By Alex Nunez on November 10, 2010 in
The 2011 Ford Fiesta is one of the most talked about new economy cars this year. Already a success in Europe, Ford’s new subcompact is now available in North America as either a four-door sedan or a five-door hatchback, bringing an interesting mix of style, fuel economy, and features to a highly competitive segment. I recently spent a few days with the hatchback. Here are my impressions.
Lively looks (dare we say festive?)
The 2011 Ford Fiesta is an engaging little car, and as is so often the case, it starts with the styling. Giant-sized headlamps, a mouth-like air intake, the bright “Lime Squeeze Metallic” finish, and crisp lines make for an endearing appearance. I felt like I should be feeding it treats. Or maybe summoning it to an epic Pokemon battle. The look works, and in my opinion the hatchback version of the 2011 Fiesta is definitely the more attractive option. (Ford thinks it’s special too – the hatchback actually has a higher base MSRP than the sedan.)
Climbing inside the 2011 Fiesta
The new Fiesta’s cockpit is mostly comfortable and well-organized, but it’s not without shortcomings. The materials are a pleasant surprise: durable-looking patterned seat fabric, multicolored ambient lighting (you can choose the hue), a nice mix of black and painted silver trim surfaces, and plenty of soft-touch material on the dashboard. Big, idiot-proof climate controls, a nicely-styled steering wheel, and a super-convenient stalk-mounted button for the Sync voice-command interface round out the positives.
While the “cellphone-inspired” (that’s how Ford describes it) main audio/communications interface in the middle of the Ford Fiesta's dashboard looks nice enough with its symmetric layout and red-illuminated recessed display, it’s not as intuitive to use as a traditional two-dial setup. A set of buttons marked only with weird hashes (corresponding to boxes at the bottom of the display) make the interface seem very Motorola RAZR in its execution. All of this is interesting, except that cellphone-styled controls don’t play so well in a world dominated by intuitive, touch-screen smartphones. Ford does much better radio interfaces than this in other cars. Also weird: the wheel-mounted audio controls don’t include the ability to change the volume.
The savior? Sync. It’s easily the best voice-activated system I’ve ever used, and you can eliminate a lot of the control fussiness by simply barking out commands. Getting my phone connected to it via Bluetooth was easy, too. There was no owner's manual in the Fiesta's glovebox, but I was able to figure it out by following voice prompts and asking for "help."
Comfort in front and back
The day I picked up the lime-green 2011 Fiesta was the same day that the Tri-State Area (NY, NJ, and CT) was hit with biblical rainstorms, complete with tornados that actually touched down in Brooklyn and Queens. The dreadful conditions turned my commute home from Manhattan to Connecticut into a 3.5-hour stop-and-go traffic odyssey. I can attest that the front seats are indeed comfortable, and there’s a general sense of roominess for the front passengers. There’s no armrest for the driver, though – something I personally missed a lot.
The back seat's more of a mixed bag. This is, above all, a small car, so if you have a tall driver and/or front passenger, legroom behind him (or her) disappears in a hurry . I’m 5’ 9” and I was able to sit behind “myself” with fair legroom and good headroom, but personally, I’d much rather drive or ride shotgun in the Fiesta. While it’s technically a five-passenger car, four adults is the max I’d subject anyone to unless there was no alternative, since the middle rear position is on a thin hump between the two “real” seats. On the other hand, if you’re transporting kids back there, they’ll be fine. My son, a kindergartener, tagged along for the accompanying photo shoot and was happy as a clam in his booster seat, with plenty of room to fidget.
Storage is a mixed bag
If you’re looking for a lot of storage cubbies in the passenger compartment, you’ll be disappointed. The glove box is a fair size, but after that, there’s no closable bin in which to keep things out of sight. Once you plug in your phone or MP3 player to the USB or AUX jack just below the Fiesta's shifter, you’ll need to commandeer a cupholder for it. There are three in the console between the front seats, two for the front passengers, and one for the backseat folks. (I suppose they’d be well advised to buy a large drink and share.) The front doors each contain a bottle holder as well. Again, no such luck for the back.
Things improve, however, when it’s time to load the Fiesta hatchback with groceries and the like. The standard cargo area behind the back seats holds 15.4 cubic feet of stuff. (To offer a little perspective, the Honda Accord sedan’s trunk holds 14.7 cubic feet.) If you need carry more, you can fold the Fiesta's rear seatbacks to open up a max of 26 cubic feet. Note, however, that those seats don’t fold flat, so some larger items might still be a tricky fit.
On the road with the 2011 Ford Fiesta
A 1.6-liter four cylinder making 120 horsepower and 112 lb-ft of torque sits under the 2011 Fiesta’s stubby hood. For a car this size, that’s plenty of power. Unfortunately, the five-speed manual gearbox in my test car was a lousy dance partner for it. (And I say that as someone who enjoys driving a manual.) The shifter itself is very user-friendly, if a bit rubbery-feeling. Clutch effort is easy, and it struck me that this would be an excellent car to teach someone to drive stick with. That said, I found myself constantly rowing that gearbox to keep the car in its sweet spot in terms of power. Something tells me that the optional six-speed twin-clutch automatic is probably worth the $1,070 it adds to the car’s price. (The automatic also delivers better fuel economy; in fact, to get the estimated 40 mpg highway Ford touts in its 2011 Fiesta ads, you need both the automatic and the $395 Super Fuel Economy package.)
Overall, however, the Fiesta is a fun little car. Great steering, good brakes, and balanced handling rule the day. It’s responsive, highly maneuverable, and super-easy to park. Visibility from behind the wheel is good, though your over-the-shoulder view to the right is obstructed by the backseat headrest on the passenger side. The external rearview mirrors are a decent size, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that small blind-spot mirrors were built into them. More importantly, they work.
Should a new Fiesta be on your wish list?
Over five days of mixed local and highway driving, I averaged 30 miles per gallon, and I never go out of my way to maximize fuel economy. (I prefer to let the numbers fall where they may.) The EPA estimates for the manual-equipped 2011 Fiesta are 29 mpg city / 37 mpg highway / 32 mg combined, so I came in a little below the combo number. As they say, your mileage may vary.
The new Ford Fiesta is a neat, reasonably-priced little car. If I were making a wish list of changes I’d like to see, I’d give it a less cryptic radio interface, add a center console storage bin with integrated armrest, and move the USB/AUX jacks in there so that you don’t have wires running all over the console. Otherwise, this is a highly competent subcompact that’s both attractive and enjoyable to drive.
Here’s the breakdown for our test vehicle:
2011 Ford Fiesta SE Hatchback
Base MSRP: $15,120
Rapid Spec Package 203A $755
- Sport Appearance Package
- 15” Painted Aluminum Wheels
- Sync and Sound Package
- 6-speaker 80W Audio System
SIRIUS Satellite & Ambient Lighting Package $370
Destination $675
TOTAL $16,920
Photos
If the above slideshow doesn't display, you can check out a full gallery of 2011 Ford Fiesta photos at