Fiesta ST Rally and Offroad mods

[Codriver]

Yes, the R1 Bilstein/M-Sport setup was standard for the R1s, and even offered as a lower cost option for the original naturally aspirated (like the 160 HP ones you mention above) R2 crews who eight did not want to spend the extra $8K+ USD on the Reigers, or who thought that they did not need those for local/Euro national only events.

Even so, those Bilsteins were setup for/valved for rough gravel (although they did also offer a tarmac setup in them as well) stages, and by the time they made their way over here from Poland, they still ran close to $3K USD.

The current R2T 1.0 Ecoboost Fiestas are quite a bit quicker than the original naturally aspirated, 'cammed' 160 HP 1.6 versions, with upwards of 200 HP allowed by the FIA.

Assuming that you would know a good damper guy for setting it up and buy a set of bilsteins I would assume that you could get a good suspension way less than 3k$. There is a habit that things get pretty expensive when you order them from Msport 😁 In my opinion the bilsteins would propably work pretty well also on tarmac. Here in Finland the gravel isn’t rough. More to do with the suspension not getting upset on bumps.

And considering how stiff the standard suspension is on the fiesta st. When there are bumps, Rita there isn’t much travel and the car is jumping here and there. A bit softer setup would allow it to be driven faster.

The current turbo R2s are a different generation compared to the NA cars. More power and especially torque makes it way faster. However the R2t sounds like a vacuum cleaner inside compared to NA R2 Fiesta or NA R2 Peugeot. There just is more sould when a rally car is screaming to 8-9krpm. But of course rallying is all about being fast so there it makes sense to have the turbo engine.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Assuming that you would know a good damper guy for setting it up and buy a set of bilsteins I would assume that you could get a good suspension way less than 3k$. There is a habit that things get pretty expensive when you order them from Msport 😁 In my opinion the bilsteins would propably work pretty well also on tarmac. Here in Finland the gravel isn’t rough. More to do with the suspension not getting upset on bumps.

And considering how stiff the standard suspension is on the fiesta st. When there are bumps, Rita there isn’t much travel and the car is jumping here and there. A bit softer setup would allow it to be driven faster.

The current turbo R2s are a different generation compared to the NA cars. More power and especially torque makes it way faster. However the R2t sounds like a vacuum cleaner inside compared to NA R2 Fiesta or NA R2 Peugeot. There just is more sould when a rally car is screaming to 8-9krpm. But of course rallying is all about being fast so there it makes sense to have the turbo engine.

Yes, your land's WRC gravel round is the second fastest on the whole schedule, bested only by the top speeds of the L-O-N-G straightaways of the Swedish event which just ended (due to the spikes in the tires which give even better traction on the snow and ice of that round, than even slicks on dry tarmac! ).

As far as sound goes, yup, there are still those who claim that there is NOTHING LIKE the sound of a BDA, Cossie headed, 2 liter NA Escort Mk1 or 2 at 'full chat' 9K revs bouncing off of the hills on the forest stages.

(Maybe even more so for a modern Millington version of those powerplants in those cars.)

 

[Codriver]

Yes, your land's WRC gravel round is the second fastest on the whole schedule, bested only by the top speeds of the L-O-N-G straightaways of the Swedish event which just ended (due to the spikes in the tires which give even better traction on the snow and ice of that round, than even slicks on dry tarmac! ).

As far as sound goes, yup, there are still those who claim that there is NOTHING LIKE the sound of a BDA, Cossie headed, 2 liter NA Escort Mk1 or 2 at 'full chat' 9K revs bouncing off of the hills on the forest stages.

(Maybe even more so for a modern Millington version of those powerplants in those cars.)

Yes the Swedish round was a bit boring 😂 Straights are for drag racing. Bends are for rallying 😁

The 2 litre BDGs are awesome. I have been codriving for a couple of years in one mk2. It’s in full group 4 spec. Spectators just love it and truth to be told so do I 😁 The owner of the car says that you can make the older 1,8litre to rev 12000 easily 😬 The 2 litre has a limiter in ”only” 9000. With the group 4 suspension there is so much power that it you can get the rear tyres spinning always unless you are going close to top speed. The car is simply hilarious.

