New Member Saying Hello and an Initial Question

[marks]

Snow and rain mode is not going to do much in ice if using summer tyres. IMO nannies are a bit of a gimmick, better to fit the correct tyres and drive in accordance with the weather conditions - then no need for the nannies.

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[Jimboy2]

Snow and rain mode is not going to do much in ice if using summer tyres. IMO nannies are a bit of a gimmick, better to fit the correct tyres and drive in accordance with the weather conditions - then no need for the nannies.

How many mishaps have you had in snow/rain mode?

 

[marks]

The point is nannies can give a false sense of security. I drive to the Alpes a fair bit and have driven RWD sports cars without any nannies and had no problems. Then you see people with new cars (probably with thousands of nannies) skidding all over the place as they have the wrong tyres and have not adapted to the driving conditions.

 

[SteveS]

Just when you think you've made a system idiot-proof, they go build a better idiot...

If you're going to drive beyond your own or your car's capabilities in a given situation you'll likely crash. I reckon my driving style could withstand a winter on PZs in normal mode but snow/wet stops the back end skipping about so might as well use it.

 

[marks]

Exactly. The nannies make the idiots even more idiotic

Like you say though, I suppose it makes sense to use the mode if you have taken other precautions and are a sensible driver.

 

[bLuE_UK]

I'll be taking it easy as tyres and brakes etc (and rest of drivetrain) need bedding in, and as per usual driving for the conditions.

I survived two winters in my old supercharged mk1 mx5 running AD08R's and no traction or abs, so unless I'm being stupid I should be ok.

More worried about other drivers in the colder and freezing weather

Thanks for all the comments and tips though chaps, shall certainly update later today/over the weekend.

 

[marks]

You'll be fine, just watch out for Chelsea tractor drivers

 

[bobpies]

I've been messing with wet and normal mode for a few days now and wet mode is excellent. Traction control kicks in straight away - and most importantly keeps you going in a straight line.

It would be nice to have the throttle response of normal mode coupled with the traction control sensitivity of wet mode
In fact I can't think of a reason why it isn't like that already. I mean if you want to slide about surely that's what race and sport mode are for .

 

[bLuE_UK]

It's taken me a little longer to reply here than I had intended, suddenly sitting inside on the PC doesn't appeal, I wonder why.....

So on Friday I ventured down to Warwick to pick up my car, Lucas was, as others have said previously, completely on the ball and eager to get me away as quick as he could (Ford Finance had other ideas mind).

We did all the usual handover stuff, confirmed drive away insurance, covered the payment and trade in etc etc and things were going well, I even had a printed letter stating that they would order and fit a new bumper for me free of charge after the slight mishap with the number plate bracket...... Then I spent the best part of an hour maybe a tad more, waiting an waiting and then waiting a bit more for ford to process the 'priority payment' bit of the finance.

Basically because of the Christmas silly season and people at ford and myself being on annual leave for most of December, we hadn't been able to sort all of the actual signature stuff until the day of pickup, but the priority payment was supposed to mean that we do it there and then, the docs get faxed over (fax really? still?!) it gets sorted and off I go..... and I guess that sort of happened after Lucas and the team chased them three times! but that was a small bump in an otherwise smooth handover experience.

Unfortunately, I didn't do the obligatory pic at dealer. I was a tad keen to get on the road by this point so the moment Lucas said, all sorted you can go I paused long enough to shake his hand and then I was off and jumping into the drivers seat.

I realised a few miles down the a46 that I'd not taken any pics, and so took a quick snap when I got to my first destination (apologies for the framing and lack of pzazz ;))

Just starting this thing feels like an occasion and something that I will not be tiring of any time soon.

Adapting to the drive didn't take me long at all, much more comfortable in it than I thought I'd be as the test drive back in April made it feel huge, but even on some very tight roads that I visited on Saturday it was all manageable despite some other driver's best efforts!

I've been using snow/rain mode and have to admit I'm impressed, it's very timid and keeps everything in check, which is no bad thing currently. I'm not pushing it, I'm trying to get a few miles on it first before I get too adventurous.

It had 15 miles on it when I picked it up and it now has a shade over 420ish I believe, I decided on an impromptu trip to cheddar gorge on Saturday (The Grand Tour had nothing to do with it I swear!)
All I can say is wow, stunning road up through the gorge and even on a dreary wet day it was enjoyable. I can imagine finding that road in the right weather without traffic would be incredible.

Quick snap below and one to try and show the scale of the walls of rock on either side. Again stopped long enough to get my phone out and fire off a snap then wanted to drive again.

Enough, of me babbling about where I've driven etc lets get on to initial impressions.

It's easy to drive, even when not in snow and wet mode I can see that so long as I'm being sensible and avoiding stomping the peddle I shouldn't worry too much (but it's staying in snow and wet mode for now )

Engine - It's amazing! end of. On a more serious note, I love how it sounds, the rumble or growl is always present and something that I am very pleased with. My BMW M135 sounded great when on the power, and was pretty much silent the rest of the time, the Focus ST which this replaced, sounded good when WOT but the rest of the time was very much generic I4.
Whether pulling away or cruising along there is always a noticeable pulsing tone or rumble and it's amusing how much it changes it's sound as you progress up the revs (not that I've done that much because of running it in...... honest ;))

Gearbox - It's got a short and relatively heavy throw. This I like. I'm sure it may change slightly as I get more miles on it, but as it stands it's a good'n and doesnt feel like I'm waggling a stick in a bowl of water, it has a raw mechanical feel and you know what is going on. Now the clutch on the other hand, oh boy, I'm not having any real issues driving it, it's weighted fine but the feedback is far from ideal, I'm sure on another engine this would be a problem, thankfully the coyote makes enough power and torque that it just gets on with it regardless, I'm not always as smooth as I like to be currently, but rev matching on downshifts helps balance this out.

