As we fly through youth toward middle age, and our children grow older and our bodies grow slower and the ceaseless march of time places year after year behind the receding horizon, we may feel the need to take a good hard look at our lives. Something was missing in mine. Turning inward, I perceived an emptiness and unfulfilled purpose. I began to ask questions.
How might I become a more complete human being? Could I be doing more to prepare my children for meaningful entry into the adult world? Has my agnosticism cut short a spirituality that could bring a frightening and chaotic world into focus? Might the negative energy of unbalanced synchronicity be interfering in the mystic journey to cosmic wakefulness? Would sunrise yoga and Yogi Tea bring me more #meaning and #clarity? I searched of myself and I pondered the questions. From the Absolute and the Infinite came an answer as clear and deep as Divinity itself:
“You need a manual transmission back in your driveway.”
I sank to the floor, transfixed by this clairvoyant answer, palms raised to the stars whilst searching for suitably poignant words. They came.
“Sonofab****” I said, “That voice is right”, and I punched up Autotrader.
Here I thought I was facing a tiresome personal introspection for which I had no appetite, but the universe is telling me to impulsively go car shopping for a weekend driver instead. That’s an existential therapy I can get behind.
I was a liberated man, free to seek automotive transcendence without consideration of most practical matters beyond a strict budget. Thus empowered and enthroned, I tossed out the permissive mysticism for a strict dogma centered upon new Petrichorian Commandments:
I. Thine car shall possess a transmission of manual operation. This is the first and greatest commandment, and the second is like unto it.
II. Thine car shall be a joy to thee and make thee smile.
How a vehicle went about following the 2nd Commandment was up to its own discretion; there are multiple paths to obedience here. The third and fourth provided a gentle guiding hand:
III. Blessed be fruitful acceleration, for 3500 cubits an hour attained in six seconds or less bringeth deliverance from thine enemies.
IV. Blessed are the rear-driven wheels, for they shall inherit traction and upon launch and neutrality upon cornering.
The shortlist was indeed short, with the 2003-2006 Infiniti G35 at the top. The burly high-revving V6, sharp handling, crisp styling, and Japanese reliability were all appealing. I liked its G37 successor. A few exceptionally nice ones could be found nationwide for a good price, but these are not common and I’d have to wait quite a while for one to show up regionally.
Extinct species: Tactile RWD sedan with a big engine and manual transmission
The E46 and E90 BMW 3 Series are considered benchmarks. I’d like to find out why, since the newer ones have lost the plot. These might push the dependability envelope, but prices for the lower output variants were low enough to leave headspace for maintenance.
Extinct species: A 3 Series prioritizing engagement over numbers
The third is a real odd duck in comparison: the fifth generation 2005-2010 Ford Mustang. It has truck engines and a truck axle and an unsurprising reputation for crude handling. Seems like an orgy of violated commandments. My personality doesn’t quite mesh with pony cars either, but I’m strangely drawn to this retro redux with the caricatured 1960s dash made of awful FoMoCo plastics.
Not extinct. Ford still offers a modern version of this so reward them with your money
The GT is the obvious choice, but I was shamefully curious about the 4.0L low-revving V6 as well. I’ve often wondered what the grunty V6 in my 4Runner would be like in a far lighter vehicle with a more direct transmission and this would be the answer. The secretary’s 6 puts up OK numbers and they’re more affordable. Eight or six, I’d try both.
The black interior with leather hides a lot of fit-and-finish sins
Multiple cars were summarily rejected:
I don’t like the vibe Camaros give off.
I can’t fit my kids in a Miata. They don’t have to be comfy, but they do need to fit.
Not a single stock FR-S within 500 miles, and the engine’s a wet blanket.
High mileage, multiple owners, and accident damage from the “Street Crew”? You bet I’ll call!
WRX? Pricey, even when run hard into high miles by the flat-brim crowd.
Porsches within my budget may require exorcism of demons into a herd of pigs. I’ve no such ecclesiastical authority, so I’d be summoning the expensive priest for every such incident.
