Just picked up a 2021 ST with some mods in Longmont, CO

[rob99rt]

Just picked up a used 2021(with only ~20,600 miles on it) for my wife in Longmont, CO, this past weekend and I'm hoping somebody on this site previously owned it. It's carbonized gray, has a set of H&R springs front and rear, as well as what appears to be a Super forged BBK front and rear. The only other mod I've been able to find is a set of hood struts, but I'm continuing to look around.

So far she's enjoying how it drives and the kids definitely love how it accelerates. At some point it'll get (at least) a cvf intercooler and cold side pipe to deal with the summer heat around here and the heat soak of the stock intercooler.

Fwiw, I've got a 2018 Focus ST that's running a 2867 gen2 along with about every other bolt on, plus an AEM wmi kit to try to deal with the lousy 91 octane we have here in Colorado. Vdyno estimate is right at 390 uncorrected for the altitude, and while it's a lot of fun to drive, it's definitely not as quick to 60 as the ExpST. Hoping we get to enjoy this new-to-us ST for a long time.

 

[Cajun Heat]

Just picked up a used 2021(with only ~20,600 miles on it) for my wife in Longmont, CO, this past weekend and I'm hoping somebody on this site previously owned it. It's carbonized gray, has a set of H&R springs front and rear, as well as what appears to be a Super forged BBK front and rear. The only other mod I've been able to find is a set of hood struts, but I'm continuing to look around.

So far she's enjoying how it drives and the kids definitely love how it accelerates. At some point it'll get (at least) a cvf intercooler and cold side pipe to deal with the summer heat around here and the heat soak of the stock intercooler.

Fwiw, I've got a 2018 Focus ST that's running a 2867 gen2 along with about every other bolt on, plus an AEM wmi kit to try to deal with the lousy 91 octane we have here in Colorado. Vdyno estimate is right at 390 uncorrected for the altitude, and while it's a lot of fun to drive, it's definitely not as quick to 60 as the ExpST. Hoping we get to enjoy this new-to-us ST for a long time.

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Congratulations and welcome to the forum.

Your wife sure looks have with that ST. Enjoy.

 

[rob99rt]

Thanks. Yeah, I hope it treats her well for a long time to come. What she previously drove was a 2016 Transit 350 XLT with the 3.5 EB (15 passenger van... we have 8 kids), and she got t-boned a few weeks ago by a lady who (appears to have) jumped into a left turn lane to pass a string of cars (which were doing the speed limit) and then hit her at what we figure was 80+ in a Mercury Milan. It ended up spinning the van 180 degrees and flipped it on its passenger side, and then the lady who hit her still had enough energy to slide another 200+ feet. She swore to the cops she "was doing exactly the speed limit", but there's just no way... Regardless, the thing that likely saved her and the 4 kids in the back from getting more than some superficial bruises was that she saw the lady out of the corner of her eye and stomped the gas. Thanks to its 400+ ft/lbs of torque, it got the van just a touch further across the intersection, so it hit just behind the kids. Thus, when it came to a replacement vehicle, I'd rather have at least enough torque to get things moving rather than not enough.... so it was going to be either the ST or the Platinum in the Explorer. We were also looking at Expeditions, but holy cow... that's WAY more money. Since we have several kids who are either out of the house or on their way out (in college now), we think a 7-passenger Explorer will work well for us. I wish the rear seats were more comfortable for their sake, though... those things are pretty bad.

Yesterday when we woke up to get ready for church she looked over at me and said "so, you snuck a racecar into the house for me to drive, huh?" I just told her "well, I wanted the 3 liter, and I could only get that 2 ways, and the platinum is even more money. So, the ST was the best option for it". She just gave me a funny look and said "Uh huh."

