When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I've been thinking of getting the mrs a st170 5 door when she passes her test, what are they like on fuel when used around town on a daily basis? I've heard there pretty bad on fuel?
I've been thinking of getting the mrs a st170 5 door when she passes her test, what are they like on fuel when used around town on a daily basis? I've heard there pretty bad on fuel?
Not able to say about fuel economy yet as I have not driven mine enough but I can say the insurance is pretty steep, changed mine from a 1.7 puma to the st170 and could not believe the extra cost. Possibly not the best car for a new driver but when you see one like this I can understand wanting one!!
Not able to say about fuel economy yet as I have not driven mine enough but I can say the insurance is pretty steep, changed mine from a 1.7 puma to the st170 and could not believe the extra cost. Possibly not the best car for a new driver but when you see one like this I can understand wanting one!!
Cool thanks mate. Insurance not an issue as she's on my trade policy, might get one and see what it's like and if too juicy can always punt it on, shouldn't lose any money if so. She's always wanted one so thought I might take the plunge
So the ST170 developed a little problem driving home the other night from work. Under heavy throttle use it hesitates throughout the rev range, so I will have it looked at tomorrow.
Well my car was looked at yesterday, and although I asked to have new spark plugs and a new fuel filter fitted, they recommended having the cam-belt done first, as the timing is out by a couple of thou which puts up the error code P1381. I can understand the logic in that, as advanced timing will burn out the plugs, but it's been like it for 4 years since they last did it. So nothing was done, and I said I would think about the cam-belt route over the weekend, and look at options on parts etc.
Sadly driving the 1 and a bit mile home the miss-fire got worse, and as I pulled onto my drive, the car had just cut to 3 cylinders.
So as it was still light, I quickly removed the plugs to take a look, and get the number off them.
The first plug, on the left of the engine as you face it, was very oily and the ceramic part freely roated. No plugs.
I don't think the fact that the ceramic rotates around is a good sign lol, so fingers crossed on just needing some new plugs, maybe a coil pack. Sad bit is, where I work is closed today, and the next nearest parts place is nearly 30 miles away. So I will either wait until Monday or try and get the girlfriend to take me over tomorrow.
That sounds like spark plug 'blow out'. Usually means the plug was incorrectly torqued. If it had of been ejected it probably would have stripped all the threads, so luckily that didn't happen.
There's plenty reading on the web about it and the causes for it to happen. There is a mention of ignition timing also, so maybe get that checked out too.
One such article: https://www.carsdirect.com/car-repai...roblems-solved
That sounds like spark plug 'blow out'. Usually means the plug was incorrectly torqued. If it had of been ejected it probably would have stripped all the threads, so luckily that didn't happen.
Cheers for that, I will take a read for sure.
I did pop over to my local Euro Car Parts and bought a set of plugs, as I needed the car first thing tomorrow morning.
Not my preferred choice, but at Ł28 they will do until I can get my hands on some Ford ones, and at least I can use my car tomorrow.
I fitted the plugs, and once I had gotten the HT - Leads seated correctly, the car started and ran fine. I let the car warm up, and took it out for a quick 5 miles trip, and both flat spots I've had for years had gone, and also all the hesitations had gone as well. The car still feels slow though, but it is an ST170 lol.
These are the old plugs.
It's hard to see, but the plugs are laid out in the same order they came out, and although the picture doesn't really show it, I swear to the naked eye the one on the left has a bigger gap than the others ?
I took the Focus on a 20 miles trip today to see how it went, and to be honest, it actually feels like a different car. The power (lol) is smooth and right through the rev range, and I no longer have any flat spots, nothing around 2000-3000 or around 5000rpm, it's made a hug difference, and makes me wonder if one of the plugs was actually slightly problematic for some time ?
I actually even over took a few vans without having to drop a gear, I just rolled on the throttle and went, really bizarre.
If it was me and had her in as good a nick as you do. I would treat her to a paint correction. Proper under the lights treatment to show any swirl marks in the paint and then a 3 stage polish correction.
Not much of an update, but the other day I put in 4.5 gallons of normal BP unleaded fuel, and I'd gotten 130 miles out of it, and my fuel light hadn't turned on. But I've just filled it up with ultimate as I don't like running it low. So I think I'm getting around 28+mpg ? how odd lol.
So a little insight to my almost weekly routine , being an ex-motorcyclist I'm very keen on carrying out weekly checks on my car, especially when it comes to tyre pressures.