 

[rallytaff]

Yes the Swedish round was a bit boring 😂 Straights are for drag racing. Bends are for rallying 😁

The 2 litre BDGs are awesome. I have been codriving for a couple of years in one mk2. It’s in full group 4 spec. Spectators just love it and truth to be told so do I 😁 The owner of the car says that you can make the older 1,8litre to rev 12000 easily 😬 The 2 litre has a limiter in ”only” 9000. With the group 4 suspension there is so much power that it you can get the rear tyres spinning always unless you are going close to top speed. The car is simply hilarious.

I agree, the BEST sound, EVER!

 

[FiestaSTdude]

I tested the limits of my skid plate in the mountains. I pulled it to do an oil change today and noticed that it has some damage to it. It appears that I hit something hard enough to smash the skid plate into the motor mount, bending the plate. Fortunately it’s still totally functional for my needs.

Does the skid plate guy still make his plate for the fiesta ST? If I recall correctly, he’s on Facebook, which I don’t have.

 

[M-Sport fan]

I tested the limits of my skid plate in the mountains. I pulled it to do an oil change today and noticed that it has some damage to it. It appears that I hit something hard enough to smash the skid plate into the motor mount, bending the plate. Fortunately it’s still totally functional for my needs.
View attachment 54725 View attachment 54726
Does the skid plate guy still make his plate for the fiesta ST? If I recall correctly, he’s on Facebook, which I don’t have.

I am not sure as I have not checked in a long while, and I am also off of fb.

But, I too have put a major dent in my Skid Plate Guy plate on the (washed-out/baby's head embedded rocks) NEFR stage roads, despite it being a thicker gauge alloy than the ADF (??) above.

You hit them hard enough and they are gonna dent/ding, but they are still doing their job (that hit would've taken out the alloy part of the transaxle, right near the drain port on mine if there was no plate there to protect it!).

 

[Dialcaliper]

Speaking of skidplates and EVAP canisters, I just wanted to ping people here for visibility.

I started talking to ADF customs about making an EVAP skidplate, but unfortunately I’m quite far away. If anyone knows someone with a FiST near Colorado (Denver area) that would be willing to volunteer their car for measurements at ADF’s shop in Brighton, it might be possible to turn this into an available product. Since I’m intending to have a plate made, they wouldn’t even be required to purchase one.

https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...dplate-guinea-pig-near-denver-brighton.30661/

 

[FiestaSTdude]

Speaking of skidplates and EVAP canisters, I just wanted to ping people here for visibility.

I started talking to ADF customs about making an EVAP skidplate, but unfortunately I’m quite far away. If anyone knows someone near Colorado (Denver area) that would be willing to volunteer their car for measurements at ADF’s shop in Brighton, it might be possible to turn this into an available product. Since I’m intending to have a plate made, they wouldn’t even be required to purchase one.

https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...dplate-guinea-pig-near-denver-brighton.30661/

Im nowhere near Colorado but I would definitely be very interested in purchasing one!

 

[M-Sport fan]

Yes, the WRC level/class rally Fiestas all start as base Euro/rest of world 2 door (and rarely 4 door for some of the R2 builds) Fiestas, this includes Ken's wife's R2 which she still campaigns in ARA events occasionally.

The FIA may even allow them to start with a base 'body in white' SHELL of the unibody to save them all of the work of stripping it down, but probably not since they must have a factory serial number, since they are street licensed and insured in the country of origin/build to be able to drive on public roads during the 'transits' between the at full speed, competitive stages.

They then add in all of the FIA approved/homologated 'kits'/parts/engine/drivetrain/bodywork to build them to whatever WRC/European/National Championship class in which they are going to be competing.

They do NOT ever start out with an actual ST.

But Team O'Neil did campaign, and WIN Rally America Championships in a fully prepped FiST in the Open 2WD class (some engine tuning allowed, full Reiger suspension, Sadev sequential gearbox, M-Sport RS2000 rear wing, etc.) with Andrew Comrie-Picard driving.

This is the car pictured with that wild livery scheme on Mountune's site in the Fiesta ST header section, and also on that popular winter video floating around on you tube comparing this car to a base FiST on winter tires.

Ken did have a/some rallycross car(s) which sported FiST badges, but these were NOT built from STs, as wheel to wheel rallycross cars are even MORE radically different from street cars than even the top level, WRC Rally 1 cars (inline, 'north-south' engine layout, different AWD sequential drivetrains, and 650+ HP output, huge snail, 2 liter powerplants, as well as no lights, horn, or turn signals, since they are never driven on the street like WRC cars are.

Update/correction on the bolded above, since I have discovered that they do use an ST as the base for the R5/Rally 2 class cars, and an ST Line Fiesta as the base for the Mk8 R1T class cars.