 

[Cajun Heat]

Thanks. Yeah, I hope it treats her well for a long time to come. What she previously drove was a 2016 Transit 350 XLT with the 3.5 EB (15 passenger van... we have 8 kids), and she got t-boned a few weeks ago by a lady who (appears to have) jumped into a left turn lane to pass a string of cars (which were doing the speed limit) and then hit her at what we figure was 80+ in a Mercury Milan. It ended up spinning the van 180 degrees and flipped it on its passenger side, and then the lady who hit her still had enough energy to slide another 200+ feet. She swore to the cops she "was doing exactly the speed limit", but there's just no way... Regardless, the thing that likely saved her and the 4 kids in the back from getting more than some superficial bruises was that she saw the lady out of the corner of her eye and stomped the gas. Thanks to its 400+ ft/lbs of torque, it got the van just a touch further across the intersection, so it hit just behind the kids. Thus, when it came to a replacement vehicle, I'd rather have at least enough torque to get things moving rather than not enough.... so it was going to be either the ST or the Platinum in the Explorer. We were also looking at Expeditions, but holy cow... that's WAY more money. Since we have several kids who are either out of the house or on their way out (in college now), we think a 7-passenger Explorer will work well for us. I wish the rear seats were more comfortable for their sake, though... those things are pretty bad.

Yesterday when we woke up to get ready for church she looked over at me and said "so, you snuck a racecar into the house for me to drive, huh?" I just told her "well, I wanted the 3 liter, and I could only get that 2 ways, and the platinum is even more money. So, the ST was the best option for it". She just gave me a funny look and said "Uh huh."

We often use the 3rd row for short trips around Houston when our adult kids are in town. My wife usually volunteers to get back there and is comfortable. Enjoy your new "racecar"...lol

Glad that that your wife and kids are ok after the accident.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Just picked up a used 2021(with only ~20,600 miles on it) for my wife in Longmont, CO, this past weekend and I'm hoping somebody on this site previously owned it. It's carbonized gray, has a set of H&R springs front and rear, as well as what appears to be a Super forged BBK front and rear. The only other mod I've been able to find is a set of hood struts, but I'm continuing to look around.

So far she's enjoying how it drives and the kids definitely love how it accelerates. At some point it'll get (at least) a cvf intercooler and cold side pipe to deal with the summer heat around here and the heat soak of the stock intercooler.

Fwiw, I've got a 2018 Focus ST that's running a 2867 gen2 along with about every other bolt on, plus an AEM wmi kit to try to deal with the lousy 91 octane we have here in Colorado. Vdyno estimate is right at 390 uncorrected for the altitude, and while it's a lot of fun to drive, it's definitely not as quick to 60 as the ExpST. Hoping we get to enjoy this new-to-us ST for a long time.

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Congrats and welcome! Since you’ve gone down the modding rabbit hole in the past with your Focus ST I’ll help you with the modding guide for these cars:

https://www.explorerst.org/threads/explorer-st-modding-101-guide.7324/

 

[23 Explorer ST]

Congratulations and welcome!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Blue Beast]

Just picked up a used 2021(with only ~20,600 miles on it) for my wife in Longmont, CO, this past weekend and I'm hoping somebody on this site previously owned it. It's carbonized gray, has a set of H&R springs front and rear, as well as what appears to be a Super forged BBK front and rear. The only other mod I've been able to find is a set of hood struts, but I'm continuing to look around.

So far she's enjoying how it drives and the kids definitely love how it accelerates. At some point it'll get (at least) a cvf intercooler and cold side pipe to deal with the summer heat around here and the heat soak of the stock intercooler.

Fwiw, I've got a 2018 Focus ST that's running a 2867 gen2 along with about every other bolt on, plus an AEM wmi kit to try to deal with the lousy 91 octane we have here in Colorado. Vdyno estimate is right at 390 uncorrected for the altitude, and while it's a lot of fun to drive, it's definitely not as quick to 60 as the ExpST. Hoping we get to enjoy this new-to-us ST for a long time.

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Welcome to the forum.

 

[rob99rt]

Congrats and welcome! Since you’ve gone down the modding rabbit hole in the past with your Focus ST I’ll help you with the modding guide for these cars:

https://www.explorerst.org/threads/explorer-st-modding-101-guide.7324/

Thanks for the link! It'll be nice to have a guide of things to do (and also look for which may have been done by the previous owner). Really hoping the previous owner fixed the 1-bolt subframe problem since this one was built in June of 2021. Was kind of surprised an intercooler wasn't on the list and maybe isn't needed until you get to upgrading the turbos. The factory Focus ST intercooler is basically a beer can's worth of aluminum with plastic end tanks... it's awful. Am I reading that guide correctly for the Explorer ST? The factory intercooler is sufficient and doesn't get heat-soaked like the one Ford put on the Focus ST?

