Ford Fiesta S unveiled in China

The reveal in Europe in March of the three-door and five-door Fiesta hatch and now the China reveal of the five-door Fiesta hot hatch confirm that all-new Ford Fiesta will bring the most appealing elements of Verve Concept to production reality.

The new Fiesta range is due to hit showrooms in Europe and Asia by as early as 2008, but Australia may have to wait until as late as 2010 where it may be manufactured locally alongside the Focus. The all-new Ford Fiesta makes extensive use of ultra high-strength steels in its body structure and every component has been scrutinized by European engineers for weight.

A light and agile package, it also retains the MacPherson strut front suspension and twist-beam rear suspension layout that has been one of its traditional strengths.

Electric-Power Assist Steering (E-PAS) is introduced in the Fiesta for the first time providing the right balance of low-speed assistance and excellent feel and responsiveness.

Finished in Passion Orange, the Fiesta S reflects the design direction which could form the new Fiesta ST and potentially a range-topping RS model - as well as the hotly anticipated Focus RS.

A throw back to its performance roots, perhaps the most prominent feature of the Fiesta S is its Escort Cosworth RS inspired rear wing design - a design element almost certain to feature on the Focus RS rumoured to make its debut sometime later this year.

© Source: seriouswheels
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Geneva '08 Preview 2009 Ford Fiesta is filled with Verve!

With two and a half weeks to go before the Geneva Motor Show, Ford has finally released details on the production version of its new global small car. After the Verve concept debuted at the Frankfurt Motor Show last September, the speculation began about what it'd be called when it arrived in showrooms. Ford's marketing team decided that more than three decades of brand equity was too much to throw away, so this car will be called the Fiesta everywhere in the world that it's sold, including the United States. US fans probably shouldn't get too attached to the 3-door hatchback shown above, though, as it's all but certain that we'll be getting a four-door sedan instead.

Fiesta stays remarkably true to the Verve concept. Aside from some detailing of the light clusters and framed side glass replacing the concept's flush glazing, the production car is virtually identical to the concept on the outside. This good news continues when you open the door, as the basic interior design is the same as the concept's, but with slightly less flashy-looking switchgear. Underhood, the Fiesta gets a range of five gasoline and diesel-fueled four-cylinder engines. Like the new Mazda2 with which it shares its architecture, the Fiesta is the same size as the car it's replacing, but high-strength steels allow it to be lighter.

Production kicks off this fall in Cologne, Germany, to be followed by a second assembly plant in Spain. An Asian facility will be announced at the Beijing show in April, while a site for North American models will be announced later.

© Source: autoblog
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Four-door Fiesta heads east

Ford has revealed the second in its trilogy of Verve concepts, and this time it's a four-door that points to the design of the next generation Fiesta saloon.

We saw the handsome little three-door back in Frankfurt, but this bigger variant has been unveiled at the Guangzhou motor show in China.

That's because the saloon Fiesta will likely be an Asia-only model - we in Europe will instead get the three- and five-door hatches. It's an indication of just how seriously the big manufacturers are taking the emerging markets in the Far East.

Ford is calling the four-door Verve a 'notchback', a term we'd more commonly associated with classic three-box saloons, whereas this is a far more flowing, curvaceous design. From the B-pillar forward it's identical to the three-door Verve, but adds a Mondeo-style rear end with high-mounted two-piece taillights.

The frameless doors won't make it to production - and we can't imagine those 20-inch 12-spokes coming as standard - but Ford says the four-door gives 'an advanced indication' of its design philosophy.

The final instalment in the Verve trilogy - likely a taller, mini-SUV concept - will be revealed at the Detroit show in January.

© Source: topgear
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