The credit approval is for the maintenance, not the purchase
I wanted more than three possibilities and kept digging. At a popular branded title dealership I saw a trio I hadn’t considered: Fiesta ST, Focus ST, and the turbo Civic Si. Amped-up economy cars with wrong wheel drive, all of them, and a clear violation of the 4th with cascading implications for the 2nd. The devout do not tarry with the heathen, but there was nothing else nearby to test drive on a fine fair weekend so I decided to satiate curiosity and rule out three variations on a theme. Just to be certain.
2018 Honda Civic Si–More than I need, less than I want
This one was out of my price range, but I wanted to know if it would be worth waiting longer for depreciation. It wasn’t. It’s too well-rounded, too well-executed for an irrational secondary vehicle. Much of it is good fun. The punchy little 1.5L turbo engine delivers a wave of torque on the 1-2 upshift, torque steer is well managed, the shift lever is exceptionally precise, and the light weight and sharp steering pair with the responsive and flat suspension tune to provide admirable cornering poise. It feels very stable and locked down at freeway speeds.
There are violations of the 2nd Commandment. The biggie is the numb clutch with an invisible engagement point high in the travel, which is not my preference at all. I found it difficult and unpleasant to modulate. The engine sounds terrible, grinding out a flat 4-cylinder buzz. I’d like a bit more thrust from it, or at least more linearity. The Civic is now a rather big car and a big car feels better with a big engine that doesn’t have lots of lag even at 3,000 rpm.
Best seats of the trio, but the worst clutch and engine
Daily driving issues include incredible noise levels on the freeway, a gloomy every-shade-of-grey interior, and the notorious metal shift knob that becomes a branding iron in the sun. As an amusing daily rather than a cheap joyful Sunday driver, this Honda is rather good…but I’m looking for the latter.
2017 Ford Focus ST–An old GTI in teenager’s clothing
Ford’s MkIII Focus was a sophisticated piece, a global platform seemingly intended to be a European’s respectable family car instead of an American cheapskate’s commuter, and this flavor made it into the ST. It’s quiet on the freeway and the substantial structure absorbs hits well. Soft-touch materials cover the dash and doors when this wasn’t common in the C-segment. The 2.0L turbo has a meatier torque curve with far less lag. The intuitive clutch is just right, making every shift and every start smooth and predictable. The Si feels a bit more playful, but the ST will stick right with it while providing more refinement. This car clearly encroached into the 2010-2014 GTI’s personal bubble.
I didn’t bond with it this day, however. The feel is simultaneously old and juvenile. The youthful ST dressing contrasts poorly with the age of the underlying car. The tacked-on gauge pod atop the center stack. The ST trim accents. The banana yellow paint. The body kit. The Fiesta ST has the same Ford cues, but somehow manages to be authentically lighthearted while the Focus comes off as a widening 30-something trying to be a teenager again.
It’s dated in here, and not in a charming nostalgic way
Objective objections include a confining wall of a dashboard, a tall beltline, and a shifter placed too high and far for my preferences with wide horizontal spacing between the gear planes. This is a good hot hatch, perhaps a truly excellent one for its time, but it is upstaged by its own hyperactive little brother.
2017 Ford Fiesta ST–Ode to Joy/Jesu, joy of man’s desiring
This little firecracker surprised me. Nothing I’ve driven comes close. It’s all wrong and unimpressive on paper. An old econobox with a twist-beam rear axle, open differential, Ford Fusion engine, and an extroverted boy racer vibe unbefitting a man approaching 40. And it’s bright orange. Sacrilege, all of it. Sacrilege!
Playground equipment for children (background) and adults (foreground)
So off I go with the skeptical malice of Torquemada. We’ll put this heretic upon the rack if needs be, until confession extracted and example set and orthodoxy restored…but I’m suddenly laughing thirty seconds into my test drive through stripmall suburbia. This thing changes direction like nothing I’ve experienced, every facet of the manual transmission feels good to me, and the engine delivers a wallop of torque in second and third gears that playfully slings us through traffic and out of corners.
