25 Oct 05
At low revs, that five-cylinder engine has a muted hum to its exhaust note, building into a more urgent thrum as you increase the revs, climaxing in a hard-edged metallic-edged wail egging you on all the way to the 7,000rpm rev limiter.
So that you make the most of this noise in the cabin - and not just to frighten traffic as you blast past - Ford has introduced an interestingly named "sound symposer" that channels noise from the engine into the cabin, without introducing excess road or wind noise to dilute the experience.
The six-speed manual box has short-spaced ratios with a short throw, making for fast and accurate shifting. Reaching 60mph can be achieved in second gear and the engine is so flexible you'll hardly find yourself out of third gear during a fast B-road blast. Sixth gear is very much a cruising ratio, with the revs sitting at 2,500rpm at 70mph - making for decent economy - but you're best off changing down to fifth if you want to overtake quickly on the motorway.
