The life of my Fiesta - Brilliant car !!

[Fez WQ]

I bought this Fez LX 5 Door new from Park Ford in Perth Dec 2009

The Good part of the cars history
The car has done 51,000km and is going well

Very few warranty issues and few rattle fixed up under warranty and that's it. Had the bluetooth updated and the phone system works great. Also had the steering rack replaced under warrantry due to a knock in the steering. This problem came back two weeks later with the new rack. The dealer oiled and greesed it up and 30,000 later not a problem. ( they should have done that first time)

I am still on the original tyres .... but they are looking like the need attention

The car has a hesitation when the engine is cold. I keep forgetting to tell the dealer when I get the fez serviced

I have smashed the wind screen twice due to rocks on Perth roads


- They Look great
- They handle great
- They hold together well so far no loose parts
- Great Fuel consumption I average 6.2 litres/100km on premium unleaded

Only real sad part ... Th A/C is not that good when stationary, but its fine when on the move.


And YES I will buy one again but maybe the diesel one next time..... This is my 3rd Fiesta

I have owned a
WP LX - Rubbish car
WQ LX - Brilliant car
WS LX - Totaly brilliant car!!


Lets hear some good stories !!! I am sure most people only have good stories to tell about these world cars by One Ford !!

[Ms_Jam]

Can I second that?

My WS Zetec Fiesta still brings me joy every day. The handling is second to none, and I have to drive rentals at work quite frequently.

The little hero still seems to use no oil! That's at 42,000 km, so it's 12,000 km since its last service. Could be the Castrol Edge oil helps.

[macou]

Can I third that. My WS is 42,000km, still on original tyres, never had a waranty issue and still going like a dream. Don't plan on getting rid of it while it behaves like this. Great little car, very happy.

[Trinhy]

I have had mine for 300k's and to my surprise I really love it!

[vhcbm]

Originally Posted by Fez WQ

The car has a hesitation when the engine is cold. I keep forgetting to tell the dealer when I get the fez serviced

I have this to. Heard many different reasons for it but if you let the car run for about 20 seconds just idling it seems to not happen.

Cars been absolutely fantastic besides that, on the road and its been on the track a couple of times. I've done a little bit to it and it still goes like new.

Maybe we need to all have a get together and take them for a run somewhere.

[trumpy73]

There's a PCM update for it (apparently)

[brydie76]

Mine just clocked over 6,000kms, and I'm loving every second I have it. Have had no major issues with it yet, and it is just such an awesome car. People on the street comment on it, as it was hard to get Vision in my area (apparently) in a Zetec and mine is a sparkling example (not at the moment sadly, need to wash her on the weekend big time!!!).

And would definitely love to go on a Fiesta cruise, if I lied anywhere near you guys!!!

[Trinhy]

That would be cool to see a Fiesta cruise! Maybe a little funny but cool.

I waxed it this morning and took it for a 300km cruise from Sydney to Bowral then Berry with a mix of motorway, windy and rough roads. It was a little light on its feet in the high wind areas of the motorway, a little jittery in the windy bumpy roads but a fantastic car all round!

[vhcbm]

Originally Posted by Trinhy

That would be cool to see a Fiesta cruise! Maybe a little funny but cool.

I did one with a tonne of focus's and a couple of Fiestas were in it.


Bald hill Freezing conditions by Charlie Bravo Mike, on Flickr

Was great fun.

[trumpy73]

Originally Posted by brydie76

as it was hard to get Vision in my area (apparently) in a Zetec and mine is a sparkling example

Vision is the best color for this car as far as I'm concerned. It's one of very few models out there that will still look pretty current in 10 years time.

[Fled74]

Originally Posted by Fez WQ

WP LX - Rubbish car

Don't be hatin' on the WP LX!

I bought mine new in 2005 and it's still going strong. Sure, there have been a few hiccups along the way, but any relationship has those.

It may look a bit dated now, but I still love it. Also, it's netted me 3 "Best Fiesta" trophies at Small Ford Sunday.

I intend to drive it as long as I can, then give it to my older daughter when she's old enough.

[Fez WQ]

Yep says it all....... they are a great little car. Had three of them and the WS, I own is a brilliant little beast to drive !!!!

