Ford Fiesta gets ESC as standardSporty S1600 special edition also on the way
30 April 2010
Ford has made anti-skid ESC standard across the Fiesta range - and announced this sporty S1600 special edition
Ford has announced a series of minor upgrades to its best-selling Fiesta supermini – and one major one: stability control is now standard across the range.
Previously a £300 option on many models, ESC stability control (or 'ESP' in Ford-speak) is now standard right across the Fiesta range.
Stability control as standard
This brings the Fiesta into line with medium and large Fords such as the Focus and Mondeo, which already offer ESC as standard.
In the week that Which? Car has revealed the importance of stability control in emergency manoeuvres by rolling a Citroen Nemo during an ‘elk avoidance’ test, this is great news for supermini buyers.
A total of 650 S1600 versions of the Fiesta will be sold
The Ford Ka and Ford Fusion, however, still do without range-wide ESC.
Extra kit for Studio and Titanium
In addition to this important safety enhancement, some Fiesta variants also get extra items of kit.
The basic Studio gains heated door mirrors and steering-wheel audio controls, while the range-topping Titanium now includes Bluetooth and USB connection – added value of around £200.
Engine upgrades
What’s more, many of the Fiesta’s engines are now cleaner and more powerful.
It gets lots of new kit including new bumpers and contrasting stripes
The 1.6-litre TDCi turbodiesel gains a particulate filter and power upgrade to from 88bhp to 93bhp, with the 1.4 TDCi turbodiesel gaining an extra 2bhp from August.
The 81bhp 1.25-litre petrol, plus the 93bhp and 118bhp 1.6-litre petrols all see emissions improvements of between 3g/km and 5g/km CO2. This drops the 1.25 engine's emissions to 129g/km, saving £110 in road tax in the first year.
Sporty Fiesta S1600 special
Finally, 650 special edition Ford Fiesta S1600 models are now available.
Based on the existing Zetec-S specification, the S1600 adds a bodykit, racing stripes, 17-inch alloys, heated leather sports seats, side-airbags, alloy pedals, motorsport floor mats and a Quickclear windscreen.
Continuing a long line of small sporting Fords – starting with the Mk1 Fiesta XR2 in 1981 – the S1600 is powered by a 1.6-litre petrol with 118bhp and is priced from £16,645.
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