For a lot of people this is the ultimate car dream: a fast station or saloon. they prefer it over a sportscar.
Probably because you cannot see that it is such a fast car.
You can put your whole soccer team in it and still kick ass at the traffic light.
But a M5, CTV-V or RS6 sounds like fun, they are quite unaffordable. Better tho start slow.
How about this with this Seat Ibiza ST FR. Fun and not that expensive.
A nasty name.. Is it ST FR of FR ST? I don't know. eitherway we have a 1.4 twincharged.
So both turbo and compressor. Same engine as the Cupra, then with 180 PS the FR has 150.
but the Cupra is not available as ST.
I think that is a good policy. I discoverd earlier that I prefer the FR over de the Cupra
The cupra doesn't live up to the expectation it isn't spicy enough. The FR however is what you want it to be.
Look athe the Fabia RS combi, which has more power, but is a worse car than this. fast in straight line, but no balance.
interior is what you can expect for this money. Not that interesting. Een a Fabia looks better.
But you do have that space and this is a car you can explain back home to our family.
but only nice to start with. You have good job and get a great bonus. time for something else.
You spot a nice used car with not so many miles on it. time to move on. another fast station.
How about spotting this and being able to afford it!
The Focus ST wagon! Not the first time, the first generation ST had it as well.
Right now the fastest Focus out there. Because the arrival of an RS is uncertain. I think i'll come...
this wagon doesn't drive that different from the hatchback. A little more weight but it still moves its tail around.
It really pulls forward and sounds really good! They tried to honor the previous ST with 5 cilinders.
The suspension however has trouble with al that power. the wheels slide and move. It needs a real diff.
the advantage is that driving it is always something. You really need to interact with the car to cope with the power.
It does look cool doesn't it. They didn't tone down the hatchback in wagon-format. Still the batman exhaust.
But you can still move up. What station can you get if you are allowed a company car for € 80k? A a fulloption 520i? A loaded 335i?
But those have no sportlabel. you went from FR to ST to...? Something like a C63 AMG is stull to expensive.
Are there lower D-segment stations with a sportlabel? there are......
Time to give the Focus its new purpose: our new long term tester! I move on to this: de Opel Insignia OPC Sporttourer! 325 PS. vroahm!
Quite a special car this. You never see one. you do in Germany and Russia. So why not here? Tax!
this car cold killed when the CO2 tax came. Not Ferrari, not porsche, not car like this took the punch.
Cheap but very uneconomical cars became unaffordable in the Netherlands. Hence: cars like the Insignia OPC.
the V6 turbo in here is very old and very unefficient. the famous Saab-engine.
That V6 has 325 PS, but is doesn't feel like that. The 0-100 is the same as the Focus with 250 PS!
the gearbox is partialy to blame, it is old and very slow. Not double clutch, no fast gear change, nothing.
That doesn;t help. the whole drivetrain just feels old. Old engine, old gearbox, nothing I can do about it.
then the driving, this car has 4WD. So the torque steer from the Vectra OPC is gone. It has a haldex cluch system.
In a corner nice, balance with power, a little lift off oversteer too, nicely done.
the steering is light but direct, it could give little more feedback but it isn't that bad.
the big difference with the Focus ST is the traction. Allways full throttle, never a problem.
But what if your lucky. You win big with poker and now have a massive amount of money to spend.
you always wanted that fast station. And there is something out there. Something new....
Wow it just is SO good. Of course it should be for € 150k...
But is has been a while since I tested a car that was so much would it should be as this.
I drove the old pre/facelift RS5 not to long ago and there is a difference.
the steering!! no longer the artificial heavy stuff. It is no M3, but I can feel what is going on. That is new.
the balance! On a wet road, you can get some power oversteer. No longer the sliding on the front wheels.
That show how playfull this car has become. A much more RWD character. That makes it more fun to drive.
Of course an RS6 is faster, more powerfull. But it is also buncky and heavy. this car is more fun.
This is the best RS since the RS2. This is what an Audi RS should be like. I really think it is fantastic!
That engine! Almost 9.000 rpm! It just is SO fast. The limiter on this one is moved to 280, but I saw 291..
And it just moves up there very fast. And just put it in comfort and it is a nice car for the holiday.
Biggest complaint:fuel economy. Even if you can afford it: every 300 km you need a pitstop.
But I wouldn't go elsewhere just because of that. This is THE station. The dream.