Exhaust - I was afraid the stock system would be very very muted and a let down. And I'm sure to those that have made the switch to an aftermarket system that is the case, however I am coming from a focus It has a very nice rumble and tone. I have no doubt that I will be changing it in the months to come to something louder but initial impressions are good and I am not disappointed, it sounds great at idle and on the move and certainly seems to attract attention, more on this later.

Interior - Now this this something that divides people massively and will very much depend on your experiences and preferences. For me, I'm not overly concerned with the touch and feel of most surfaces bar the control surfaces that I will actually interact with. Yes some of the buttons or similar are meh and my BMW was far better (similar price point), but they are good enough and not terrible. Sync3 is great and a huge improvement from Sync2 It's faster, boy its soo much faster and it's intuitive. The seats are ok, I'd prefer recaros like I had in the focus but hey ho, they give enough support to be good day to day and they are certainly comfy enough on the long journeys that I've done so far.

Brakes - Now I'm not sure what to think about these at the moment. They undoubtedly work, I have no doubts there they certainly stop and stop well. However, the pedal seems to have very little travel and feels rock solid, I don't recall this being the case on the test drive but that was many many months ago. Can anyone confirm if there their car is similar, just so I can figure out if I need to investigate further?

Feedback - It's very very early days and I have lots left to explore, but the front end is vague, I knew this was likely to be the case. The steering is weighted well and gives some faux sense of feedback but it's not telling me as much as I'd like it too. The rear is more communicative, if not a little soft though, again I expected this and in the future may look to remedy these points as best I can with suspension and geo changes. Despite this it is able to carry speed very well and while you can certainly feel the weight it's not completely against changing direction in a spirited manner. Not a sprint car, but certainly suited to covering distances at pace, almost like it was some sort of GT car ;)

Attention - I chose Magnetic because I obviously liked it the most, but I had also thought "hey, that will be nice and subtle and blend in a bit more" And I'm sure it does compared to the louder colours in the range when it's next to them.... but it makes bugger all difference when it's on it's own. I've had more appreciative thumbs up, people twirling around in the street to watch it drive past, people cruising up next to me on motorways with phones out or stuck to their window getting a better look and petrol forecourt conversations etc etc in the last 4 days then in my previous 9 years of driving combined. So that's subtlety out the window then....
I had not really expected it, I don't really look for it but hey it's all positive and people are just being friendly so I'll have to just adapt to it. It's hardly a negative thing and given how much I bored people with talk of mustangs when I was waiting it's only fair that people want to talk about it now I've got one

All in all, by far the most ridiculous financial decision I have ever made, and I couldn't be happier!
It doesn't matter if I'm going to the shops, to work or just for a drive I'll be doing it with a stupid grin on my face for the foreseeable future.

Martin

 

[Gloucesternige]

Great reading, and great pics in the gorge. If you pop down there around midnight at a weekend, you might be surprised at what you find? It's very entertaining, very noisy and very fast.

As for the stops and attention, I remember when I had my S197 back in 2008-2011. I would make a quick stop somewhere, like the services for a nature call,perhaps in a rush, then get back to the car to find at least one person who wanted to talk about the car and take pics, when all I wanted to do was get going!!

Enjoy!!

 

[Manders Mustang]

[MENTION=27818]bLuE_UK[/MENTION] nice write up matey, now we know you're a midlander, no excuses not to be at midlands meets ;)!

regarding the brakes - and mine are ecoboost ones, but having driven gibbo's GT, they're all the same, they're receptive, progressive and the pedal reacts well when pressed. Never thought it's 'too heavy' It does get more feedback the harder you push, but we're talking 'emergency stop' levels of braking at that point.

 

[Kristian87]

Great little write up Martin...enjoyed that! :cheers:

 

[bLuE_UK]

Thanks for the comments chaps.

[MENTION=27818]bLuE_UK[/MENTION] nice write up matey, now we know you're a midlander, no excuses not to be at midlands meets ;)!

regarding the brakes - and mine are ecoboost ones, but having driven gibbo's GT, they're all the same, they're receptive, progressive and the pedal reacts well when pressed. Never thought it's 'too heavy' It does get more feedback the harder you push, but we're talking 'emergency stop' levels of braking at that point.

Good stuff, I'll not chase a fault that doesn't exist then.

I better go browse the meets section to see when the next localish one is

 

[Manders Mustang]

Thanks for the comments chaps.



Good stuff, I'll not chase a fault that doesn't exist then.

I better go browse the meets section to see when the next localish one is

if you want to test the brakes on mine happy to meet up at some point as you seem fairly local to me

 

[bLuE_UK]

if you want to test the brakes on mine happy to meet up at some point as you seem fairly local to me

Definitely, would likely have to be a weekend for me due to work though.

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