turbosmart Shorty BOV, and will probably do some intake mods, catback and a tune. On the fence about downpipe & intercooler, but we'll see how quickly I get bored with the current power level. I once owned an R53 Cooper S with about 230whp, and I always proclaimed it as the best driving FWD car I've ever owned (it also had a LSD) but that seat is now occupied by the FiST. Someday when I tear it apart for a replacement clutch, I'll probably do a diff as well. But for now, I'll enjoy it as-is.... I just can't wait for winter to be over so I can put the sticky tires back on & hit the mountain roads.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

Welcome from a fellow North Carolina FiST owner!
You're not very far from a lot of awesome mountain roads, I have to drive 3 hours just to get to the mountains.
As far as mods go, I would drive it stock for a while to get a feel for it. I've had mine over a year and I'm just now playing with new tunes. Even though lots of people mod for more power, imo the car is amazing and very fun stock.

 

[Capri to ST]

Welcome from another North Carolina owner. It's a really fun car, it sounds like you're already somewhat familiar with it, and I think you will enjoy it more and more as you have it.

 

[Domesticated]

Welcome from a fellow North Carolina FiST owner!
You're not very far from a lot of awesome mountain roads, I have to drive 3 hours just to get to the mountains.
As far as mods go, I would drive it stock for a while to get a feel for it. I've had mine over a year and I'm just now playing with new tunes. Even though lots of people mod for more power, imo the car is amazing and very fun stock.

Absolutely agree. I'm pretty happy with the current power level, I just know how the slippery slope goes. The main complaint I have & would like to remedy, is I just can't hear it. The exhaust is TOO quiet. I don't want it to be obnoxiously loud, but I would like a little more sound & who doesn't love turbo noises? I haven't owned a car with a turbo in a long time, so I went for the BOV right away. I'm thinking about doing the Cobb catback, seems impressions of it are favorable for not too loud & minimal drone.

I went to ASU & spend as much time as I can in the mountains, but its been a few years since I've had a fun daily. Can't wait to spend more time up that way.

 

[D1JL]

Dave

 

[flbchbm]

Welcome to the machine. NASCAR country...

IC, Cobb AP w/OTS tunes, 16" tires Catback exhaust and it's still a DD.

 

[Domesticated]

Welcome to the machine. NASCAR country...

IC, Cobb AP w/OTS tunes, 16" tires Catback exhaust and it's still a DD.

I was sold on the 16s but I just got the last 4 Titans that Rota had in 17x7.5 et40. Two royal bronze & two flat black. I’ll either try to match the bronze or recoat them all gold, but plan to run a 215/45 tire for a bit more give.

 

[dhminer]

Welcome! Was another NC owner when I bought it. If you elect to do a tune, get an intercooler as well. If you don’t tune, still get an intercooler lol

 

[jessemon1106]

Welcome, nice ride! I am in Asheboro area. I love the rota titans. Had the bronze but after a few tire changes the paint was toast. Ended up getting the powder coated but the bronze is by far my favorite color still.

 

[LastMK7]

Welcome from South Carolina

 

[scooter123]

Tips on your Fist. The first move you'll want to make is to get a higher capacity radiator. I have a Mountune radiator in mine and after I installed it I noticed right off that the fuel economy had improved, by 4 mpg. Summer driving in the city I now average 33 to 34 mpg if I don't goose it too often. Winter is another issue, these cars drink gasoline during warmup and it takes a lot longer to warm up. I also believe that winter gasoline is not great of economy. Went down to Charlotte for Christmas and my mileage went up by 4 mpg after filling up with Southern gasoline.

I would also recommend the Mountune intercooler kit or something similar. Middle of August climbing up those long hills on I-64 into WV I never had any loss in power due to heat soak. Also got the Mountune intake kit and it's a nice sounding intake with the K&N filter in place. Personally I mainly run the stock Ford filter because these engines are a lot more sensitive to tiny bits of whatever than an old small block running a carburetor.

Do NOT get a downpipe. Because with the stock turbo it will cost you power. When I installed my 2 1/2 inch Cobb Catback I took a good look into the stock downpipe and I noticed that it has some tuning elements sort of borrowed from 2 stroke engines. Which makes sense because 2 strokes and Turbo's are quite sensitive to tuning of the exhaust outlet. In the case if the FiST I believe that Ford's downpipe is designed to create a standing vacuum wave right at the exit for the turbo. As a result the turbo can spool up faster and operate more efficiently than a system that was simply straight.