Budget materials, but good design aside from that wart of an infotainment screen
This. This is what I wanted, though I didn’t know it before that moment. A frenetic little canyon blaster and close-range fighter jet that makes even routine errands around town a delight. This was my road to Damascus, and a rather fun one at that. Might the heretic actually be the reformist, even the savior? It just might. It’s happened before.
I bought it a few days later. Never tried the Mustang. Never found a G35. The E46 remains a mystery. I’m still curious about all of them, but I don’t regret this decision. This Fiesta is elemental driving enjoyment at minimal cost. And it’s bright orange.
A happy car needs happy paint
A bit more about the car. The suspension and steering modifications over base Fiestas are legitimate. The steering ratio was quickened to 13.6:1 and that front end just darts into turns. The steering is razor-precise and weighted just right, even if feel is a bit lacking. The beam axle is no sin and the car will carry a lot of speed into turns and grip tenaciously. Excess throttle through the turn will provoke understeer, but dial it back and the planted front end and lively rear are tuned toward mild oversteer. Lift off mid-turn and you can easily rotate the back end to tighten the line. The pivot point is seemingly at your right elbow. That’s a smile, every time.
Excellent driving position, unusual for a subcompact
The 1.6 liter direct-injected turbo 4 cylinder was shared with the Fusion and Escape, but cranked up to 197 hp and 200+ lb-ft in the ST. The upper-six second run to 60 is so-so on paper but includes the shift to third, so in-gear acceleration feels quicker than the stopwatch suggests. The 15% power loss of naturally aspirated engines at our elevation brings this Fiesta roughly equal with that G35 or E46 330i up here. That’s not bad company for a cheap little runt. The Fiesta charges up our mountain roads with minimal apparent effort.
The engine is strong, sounds pretty good, and will return 36+mpg on the highway
Power delivery and acceleration are in dead heat with the Si, which makes sense given the similar displacement and power output. The FiST sounds much better, however, hiding the 4-cylinder thrash with a symposer pipe that directs a richer induction noise to the firewall.
There are FWD issues. Torque steer is definitely there, power is limited in first gear to prevent blitzing the tires, and the brake-based imitation limited slip differential does not prevent the car from running wide and scrabbling clumsily for traction in tight turns under throttle. It’s excellent for FWD…but it’s still FWD.
Just in time for fall, a pumpkin-spice hatchback
As a daily, how is it? Well, not great if that’s what one is after. The ride is pretty bad on poorly maintained roads and impact noise is transmitted through the suspension and structure. It’s tiresome on the freeway, nearly as loud as the Si and somewhat fidgety due to the quick steering and short wheelbase. Interior packaging aft of the B-pillar is comically bad. The rear seat is very tight, the structure encroaches from all directions, and the seatbacks cannot fold remotely flat when expanding the tiny cargo area. All of this means zip for how I use it.
Sitting behind myself in, left to right, the Civic Si, Focus ST, and Fiesta ST.
Two types of front seats came in the ST. The optional $2000 Recaros look like Barcaloungers shoehorned into a Manhattan hotel room. Everyone loves the Recaros for autocrossing but mine has the standard RealCheapos. The RealCheapos are slim and allow my kids to fit in the car. The coarse budget fabric will grind through an epidermal layer or two, but is grippy in the turns. They are flat and uncomfortable after 2 hours.
This is what passes for cargo flexibility in a Ford.
Cost allocation in the interior was peculiar. The seating, switchgear, and most touch points are entry level garbage, but expensive superfluous kit abounds. There’s adjustable color mood lighting, navigation, swiveling LED rear reading lights (why?), pushbutton ignition, and the World’s Most Useless Sunroof. I’d give up all of that for better seats, although the kids wouldn’t forgive me because they love that mood lighting.
This Prius C thought it had found a friend. Turns out they didn’t have much in common.