 

[SimonsGTS]

Just picked up a used 2021(with only ~20,600 miles on it) for my wife in Longmont, CO, this past weekend and I'm hoping somebody on this site previously owned it. It's carbonized gray, has a set of H&R springs front and rear, as well as what appears to be a Super forged BBK front and rear. The only other mod I've been able to find is a set of hood struts, but I'm continuing to look around.

So far she's enjoying how it drives and the kids definitely love how it accelerates. At some point it'll get (at least) a cvf intercooler and cold side pipe to deal with the summer heat around here and the heat soak of the stock intercooler.

Fwiw, I've got a 2018 Focus ST that's running a 2867 gen2 along with about every other bolt on, plus an AEM wmi kit to try to deal with the lousy 91 octane we have here in Colorado. Vdyno estimate is right at 390 uncorrected for the altitude, and while it's a lot of fun to drive, it's definitely not as quick to 60 as the ExpST. Hoping we get to enjoy this new-to-us ST for a long time.

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Congrats on your ST, we have the twin and love it! We returned from a road trip to Denver last month too.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Thanks for the link! It'll be nice to have a guide of things to do (and also look for which may have been done by the previous owner). Really hoping the previous owner fixed the 1-bolt subframe problem since this one was built in June of 2021. Was kind of surprised an intercooler wasn't on the list and maybe isn't needed until you get to upgrading the turbos. The factory Focus ST intercooler is basically a beer can's worth of aluminum with plastic end tanks... it's awful. Am I reading that guide correctly for the Explorer ST? The factory intercooler is sufficient and doesn't get heat-soaked like the one Ford put on the Focus ST?

Oh no, factory intercooler is the completely opposite. It literally is the same size as the Focus STs intercooler and gets heat soaked really easily even before a tune.

 

[rob99rt]

Oh no, factory intercooler is the completely opposite. It literally is the same size as the Focus STs intercooler and gets heat soaked really easily even before a tune.

That's what I figured... I popped the hood last night to look around, and saw the tiny thing... Thought for a moment that maybe.... Just maybe Ford might have made it out of some kind of magical metal the dissipates heat at a faster rate than the crappy aluminum they made my Focus ST's intercooler out of... But nope... Same crap.

Dangit Ford...



ETA: Going to assume then that a better intercooler will have a similar affect on the ExpST as it does on the FoST.... Even on the stock tune it'll help it pick up power throughout a run since the pcm won't be pulling timing (as the charge temps would normally go through the roof).

 

[rob99rt]

Congrats on your ST, we have the twin and love it! We returned from a road trip to Denver last month too.

Just for some data points, what kind of gas mileage can you realistically get on the highway at 75-80 with these while running the (kinda-sorta) 91 octane we have out here? I'm sure it'll be better than the Transit as that thing could get maybe 18 on a good day with no wind if you kept it at 65-70, but for every 5mph above 70 you'd lose at least 1 mpg.

Throw in a 10-20 mph head wind and you'd be down to 15.5-16. Kick that up to Wyoming-like 50+ mph winds and it'd drop to 12.5-13. Feeding it premium SUCKED when we had to drive that thing on 10+ hour trips with 30+ mph winds. Surely it'll be less of a fight in winds, too. Fighting to keep a loaded-with-the-family medium roof height van in my lane for 10-14 hours was tough. Very much looking forward to not having to deal with that ever again.

 

[Mekks082]

Welcome from another CO friend.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Just for some data points, what kind of gas mileage can you realistically get on the highway at 75-80 with these while running the (kinda-sorta) 91 octane we have out here? I'm sure it'll be better than the Transit as that thing could get maybe 18 on a good day with no wind if you kept it at 65-70, but for every 5mph above 70 you'd lose at least 1 mpg.

Throw in a 10-20 mph head wind and you'd be down to 15.5-16. Kick that up to Wyoming-like 50+ mph winds and it'd drop to 12.5-13. Feeding it premium SUCKED when we had to drive that thing on 10+ hour trips with 30+ mph winds. Surely it'll be less of a fight in winds, too. Fighting to keep a loaded-with-the-family medium roof height van in my lane for 10-14 hours was tough. Very much looking forward to not having to deal with that ever again.