BTW, the Cobb is free of drone if you don't have the rear seatbacks laid down or if you are not climbing an 8% grade. When you kick the turbo in a bit hard you will hear it. You'll hear it if you have the seats laid down because it turns the car into a booming echo chamber so if you pull the rear seats to use it for racing I would suggest you keep a jar of ear plugs in the car. Overall I would rate the Cobb system as near perfect, get on it hard and you will hear the engine ripping rather impressively. But in normal driving it's rather tame and won't draw the attention of the cops. Note on tunes. I haven't bothered because I run all season 205-16's and with my present tires I'm traction limited in first and second gear. I could mount the wheels and tires that came with the car but it rides terrible with those low profile bandaids and I'll be darned if I'll join the wheel a month club in the metro Detroit area.

PS: I'll be retiring soon and plan on moving to Bristol TN in about a year. Have lots of family living in Charlotte and looking at the route to get there from Bristol looks like some rather sweet driving.

 

[Domesticated]

Tips on your Fist. The first move you'll want to make is to get a higher capacity radiator. I have a Mountune radiator in mine and after I installed it I noticed right off that the fuel economy had improved, by 4 mpg. Summer driving in the city I now average 33 to 34 mpg if I don't goose it too often. Winter is another issue, these cars drink gasoline during warmup and it takes a lot longer to warm up. I also believe that winter gasoline is not great of economy. Went down to Charlotte for Christmas and my mileage went up by 4 mpg after filling up with Southern gasoline.

I would also recommend the Mountune intercooler kit or something similar. Middle of August climbing up those long hills on I-64 into WV I never had any loss in power due to heat soak. Also got the Mountune intake kit and it's a nice sounding intake with the K&N filter in place. Personally I mainly run the stock Ford filter because these engines are a lot more sensitive to tiny bits of whatever than an old small block running a carburetor.

Do NOT get a downpipe. Because with the stock turbo it will cost you power. When I installed my 2 1/2 inch Cobb Catback I took a good look into the stock downpipe and I noticed that it has some tuning elements sort of borrowed from 2 stroke engines. Which makes sense because 2 strokes and Turbo's are quite sensitive to tuning of the exhaust outlet. In the case if the FiST I believe that Ford's downpipe is designed to create a standing vacuum wave right at the exit for the turbo. As a result the turbo can spool up faster and operate more efficiently than a system that was simply straight.

BTW, the Cobb is free of drone if you don't have the rear seatbacks laid down or if you are not climbing an 8% grade. When you kick the turbo in a bit hard you will hear it. You'll hear it if you have the seats laid down because it turns the car into a booming echo chamber so if you pull the rear seats to use it for racing I would suggest you keep a jar of ear plugs in the car. Overall I would rate the Cobb system as near perfect, get on it hard and you will hear the engine ripping rather impressively. But in normal driving it's rather tame and won't draw the attention of the cops. Note on tunes. I haven't bothered because I run all season 205-16's and with my present tires I'm traction limited in first and second gear. I could mount the wheels and tires that came with the car but it rides terrible with those low profile bandaids and I'll be darned if I'll join the wheel a month club in the metro Detroit area.

PS: I'll be retiring soon and plan on moving to Bristol TN in about a year. Have lots of family living in Charlotte and looking at the route to get there from Bristol looks like some rather sweet driving.

Thanks for your advice, I think we’re on the same page for a lot of what I have planned. I think I’ll pick up the Cobb catback shortly!

I received my wheels, and after much deliberation I decided just to spray paint them for now. I didn’t expect the Rota finish to last forever, and I wasn’t able to come up with anything that will match the Rota Bronze, so I went with something a bit unique: copper. I just laid it on two wheels & while it’s wet it looks great. I plan to clear over it as well. Hopefully it will hold up for through the first set or two of tires. The pic below is slightly more orange than the naked eye. I can’t wait to see what they look like in the sunlight and with the contrast of the black car; so far I am a fan!

Speaking of tires, I ordered a set of Hankook Ventus v12 Evo 2 in 215/45/17 to run on it. I wanted something in the 300 TW range and these were pretty cheap, so we’ll see how it goes.

 

[Domesticated]

Ohh boy, I'm getting hyped! These pics make the wheels look darker & slightly more red tint, but I really dig the look. My tires came in the mail today, still waiting for new TPMS sensors, and letting the base color cure for 2-3 days before I put the clear on. Maybe I'll have them on by the end of next week.

 

[Intuit]

Bronze spike does look nice. 😎👍 Won't get the full impact until it's mounted though. Right now the false appearance of a lower profile tire, bigger wheel, kind of throws things off a bit.

Some have put a hitch on their FiST.