The Fiesta ST, like the G37, is a breed of car I don’t expect to see again in the States. It’s a car with personality, cohesion, and an effective focus on key performance attributes for a low cost of entry. It rounds out our driveway in a way I’ve been craving for a long time. Comfort, distance, and efficiency are covered by the Camry. Off-pavement, camping, towing, hauling, and winter are covered by the 4Runner. The two big holes not covered by the Toyotas are real luxury and real driving engagement. I don’t care much for the former, and the Fiesta is all over the latter like the cheap suit that it is. And it removes any temptation to trade out of the Toyotas for a long time.
#Balance achieved, and no yoga pants or healing crystals required. Namaste my fellow seekers of harmonious interconnectedness, I raise my kombucha to you. Peace be with you. May the Great Green Arkleseizure bless you before the coming of the Great White Handkerchief. And get bent, 2020. I’m doing what I can to end you on a high note, and this is one small part. I’m going for a drive.
I had a similar empty feeling in my life a couple of years ago. I have always had a Volkswagen van of one type or another. Starting in the nineties with some 70’s vans. 00’s with an 86. Then I got old and practical and had a Toyota previa and a Nissan Altima. Both great vehicles but something was missing.
My buddy had a line on a 92 Eurovan full westfalia camper. It needed some work but for $1000 I couldn’t pass it up. The original plan was to fix it and flip it. It got parked in the garage for to long and I couldn’t part with it. Some horse trading and cash got it back on the road (about $7000 and counting). But the joys of rowing my own gears and being to throw some gear in the back and go camping has brought a spring back in my step. Hopefully I am done with the big ticket items but unlike most other cars I have owned and the vanlife lifestyle that is popular there seems to be some upside if I get tired of it.
Thanks for your post. Being a middle aged man, sometimes feeling stuck in a rut, I totally understand where you are coming from.
I think a manual Westfalia sounds like a real treat, glad you kept it and brought it back to life. A little vanlife is going to start sounding good once the holidays are over.
After all those years of dutiful Altima and Camry ownership, you deserve something like this! 🙂
It sure looks and sounds like a little firecracker of a car and the best part is you have more choices than drivers so it’ll never be a chore, but rather a reward whenever the mood strikes. They do seem to be a tremendous value, especially slightly broken in, I was in fact behind a regular Fiesta hatchback at a light yesterday and musing how it must be a pretty good car in town. And with the bigger engine, tires, and wheels, in the twisties as well.
And you can never go wrong with an orange car, good choice!
Thanks Jim!
“but rather a reward whenever the mood strikes”
That’s exactly what it is, and it took me a while to fully accept that it was OK for a car to be that and nothing more…and that this one *needed* to be that and nothing more. As you said, too many years in an Altima and Camry 🙂
i share your journey, right down to the same car choices. Manual trans non-miata is a short, weird list. Add to it that i would really like a convertible and i am stuck with big compromises.
Yeah, there’s not much out there if the Miata doesn’t fit the bill. Miata was my starting point when I decided I wanted a fun little driver, but it became apparent quickly that it couldn’t be a strict 2-seater and I wanted more pop under the hood. Fortunately, I didn’t want a convertible or this would have been a frustrating exercise.
Another fantastic piece that is legitimately miles ahead of anything I’ve written by any “professional” automotive journalist all year.
I too have a stick-shift/fun gap in the fleet right now and its not gone unnoticed. I have my circle track Neon waiting in the wings but those weekends are few and far inbetween: lots of wrenching for a few moments of on-track violence.
Thanks gtem, you are kind as always. I think it is great that you have a track car that you are wrenching on and racing. I’d love to see a writeup on that, or any of your other cars. Get writing!
Hey, if a manual transmission is all it takes to sort things out, things are good. 🙂
Well done – the introduction is great. 🙂
Very true! 2020’s impact on us goes well beyond my driving boredom, but we are still fortunate and I’m viewing this car as one symbol for leaving the year on an optimistic note.
