Performance – Apart from motorcycles, this is the smallest engine that I’ve come across. It is a 1.0L, 3-cylinder, turbocharged motor. Yes, you read that correctly. 1000cc and only 3 cylinders power this 1100kg Fiesta. It produces 120hp and 112 lb-ft of torque. Compared to its other “micro-car” rivals, it has the smallest engine and also the most powerful. For only being a 1.0L engine, it’s actually a decent amount of power but the engine feels very grumbly and rough below 2000rpms. The turbo spools up at a relatively quick pace however you don’t feel the power really kick in until around 3000rpms. And with this car you will definitely know when the turbo is fully utilized. When it spools up, you can hear it suck in air. When you release the throttle, you can hear the blow-off valve. While this may not be a competitor to a Toyota Supra or a Nissan Skyline, it sounds like it wants to be and that alone makes for a more interesting driving experience.
Further making the driving experience more enjoyable is the way this Fiesta goes around corners. Small compact Fords have always been known for their quick and agile handling characteristics and this Fiesta is no exception. The steering is quick and direct with a fair amount of feedback being given back to the driver. The handling is so good in fact that you can carry a lot of speed and momentum through corners which allows for less braking and faster corner exits. This car would be an ideal platform for B-Spec racing.
Comfort – Typically sub-compact vehicles tend to have very bare interior cabins in terms of gadgets and even creature comforts such as A/C. Not with this one though. This SE model has all of the creature comforts that anyone would expect to find in any normal vehicle along with some gadgets that are usually found on more expensive models. This Fiesta includes Ford’s Sync system for connecting your electronic devices as well as Bluetooth and USB connectivity.
The design of the center console and dash are miles better than the competitors. The center console looks futuristic and almost “alien” in design and the instrument needles look like little lightasbers as they dance around with the engine rpm and vehicle speed. There is plenty of space for the driver and front passenger but taller passengers will find the rear seats very cramped.
Odds and Ends – This model year has an updated exterior that takes a lot of its inspiration from its older cousin, the Ford Fusion. It has the same large Aston Martin-ish grille and in side profile especially, it almost resembles a scaled down version of the Fusion. I also like some of the little details on this Fiesta like the Ford logo imprinted on the headlamps and the fact that Ford’s idea of “blind spot monitoring” is a wide angle mirror rather than an expensive electronic feature as on other vehicles. All in all it’s a nice and esthetically pleasing design.
The whole point of this small engine is to save fuel and in that regard it can do it at a rate of 6.2L/100km in a city and 4.3L/100km on a highway. That fuel rating beats out nearly all of its competitors by a long way. However there is another side to this coin because the combination of this engine in this car comes with some “restrictions”. First is that it is only available with a manual transmission which is fine for me but the majority of drivers in North America either don’t know how to drive a manual vehicle or prefer to have an automatic. Secondly, this engine is only available on the SE trim model and that means that you’ll be paying approximately $16,000 CAD rather than $12,000 CAD that a base Fiesta costs.
Ford’s engineers have done it again. They’ve taken a boring city commuter car and gave it the right ingredients to liven it up and make it fun all while sipping fuel and saving you money at the pumps.
Thank you to West Coast Ford Lincoln for providing the vehicle and visit their website to view this and other vehicles that are available for purchase or lease. www.WestCoastFordLincoln.com