I got about 24 over a 500 mile trip on a 2-lane road at a very decent speed. Usually get about 16 and around town but I have very heavy foot.

 

[rob99rt]

Looks like there's no diff brace on the rear and it's the 1-bolt, unfortunately. I plugged in the vin and it's not showing up as still needing the recall work, but it's within the affected build dates... So I'm going to assume they've "fixed" it. I'll probably pick up an awr brace at some point.

So... We're up to an intercooler, cold side pipe, and the awr differential brace so far.

 

[SimonsGTS]

Just for some data points, what kind of gas mileage can you realistically get on the highway at 75-80 with these while running the (kinda-sorta) 91 octane we have out here? I'm sure it'll be better than the Transit as that thing could get maybe 18 on a good day with no wind if you kept it at 65-70, but for every 5mph above 70 you'd lose at least 1 mpg.

Throw in a 10-20 mph head wind and you'd be down to 15.5-16. Kick that up to Wyoming-like 50+ mph winds and it'd drop to 12.5-13. Feeding it premium SUCKED when we had to drive that thing on 10+ hour trips with 30+ mph winds. Surely it'll be less of a fight in winds, too. Fighting to keep a loaded-with-the-family medium roof height van in my lane for 10-14 hours was tough. Very much looking forward to not having to deal with that ever again.

With the cruise set at 80mph I think I was getting about 25-26 mpg, even through the Wyoming wind with a decent load for our trip. After traveling through Salida and over the Vail pass I was at about 23 mpg for the whole trip. I only use 91 octane since that's what we also have in California, I have the Ford Racing Tune and it's perfect for our daily driver. But if you want more power go with the ZFG tune.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Looks like there's no diff brace on the rear and it's the 1-bolt, unfortunately. I plugged in the vin and it's not showing up as still needing the recall work, but it's within the affected build dates... So I'm going to assume they've "fixed" it. I'll probably pick up an awr brace at some point.

So... We're up to an intercooler, cold side pipe, and the awr differential brace so far.

Spend the extra money for an ID-Speed brace. To me the AWR puts more stress on the bolt then is necessary due to its design. Steedas brace is similar, but isn’t designed as well and the bolts are known to break.

 

[rob99rt]

Spend the extra money for an ID-Speed brace. To me the AWR puts more stress on the bolt then is necessary due to its design. Steedas brace is similar, but isn’t designed as well and the bolts are known to break.

The ID speed unit definitely looks like it would support the diff much better than the units which only hook onto the differential housing using a couple perimeter bolts, but that price, though..... The issue is cash flow (or lack thereof)... Still have 7 kids at home and I'm the sole income, so mods are going to need to be done in their order of necessity.

The stock intercooler just sucks, so that's an important one, but having the rear diff turn loose would be worse... On the other hand, Jenny's not going to be hammering on it from stop lights or getting a tune for it anytime soon, so the likelihood of her putting a huge load on the diff isn't very high right now.

Any thoughts?

 

[2020FordRaptor]

The ID speed unit definitely looks like it would support the diff much better than the units which only hook onto the differential housing using a couple perimeter bolts, but that price, though..... The issue is cash flow (or lack thereof)... Still have 7 kids at home and I'm the sole income, so mods are going to need to be done in their order of necessity.

The stock intercooler just sucks, so that's an important one, but having the rear diff turn loose would be worse... On the other hand, Jenny's not going to be hammering on it from stop lights or getting a tune for it anytime soon, so the likelihood of her putting a huge load on the diff isn't very high right now.

Any thoughts?

Honestly, I wouldn’t do anything to the car then. An inter cooler is only noticeable if you have a heavy foot. Same with the diff brace. As long as you don’t drive too aggressive then stock form is perfectly fine. Totally understand the money thing, I’m still completely stock because it’s hard to justify so much into something that’s already so good. Not saying it’s not easy to keep it stock though. When your ready a ZFG Tune with Intercooler and diff brace will be the best starting combo. I’d wait a little while on the intercooler and/or diff brace and see what you want to do then. Stock form is plenty fun until then.