You made the absolute right choice in both car and color. Congrats.
The Porsche and BMW would be money pits. If you were going to get a ‘Stang, you need a V-8, no question. The Infiniti is a great car but I don’t think would of rightly scratched the itch you have- too fancy. I love the BRZ as well but true- maybe a bit too pricey. This is something you can have serviced at a trusted independent mechanic’s shop and replacement parts should not be too terrible in cost save for a blown turbo. But you’re not the kind of guy to destroy it. And you can leave the kids behind and plenty of room for a weekend getaway…plus 30+MPG.
And yes it’s sad that moving forward we won’t see cars like this in the US, with electrification and the mass migration to boring crossovers, VW GTIs maybe excepted.
I am a bit farther along in the midlife crisis than you going since spring 2013 from a 99 Miata to a 17 Camaro (totaled) to a 17 Corvette, all manuals. I can tell you while never having a V-8 until age 52, the big power is nice, but….absolutely not necessary for driving engagement or fun.
I have a friend with a 17 Fiesta ST like yours, same color even, and we swapped for an hour with my Camaro. Tons of fun, put a huge smile on my face. No recaros either. I didn’t think the switch gear was terrrible- keep in mid was a $22K car new. Super fast (not just quick), flingable and the shifter was sweet! Andy liked my Camaro but felt it was just a bit to angry. Good luck and hope you enjoy it moving forward!
Thank you Carlsberg, this car did indeed grab my attention immediately and along with the unique orange paint it seemed like a relatively rare opportunity and I just went for it in an unusually impulsive way. And so far I’m glad I did.
“Andy liked my Camaro but felt it was just a bit to angry.”
That’s funny, and speaks to the vibe I was referencing above. However, I still like the looks of the 2017 Camaro despite it, and I’ve read good things about the steering and chassis of that car.
I hadn’t much paid attention to these, but your report may change that. I was sure you were headed for MiataLand until you got to that back seat part. Wait a bit until your kids are driving and don’t want to be seen within 20 feet of you – you’ll be back. 🙂
I really miss a stick in the fleet now that the Miata has been gone for awhile. A V8 Mustang still appeals.
The Miata still is very appealing in concept, particularly now that they have enough engine power to both scoot and handle.
“Wait a bit until your kids are driving and don’t want to be seen within 20 feet of you – you’ll be back.”
True enough! If they push that too far, though, Dad will be bombing around in a roadster while they will be driving clapped-out 10-year old Buick Encores to high school.
When I was shopping for a successor to my ’13 Beetle TDi convertible, I looked at Ford’s ‘hot hatch’ offerings. Liked the external styling but couldn’t get past the interiors.. Ended up with a ’15 Honda Fit (3rd gen) that got suspension tweaks and a CAI, making for a fun little car, even if it was CVT-equipped (the manual’s ratios stunk). Replaced the Fit two years later (as regular readers will remember) with an impulse-buy Chev SS sport sedan (manual? of course!). “Our Lady of Blessed Acceleration” never fails!
Kudos on the Holden badge swap! How sad that such a great Australian manufacturer and brand is no more. Awesome ride.
I have to say I am very jealous of that SS. If I was looking to replace one of the daily drivers to scratch the itch rather than getting a third car, that Chevy would be on the list. That’s another car that will never show up on our shores again.
A Fit with the Civic Si’s powertrain and suspension upgrades would be a riot, it already has good fundamentals.
Funny, because I’ve been having just such meanderings myself. My path has taken a different route, however.
Several weeks ago my wife and I started talking about how we’d like a pickup, and we floated around several ideas before becoming rather interested in the Toyota Tundra. But Tundras are huge and expensive, etc., etc.
THEN, we discovered that the smaller Tacoma has a model that comes with both the Double Cab (so the kids will fit) AND A MANUAL TRANSMISSION. We were immediately transfixed, and started thinking up excuses why we need such a truck. OK, realistically we don’t need a truck at all. We don’t even need a new vehicle at all. But the allure of a manual transmission-equipped vehicle that can carry a family is very strong.
