Our Fleet Test Drive: Ford Fiesta - 1st Report

Date: 13 February 2009   |   Author: Tom Webster

[3] Auto-folding mirrors

Category: Supermini P11D price: £12,744 Key rival: Vauxhall Corsa

However, the biggest problem with convincing your drivers to take a step down might not be a reduction of interior space. Life in a bigger hatchback could have acclimatised them to toys and luxuries not normally seen in smaller vehicles.

This is why we've gone for the top-level Titanium spec, which brings aircon, cruise control [2], iPod connection, auto-folding mirrors [3] and Ford's fantastic heated windscreen system, Quickclear. This last addition has already proved its worth, saving BusinessCar drivers the time and pain of numbed fingers caused by scraping icy windows.

To finish off the spec for the business user, we added a couple of options. ESP anti-skid control and Bluetooth were necessities for fulfilling duty of care obligations, and the front and rear parking sensors could easily save the £350 they cost in prevented repair bills. The prices added up at buying time, but the savings should make themselves known over the life of the car and when we come to bid farewell.

If you are going all out on specification for downsizers, then it makes sense to head towards the top of the engine list as well. The 120PS 1.6-litre engine we selected is a fantastically zippy little motor that we are looking forward to getting beyond the running-in period. When it's properly settled in, it should be able to make good its claims of a combined fuel consumption of 47.9mpg. Because of the Fiesta's diminutive dimensions, acceleration from 0-62mph is claimed to take just 9.9secs, and it keeps going to 120mph.

We'll be finding out over the next few months just how capable this makes the supermini around town and on longer journeys for the driver used to a bigger car in every sense.

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