[Fez WQ]

Well my WS Fiesta has almost hit 60,000kms on the same tyres since new.... :-))

What have others bought and what price have we all paid.

[vhcbm]

I'm running the Falken RT-615's but have a look at the Kumho KU-31 as that would probably suit you better. Have you got the Continentals or Hankooks on it currently?

[GoesLikeAZetec]

Yokohama S-Drive's are the new set for the fez..

[Fez WQ]

Continentals

[zestyfesty]

Here Here -top car. Had a WQ briefly when needed a cheap runabout. it was okay, good enough to step up to WS Zetec, which frankly is a generational leap forward in all areas. A superbly packaged car, and dynamically spot on

I've been thinking about what it is that makes this car excel as a drive, and I've come to the conclusion that it is the excellent marriage of engine, drivetrain and chassis-it has a great balance between all 3. My mates Lexus ISF is obscenely powerful, but lacks steering feel and has a crashy ride, other has an SS -the chassis struggles to tame the power, mum's MB 200 K has an odd transmission and feels generally anaesthetised. maybe I just like little cars!

regular track day and super sprint junkie now, and it is a wonderful car to learn to drive rapidly in because it doesn't have too much power or grip, so you can easily reach its limits, at which point it is very progressive. A brake pad and fluid upgrade was all I did and it's for it to withstanding lap after lap after lap..

[Fez WQ]

Top car .... I have not driven a better small car. The Mazda 2 does not come near the Fiesta for feel and looks for that matter

[wombat66]

I have just picked up my new Fiesta Zetec powershift auto. The car is great but I've read so many bad things about them on this forum I'm now concerned that I've made the wrong choice. Should I be worried? I would love to hear from some happy WT owners.

[Caydus]

I've had a few warranty issues, especially with the transmission and a leaky front CV joint. Had to push a bit and had to make the effort to show the problem to the mechanic for the transmission issue, but the leaky CV joint was identified quickly and repaired without much fuss.
Once these problems have been sorted out, the car is reliable, nothing else has gone wrong *touchwood* but only time can tell when it comes to that, though I have heard that owning a DSG out of warranty is a big gamble. I'm concerned, but haven't made a decision on whether I will sell at the 3 year mark or not.

I haven't had as many terrible problems as everyone else seems to have with warranty issues, though it would probably be a bit cheaper than the others, though not by a huge margin. It necessitated a full clutch assembly swap and ~30+ days of car hire from Hertz. The for the CV joint leak, the entire right side drive shaft was replaced.


Love the way the car drives, the beautifully sorted chassis does wonders for the handling despite the simple and cheap suspension setup, electric power steering is responsive, yet light and the car has a very planted feel to it more suited to a car 2 size brackets up.
The engine, though not powerful, revs willingly and the entire powerband is accessible on a whim, making it feel, by the seat of the pants, more powerful than cars with better power/weight ratios on traditional 4 cog autos.

There's a bit to get used to with a DSG, the way it downshifts under braking, the way it behaves itself in start stop traffic, etc, but for the extra gears does wonders for a low displacement engine in this price bracket and the extra fuel economy makes it a worthwhile trade in my eyes.

I'm about 1yr 4months and 20,000km in on my ownership of a Fiesta WT LX, doing engine oil changes between every 5,000 - 7,500km and fuel economy has been decent, but not amazing. I get about 8.3L/100km, take 1L/100km off if no air con is used.
This is usually in just past peak hour start stop Sydney traffic. Do a trip out to the blue mountains a handful of times a year but that's all the highway miles it gets.


This forum gets much of it's 'bad things' from one particular member who's angry at Ford and is just full of bile as he's stuck with the car until his lease period finishes.
He got a lemon and Ford hasn't been particularly helpful with his warranty claims. Now he's out on a quest to make sure everyone who frequents this forum knows that if you buy a Ford, you will get zero warranty support unless you push and push and bring Fair Trading into it and even then it's up in the air whether you get a resolution.


I've had a much more pleasant experience than he has had. My warranty claim process was smooth and generally uneventful. There were a few things Ford could certainly have done better, but all in all, though not impressed, I'm satisfied with how they handled my claims.


