Ford Fiesta

Global Models
It's a Pretty Big Deal
The Fiesta may look young, but it recently celebrated its thirty-fifth birthday and has the experience and style to prove it.

Ford FiestaSqueezes Every Last Drop

Ford FiestaCute as a Button

Ford FiestaWith Fiesta, It's Personal

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Happy Birthday, Fiesta!

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Vietnam: Fiesta Puts Media to Test

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Introducing THE FIESTA

  • History: Ford Fiesta Celebrates 35 Years of Production
    1976-2011

    When Ford launched the Fiesta 35 years ago in 1976, few could have predicted the phenomenal success story that was going to unfold over the coming decades. The Ford Fiesta may be celebrating its 35th birthday but the car’s legacy actually stretches back even further. The following timeline slideshow offers a glimpse into the Fiesta’s rich history.

    1972 - 1975

    • Fiesta conceived as secret Project Bobcat to create a new Ford small car for the world (image above)<br />
    • Work begins in Europe and America to develop the new small car, ranging from its mechanical architecture and design elements to market positioning<br />
    • Fiesta name chosen personally by Henry Ford II for its alliteration with Ford, its spirit and its celebration of Ford’s new connection with Spain

    1976 - 1982

    • Fiesta named Spain’s Car of the Year<br />
    • Fiesta wins British Design Council Efficiency Award<br />
    • One millionth Spanish Fiesta completed at Ford’s Valencia Assembly Plant (image above)<br />
    • Two millionth Fiesta of European production rolls off line at Saarlouis, Germany<br />
    • Fiesta is best-selling car in its class in Britain and Germany for six years running (1982)

    1983 - 1990

    • Fiesta 1.6-litre diesel introduced. This overhead-cam, indirect injection engine would become a mainstay of the Ford line-up for more than a decade<br />
    • Two millionth Fiesta completed at Valencia (1986)<br />
    • Best sales year in Britain with 158,000 Fiestas sold<br />
    • In Cologne, the new Fiesta became the work of art as the Goldener Vogel (“golden bird”) atop the tower of a city museum, the creation of action artist H. A. Schult.(1989) (image above)

    1991 - 2008

    • Valencia celebrates production of the three-millionth Fiesta in Spain. Vehicle is donated to the Queen Sofia Fund<br />
    • Banner year – best to date – for Fiesta sales of 624,186 units Europe-wide (1991)<br />
    • New Ford Fiesta wins Germany’s prestigious “Golden Steering Wheel” award from best- selling Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag (2002)

    2009 - 2011

    • Fiesta makes North American debut at the LA Auto Show<br />
    • Fiesta is the best-selling vehicle in Europe in first quarter with 140,496 cars sold in first three months and 68,630 in March alone<br />
    • Current generation Fiesta achieves production milestone as the one millionth example leaves the production line in Cologne<br />
    • Fiesta celebrates 35th anniversary by achieving a total of 15 million sales worldwide and benefits from interior and exterior upgrades and revisions
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  • Safety: Fiesta Gets Five-Stars for Safety

    Learn how drivers and passengers stay safe with Fiesta's advanced features below.

    15 August 2011 -

    The Fiesta is widely known for its performance, design and outstanding amenities, yet the Ford Fiesta has numerous features that give it an award-winning reputation for safety. Here are a few of them:

    Fiesta Safety

    • Beneath the car’s stylish exterior is a structure crafted from high-strength steels engineered to preserve quality and enhance driver and passenger safety.

    • Fiesta offers a segment-exclusive driver’s knee airbag (image to the left), developed to help reduce lower-leg injuries in the event of a frontal collision.

    • Dual-stage first-row airbags.

    • Side-impact and side curtain airbags.

    • “Smart” Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS) sensors determine occupant weight and seat belt status to optimize airbag deployment force.

    • The Fiesta also features smart sensors that use pressure pulses from a side impact to deploy up to 30 percent faster than traditional airbags with acceleration-based sensors.

    Fiesta Safety

    The Fiesta has been the recipient of numerous safety accolades over the years such as:

    • Maximum five-star safety rating by the China Automotive Technology and Research Center.

    • Maximum five-star ratings in Europe, Australia & New Zealand.

    • Top Safety Pick from the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety under its new test standards. (award to the right)

    • First car in its segment to earn top crash test ratings in each of the world’s largest auto markets.

  • Culture: Fiesta’s Growing Asia-Pacific Fame

    During the past year, magazine articles appearing in such diverse markets as China, the Philippines, Australia and South Africa have shown how the Fiesta is playing a leading role in young drivers’ efforts to stay green and connected in the 21st century.

    10 August 2011
    Fiesta Safety

    Vogue Taiwan focused on the Fiesta’s fashion sense, showing how much fun girls can have with the popular compact. Joanna Ha, Vogue’s ‘style hunter,’ took the Ford Fiesta on a shopping spree in trendy eastern Taipei. (image left) The fashion guru called it her ‘dream shopping car’.

    In Australia, the Fiesta’s fuel-efficiency was highlighted throughout the year in magazine articles that touted its green credentials. The Ford Fiesta figured prominently on the pages of Marie Claire, Madison and G magazine showing consumers how to minimize their impact on the environment.

    Marie Claire called the Fiesta “Australia’s most fuel-efficient car,” adding: “you can drive from Sydney to Melbourne on only one tank of fuel and seriously reduce your carbon footprint.”

    Fiesta Safety

    In Thailand, Stuff magazine (image right) and T3 (The Gadget Magazine) were impressed with Fiesta’s Bluetooth capability and voice control. Extreme Technology Magazine featured Ford’s globally popular compact in a three-page spread for its ‘Best Technology of the Year 2010’ issue in December, giving readers a close-up look at the Fiesta’s technologically advanced interior.

    Wedding magazine, also in Thailand, suggested the Fiesta would make a great wedding car, and offered tips on how to choose the best color to set an auspicious tone for future happiness and success. “Red is the color of good fortune and celebration,” advised feng shui master Todsaporn Sritula. “Therefore, it always plays an important part in every major event, auspicious occasion and new beginning.”

  • Culture: Can a Fiesta Outshine a Lamborghini?

    Watch the Fiesta 'compete' against this formidable opponent.

    We put a Ford Fiesta up against a Lamborghini. The Lamborghini may be faster on the straightaway, but the Fiesta rocks a capless fuel filler, 34.5 ft turning diameter, and a useable trunk (41.4 cubic feet of storage space).

More Stories
In Thailand, Wedding magazine suggested the Fiesta would make a great wedding car, and offered tips on how to choose the best color to set an auspicious tone for future happiness and success.
  • Awards: Ford Fiesta Awards

    The Fiesta has been winning top awards around the world for years and below you'll find a list of some recent accolades.
    • EUROPE 2011 Britain's Best Supermini, Auto Express
    • AUSTRALIA 2009 Best Small Car under $20,000, Drive Car of the Year Awards
    • EUROPE 2009 Green Car of the Year, Top Gear
    • EUROPE 2011 Green Car of the Year, Top Gear
    • EUROPE 2009 Manufacturing Excellence Award, Technische University at Berlin
    • ASIA 2008 Best Car of 2008 (Top 10) - Business Week
    • ASIA 2011 Five-star safety rating, China Automotive Technology and Research Center
    • EUROPE 2009 “Red Dot” Design Award, Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen
    • EUROPE 2008 2008 Best Supermini - What Car?