The Tacoma is pulling me in, pulling me in… all because I desperately want to be a stick shift before they vanish for good.
Glad you made such dreams come true… the Fiesta sounds like a great car!
My older son and his GF bought just that, as they both are dedicated manual users. They love it. It’s a 6 speed, so plenty of opportunity to shift.
I’ve ridden in it a number of times, and found myself saying (as politely as possible) “is there a reason you don’t use 6th on the freeway?” Frankly, a 5 speed, with the 5th gear spaced between the current 5 and 6 would probably suit them and most users better.
We’re debating whether to go test driving one of these coming weekends. Frankly, I’m somewhat afraid that we’ll both love it, and then we’ll be really tempted to buy one, and like I wrote above, we don’t really need a new car right now. I drove a manual Tacoma about 10 years ago and liked it, so I presume I’ll like the new one too.
Checking dealer inventory around me, I’m surprised that the manual Tacoma Double Cabs are relatively common — I would have assumed they’d be quite rare, but we’ll have no trouble finding one to test drive. I guess there’s other folks out there who feel like my wife and I do.
Interesting on availability. They bought a couple of years ago, but custom ordered theirs. It took almost 6 months!
I’m very curious about how a manual Tacoma drives, that’s a unique animal in this day and age. I keep hoping there will be one in stock to test at the Toyota dealer when I bring in the 4R and Camry for fluid changes, but there never is.
I’ve never experienced a mid-life crisis. Maybe because I’ve been doing yoga since 1971? And I drink kambucha too. 🙂
I definitely wanted a stick when I bought my xB back in 2006. And I’ve always enjoyed driving a slow car fast. It’s more challenging. I had plenty of opportunity to experience that early on, in my ’64 and ’63 Beetle.
Kombucha and yoga are healthy, that dig was certainly in good jest! Your manual xB is yet another extinct species here, and a great little car.
It’s funny that several have mentioned the midlife crisis. I didn’t think that’s what I was having, but in retrospect I suppose there is some truth to it. Evaluating career, rapidly growing children, uncontrollable passage of time, things yet to experience and accomplish, etc.
That’s an amazing piece of writing. Congratulations on a well deserved fun car and a great piece about it.
Thank you, it was genuinely enjoyable piece to write.
The ST wasn’t available in 2012 when I bought my 500 Abarth, but I did check them out in 2014. I agree with the comment about the interiors in these (to me it smacks of Rodan Meets Mothra), but others have found these to be a lot of fun.
Nice write-up!!!
I forgot about the Abarth until after I had already brought the ST home. If there is any car with a reputation for even more personality than the ST, it’s that little Fiat. I hope you are enjoying yours!
Got a base ’15 FiST to replaced a ’02 EP3 Si. You are spot on about the seats, wish the Recaro seats were as good as the seats in the Si. I didn’t fit in the FiST Recaro seats, the bottom cushion was way too tight, while the back was perfect.
Ford quality/dependability is also lacking compared to Honda. After 75k miles I’m on my third HVAC control panel and second set on engine mounts. Sync3, I’ve learned what to do when the phone doesn’t connect the first time.
It’s fun to drive but if you have crappy roads I wouldn’t recommend it because the suspension is tight with seemly little travel. Mid-corner bumps that didn’t bother the EP3 made my heart skip a beat the first time I tried it in the FiST.
I’ve heard bad things about the blend door actuator and am not expecting Honda levels of dependability. Fortunately, mechanicals have a decent reliability reputation. We’ll see. One of the freeing things about this being a 3rd car is that I don’t have to worry as much about that.
I’m about ready to dump a Honda Accord that I’ve only owned for just over a year; I’m moving and can’t take it with me. It’s been a joy to have and it really feels like I’m driving a gangster limo, but it’s just too damn big for me now that my four kids have moved on with their own lives.
