The Fiesta ST has gained quite the cult following since coming out in 2013. When you combine 197 horsepower with a car that weighs about 2,700 lbs, you'll get that. The tiny hatch was just what we enthusiasts were looking for. The Fiesta could be a practical daily driver, and also an absolute riot to drive competitively at any race track. When news broke of an updated Fiesta ST for 2018 everything seemed perfect. Only problem, its not coming here to the U.S.
The ferocious little brother to the Focus ST is being discontinued in North America according to a Carbuzz interview with a high up Ford Exec. The Carbuzz interview was with Ford Performance Europe's director, Leo Roeks and he had this to say:
"It's simply a matter of a lack of interest in the B-segment in America. It doesn't make sense, nor is it possible financially speaking, to import a single trim level, and a niche one at that."
Basically, because there wasn't enough of us enthusiasts to buy the car, it just doesn't make financial sense for Ford to sell it here. Roek went on to say the new Fiesta ST wouldn't support AWD, so if its any consolation, we would have never seen an RS version anyway.
Although it sucks to see yet another cool car produced outside the U.S. market, we still have the Focus ST and that's just going to have to be good enough. If you want a 2017 Fiesta ST don't wait too long. They can be bought brand new for less than 20 grand which is absolute bargain for the amount of badassery you get.