 

[rallytaff]

Yes, your land's WRC gravel round is the second fastest on the whole schedule, bested only by the top speeds of the L-O-N-G straightaways of the Swedish event which just ended (due to the spikes in the tires which give even better traction on the snow and ice of that round, than even slicks on dry tarmac! ).

As far as sound goes, yup, there are still those who claim that there is NOTHING LIKE the sound of a BDA, Cossie headed, 2 liter NA Escort Mk1 or 2 at 'full chat' 9K revs bouncing off of the hills on the forest stages.

(Maybe even more so for a modern Millington version of those powerplants in those cars.)

I can vouch for the sound of those cars. When I went home to Wales a few years ago, I watched a rally just south of my home town and you knew exactly what cars were coming up through the forest in the valleys. You never forget those sounds!

 

[M-Sport fan]

^^Back when there were still Audi Quattros running alongside the 'upstart' Scoobies way back in SCCA Pro Rally, it was hard to tell their exhaust notes in the hills from afar, apart, since they both made that 'woofling' type sound despite the radically different engine/firing order configurations.

 

[Dialcaliper]

So I accidentally came across these:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/295022586688
https://www.ebay.com/itm/203986871667

They appear to be leveling/lift kits (made in Ukraine apparently). I think they’re intended for the EcoSport in +20mm and +30mm versions, but it happens to be built on a Fiesta chassis and uses the exact same shock/spring arrangement. There are some Aluminum versions out there as well in addition to the PU ones.

I was thinking about an upcoming backpacking trip (backcountry weekend at Henry Coe state park). They open the back entrance of the park once a year and there’s a long drive in on a dirt road, and I’m slightly worried I won’t have enough ground clearance, especially with the Pierce brace (which I may swap out for the Swave if it comes before my trip)

There won’t any fast “rally” driving or hooning around sadly (they speed limit for dust as it’s a special event) but from last time, there were some crappy ruts and baby’s heads that the Honda Fit barely cleared, and was nowhere near as low as the Fiesta (and I sold it to a friend)

Now 30mm is a heck of a lot, and probably more than the Fiesta front geometry can handle without jacking, but 20mm on the stock springs/shocks would put the front axle 10-15mm higher than a base Fiesta (The ST is only lowered 1/4” in front, 1” in rear from the base model).

Curious if anyone’s ever contemplated/tried something like this? It might also be a way to run stiffer (ie Swift) springs and then counteract the 0.5-1.0” of lowering, although functionally it’s a bit counter to what you normally want - lift with less travel rather than more, though it would give you the extra droop height

 

[the duke]

Found them a while ago. Back then the COO was Russian Federation, not Ukraine. The hope MSport and I had was to mount them on Swifts for the higher spring rates while offsetting the lowered springs length. You'd have to mill the tops (easy enough) but then it turns into just making a spacer out of aluminum or steel yourself so you're back to square one. No one has actually spent the coin to test them.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

So I accidentally came across these:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/295022586688
https://www.ebay.com/itm/203986871667

They appear to be leveling/lift kits (made in Ukraine apparently). I think they’re intended for the EcoSport in +20mm and +30mm versions, but it happens to be built on a Fiesta chassis and uses the exact same shock/spring arrangement. There are some Aluminum versions out there as well in addition to the PU ones.

I was thinking about an upcoming backpacking trip (backcountry weekend at Henry Coe state park). They open the back entrance of the park once a year and there’s a long drive in on a dirt road, and I’m slightly worried I won’t have enough ground clearance, especially with the Pierce brace (which I may swap out for the Swave if it comes before my trip)

There won’t any fast “rally” driving or hooning around sadly (they speed limit for dust as it’s a special event) but from last time, there were some crappy ruts and baby’s heads that the Honda Fit barely cleared, and was nowhere near as low as the Fiesta (and I sold it to a friend)

Now 30mm is a heck of a lot, and probably more than the Fiesta front geometry can handle without jacking, but 20mm on the stock springs/shocks would put the front axle 10-15mm higher than a base Fiesta (The ST is only lowered 1/4” in front, 1” in rear from the base model).

Curious if anyone’s ever contemplated/tried something like this? It might also be a way to run stiffer (ie Swift) springs and then counteract the 0.5-1.0” of lowering, although functionally it’s a bit counter to what you normally want - lift with less travel rather than more, though it would give you the extra droop height

I personally never used anything like that (I don’t understand suspension and don’t want to mess up my suspension) but I like the idea. The price isn’t bad either. Let us know how it turns out if you decide to use them.

