FiestaMk7.com Owners Resource

Ford’s long anticipated Fiesta hot hatch is here. While the current generation supermini has been on sale for three years now, Ford has waited until the 2011 Frankfurt motor show to unleash a properly sporty model. It should be worth the wait, though; it looks suitably beefy, for starters, and packs a decent amount of punch behind its aggressive nose.

Like the vast majority of its rivals, power comes not from an enthusiastic but CO2-unfriendly naturally aspirated engine, but a new turbocharged unit. It’s a 1.6-litre Ecoboost engine boasting 178bhp, a huge 46bhp rise over the S1600, the hottest Fiesta currently available. Torque is rated at 177lb ft while 0-60mph should take less than seven seconds and a top speed of around 140mph is suggested.

And the upside of turbo power? Carbon emissions below 140g/km, putting the new Fiesta ST in Tax Band E, five bands below a Renaultsport Clio 200. While that may not be its most exciting selling point, it could be a deciding factor for many when purchasing a budget performance car like this.

While the new Ford Fiesta ST is officially still a concept, a production model should be on sale by summer 2012, and with this show car looking so plausible, expect few visual or technical changes between now and then. Prices should begin at around £17,000.