DRIVEN M285 FIESTA ST
The Mk7 Fiesta ST has been with us for a few years now; the earliest models are seven years old, where did that time go!? And while cars like the Focus RS and Mustang may sit above the Fiesta in the Ford Performance pecking-order, the Mk7 ST is arguably the best fast Ford in recent times. In fact, it has a strong case for being one of the very best Blue Ovals of all time.
But, the Mk7 model has been and gone, with Ford now pushing the new Mk8 Fiesta – along with the very capable and mightily impressive new ST version. So, why am I sat here outside mountune’s HQ in Essex looking at fairly understated Mk7 ST) and I was impressed by its punchy performance. But things don’t stand still in the tuning world, and mountune have continued their development to the point where the old MR265 kit has now been superseded by the new m285 package. As the name suggests, this is mountune’s most powerful offering for the Mk7 ST to date, serving up a very healthy 285PS and 370Nm. The key to these improved figures (and the way it feels to drive) is the new turbocharger at the heart of the upgrade. Rather than a hybrid version of the stock unit, for the m285 mountune have taken one of Garrett’s acclaimed GT2554R turbochargers as a base and developed it to further suit the ST’s 1.6-litre EcoBoost engine and mountune software. The new ‘MRX’ turbo – as mountune are branding their new range of turbo upgrades – features low friction, dual row ball bearings for super-quick spool-up, a custom-engineered 11-blade billet compressor wheel with matching 3in anti-surge compressor housing, and double seals (both compressor and turbine housing) and a water-cooled centre section to ensure it’s durable and reliable enough for thousands of trouble-free miles on both road and track.