I think I have a porous alloy wheel, as every time I check my off side front the psi has dropped to around 22 - 25 psi. It never goes lower, and I've had two tyres and two valves do exactly the same thing.
The wheel doesn't appear to be cracked, and it's not bent or oval, actually the overall condition of the wheel is pretty good apart from the odd bit of curbing
I'll either get the wheels refurbished or just put up with it until my lottery win happens then I may get some new wheels.
Overall the car is still going well (famous last words) and I'm still pleased with it.
What a coincidence with the wheels. The OSF wheel is always lower than the rest on mine, same st wheels as yours on my standard 1.6 focus. So I found that odd, and queried it with a tyre fitter. He said it could be a buckle in the wheel allowing the air to escape. It's fine once it's kept topped up. I don't believe it's the valve or tyre as they have previously been looked at, by a few fitters.
Yeah, could be a buckle in yours, mines odd in that it never drops below 22psi, which would suggest as the tyre pressure drops, the profile changes, and it seals better on the rims lip, but with two different new tyres tried, and two valves, it kind of points at the wheel
Thanks for the complement, and yes I was a former member of the T.O.C. and great days they were.
I used to own a pretty rare Toyota Corolla T.T.E E11, which unfortunately I sold when I went to work at a Ford dealership.
I understand the car recently went back on the market, although I also understood it was parked up for a few years, and a few of the T.T.E parts had been replaced or removed . I did contact the seller asking to come and look at my old car despite it being some 37k + miles more than when I sold it but he never replied. We all learn from our mistakes, and maybe if things were better for me at home (at the time), I should of just stuck it in the garage and made it perfect, especially given that I had all the parts needed to make it 95% perfect.
Thanks for the complement, and yes I was a former member of the T.O.C. and great days they were.
I used to own a pretty rare Toyota Corolla T.T.E E11, which unfortunately I sold when I went to work at a Ford dealership.
I understand the car recently went back on the market, although I also understood it was parked up for a few years, and a few of the T.T.E parts had been replaced or removed . I did contact the seller asking to come and look at my old car despite it being some 37k + miles more than when I sold it but he never replied. We all learn from our mistakes, and maybe if things were better for me at home (at the time), I should of just stuck it in the garage and made it perfect, especially given that I had all the parts needed to make it 95% perfect.
I've never heard of these corollas, were they turbo charged?
Thanks for the complement, and yes I was a former member of the T.O.C. and great days they were.
I used to own a pretty rare Toyota Corolla T.T.E E11, which unfortunately I sold when I went to work at a Ford dealership.
I understand the car recently went back on the market, although I also understood it was parked up for a few years, and a few of the T.T.E parts had been replaced or removed . I did contact the seller asking to come and look at my old car despite it being some 37k + miles more than when I sold it but he never replied. We all learn from our mistakes, and maybe if things were better for me at home (at the time), I should of just stuck it in the garage and made it perfect, especially given that I had all the parts needed to make it 95% perfect.
Ah yea. I remember now. That was a very nice car. It's a shame people don't realise how rare the TTE stuff is. I had a PFL Corolla T Sport which I had to reluctantly sell. I still miss it to this day and would swap my Focus for one in a heartbeat (please don't hate me everyone ). Sadly they seem to have held on to their value more than ST170s have so I couldn't find one within my budget when I was looking. Such a small world it is though. We've both moved from Corollas to ST170s and ended up on the same forum haha!
Ah yea. I remember now. That was a very nice car. It's a shame people don't realise how rare the TTE stuff is. I had a PFL Corolla T Sport which I had to reluctantly sell. I still miss it to this day and would swap my Focus for one in a heartbeat (please don't hate me everyone ). Sadly they seem to have held on to their value more than ST170s have so I couldn't find one within my budget when I was looking. Such a small world it is though. We've both moved from Corollas to ST170s and ended up on the same forum haha!
It a big coincidence that we have both ended up here lol, and your Corolla sounded nice. I've owned my ST for just over 5 years now, which is a personal record for me.
When I first bought my 170 I set my heart on getting a powerworks supercharger, I put away a few pounds in the bank, and I've still not managed to get one . I also spent sometime talking with a German racing team that raced the ST in the ETCC, and also managed to chat with some of the drivers, but sadly nobody was able to give me any real photos of what was done, or any plans or specs for both the chassis or engine
I do still enjoy driving my Focus, and it still makes me smile on my way home from work
23-09-2017, 06:29 PM
I'm very keen on carrying out weekly checks on my car, especially when it comes to tyre pressures. 
