You and I know that cars are not ‘just’ transport. They aren’t even ‘just’ art, or ‘just’ engineering. Actually, the thing that we car enthusiasts know to be the most resoundingly crucial and brilliant aspect of cars is the way they affect us humans. Inanimate masses of metal and wires they may be, but a particular model of car can bring people together and even come to represent a whole era and social ecosystem. On top of that, we have an undeniably emotional connection with them.
I was dwelling on this while prodding about in the Hyundai i20 N’s slightly daunting command bridge of customisable settings, having just stepped out of a Ford Fiesta ST Edition. Deciding which of these two is better for the forthcoming twin test in the issue on sale on 14 July was never going to be easy.
After all, I know how brilliant the i30 N is, and I never doubted that the i20 N could distil a similar ‘my first rally car’ feel. Which is exactly what it’s done, with delicious insouciance. The tough part is that deciding if something can better the Fiesta ST requires me to put aside that inconstant, squishy, emotive, human part, because this is absolutely one of those cars that is a big part of our culture and lives. So much so that it felt peculiarly like I was cheating on someone (or something, I suppose) to even consider that the i20 N might be better than the Fiesta ST. The final decision won’t be revealed yet, but just the act of dissecting the Fiesta ST’s merits in order to make a judgement felt like taking the loyal family dog to the rehoming centre, just in case a cuter one was available.
This connection to the Ford is inevitable, really. After all - like most people - I grew up with it. I learned to drive in one, a friend’s ‘angry eye’ Zetec S was the first car I drove with intent after I passed my test, and I’ve seriously considered buying various Fiestas over the years.
While I will apologise now for opening the ‘spoiled motoring journalist file’, a 2005 Fiesta ST was also one of the first press cars I was entrusted with on work experience for this very title. Memorably, I also drove a Fiesta XR2 around some picturesque bits of North Wales for a hot Ford feature way back in 2012 and, to top it all, I drove Jari-Matti Latvala’s actual WRC Fiesta to a mundane Midlands supermarket car park.
Sure, the XR2 is barely an afterthought in the wake of the Peugeot 205 GTi, and the original 2005 Ford Fiesta ST was a bit heavy and, well, just not as good as a Renaultsport Clio (sorry, Ford).
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It may not end the Fiesta's reign in Autocar's eyes, but I bet as an owner proposition the Hyundai wins hands down. It will have less niggly little issues, less essential extras to buy, a much better warranty and I am convinced that its dealers are better (albeit fewer). Plus it comes from a manufacturer whose fortunes are on the up, rather than one which is struggling for European survival. It is certainly the one that I would choose.