Ford Fiesta 1.6TDCi Titanium

[samjprobinson]

Vehicle: Ford Fiesta 1.6TDCi Titanium 5 door, 2011
Length of ownership: Since August 2011

Performance:
Power: 95PS – 151lb/ft torque as from the factory.
Current Power: 124PS – 221lb/ft torque.
Tyres: Hankook Ventus Evo SII tyres all round (standard fit)
Handing: Very good, in standard suspension setup, and only struggles on tighter corners.
Grip: Excellent in the dry. Very good in the wet in general driving. Much easier to under steer in the wet, although the new version of this tyre which I have fitted on the Fiesta has reduced this risk greatly.
Suspension: Comfortable on most roads, slightly wallowy along undulating roads and leans slightly more on sharp bends.

Modifications:
6000k HID conversion (road legal in Guernsey).
ECU remap done by Jersey Mappers in January 2012 increasing power 29PS and a 61lb/ft increase in torque from 1,450RPM.

Comfort:
Seat comfort: Very supportive but lacking lumbar, so over long distance can give you lower back pain.
Driving comfort: Very good, all the controls are within very easy reach although the Sony stereo can be a little confusing to use at a glance. Heating and ventiliation controls easy to use on the Titanium as mostly in Auto Mode. Displays the buttons pushed on the infotainment screen so no need to look down at the controls. Voice control useful for using the telephone and other functions. Cruise control is very good, and makes long distance motorway driving simple.
Road/engine noise: Diesel thrum very noticeable when cold but soon disappears. Road and tyre noise is very noticeable within the cabin at speeds above 60MPH but below this very hushed. Suspension can be a little noisy on poor road surfaces.
Sound system: For a small car, it is excellent. The standard Sony stereo and speakers are excellent, and can reproduce sound very well. DSP Occupancy is best set in Optimise All rather than just the driver; although you do lose some of the deeper bass. iPod playback flawless, just make sure that you’ve got the EQ off on the iPod otherwise the sound distorts. Avoid buying the iPod cable from Ford, as you can do a free update from http://www.ford-mobile-connectivity.com ... adsUpdates which removes the iPod having to play using both USB and 3.5mm jack. After the update you can just use a standard 30pin to USB connector.

Reliability & Running Costs:
Have you ever broken down? No; although suffered a turbo fault which was rectified by an ECU update from Ford. Massive turbo lag when changing gear and complete lack of turbo at some revs. Ford knew about it and with the latest ECU software completely cured this problem. Dealer damaged rear bumper before it was delivered to myself, and it took 9 months to sort out after numerous botched re-sprays.
Garage bills: Annual service, £99. 2 new tyres (Hankooks) £67.50 each inc. fitting, balancing etc.
Parts cost: £19.87 for iPod lead which I then didn’t need.
General Maintenance: New air filter & pollen filter £34.22
Tax: No road tax in the Channel Islands
Insurance: £241 for myself and the other half, including declaring HIDs and ECU remap.
Running Costs: Averaging 59.8MPG over the last year, recent trip to the UK and using motorways made a tank give 72.1MPG. Empty to full cost £36 in Guernsey; £68 in the UK.

Safety & Security
Crash Safety: 5 star NCAP rating, driver, front passenger head and thorax airbags and drivers knee airbag.
Alarm & Immobiliser: Fitted as standard
Security Views: Excellent, privacy glass; only downside is the iPod when plugged in can be on display, cured with a longer cable which reaches to the glove box.

Good Points:
Extremely comfortable
Plenty of pulling power
Very economical
Cheap to run and use as a daily drive
Roomy inside for a family
Excellent fit and finish
High standard of factory fitted equipment for the money
Cheap servicing
Excellent safety
QuickClear heated front windscreen

Bad Points:
Too noisy when cold
Poor location of USB input
No front armrest
Standard suspension too wallowy when loaded
Bluetooth System takes a long time to connect sometimes
Lack of lumbar support for the drivers seat
Lack of a spare wheel

Summary: 4½ out of 5.
A very comfortable, useable car which is easy to drive and park. In general, for what it cost, it is a very good buy for the money with the added benefit of being cheap to run and service once you have bought it.

[jam_rs]

Very good review! Thankyou

[samjprobinson]

No problem, was quite enjoyable writing it really; makes me really think about what I bought!

[samjprobinson]

Just a quick update from my review I've written above. I have changed the tyres from the Hankooks that Ford fitted to the cart as new to Pirelli P Zero Nero's and have to say what a transformation it has made to the car! She now handles like it is on rails, tyre noise is greatly reduced and the performance in the wet when braking is huge. Highly recommended!

[samjprobinson]

A further update to my Fiesta. The last 8 months of ownership have been very arduous with Ford Assistance having to be called out 10 times! I have moved back to the UK temporarily to do a course at a Maritime College which resulted in a 100 mile round trip commute every day. The mileage on my car has shot up from a modest 8,000 miles in 18 months to just over 35,000! Anyway, I had my second year service back in April where the brake fluid was changed. Believe it or not, the Ford Dealer that serviced my car failed to put the brake fluid cap back on to the tank. Over the following week I had no problems until one day on the motorway having to brake hard due to traffic and finding that my brakes didn't really do anything! Popped the bonnet open to find brake fluid everywhere and none left in the tank!

Got the car towed back to the dealer that serviced it to get the brake fluid changed again. No issues this time! However about 3 weeks after this, the car cut out on the motorway and thick black acrid smoke starting coming into the cabin. Pulled over and got out with the black some billowing out of the engine bay. As a trained firefighter I managed to put the smouldering out with the fire extinguisher I carry in the boot and called Ford Assistance out again to get the car recovered. Again the car was recovered and the garage had it for about two weeks patching it back up.

Ever since then I have had endless problems with the car; refusing to start, flat battery, fuses blowing etc etc. Have spent many hours on the phone to Fords Customer Relationship Centre and got nowhere. The final straw was when the car failed to start on the morning I had an exam. Ford Assistance said they would take 3 hours to get to me so had to phone the college to say I can't make it to the exam. I have lost all faith on the reliability of my car.

Ford CRC tell me it is a matter that I need to take up with the Dealer that did the brake fluid change which resulted in the engine bay fire. I said that it is their responsibility to liase with the dealer on my behalf! I am getting to the stage now where I might be seeking legal advice to reject the vehicle as being "unfit for purpose" as my worry is the car comes out of warranty early next year and the parts list of stuff replaced in the last year is huge.

So, unfortunately I am reducing the star rating I have given the Fiesta down massively, maybe unfairly, due to the continued inept Ford Dealers, Service & CRC!

Oh one last thing, Ford CRC offered to give me a "free service" when it next needs one. I said great but does that include all the filters and the cam belt that will need doing as technically it will be its 4th year service. Oh no, was their reply, just an oil and filter change...

Makes you wonder

[youngwenty]

Hi, the problem with the massive turbo lag between gear changes you had with your car, I have the same problem and my ford garage are denying there is a problem because there computer says there isnt. Was your car sorted straight away ? They have done various updates on my car and had problems with the car not accepting it.

[karan5]

When i blanked the Egr valve on mine it reduced the turbo lag between gear changes problem. Definitely worth doing car picks up a lot better at low revs

[youngwenty]

Blanking egr valve ? I had the 1400 mk7 diesel on courtesy and that had no lag. I am gonna get a hyundi ha

[Neoyami]

I put on 4 Michelin pilot sport 3 tyres and the handling is brilliant must recommend