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Home | Ford | Review 2012 Ford Fiesta SFE With Super Fuel Economy February 20, 2012

Review 2012 Ford Fiesta SFE With Super Fuel Economy

2012 Ford Fiesta is powered by a 1.6-liter inline-4 that generates 120 horsepower and 112 pound-feet of torque. A five-speed manual transmission is standard and a six-speed automatic is optional. Technically, the automatic is actually a dual-clutch automated manual transmission; it provides quicker gearchanges than a traditional torque converter-based automatic and delivers better fuel economy than a conventional automatic, too. The driving experience may feel a little different, however, and there is disappointingly no manual-shift feature.

The sprint to 60 mph from a standstill for a manual-equipped car takes 9.5 seconds according to Edmunds testing. An automatic-equipped Fiesta was much slower, hitting 60 in 11.3 seconds. Both of these times are similar to the Honda Fit, but slower than the Hyundai Accent and much slower than the turbocharged Chevy Sonic. The EPA estimates fuel economy at 29 mpg city/38 mpg highway and 33 combined with the manual. The automatic is slightly better with 39 mpg highway. Opting for the SFE package further increases highway economy to 40 mpg.

Standard safety features include stability and traction control, antilock disc brakes, front-seat side airbags and side curtain airbags. Also included is a driver knee airbag, a feature unavailable elsewhere in this class of subcompacts.

In the government’s new, more strenuous crash testing for 2012, the Ford Fiesta earned an overall rating of four stars out of a possible five, with four stars for overall frontal crash protection and five stars for overall side crash protection. In the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a Fiesta sedan earned a top rating of “Good” for its performance in frontal-offset and side-impact collisions. In Edmunds brake testing, a Fiesta stopped from 60 mph in 119 feet — a very good distance for this type of car.

With its soft-touch dash top, metallic accents, edgy styling and tight build quality, the Fiesta’s cabin has a premium vibe to it that’s unexpected in an economy car. The center stack controls for the audio system are more complicated than those of competitors, but the three-knob climate control system couldn’t be easier to use.

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. Another high-end feature not often seen in this segment is the available keyless entry/ignition system.

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.

File Under: Ford February 20, 2012

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Review 2012 Ford Fiesta SFE With Super Fuel Economy

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