LG John

You can get away with a bit more than 200bhp but not much. My ST220 has circa 223bhp and you only get a chirp from the TC on a fast 1st/2nd change in the dry. The rest of the time you can keep it flat and usually so when under hard cornering. In the wet it spins up more easily but it's still manageable. I suppose the linear na V6 delivery helps as there are no sudden torque spikes to break traction. That said, it does 'squirm' a bit under hard acceleration. I'd guess that anything more than 250bhp through the front from forced induction or 275bhp from na would be an exercise in frustration. These front wheelers with 300bhp+ must be a complete PITA compared to equivalent RWD/4WD cars.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Mine is 250 with 288 torques and in the dry its not an issue, saying that it I do beleive it is limited in terms of boost in first and possibly second, in the wet it grips better than it has any right to but it does quickly run out of ideas, it isnt much fun wet or dry though.

Older cars with 120 bhp which much more lairy and limited by traction, 80's and 90's Vauxalls were horrendous, can only begin to imagine what a Nova with a Calibra turbo engine was like.

RWD is better but a RWD Focus with 300 bhp, unless traction controlled to death is going to be "lively" as well.

LG John

I don't think the issue is so much traction as it is livliness....which we both hint at in our posts. All it takes is to hit a little bump in the ST under hard acceleration in 2nd or 3rd and you need to make a correction to the steering as the brief interruption in grip whilst under power causes a 'kick' through the wheel and a slight direction change. For pure driver enjoyment and fast progress the steering wheel should be to steer the car...not to wrestle with an unsettled front end. Remember this is just a 223bhp n/a car. Imagine a 300bhp front drive with a world of turbo-charged thrust to boot....fvck that!

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

In an ideal world, RWD every time but inconveniently the manufacturers seem to gravitate to FWD for packaging reasons, personally I would rather do a bit of wrestling of a FWD car than it not have enough power to be worth a wrestle, I nearly bought a 330i, lovely car but the power delivery just felt a bit flat after turbo cars, as did a Clio 182, I am however not getting another FWD car, the fiat is RWD and rear engined but 19 bhp isnt really enough

LG John

That was my thinking as well. Initially I was adamant that I'd go RWD or at the very least 4WD. However, I decided to compromise as the ST was so much better equipped and newer/less used for the money - and just as fast - than most RWD or 4WD rivals. I'd have liked to have tried a few Legacy Spec-B's but they were as rare as rocking horse sh*t. Mazda MP6 thing was close but I just didn't like the jap look of them.

At the end of the day it's a comfortable 5 seater car that is designed to cart me and my family (when I make one ) around in comfort and safety but still retain grunt and a degree of enjoyable handling. It does that so I can't be too hung up over very occasional front-wheel drive hang-up's. Like you though, it tilts the sh*t out of me that manufacturers don't appear to realize that for a lot of drivers BMW/Merc's/Audi are more appealing because of their power platforms rather than perceived quality/image. The interior in my car is as nice and as well put together as any 330i but I can't deny I'd love the RWD.

The solution to my problem is to sell the wife's Puma, punt the Mondeo to her as an every day car (22mpg....nae luck love ) and buy a VX220 Turbo or similar. Win-win It'll come as no surprise that I'm thoroughly looking into the VX and it's at least 6-months before I could buy one
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