I'm running 215/45R17 and compared to the stock 205/40R17 it does notice the additional tire weight. But it doesn't keep breaking traction so it's a decent trade-off. (spinning gets old) The slightly larger sidewall also presents more roll and delay on input. More air pressure and tire wear helps offset... and after awhile one forgets that it's "modified". I went larger sidewall in response to the road hazards here. I've hit some doozies just since switching and don't regret it. Whether or not there's rub I think depends on the tire. My Winter set rub if the suspension is nearly bottomed-out but the all-season set doesn't rub at all. They also rubbed at full lock in one direction when the dealer screwed up the alignment.

 

[Domesticated]

Bronze spike does look nice. 😎👍 Won't get the full impact until it's mounted though. Right now the false appearance of a lower profile tire, bigger wheel, kind of throws things off a bit.

Some have put a hitch on their FiST.

I'm running 215/45R17 and compared to the stock 205/40R17 it does notice the additional tire weight. But it doesn't keep breaking traction so it's a decent trade-off. (spinning gets old) The slightly larger sidewall also presents more roll and delay on input. More air pressure and tire wear helps offset... and after awhile one forgets that it's "modified". I went larger sidewall in response to the road hazards here. I've hit some doozies just since switching and don't regret it. Whether or not there's rub I think depends on the tire. My Winter set rub if the suspension is nearly bottomed-out but the all-season set doesn't rub at all. They also rubbed at full lock in one direction when the dealer screwed up the alignment.

Potential rubbing is why I didn't want to go 8" wide on the wheels. I think 215/45 will be a good compromise in looks/ride quality and performance. I doubt I will miss the little bit of turn-in feel I stand to lose, but we'll see. According to Tire Rack, the 215/45 Hankook is 19lbs, same as the 205/40 Yokohama Advan Fleva that are on the stock black wheels that came on the car. So, I should be approx 5lbs a corner lighter than stock. I plan to compare once the tires are mounted.

 

[Intuit]

Out of curiosity, what size did you opt for with the BMW Mini? Bad experiences (tread separation) with the Yokos on my last vehicle. Personally won't touch'em LoL...

 

[Domesticated]

Out of curiosity, what size did you opt for with the BMW Mini? Bad experiences (tread separation) with the Yokos on my last vehicle. Personally won't touch'em LoL...

Fairly similar setup actually. 17x7 Konig Daylite with 215/45-17 Hankook RS3. I drive too much for 200tw on my daily these days (I think I burned the front RS3s off in about 5k miles back then, haha), but I’d like to have a second set of wheels with some 200tw autocross tires eventually.

 

[Domesticated]

Installed pics! The wheel & tire fitment is exactly what I was hoping for. LOVE the way it looks. I'm pretty happy with the color as well. Its a bit dark in anything other than direct sunlight, but I'm happy with it. I wound up not clearing the wheels. I first tried to clear the center caps, and two of them got wrecked. I think I applied my coats too heavy, or didn't wait long enough between coats, but whatever the case it spooked me from clearing the wheels. I always struggle with clear coat, and it totally deflated my confidence. So, I sanded back the two messed up caps & dusted them all again with color so they would match the wheels & just left it that way. We'll see how it holds up in the long run, but I'll probably be re-doing it at some point.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

Installed pics! The wheel & tire fitment is exactly what I was hoping for. LOVE the way it looks. I'm pretty happy with the color as well. Its a bit dark in anything other than direct sunlight, but I'm happy with it. I wound up not clearing the wheels. I first tried to clear the center caps, and two of them got wrecked. I think I applied my coats too heavy, or didn't wait long enough between coats, but whatever the case it spooked me from clearing the wheels. I always struggle with clear coat, and it totally deflated my confidence. So, I sanded back the two messed up caps & dusted them all again with color so they would match the wheels & just left it that way. We'll see how it holds up in the long run, but I'll probably be re-doing it at some point.
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I really like the copper and black together!

 

[dhminer]

Installed pics! The wheel & tire fitment is exactly what I was hoping for. LOVE the way it looks. I'm pretty happy with the color as well. Its a bit dark in anything other than direct sunlight, but I'm happy with it. I wound up not clearing the wheels. I first tried to clear the center caps, and two of them got wrecked. I think I applied my coats too heavy, or didn't wait long enough between coats, but whatever the case it spooked me from clearing the wheels. I always struggle with clear coat, and it totally deflated my confidence. So, I sanded back the two messed up caps & dusted them all again with color so they would match the wheels & just left it that way. We'll see how it holds up in the long run, but I'll probably be re-doing it at some point.
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Looks great!