FOXY reviews the new Ford Fiesta

A FOXY Lady Car Review by Jill Woolf

carreview

I love driving, I like cars and I write for a living so when I was offered the chance to do some new car reviews for FOXY Lady Drivers Club, I jumped at the chance.

What could be better than sampling the latest models, designs, shapes and colours the motoring world has to offer?

And after reading up about the new Eco-Boost 1.0l Fiesta that’s so economic to run but without sacrificing engine power, I was keen to find out more. Just don’t ask me how Ford manages to do this but my test drive convinced me I was driving a car with a really powerful engine despite my preconceptions based on the engine size.

But, dear reader, please don’t expect any more than this from me about the internal workings of the engine or those complex on-board computers. Despite being fairly street-savvy, I am still one of those women who benefit from FOXY’s Women in the Driving Seat evenings where the garage or dealer shows you what’s actually under the bonnet and what to do with it!

But how times have moved on for Ford since my first car, a Ford Escort, and the many unhappy hours I seemed to spend in repair shops after silly prangs, where the proprietors seemed to take delight in patronising me. Let’s face it I was young, naive and totally inexperienced at the time. FOXY Lady Drivers Club’s female friendly advice wasn’t even a glint in Steph’s eye back then.

Good looks

Ford_Fiesta_Redesigned_Grill_and_Headlights (1)So you can imagine my surprise and delight when I collected my new Fiesta 1.0 Eco-Boost Fiesta from Birchwood Ford in Eastbourne and saw how much Ford has improved the exterior design, making this particular model look very sporty and jazzy.

The car I drove was in shiny metallic Panther Black (grrr…), which also helped!

The front grille, alloy wheels and almost coupé-like side and rear view make this new Fiesta a really good-looking super-mini; one to be proud to be seen in.

Value for money

This being a FOXY review, it’s important to look at the finances of course. I was particularly impressed by the Eco-Boost Fiesta’s fuel economy recording an average 65.7 mpg as well as a free VED (road tax) bill because of its remarkably low C02 emissions. The mpg ratings are affected by the Stop Start feature which means the car isn’t using fuel when you’re sitting at traffic lights or in a traffic jam yet the moment you touch the throttle it powers up immediately.

These are all important considerations in today’s economy when looking at the cost of running cars, not just the cost of buying one. I’d also add the reassurance that comes with buying a trusted Ford, as illustrated in the Reliability Index (see below), knowing that low running costs will add to your car’s resale value when the time comes to buy the next new one.

Driving performance

fiesta_jill_zoe_1332This gem of a car drives beautifully too. The latest in engine technology means it happily and economically purrs along and the Eco-Boost model slips effortlessly into gear to overtake or meet the challenges of a hill, even with a full load of passengers when we visited the ETC exhibition in Brighton.

It really is a delightful ride; the chunky leather sporty steering wheel feels fantastic and the front bucket seats have electric heating, meaning you just don’t want to get out of it on a cold day.

This car handles brilliantly and corners masterfully.

The practicalities

The modern, updated dashboard not only looks good but is actually easy to use once it’s explained. The friendly sales executive at Birchwood went through every button and widget with me (what a contrast to customer service levels I remembered of old) and I found the Bluetooth connection with my mobile phone easy to operate.

The car comes with parking sensors and a rear view camera (always useful), crystal-clear-sounding radio and CD player, power automatically retractable side mirrors (a boon if you have a narrow garage or when you park on a busy street), a mirror which dims when there’s a car with headlights on behind, heated front windscreen, rain sensor lights and a great black leather interior.

There is a full size spare tyre, not one of those slim-line versions, and the tools for dealing with a puncture are all neatly stored under the tyre.

If I had to find faults, I’d say that for an average height person it’s a little short on legroom in the back, the glove compartment could be bigger, the boot didn’t have the storage bins I’m used to and there’s nowhere easily accessible or safe to store a large handbag! Having said that, the back seats are easy to fold down for extra shopping space, to carry a baby buggy or wheelchair, perhaps.

Ford Emergency Assistance is included for my peace of mind and I should add that the older Fiesta came out No 1 out of 100 in the Reliability Index which augurs well in terms of running and servicing costs in future.

I really enjoyed test driving the Fiesta Eco-Boost but it’s flagged something up I wasn’t expecting – a simmering desire to buy a brand new car.

Watch this space for more reviews as I go through my car buying homework with you in the near future.

Jill Woolf

FOXY FACTS

Model: Ford Fiesta 1.0 Eco-boost 125 PS Stop Start 5 door.
RRP: The new Fiesta range starts from £9795. The EcoBoost model we drove costs £17045 plus £495 for the Panther Black metallic paint.
Buying discounts: See Ford’s website http://www.ford.co.uk/Cars/CarPromotions/Overview. Offers subject to availability and terms.
Fuel economy: MPG is Urban 53.3, Extra Urban 76.4 and Combined 65.7mpg.
Insurance group: 16E.
Road tax/VED: Nil
Safety: 5 Star Euro NCap rating (2012) incorporating Adult, Child, Pedestrian and Safety Assist tests.
Reliability: Number One in the Top 100 cars chart in the Reliability Index.
Environmental C02 rating: 99gsm.

NB: FOXY is expressing personal views and opinions here. Please read this as part of your own car buying homework and test drive experience related to your family needs and expectations.