Topic: Test Drive: 2016 Ford Fiesta SE

[Jaeger]

While I would never EVER buy it I have to admit I think that orange looks bloody fabulous.

Yes, and did you notice the black mirror caps? 

Yep - I think the total look is hot.

[dirtyjeffer]

This one comes with the upgrade drum rear brakes. Nice.

meh...not a big deal in a small car like this.

[Blueprint]

While I would never EVER buy it I have to admit I think that orange looks bloody fabulous.

Yes, and did you notice the black mirror caps? 

Yep - I think the total look is hot.

They had this one plus a dark blue Titanium (same drivetrain) in the press fleet. I let the 12 y.o. in me pick the car 

[johngenx]

Light FWD cars with only 120hp don't need discs all around.

[Jaeger]

While I would never EVER buy it I have to admit I think that orange looks bloody fabulous.

Yes, and did you notice the black mirror caps? 

Yep - I think the total look is hot.

They had this one plus a dark blue Titanium (same drivetrain) in the press fleet. I let the 12 y.o. in me pick the car 

And well done.

[Noto]

"Enjoy driving your passengers nuts at night while discreetly cycling through all the colours that light up the footwells, cupholders and recessed areas of the dashboard. Purple! Blue! Orange! Red! Wheee!"

I do that in every Ford I rent - Mustang convertible, too!  I fricken LOVE it.

Great review, Dan!  Your accent didn't really come through though

I still hate the flat driver's seat, but otherwise really like this car.  The 1.0T with the manual was a blast - automatic may be OK, but not nearly as much fun.

[Blueprint]

"Enjoy driving your passengers nuts at night while discreetly cycling through all the colours that light up the footwells, cupholders and recessed areas of the dashboard. Purple! Blue! Orange! Red! Wheee!"

I do that in every Ford I rent - Mustang convertible, too!  I fricken LOVE it.

Great review, Dan!  Your accent didn't really come through though

I still hate the flat driver's seat, but otherwise really like this car.  The 1.0T with the manual was a blast - automatic may be OK, but not nearly as much fun.

Thanks No-san! I'll have to include a poutine pic next time to show some QC color 

[Lion]

Nice car!

[Rupert]

Oh...I like it well enough, but can a car be too sporty? For others as well as myself. Getting old...I don't know. I was looking for a Yaris in 2006 and could not find what I wanted and ended up with the 2006 Accent. Not a 5 door...no, but an in between sort of size...almost Corolla dimensions and it had 4 doors and a Trunk...a large trunk and it was super. Still is actually. The trunk hides your stuff and if large enough is pretty much as usable as a hatch and more so, most of the time. One of the last of the good ordinary cars maybe...with the looks of the same.
   I don't know how this compares in size with the above but wonder how a four door would look. Something that you could fit the posted handling kit on also and have with the three cylinder Turbo (love the low rev torque)...and rear drums. A smaller Focus 4 door. I suppose at that point you might as well go for the Focus 4 door which would be a bit bigger...just needs a little larger 3 cyl. turbo. 1.2 or something...not outrageous. Oh and drum rears...hmmm and the handling kit. Just like that...not way up-market with the associated pricing.
   Something of a return to the ordinary...hmm...not exactly a sleeper (dare I say) but dozing a bit. The standard shift and slush box are already available.

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Since my Yaris HB is now in its 11th year I've been looking at a replacement. Not unexpectedly it has shown its worth in the long haul with very low running costs and has been extremely well suited to my needs -a runabout that can swallow a surprising amount of cargo with no need for long highway drives. However a major upgrade to the current model is likely 18 months or so in the future and I don't relish the current offering . So I dropped into the local Ford dealer and had a look at a Fiesta (no test drive) that was very much like the one in this test. From the static side I have to  agree with the review, a very nice interior , well equipped , good seating position and an actual colour on the outside. I say an actual colour as one of my pet peeves is that most manufacturers go bland, very bland or extremely bland with one colour on the inside (black) and black,white, silver and gray on the outside and little else . Yes I overstate (although not by much) but you get the point . It seems they have bought into Henry F's dictum of "any colour as long as its black"- kudos to Ford for offering something different. So is the Fiesta an option - not really. Despite the long haul example from Car & Driver, Consumer Reports gives the Fiesta a black eye and since long haul reliability is critical (I tend to buy new , maintain and keep for many years) then it s falls off the list. Also the salesperson seemed less than enthused. When I asked what the Titanium version offered over the Se on display , the response was a a rather vague comment that one got different wheels and seating material.  I thought the salespeople for NA manufacturers had changed since the days of the Vega and Pinto but seems I was mistaken.

Two words:

Honda. Fit.

[Ontariodriver]

Since my Yaris HB is now in its 11th year I've been looking at a replacement. Not unexpectedly it has shown its worth in the long haul with very low running costs and has been extremely well suited to my needs -a runabout that can swallow a surprising amount of cargo with no need for long highway drives. However a major upgrade to the current model is likely 18 months or so in the future and I don't relish the current offering . So I dropped into the local Ford dealer and had a look at a Fiesta (no test drive) that was very much like the one in this test. From the static side I have to  agree with the review, a very nice interior , well equipped , good seating position and an actual colour on the outside. I say an actual colour as one of my pet peeves is that most manufacturers go bland, very bland or extremely bland with one colour on the inside (black) and black,white, silver and gray on the outside and little else . Yes I overstate (although not by much) but you get the point . It seems they have bought into Henry F's dictum of "any colour as long as its black"- kudos to Ford for offering something different. So is the Fiesta an option - not really. Despite the long haul example from Car & Driver, Consumer Reports gives the Fiesta a black eye and since long haul reliability is critical (I tend to buy new , maintain and keep for many years) then it s falls off the list. Also the salesperson seemed less than enthused. When I asked what the Titanium version offered over the Se on display , the response was a a rather vague comment that one got different wheels and seating material.  I thought the salespeople for NA manufacturers had changed since the days of the Vega and Pinto but seems I was mistaken.

Two words:

Honda. Fit.

Agree - Fiesta's are not reliable.....

[Jaeger]

Since my Yaris HB is now in its 11th year I've been looking at a replacement. Not unexpectedly it has shown its worth in the long haul with very low running costs and has been extremely well suited to my needs -a runabout that can swallow a surprising amount of cargo with no need for long highway drives. However a major upgrade to the current model is likely 18 months or so in the future and I don't relish the current offering . So I dropped into the local Ford dealer and had a look at a Fiesta (no test drive) that was very much like the one in this test. From the static side I have to  agree with the review, a very nice interior , well equipped , good seating position and an actual colour on the outside. I say an actual colour as one of my pet peeves is that most manufacturers go bland, very bland or extremely bland with one colour on the inside (black) and black,white, silver and gray on the outside and little else . Yes I overstate (although not by much) but you get the point . It seems they have bought into Henry F's dictum of "any colour as long as its black"- kudos to Ford for offering something different. So is the Fiesta an option - not really. Despite the long haul example from Car & Driver, Consumer Reports gives the Fiesta a black eye and since long haul reliability is critical (I tend to buy new , maintain and keep for many years) then it s falls off the list. Also the salesperson seemed less than enthused. When I asked what the Titanium version offered over the Se on display , the response was a a rather vague comment that one got different wheels and seating material.  I thought the salespeople for NA manufacturers had changed since the days of the Vega and Pinto but seems I was mistaken.

Two words:

Honda. Fit.

Two pretty damned good words right there.