2009 Ford Fiesta Zetec

[Guyon]

Good to see America making progress, wasn't long ago before Ford made complete crap. Congrats on the (old) buy. 

[Thamar]

Have that on the volvo also.

Sure I can get parts, anybody can, just walk into a ford dealership and order them...

[danidmas]

Good to see America making progress, wasn't long ago before Ford made complete crap. Congrats on the (old) buy. 

I don't want to start an anti-american war here (like the good old days of JW LOL!) but I think the Fiesta was developed by Ford Europe

BTW, after seeing the competitive and super-cool Hirvonen's Monte-Carlo winning Ford Fiesta S2000... I kind of like this car... a lot! 

[spanky]

yeah its a german designed and built car... apparently they have a plant in thailand now as well...

glad i got mine from germany though...

[ARMAN]

ehm... you promised proper photoshoot then you get it in September... well my question is - where is it?

[yeckmohr]

sorry i missed this topic, spanky, congrats to you and your family, you got a german designed car from cologne, it won the IRC Monte Carlo, i like this one, it looks so futuristic, my grandpa had 2 old models and everytime when i'm home i drive with the Ford Fiesta with automatic transmission, for doing some little moves from town to town it's perfect.

[wackary]

Congrats! Brilliant little car, designed by Germans but still an American Company which fuels the irony that I cannot buy one here in the US....Just like a decent Focus  ; the one sold here is NOT the same as the Focus sold in Europe     ! Especially that ST thingy 
...maybe a Fiesta in 2011, I guess....hopefully it will be a great success here and our very own automakers will get the F-ing point that not just Euros want good cars!!!!!
Good grief!
Sorry about that momentary rant  , congratulaions on a nice choice!

[spanky]

So ive been so slack with updates and photo's but I thought I'd give you guys a quick long term story for my lady's car.  Its no porsche or ferrari like some of the awesome cars on here but its been a great little car so far.
I didnt realise till recently, how many of these fiesta's they sell in europe. It seems to be a popular little ca,r so you guys probably seem them all the time. Over in Oz though, half the people we meet have no idea what car it is, even though its been out for 2 years here. Ford Oz havent marketed the car very well at all.  Pity too as its the best small car in the market in its price range, besides the polo of course but its so damn boring looking. Anyways...
So yesterday it's had its first set of tyres. I cant believe its 2 years old already. The odometer just clicked 37,000kms, so considering the sporty oriented continental tyres that were on it (195/45/16), I was pretty happy with that kind of mileage, especially as we live in relatively hilly area with twisty roads. Also ive started to notice that all these fiesta's seem to run negative camber, which might be a little part of why its so good in the hills and why the insides of all 4 tyres were stuffed. So on went a set of Yokohama S Drive's.
Attached a picture that kinda shows the negative camber.



The problem I found trying to find tyres was, that 195/45/16 isnt readily available in Oz. Apparently its a Euro size. So nobody had them in stock. Anyways a performance 235/45/17 tyre for my other car is around $200 as its a popular size. These 195/45/16's were $270 each with replacement continentals at $335. So after a bit of bartering, i got down to $250 a tyre which is something I guess. lol
So an overall long term review :
 
Good points:

Awesome on fuel (avg around 6ltr for city/hills and 4.8ltr for hwy)
Quiet on road
Interior at night is still awesome to be in.
Digital Radio, Voice control, Bluetooth, USB port, Ipod/Iphone ports
Big screen in dash tells you everything - no one line screens here
Handles like a go kart on twisty roads
Not a single mechanical failure or any parts or panels drop off
Cheap to service
Little 1.6ltr petrol loves to rev
Keeps up with much more expensive cars in twisty roads
Lots of little things like capless fuel tank, 3 time indicator light with one touch,
interior lighting changeable, dead locks, illuminated gear lever, walk me home lighting etc
Awesome stock stereo
 
Bad points :

Speedo is out. How can new cars speedo's be worse than old cars
Aircon is garbage for our Aussie 45deg summer days
Back of rear seats didnt get any covering on 2009 model so you can see the metal in boot
No rear seat lighting for passengers which is a pain in ass
Crappy light and carpet in boot.
Knowing way more about the car than the dealer who supposed to sell them
No glove box light
Parts of metal under the bonnet only in undercoat, not paint. cheap skates
Rear plastic diffuser feels flimsy when you wash it
Cant turn off ESP at all
Having to wait for the 132kw st turbo model 
 

Even after 2 years I still get a smile after I've driven through the hills. Your still surprised at just how much grip and how fast you can go around corners in this thing. Its a great little super mini. Now she wants the ST when it finally arrives in the next year or two.
Im giving it a 9/10 after 2 years of hassle free motoring.
 
 
 
 
 

[Thamar]

Most of the hatchbacks are fun in the corners when fitted with proper tires!

Some things are easily adjusted. Can't be that hard to wire in a light for the rear passengers, or the glove box or the booth...

And for the ESP, find the fuse for it. But then the car could go into limp mode, not sure. Worth the try (putting back the fuse would solve the limp, no worries )

[danidmas]

Recently I drove the Fiesta 1.6 Sport Match (134hp, only available in Spain as far as I know) and it's indeed a very fun car to drive. 

Anyway, our unit had drum brakes at the back, which is quite ridiculous for a "sporty" version.

http://collaverglas.net/2011/12/10/prova-ford-fiesta-sport-match-1-6-ti-vct/