2011 Ford Fiesta Overview

Ford Fiesta

The 2011 Ford Fiesta is an all-new subcompact available in hatchback and sedan body styles.

Unlike much of its competition, the Ford Fiesta is available in both sedan and hatchback body styles. There are some distinctive Fiesta alternatives in this competitive segment. The Fiesta sedan, meanwhile, has a bit less rear seat room than the Chevy Aveo, Hyundai Accent and Nissan Versa.

The 2011 Ford Fiesta comes with four doors in both sedan and hatchback form. The SE hatchback is equipped similarly to the SE sedan but adds a rear spoiler and wiper. All 2011 Ford Fiestas are powered by a 1.6-liter inline-4 that generates 120 horsepower and 112 pound-feet of torque. Disappointingly, there is no manual-shift feature.

Ford estimates the Fiesta's fuel economy at 30 mpg city/40 mpg highway for the automatic and 29/38 for the manual.

Standard safety features include stability and traction control, antilock disc brakes, front-seat side airbags and side curtain airbags. Ford's Sync system (standard in top trims) allows voice control over the audio system and your cell phone, and it also provides features such as voice-prompted turn-by-turn navigation (it works respectably well) and emergency assist. At 12.8 cubic feet, the sedan's trunk capacity is class-competitive. The Fiesta hatchback offers a bit less than that with its rear seat up.

Unfortunately, the seats don't fold completely flat, and the Fiesta's 26 cubes of maximum cargo capacity pale in comparison to the Honda Fit's 57 cubes and the Kia Soul's 53 cubes.

We can say without hesitation that the 2011 Ford Fiesta provides the most rewarding drive in its class.

Thanks to Ford’s “Fiesta Movement” social-media marketing strategy, as well as plenty of buzz from American auto journalists who spent time behind the wheel of the car while traveling to Europe, the 2011 Ford Fiesta may have been one of the most-anticipated small cars to hit American soil in some time.

Ford is aiming this car squarely at “urban millennial” along with empty-nesters. Before we were giving a chance to drive the car, Ford told assembled journalists that the company expects the market for small cars in the U.S. to grow, no matter what happens to fuel prices. Simply put, Ford is betting big on small cars.

This particular small car is available in two flavors—five-door hatchback and four-door sedan. All models are front-wheel drive. A single engine choice is available—a 1.6-liter four-cylinder with Ford’s Twin Independent Variable Camshaft Timing (Ti-VCT). Two transmissions are offered: A conventional five-speed manual and a six-speed automatic that Ford dubs Power Shift, due to its lack of a torque converter. Ford is claiming fuel-economy numbers of 29-mpg city and 38-mpg highway for the manual and 30-mpg city and 40-mpg highway for the automatic. One way that Ford is hoping to snag customers is by offering features typically found in more expensive cars, such as heated leather seats, advanced keyless entry, a push-button start, Ford’s Sync multimedia suite, and electric power steering.

Fiesta’s safety features include seven airbags (including a driver’s side knee airbag) and standard Advancer traction control with stability-control.

When pushed, the Fiesta requires some mid-corner corrections, but body-roll is minimized.

Unfortunately, Ford’s efforts to drown out exterior noise come up a bit short, with plenty of wind, road, and tire noise creeping into the cabin. Moving the front seat forward helped, but then, taller front seat passengers would find their knees touching the glove box. This car costs $19,305 with similar features as the sedan, but it offers slightly different driving dynamics.

Cargo space in the rear hatch looks to be adequate. Overall, the Fiesta has some strength in its favor. It also needs paddle-shifters on the automatic. If Ford has gambled correctly, that will mean a lot in the long run.

The bottom line: A sporty-looking car, the 2011 Ford Fiesta's small size makes it good for urban areas, and it boasts excellent compatibility with personal electronics.

The 2011 Ford Fiesta, designed in Europe, puts that notion to the test. As the Fiesta is a Ford, we knew it would come with Sync, letting us connect MP3 players and Bluetooth cell phones, with voice command for dialing contacts and requesting specific music. This system worked every bit as well in the Fiesta as it had in previous Ford models we've tested, recognizing even  fairly obscure and complex new artist names.

But Sync has plenty of competition now, as just about every new car with a Bluetooth phone system offers dial by name through the voice command system. Likewise, some cars are starting to offer voice command over connected MP3 players.

Though we had no problem using Syncs onboard voice command for music and phone calls, the server side TDI voice command was not nearly as good. Ford justifies not offering onboard navigation because of TDI, but we prefer an onboard system because Sync TDI only works when you have a cell phone connection.