At the moment, I won't recommend Ford to anyone who was about to buy a car purely on the grounds of reliability and dealer service. But the cars they make are brilliant little things when they are running properly.

[Fiesta_Man69]

Originally Posted by Caydus

I won't recommend Ford to anyone who was about to buy a car purely on the grounds of reliability and dealer service.

Couldn't have put it better myself, Caydus...

[wombat66]

Thanks for the review Caydus. We had issues with Ford with a Focus we owned years ago but decided to go ahead and buy two more Fords this year. We are really happy with the Focus and the Fiesta seems good too but these forums have worried me. You mentioned the powershift behavior. What sort of things have you noticed? It's definately different to my old Mazda2 but as yet it hasn't actually bothered me. The car drives really well. Perhaps I should stop reading this forum.

[Fiesta_Man69]

Wombat, I trust you've read the thread "Powershift gearbox problems" on this forum... The one posted by Caydus? This may answer some of your queries..

[Caydus]

Originally Posted by Fiesta_Man_69

Couldn't have put it better myself, Caydus...

Yes FM69, I'm trying to be unbiased and as true to my experiences as can be, I don't want to take a side and I don't want this thread to turn into Ford dealer bashing. You have a whole other thread dedicated to it.


The Powershift Transmission is known outside of Ford as a Dual Clutch Transmission.It's 2 manual gearboxes bolted together and controlled via electronics as opposed to the engine being coupled to a Torque Converter and a Planetary Gearset.

Or put simply, it's a manual gearbox where a computer does the shifting for you.

On the road, you will have to apply throttle like you were driving a manual.


Some quirks include:

1. When braking to a set of lights, the transmission may decide to downshift to a lower gear, causing the engine to rev higher when it really should just be idling.
   Might freak out your passengers a bit when you're coming up to a set of lights and stopped cars.
   
2. In slow bumper to bumper traffic under a very light throttle, the entire car may shudder. It may also happen when you change throttle position suddenly.
   
3. If you hit the brakes, then immediately afterwards, plant the throttle to the firewall, there may be a ~0.5s delay in throttle response.
   This is most dangerous where if you slow for a stack of stopped/slow cars in front of you, then spy a small opening to your right or left lanes of fast moving traffic and want to take advantage of it, you may not get into the gap as quickly as you think.

These three points are... characteristic of a dual clutch transmission. Yes, I know, I said it...
Most other weird transmission things that might happen, are not and you should have it looked at.

[Fiesta_Man69]

Er, all I did was agree with a quote, something you said. I then referred Wombat to a thread on the dsg problems that you started.... Or am I suddenly responsible for all Ford problem threads on this forum? (and there are a shedload, only 1, that's right 1, being started by myself). If directing a member to your thread on problems you had with your dsg is Ford bashing.... Seriously

[wombat66]

Caydus, Thanks. That's really helpful.
With the high revving as you come up to lights, does the car still brake on time or does it surge ahead?
With the shuddering, it doesn't stall does it? Would putting it into L help in bumper to bumper traffic?
I will keep in mind a possible lag if I change my mind and plant my foot. That one is good to know.
As for driving it like a manual......I can't drive a manual. (no nasty comments from anyone please)
Thanks again.

[brydie76]

What you have to remember is that bad reviews are vocalised a lot more than good. When I used to work in the service industry, we used to be told a statistic- people will tell 1 person about a good experience, but 10 about a bad one. So for every person talking about issues and hassles, it is very likely that there are more people out there with no issues and very happy with their decision. This applies for everything- no two things will ever be the same, especially cars. You take a risk with any of them out there, the level of risk may vary but it really can be subjective- dealership experience can depend on your attitude towards them, for example.

[wombat66]

brydie76
That makes sense. Thanks.

[Caydus]

For the revving, no it doesn't surge ahead it just revs up to 3k or so like it were engine braking. In bumper to bumper, L won't help, it'll just hold onto gears and make lots of noise. Just accelerate and brake smoothly. I can't really say what more I've done to reduce shuddering in bumper to bumper but it's almost entirely gone for me now.

[wombat66]

Sounds like if I adapt slightly to suit the car we will get on fine....