So I will be watching your choices very carefully, but I think I’ll always choose a Japanese car over a European model any day.
I’d pass on anything BMW produced since, say 1995. That was the year, I believe, that the new CEO of the company proudly announced to the world that in the future, all BWMs’ will be made of recycleable materials.
That was a little white lie. What he really meant was that in the future, all BMWs’ content will be boidegradable; starting with the electronics and wiring harnesses, of course.
Last manual I owned was an 81′ Landrover lightweight. I’ve still got massive calluses on my right palm and fingers to remind me of that ownership!
Definitely consider the Si. Very enjoyable to drive if you mesh well with the clutch setup, and much tidier than the massive Accord. No sense of limousine in that car, though, it’s all traditional Honda aural and road texture tactility.
Great article. Funny enough I drove both the FiST and FoST in 2013 as my daily commuter which was about 70 miles each day. The FiST was by far the more dynamic of the two cars and was the better irrational choice. However, a fully loaded ST3 was only $2K more and was the more rational choice for a daily 70 mile drive in traffic along with the occasional highway trip.
I consider the FiST to be the spiritual successor to my A1 GTi, while the FoST is a modern day SAAB Viggen in almost every respect.
Enjoy your ST. Like the A1 GTi, it is one of those rare cars that will be well worth the cost of long term ownership as it ages.
I liked the FoST more than I let on here, I’ve seen some in a tasteful dark blue that really dials back the image and makes it a good-looking car. It’s a solid car with a great engine and good daily livability, much like the GTi. I was lucky to not need daily livability in this choice!
I have been thinking about a manual transmissioned car for quite some time, but a few months ago bought an 06 Mustang convertible with V6 and automatic transmission instead….I should have gone with your eventual choice, instead.
Don’t get me wrong, this generation of the Mustang isn’t bad, but I think even if you had tried one you probably would have passed on it.
I am surprised by the “grunt” produced by the V6, and the 5 speed automatic transmission is a fairly decent match, but nothing about this car, except maybe it’s appearance makes it a compelling choice. The ride is probably close to what you experience in the FIST, it rides like the whole car is 1 big welded mass, but the steering and handling are in another league from the Fiesta, more like the Camry.
Good luck with your choice, and as others here: great color.
Thanks Howard, and very good first-hand information on the Mustang. Once I drove the FiST, I immediately realized that the smaller, the better. Our Toyotas are rather big, this one needed to really differentiate itself.
I share your urge to own something more enjoyable to drive. Strangely I have very similar list of the cars you mentioned. Fiesta ST is probably a most logical choice if you can overlook its reliability. However I would add few more to your list, Mazda 3 (the upper trim sport model), Mazda 2, Yaris, Evo, sport trim Mini, the last generation of Acura RS, 300z, and 135i. The last one is VW GTI (current generation), practical and sporty plus long warranty coverage, my current favorite car to buy but it does not mean I will own one anytime soon.
Very good cars in your list. I wanted more power than the Mazdas and Yaris. The 135i would be interesting, but along with the mini I don’t think I’d be getting better reliability and the maintenance/repair costs would be far higher. 300z is interesting, but I don’t think they have backseats and I’d be looking at G35 coupes instead.
Who says imaginative flights of hyperbole have no place in automotive journalism? Certainly not me. Compliments on the writing. My old Dodge 2500 & LJ Wrangler are both manuals, so I don’t miss shifting. My company ride is an SS w/ auto. Enjoyable but not fun. Perhaps because when I drive it, I’m working.
Your ST reminded me of the Fiat 500 I sold when the garage got too full. Nowhere near the power or handling of your ST, but fun to drive in go-kart sort of way that bigger cars just can’t duplicate.
Thanks Rob! An SS and a 500 sounds like a good pairing. A big useful car with big power, and a little ’round-town go-kart. Covers a lot of bases.
Thanks for the comments and taking the time to read it, everyone. It was enjoyable to write and share. Enjoy your holidays, and let’s all hope for an improved 2021!