Hi Daz and All! as being a tall fella at 6'4, i have no problems with my fez, came from a mini cooper then a zafira gsi , and i must say i do like my st the best, It maybe not the smoothest car in the world but thats part of the fun of it nice and rawcuss but in a funway and boy does it love the twistee's, so daz i think you will defo enjoy the , but only you now wot you want out of a car, have fun with your test drive.

Like you said speed limits are there for a reason, but 40MPH and 3 miles he's avin a laugh!! every car iv'e had , iv'e taken a minimum of 1 hour and on occassions the sales guy has given me the keys for me to take it for a spin(as rare as) which was great, If they can't give people proper test drives of there products then just walk away! PLENTY more forecourts out there.

Welcome Daz...

I also have 2 kids, 10 & 8.

I don't have any problems even with the eldest behind me. No adjustments have to be made to accomadate them.

You will probably have more room in the back as your current CC is a bit of a squash isn't it?

Anyway I used to have a 1.6 dynamique megane and it took all of 2 mins to forget about owning it once I got the ST.

All the best

Rob

Having got kids I'm very grateful for the speed limits in built up areas, but to be told we couldn't leave those areas was rubbish. It was no different to driving round the block in my car. Garages should have a route that lets you get a feel for the car on all road types.

Welcome Daz

I find the St to have enough room for 2 children in child seats in the rear and it is surprising how much of their rubbish I can fit in the boot, including a maclaren major buggy. Went to one of the meets with the kids and a whole wardrobe of clothes each, toys, enough food for 4 days scooters, buckets and spades etc.

My son has lower rate mobility dla, so we dont qualify for motability.

So I dont think you will be disapointed with the st, the sensible family car! Just dont drive it like I drove mine or the kids will be falling on each other as you corner.

Thanks for the comments from those of you with kids. I am only a short chappie so have to have the seat quite far forward so rear room in the CC actually isn't that bad. I drive on nights out which involves my 6 foot mate getting in the back. I'm looking forward to my test drive tomorrow, and then i've got 4 months to wait

Hi Daz, Like all the guys said everyone is friendly on this forum and always there to give advice. However for your particular situation I think I can offer and understand the advice you are seeking. I've had many vehicles through motability over the past 15yrs and a private owned car (not motability) for trackdays, B-road blasting and trips to the nurbergring. Oddly enough one of my brothers has got the exact same car (megane CC 1.6) colour and all! that you have and I have drove it many times so trust me when I say "I feel your pain brother!" Driving that Megane is a very scary experience, it weighs more than the moon and handles as if the tyres had been constructed of nothing more than jelly, absolutely no feedback in the twisties and I don't think it's ever overtaken another vehicle due to having no more power than my missus's hairdryer! And that’s when it's not in the garage for repairs!
Currently I'm running a heavily modified Clio Cup (personal car) and like yourself have been scouting the motability lists/prices in search of a car for the missus (motability car). Today I took the ST for a 3hr test drive, yes that’s right '3HRS', however I did have to do a bit of addressing with the dealership to get the ST to myself for this period of time. At the beginning I was told the usual, "off course you can take the ST for a spin and one of our staff will be accompanying you", this is a common problem and a dirty tactic used by many dealers, not just for motability but for private lease purchase as well, a problem which trading standards had brought to the house of commons around a year ago, but it seems it is a problem that still has not been addressed. Luckily as you will be getting yours through motability this gives you a good amount of leverage to apply in your favour towards taking the car by yourself for up to a day. If you wish to have a full and proper days test drive simply phone your dealer and tell them that this car is going to be got through motability and a quick spin just is not enough as you will be having the vehicle for 3yrs and you need to be sure that it will meet your needs, say that in the past you have had many motability vehicles, several of which had to be returned due to the vehicle being found unsuitable for your personal needs and the reason they were returned was ultimately because you weren't allowed/given the chance to test drive a vehicle that needs to meet your personal needs and a quick test drive could cause this to happen again. Explain that you need the vehicle for a day or at least a good few hours in order to be sure that it meets your personal health issues and needs. That should get you the car for a good few hours without further hassle from the dealership. I know exactly what you mean with regards to the deposits of motability vehicles and like yourself when I saw that the Fiesta ST was only £500 (it's next equivalent approximating around £2000) the choice became quite an easy one. After 3hrs with the ST I found it to be a great little car, though nowhere near my clio in terms of performance and handling, the build quality is slightly higher, the ride is firm and in the bends very compliant and very enjoyable. It has plenty of grip to offer, it looks, handles and goes like a hothatch should, the brakes are crisp and have plenty of bite. The engine has plenty of go and to get the best out of it you need to take that rev needle to the red but it certainly didn't disappoint. The only thing I will be doing to our ST (I placed the order today for the missus) is fitting a Pipercross Viper induction kit and upgraded backbox to let the engine breath a bit more freely, as there is power in that engine it just feels restricted low down. Later on down the line when the engine has been broken in I may consider a dreamscience unit, flexy pipe upgrade and a few other minor things towards the suspension ie, lower springs, strut brace etc...(things that motability have never had a problem with me fitting on previous vehicles) However the car even in standard guise is a proper little hothatch and should have no trouble keeping up with most other hothatches out there especially in the twisties. In short for the £500 deposit you really can't argue, the ST is a great little car in it's own right, but to have it on the motability list for £500 is probably the best offer motability have ever listed. Over the years I've driven and raced on tracks some serious machinery from a 1.0L mini to a Maclaren F1 and even amongst this kind of company the Fiesta ST wouldn't/didn't disappoint, if car space isn't a issue and judging by your current car it isn't then go for the ST, it is a great little car and I can't wait to take delivery of our own. If you've taken the test drive (or rather a quick spin with the dealership man sat at the side of you) then re-request a proper and thorough test drive to make sure that it addresses all your needs as stated above. Good luck! I hope my post has been of help to you, if you've anymore questions just ask. If I don't have an answer, I'm sure one of the guys or gals will, like I said they are very friendly and are more than happy to offer their help and advice.
P.S If you go for the ST you only have a choice of three colours Moondust Silver, Panther Black or Performance Blue. I believe that performance Blue is unique to the ST range and with the decal kit looks fantastic. To me silver is boring and a company car colour, Black (from personal experience) is a real pain to keep clean so we went with the blue.

