Those of you who listen to The Smoking Tire know that Matt Farah’s COBB Stage 3 Fiesta ST, as featured in the above video, is coming to live with me here in Powell, Ohio. About a year ago, I joined Matt (and Jay Leno, and about fifty other people) for an early morning run on the Mulholland Highway and I took the Fiesta for a spin down this road…
I’d been a fan of the Fiesta ST during R&T‘s Performance Car Of The Year, stating that
The Fiesta ST is recommended without reservation. As a dynamic proposition in the real world, it is without peer. Were this magazine named simply Road, it would have the Fiesta ST on the cover six times a year. On the track, however, the ST is outgunned. You’d never get sick of the steering or the balance, but at a track day, you’d get sick of having your point-by hand out the window for every straight. Third place, with honors.
Matt’s COBB Stage 3 package helps to redress that lack of on-track power, but make no mistake: this is still a street car at heart. Which is fine, because it’s not my car. It belongs to Danger Girl, who has fallen out of love with her prep-school-mom-edition Tahoe Z71. We’ll see how she enjoys switching between a car that weighs 2,720 pounds and one that weighs 5,522 pounds.
Alright, let’s see what Bark and I managed to sneak by the editors this week.
At TTAC, Bark helped a middle-aged father find his perfect compromise car. I gave the readers a rental review of the facelifted Focus then offered to give them free TEXAS EDITION badges. Looks like at least one reader is going to take my suggestion to put it on his wife’s bare chest and send a photo. Woo-hoo!
For R&T I told the cautionary tale of my motocross adventure and then made the case against a mid-engined Corvette. That latter post was primarily notable for an angry response from some mook who assured me that the Lotus Elise was totally reliable. That’s news to me — and it’s also news to Elise owners.
In the upcoming week, I’ll be testing a Corvette convertible and, with any luck, an Indian Roadmaster touring motorcycle. As for Bark… only the Shadow knows!
“That latter post was primarily notable for an angry response from some mook who assured me that the Lotus Elise was totally reliable. That’s news to me — and it’s also news to Elise owners.”
I noted on teh Jalops that one of our consultants bought an Elise as a sort of retirement present to himself. When I saw it, I thought “I hope to hell this thing is fun to drive, because it looks like it was built by a bunch of winos under a bridge.”
Well, he’ll have plenty of time to ponder his decision “WHEN HE’S LIVING IN THE LOTUS DOWN BY THE RIVER!”
Matt Farley SNL reference for those of you who missed it.
Is Dune the best fiction ever created? I’m seriously asking… It’s gotta be in the top 3-5 of all time.
It really impressed me when I was in my teens. It continues to impress me for entirely different reasons. As a kid I thought the first book was perfect and the later ones were junk. The older I get the more I like “Messiah” and “God Emperor”.
Great week, guys.
Regarding the first sentence in your Mid-Engine Corvette article: I don’t think it was Warren Bolster, the legend among surfing photographers, but I do recall seeing one pro’s on shore rig sporting an AVG “Flying Tigers” shark mouth on the front of his massive telephoto lens in the 80s. Do any of the long-lens crew decorate their prized tools that way today?
Being on the pragmatic side regarding keeping older iron running and enjoying the new technology vehicles, I really should set aside some monies to pick up and hop up a FiST; it truly is the modern rendition of Dodge’s Shelby-massaged Omni GLH/Turbo/GLHS but without all the Jekyll/Hyde quality control issues.
And just like that Electric Milk of Magnesia paint some L-bodies sported, I can get one in blue.
Like the video , the road looks familiar ~ GMR perhaps ? .
I’m not able to have sound where I watch videos .
-Nate
Nate, if the issue is distracting others rather than your being unable to hear, even if the machine lacks an earplug jack, I believe you can get a device that will plug into a USB port that could connect to wireless headphones, for example. Might not be worth the trouble, but it’s an idea…
Otherwise, not sure what machine you have, but a lot of the earplug jacks on for example laptops are hidden around in the back, for example.
I agree that like controlled fusion a consumer grade mid engine car is always just ten years away. I suppose the General just wants to tweak Ford and their GT and produce a limited edition with some specs which exceed the Ford’s.
Funny, with all of your varied interests I didn’t expect you to be a GA enthusiast. My father at 40ish got the bug and I enjoyed flying with him as a child as well as an adult. When his grandkids came about he was frequently flying to visit them with my Mom. 6 place aircraft tend to be kinda slow and you have to choose between full passenger load and fewer people plus their luggage.
I see a lot of the guys bringing up the ford GT. I’m sure it will be great but collectibility will not be good for a V6. The fact that they make that flat plane crank V8 and don’t put it in the GT is a god damn travesty.
My TTAC log in died, years ago.
RE: TEXAS and your love of Car2Go
I would be happy to create a fleet of smart Car2Go TEXAS EDITIONS in the parking lot of a major city.