Article Comments - 2009 Ford Fiesta First Drive and Full Test

91 messages, Last post on Nov 20, 2009 at 12:28 PM

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What is this discussion about? Ford Fiesta, Future Vehicle, Hatchback

First Drive: 2009 Ford Fiesta - First Impressions: Small European cars haven't made much of an impression in America before, but the Fiesta might be different.(more)

2009 Ford Fiesta Titanium Full Test and Video - Bottom Line: We're crossing our fingers (and toes) that Ford doesn't stray too far from this winning combination of style, performance and efficiency when the 2011 Ford Fiesta finally arrives in 2010. (more)

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#8 of 91 rear headrests by vvk Aug 27, 2008 (9:39 am)
Who wants to bet that everything that makes Fiesta an outstanding European car will be stripped off to "match American consumer taste," including rear headrests?
#9 of 91 Re: you just know (nippononly) [hpmctorque] by nippononly Aug 27, 2008 (5:07 pm)
Replying to: hpmctorque (Aug 27, 2008 12:39 am) How about the Jetta? It sells in much larger numbers in the U.S. than the Golf, from which it was derived? Well, if asked to choose between Jetta and Golf/Rabbit based solely on styling, I would pick Golf in a heartbeat. But I should clarify my remark a bit: there are models where the sedan and the hatchback were both styled independently from the ground up to be what they became. The Yaris is just such a model - the sedan and the hatch were designed by two different teams - and as a result both look like they were designed to look as they do INTENTIONALLY, not as an afterthought. I believe the Jetta/Bora is another - styled independently from the Golf. The problem occurs when a car sold only as a hatchback elsewhere is "converted" after the fact to be a sedan for American consumption - they hack off the hatch, glue on a trunk, and call the job complete. Ugh, is all I can say to all the models like that I have seen. Is Versa such a model? It rather looks like it is. That is what I am afraid they will do for the Fiesta, as to my knowledge it is not sold as a sedan anywhere else. And as we know (since it is already on sale in Europe), the design of the new Fiesta is complete.
#10 of 91 Call me crazy . . . by mattandi Aug 28, 2008 (6:00 am)
but the five door hatch version is a great looking little car. I would think that it would compete well against many of the other small wagons available in the U.S., even some that are slightly larger (think Fit, Vibe, etc.). It may suffer some decontent, but if it can come in topping out around 20k or a bit more that seems a reasonable target. If Ford can leverage this global concept, they should be able to get costs down without stripping away too much content. I am with nippon in that it would be nice to see an unmolested, fully European model hit the U.S. market though, even if only as an optioned version. My suggestions would target marketing mostly. Don't compete on price, market the car. (recent insanity has shown U.S. buyers have some tolerance for premium prices on small cars) Bring over the hatch version, but call it anything other than a hatch. I'm not sure I buy into the "Americans don't like hatchbacks" thinking anyway. Bring over the smaller engines and the diesel, and then market the utility and fuel economy. Buck the "more HP is better" trend. Take a page out of Hyundai's marketing book, and take direct aim at competitors, even some that at first seem silly. Of prime importance, do not under any circumstances compromise quality to reach some cost target. Ford's quality improvements are just beginning to get noticed. Any move away from that would be suicide. Replies to this message: kirstie_h (Aug 28, 2008 11:28 am) mattandi (Aug 29, 2008 8:40 am)
#12 of 91 Re: Call me crazy . . . [mattandi] by kirstie_h HOST Aug 28, 2008 (11:28 am)
Replying to: mattandi (Aug 28, 2008 6:00 am) I'm in the nuthouse with you - I kinda dig this car. Replies to this message: mattandi (Aug 29, 2008 8:40 am)
#13 of 91 You are not crazy by dodol1 Aug 28, 2008 (7:54 pm)
Yes the 5 door hatch looks great Ford need to bring it to USA ASAP don't wait any longer before the competitor start recovering by introducing better models get here and grab back some market.
#14 of 91 Re: Call me crazy . . . [kirstie_h] by mattandi Aug 29, 2008 (8:40 am)
Replying to: kirstie_h (Aug 28, 2008 11:28 am) Whew, I feel much better now. Seriously, I have been pleased with the 5 door small wagons that have been offered in recent years. I used to have a '94 Civic hatch, and it remains one of my favorite cars. 3 doors just didn't cut it once kids came along. 5 doors offer much more utility for small families, and everyone for that matter. Disregarding variances in size, this includes the Fit, Vibe, Rio, Mazdaspeed Mazda3, and a host of others. Obviously they have their strengths and weaknesses, but they're all decent little cars. Frankly though, exterior styling has left me a little flat for the most part. This Fiesta catches my eye though. I like the styling a tick or two more. It has just a bit more sizzle to me. So, there's another marketing point. Sell the style. Of course that presents a dilemma. It looks quick, and if it looks quick, we are going to want it to be quick. Those little engines don't have a whole lot of get-up-n-go in them. Then again that '94 Civic wasn't a road burner, but it was still fun to drive.
#15 of 91 Why not now? by scott92530 Sep 02, 2008 (2:51 pm)
Why can't Ford get this car to the US now? I've had a Fiesta, great car for it's time, and a Festiva, a real econobox then, and now have a '05 Roush Stage 1 Focus zx5 -- looks sexy but still a Focus under the skin. Each car has been a good combination of features for its generation. The new Fiesta would be an excellent partner to the new Focus, since the hatchback was dropped in '08. Ford needs to get their act together here in the US if they expect to reverse their slipping marketshare.
#16 of 91 The catch. . . by stephen987 Sep 03, 2008 (6:29 am)
Engines. That's gonna be the catch. Offer both a 1.6 gasser and the top diesel, sell the thing at Fit prices, and then find a way to move the Focus upmarket (i.e., replace it with a version of the Euro platform). Then there'll be no apologies needed.
#17 of 91 Why not now? (scott92530) by hpmctorque Sep 03, 2008 (5:52 pm)
You mentioned Festivas. Although the late '70s-'80?? Fiestas that Ford imported were more fun to drive than the more recent Festivas, I occasionally still see one on the road. I saw one yesterday, in fact. Those cars defined econobox, but they were surprisingly durable. Like the Geo metro, I understand that some Festivas racked up hundreds of thousands of miles. I hope the 2010 Fiesta will be as durable as the Festiva. Replies to this message: nippononly (Sep 03, 2008 7:58 pm)