Thanks for that reply Mighty Atom. You sure seem to know how to handle the sales people. I have to admit that I had always been curious as to whether Motability would allow modifications to be made to the car where performance and handling were concerned. I would love to start tinkering a little. There are some proper sports cars coming on to the Motability lists now (Mazda RX8, MX5, Megane GT, Astra SRI) and I agree with you that the St is stunning value. It is top of my list for this reason and I do believe that it will have to be very bad for me to choose something else. I had noted that Motability were only offering the metalic paint option which is a shame I would have liked the white with blue stripes but will have to settle for the performance blue with stripes, but for £500 you can't complain. I will opt for the technology pack as well if I have one. This will bump the deposit up to around £950 but still amazing value I can't see the size being a big issue and if I find I need something a little bigger for anything then I'll just borrow my parents Scenic. The sales chap at Vauxhall was a little better than the renualt dealer, but he still insisted on coming along and the test drive lasted about 15 minutes, but he did fit a good selection of roads in for me. I am a little disappointed that the price of the Astra has gone up so much but i am getting quite excited about the Fiesta now.

As far as my existing car goes I have to say that I will miss it on sunny days, after all that is what the car is for. It is a dreadful shame that a car which looks so sporty is such a dissapointment to drive. I also get to drive my girlfriends 55reg MG ZR 2.0L TD and that is incredibly quick for a diesel, it has so much torque. Driving that has also inspired me to look at cars with sports suspension, i know they can be a hard ride but I don't think you notice that to much when you are behind the steering wheel, but i sometimes get the feeling that the passengers notice.

Anyway i will let you know my thoughts after this test drive and i will definately push the sales man for a longer drive another day if he can't let me tomorrow

I've had my test drive today, or as the sales chap put it a ride round the block, because thats all I did get. I think we may have done 4 miles and was back at the dealership after 15 mins. 10 minutes of that time was spent sitting in traffic. We stuck to a route with a maximum of 40 but because of the traffic I actually didn't get above 30. We approached a dual carridgeway and I assumed we were going on that and he said to me "go all the way round the island and back the way we came please". I got no feel what so ever of the performance of the car. Very dissapointed. Not with the car though. Whilst I didn't get a feel for the performance or handling I have to say that the build quality is 100% better than my CC. The suspension is firm but not back breaking and the seats were very comfortable.

When I told him that I would be ordering in December for March delivery he told me that Ford are bringing out the new fiesta very soon and I may not get an ST.

yes the new fiesta should come out next year but think u going to have longer for an ST version of it! and also it probably going to be more expensive than the current model!can get good deal on this current model!!

alright mate, i hear uve been getting cars on motability for a long time, ive just been awarded the higher level of disability living allowance and im 19, u dont happen to know whether they would insure me on an st do you? i know its £500 for a deposit and ive got 2 years no claims?? any thoufghts please let me know! cheers