What I like about my ST

yngrshr · Dec 26, 2020

I admit that I like the infotainment a lot more than I anticipated. After seeing some of the complaints about the iPad-in-portrait-mode display and how small the camera can show, I figured it'd bother me.

Not so thus far. Really enjoy it. Would it be nice if the camera was larger? Sure. But I am shocked at how good the 360 camera display is. Wife and I absolutely love it and it helps so much with navigating tight areas.

Symetry · Jan 7, 2021

#9 for me.

I admit that I was looking for all around comfortable , easy drivable, handling , ride etc etc.

But dang , that 400 hp really settled it for me. I really like pushing the gas pedal and not hoping I can blend in getting on interstate, or needing to switch lanes quickly .

I love that extra hp.

Jim

Symetry · Jan 7, 2021

Oh btw, love it so much , (the hp) that I'm planning to increase that soon.

Jim

kkriskal · Jan 9, 2021

Symetry said:

Cool, let us know how much once you get it done.

Gymrat · Jan 9, 2021

I’ve lead a fairly spartan existence in my last 2 rides (supercharged Roush & GT pp); low to the ground ,built for speed and not a lot of creature comforts.
The ST handles well and has some giddy up. Wow on the tech pkg and creature comforts. YouTube and the owners manual have been a big help to getting to know the ST.
Styling and looks are awesome.
I’d like a little more giddy up but that’s down the road.

Bucephalus · Mar 4, 2021

Here are my likes at 2500 miles.

It looks great…sporty and purposeful!
It's absolutely a blast to drive.
The trillion speaker sound system is a bit excessive but it's sweet. I heard Bentley installs something like 48 speaker in one of their cars.
The suspension/handling is amazing.
The ST’s size and dimensions are pretty much spot-on i.e. wheel base, cargo space, seating, etc.
Towed a medium size utility trailer so far and everything worked as advertised i.e. Tow/Haul mode, electrical connections, blind spot adjustment, etc.
The Intelligent 4 Wheel Drive system works very well in the snow (with proper winter tires of course)
Leg room in the 2nd row seating is wonderful
The 3.0L TT engine is very snappy with decent gas milage (27 mph highway recently)
Rear wheel drive is far superior to Front wheel drive.
My acclimation to the 12” digital instrument cluster is…coming along
Those massaging seats are kind of nice on longer drives but you should have the passenger operate it for you. Concentrate on safe driving.
The storage area above the spare tire is capable of storing a surprising amount of emergency roadside gear (I might do a video on this later).
Found a few commonsense ways to attach trash bags inside where they need to be.
The factory roof rack cross bars are super sturdy (haven’t used them yet)
I’m not big on sunroofs but it’s kind of nice to bring more light inside on an otherwise dark day (we live in the Pacific NW)
The adaptive cruise control takes a bit of patience to learn, but I think does a pretty good job.
The 360-camera system is pretty cool…once you learn to trust it. I’m old school so I "consult" the cameras but depend on the mirrors.
The washer system to clean the rear camera lens works great. But my ST does not have the same for the front facing camera. Wonder why?
Love those auto-folding rear-view mirrors.

My dis-likes are:

Upon delivery the paid-for optional roof rack cross bars were missing and had to be ordered.
Also missing at delivery was the standard cargo net and had to be ordered.
The location of and access to the battery is sub-par. Could have easily provided red/black remote jumper cable terminals like Jeep does on their Cherokee’s.
Access to “Calm” or “Darken” the 10” center display requires me to take my eyes off the driving to navigate down into the menu system (which moves around). NOT SMART! By contrast our 2020 Lincoln Corsair has a physical button right next to the radio volume knob for this. Push it once for “Calm” or twice for “Darken”. Never take our eyes off the road.
Hands free rear liftgate opening is sluggish and sometimes non-responsive (My foot waving has baffled/amused several onlookers).
The exterior appearance of the rear liftgate is very plain looking i.e. big flat area with only the license plate. My wife's Lincoln Corsair has a thin light strip across the entire back. Much more interesting.
Too easy to forget your phone on the wireless charging pad built into the center console. Out of sight, out of mind.
The rotary transmission shift knob takes getting used to (2nd day I had it I switched it into Neutral by mistake thinking I was operating the drive mode knob…that was embarrassing). While backing up I have thrown it into PARK thinking I was going into DRIVE. A standard fore & aft shifter is much more intuitive.
Ford does not put the “Talk to the Car” button at the left thumb (10 o’clock) position on the steering wheel like Lincoln does. Why not?
Ford stubs their toe regarding the supplied factory tow hook (which very weirdly has left-hand threads). My ST was planned to have one and is spec’d out on its “Historical Vehicle Bill Of Material” (even has its own storage pocket inside the spare tire well). However, the car lacks the threaded hole on the front to hand screw the hook to the frame. The car has the little plastic cover in the front bumper but absolutely blank structure behind it. With no other attach point either on the front or under the car (look under there yet?), all generation 6 Explorer owners will be hard-pressed to get any sort of tow strap attached to the front of their car for vehicle recovery. I even talked to the driver at a local towing company and was told all these Explorers have to be dollied. Ford customer service (months of hassle) told me outright Bravo-Sierra and even goofy things i.e. page 52 of your Owner’s Manual discusses vehicle recovery (airbags actually) and (my favorite) “…because your ST was not ordered with the optional Class III Tow Package, that’s the reason there is no front attach point”. Au contraire, all ST’s are standard with the Class III Tow Package (even listed on the top of the window sticker under the “Functional” heading). And exactly how is towing a trailer related to vehicle recovery? Please advise. So, my factory designed & supplied tow hook is completely useless. Ford just wants me to go away. Shameful. I wonder if the Korean, Japanese or Europeans would treat their customers this way?
Another Ford manufacturing loose end is lifting the spare tire cover. This cover is obviously designed for a $2 Nylon finger pull-strap (attach points are built into the underside of the cover and a pass-through cutout for it is molded into the Ford factory rubber floor mat), but no. Ford said the cover was redesigned with finger cutouts. When you go to access your spare tire, I predict any reasonable person will look at what they are calling “Finger Cutouts” and have a Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot? moment. Good luck with those. Again, I opened a case with Ford customer service and was eventually pushed aside. Their standard tactic is to point back to the selling dealer for all answers (and close your case), who already sent me to Ford‘s customer service for lack of factory support (not the dealers fault). This is the “Fit & Finish” category where Ford has struggled for decades. I will craft my own strap and install it exactly where it was designed to be.
No de-icing (heating) elements built into the base of windshield where the wiper blades rest like our Lincoln has. This is a smart safety feature and hopefully will spread to other models.
The owner’s manual says a burnt-out (dead) headlight can only be changed by a dealer? Apparently the entire headlight assembly must be changed instead of a common DIY $40 bulb element from your local parts store. I heard some chatter that each unit (L-R) is $1200-ish out of pocket. Not sure if its covered by the factory warranty. Are we starting to play BMW style Lock-in?

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What I like about my ST

yngrshr

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Symetry

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Symetry

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kkriskal

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Gymrat

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Bucephalus

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