km : Automotive News

We have some good news as some bad news. While the five-door Fiesta hatchback, from what we can see in these photos, will arrive here with its Euro-spec look almost completely intact, the Fiesta sedan isn't quite as handsome. That's fine with us, because we were never much excited about the sedan, anyway.

The pictures of the Fiesta five-door show a car that's grown quite familiar over the past year of fantastic Top Gear segments and the Fiesta Movement. Those great colors, those cool-looking split five-spokes, it's all there. (Pedants will note that the grille is now an insert rather than an integrated part of the front fascia.) What we don't like quite so much is the big chunk of chrome and a vertical LED strip Ford decided to stick where a simple black grille or a foglight on some models might go. Who thinks that looks nice? Did Ford of America just think, hey, it's American so we have to stick some chrome somewhere? We don't like it, but fortunately it's probably a quick parts swap or even just a rattle can of black paint away from looking good again.



We were never too into the sedan, but we definitely aren't now that we've seen its grille. At least it matches those chrome pentagons at the corners, but it seems like an afterthought and an attempt to draw a connection with Ford's bigger sedans in the US. We think it's awkward with the eggcrate bottom and the razor blade top. Still, the newest pictures show the sedan's proportions to be slightly less awkward than some early spy photos.

So is the Fiesta different from the one WE DROVE last month? Yes and no. Steve Pintar, the car's chief engineeer, claims that "For North America, the global Fiesta was tweaked, not re-designed or re-developed. We built on the success of the European Ford Fiesta and are really proud of how little was changed." That said, we're told that about 40 percent was changed. Most of the alterations were simply to comply with US crash standards. The front structure is slightly different and more high-strength steel is used. The car has slightly more front leg room as a result, and it also uses a passenger-side knee air bag, which should help it score a five-star crash rating. Some interior materials have also been changed, but we're told all the edits have been for the better. Our guys on the show floor tell us the optional leather is quite buttery.



To help fuel economy, the Fiesta uses an electronic power steering system (EPAS) but Ford's engineers worked overtime to preserve the car's sharp, communicative system. EPAS is here to stay, Ford says, claiming that by 2013, 90 percent of its products will be thus equipped. For the Fiesta, it comes with a few added benefits: "Pull-Drift Compensation" automatically corrects the steering to compensate for crowned roads or side wind gusts, while "Active Nibble Control" detects and compensates for tire balance irregularities. Both are class-exclusive.

Under the hood, there's more good news. The Fiesta will be offered here with a choice of a standard five-speed manual transmission or, in place of the expected automatic, a six-speed dual-clutch automated manual that Ford calls "Powershift." It's been available in Europe, and now it'll serve as the automatic option here. It's a dry-clutch, maintenance-free unit that should last the predicted 10-year, 150,000-mile lifespan of the Fiesta without issue. Mated to the Fiesta's 119-hp, 109-lb-ft 1.6-liter, it should deliver 30 mpg city and 40 on the highway. That 1.6-liter is the only engine offered here for now and it features variable valve timing and a fun, quick-revving character.



When the Fiesta goes on sale in 2010, it should be the most European-feeling subcompact available in the US, delivering far more thrills than the Nissan Versa or Toyota Yaris, and even the fun-to-drive Honda Fit. It's success may help decide how Volkswagen approaches the Polo's arrival here, so we hope the insane amount of marketing Ford has done this year pays off, and that the 60,000-some early hand-raisers are just the beginning for Ford's little foreign exchange student.

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