 

[Dialcaliper]

Found them a while ago. Back then the COO was Russian Federation, not Ukraine. The hope MSport and I had was to mount them on Swifts for the higher spring rates while offsetting the lowered springs length. You'd have to mill the tops (easy enough) but then it turns into just making a spacer out of aluminum or steel yourself so you're back to square one. No one has actually spent the coin to test them.

I'm not quite following "mill the tops". That's not an obstacle for me fortunately. Were you trying to reduce them to exactly offset the Swift Lowering or is there something in the way that I'm not picturing? Either version seems like it would be just about right for that - Also the factory ride height tolerance is like +/- 0.5" but I can understand if you want to target something specific

I may have mentioned it before, its possible to a custom setup on stock/B6 shocks/struts using 3.0" ID coilover springs in the front and 2.5" ID springs in the rear - you just need to use helpers or non-zero rate tenders to keep the springs seated in droop (and adjust the ride height using the block height of the tenders if you go that route). I think I worked it out that you can run a 225/200 setup (or somewhere around that) that will put you at roughly +0.25” front and +0.50” rear. Coilover spring lengths are 10” front and rear, with the thinnest helpers you can find (0.5” block height). Using a thicker helper spring (some are 0.9-1.3” at full compression can get you higher. It won’t get you more droop, but will get you a higher static height and stiffer spring than stock.

You can also use a taller helper set with 8”/9”springs to get something like 250/225 at just below stock height.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Found them a while ago. Back then the COO was Russian Federation, not Ukraine. The hope MSport and I had was to mount them on Swifts for the higher spring rates while offsetting the lowered springs length. You'd have to mill the tops (easy enough) but then it turns into just making a spacer out of aluminum or steel yourself so you're back to square one. No one has actually spent the coin to test them.

@JDG on here actually made his own versions of these, for SCCA RallyCross use with factory springs on B6es, since he was bottoming out on some of the rougher event courses despite the static ride height of that combo.

At one point he was offering to machine some more for others (his were alloy), but I have not heard anything since, and he is not really active on here anymore.
(I am not even sure that he is still competing in RallyCross, with or without the FiST. )

 

[Dialcaliper]

Maybe this has been thought of before, but on the note of taller shocks, I just looked and realized that Bilstein makes B6 and B8 shocks to fit the Ecosport, that seem to have different part numbers than the Fiesta shocks, despite having what looks like identical mounting, though the internet says the rear axle is slightly different in the hub height

be interesting to see if they are taller, have additional travel, and what the damping is like.

 

[Dialcaliper]

Just a followup - I did some poking around in my spare time, and while KYB doesn't carry shocks for the Ecosport (they have a good database that includes shock dimensions), Monroe does (and also has a list by part number you can look up), and additionally it appears shocksurplus.com has included shock lengths in their catalog for the Bilstein B6 and B8 shocks. Here's what I found. The red is a guess because the Ecosport B6 rear measurements were missing, but it seems about right based on other B6/B8 shocks



The Monroe lengths, at least for the Fiesta rear seem pretty close to the measurements I've seen previously - not sure about the front. The Ecosport Bilstein B6/B8 shocks are definitely taller. 1.5" in the front and over 2" in the rear. Shock travel is not that much different - Ecosport B6 has an extra 0.5" of travel in front which could be interesting (except for the serious lift you'd end up with). While the rear shocks are taller, the travel is similar or slightly less. The damping is anyone's guess. Its interesting that the Ecosport B8 is a "lowering" shock like the Fiesta. For trucks/SUVs and other "offroad" vehicles, the B6/B8 are flipped, and the B8 are sometimes for lift kits.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

https://www.piercemotorsport.com/2014-2019-ford-fiesta-st-upper-front-strut-brace/
Would this brace help strengthen the chassis when driving down a bumpy road? I understand that it’s not really designed for that but I was wondering if it could help with it at all

 

[M-Sport fan]

https://www.piercemotorsport.com/2014-2019-ford-fiesta-st-upper-front-strut-brace/
Would this brace help strengthen the chassis when driving down a bumpy road? I understand that it’s not really designed for that but I was wondering if it could help with it at all

It probably could not hurt, but it would be much more effective if it (or any of the many others out there) was triangulated/welded into the strut towers and/or the firewall to mimic the full competition cage type cross braces on actual rally cars.