The "Let's keep Dearborn from taking the goodness out of the FoE Fiesta" Thread!

[golf strom]

Ford Dearborn has shown a incredible long running track record of mucking up every nice Euro spec Ford that ever had been offered for sale in the USA.


It makes me seriously believe that there is "turf protection" going on here. Happens ALL the time in the automotive industry.

Could it be that the "engineers and designers" in MI are sabotaging such products so that they turn out a failure? Could be.

If you look at the wreckage over the years from Koln (FoE) the XRTi, Scorpio, Contour, Focus, and others they (Dearborn) took excellent products and turned them into trash.

I'm hoping like you that the hatch versions are almost identical to their European cousins, while the sedan gets the Merican sofa treatment and bling bling disease. Unfortunately it looks like the excellent euro seats won't even be in the HB cars either, unless Mark Kleis can sway the engineers and designers to redux the US spec seat in the same style as the euro spec one just having a slightly wider bottom cushion retaining the bolsters and cushion thickness. But I'm not too hopeful unless Mark confirms the change.

[Mark Kleis]

Originally Posted by BRGT350

I have no interest in a diesel powerplant, so that doesn't bother me. Very few people I talk to want a diesel in a car. I think they have great potential, but nobody really wants to embrace the technology for cars.

My biggest fear, which is coming true, is that Ford NA is going to stick a Fusion-esque grille on the Fiesta. Horizontal bars across the upper grille, and again in the lower grille seem to be showing up in the spy pictures. I can live with drums, but I don't want to live with a chrome front end. I hate that stuff! I think the designers did an ok job fixing the Fusion for this year, but it would have been better without all of that heavy looking chrome. If the Fiesta comes out with a Fusion grille, I will buy something else. I just don't want that look for a car that I own. For daily use, I could even deal with slightly less tech features, but I don't want to spend the next 5 years staring at an ugly nose. There are other cars out there that don't have the chrome grille, and that is probably what I will buy. Keeping "EU DNA intact", "making as few changes as needed" is clearly what we are not seeing from the spy pictures. Perhaps the hatchback will have more of the European grille, and the sedan will have the nasty thing they are working on.

It would make sense that they might "American-ize" the sedan (considering they are creating it based on American trends) and then leave the Euro-based hatch the way it is because the folks that like hatches, like Euro.

Is that what they will do? Who knows.

But, grills are usually met with oodles of aftermarket options. Just because a car comes with a factory grill you don't like doesn't mean you can't change it to one you do like

[BRGT350]

My guess is that if they change the bumper cover for the sedan, it will be the same for the hatchback. I heard from another source that the Fiesta for the US market will not get the chrome bar treatment like the other US Fords. That seems contrary to the spy pictures, but it would be easy to make things look different under the mask of the camo.

[azulejost]

If there has to be any chrome, the 2010 Taurus grille does a nice job with a central chrome bar then two non-chrome, vented bars. With the thick surround, it's still a lot of chrome though but it works for the Taurus. The Fiesta can get by with a thin, single chrome bar in the grille, but going for much more than that could be too much. If they trim the upper grille in chrome, use a center bar, and then if they still want more bars they could add it the gray bars similar to those on the Taurus. Just a thought.

[BRGT350]

I agree that the new 2010 Taurus came out very well, and the changes to the Fusion were a huge improvement over the previous car. The Fiesta doesn't need those changes, it is fine the way it is.

[BRGT350]

SecondchanceMatt from FocalJet saw the mule upclose and said there is no chrome in the lower grille, and the chrome bars in the upper grille are like the Verve sedan, only thinner. So far, that is great news. The extra antenna is for transmitting data real time to engineering and is not production. Turn-signals were in the mirror housing on the car he saw. Overall, that is fairly good news.

[azulejost]

It is good news. I'd be very happy with the Verve grille after looking at it more and more. Sure it would take a bit of getting used to compared to Europe's, but I am not totally sold on the Euro grille either. Even thinner chrome than the Verve would be great, so there is definitely hope.

Now to work on keeping the uprated Euro sport suspension at least a standalone option--I don't want the aero kit to be lumped with it, just available as another option. And a 6-spd manual--would that be asking way too much since the Powershift auto is supposedly a 6-spd.

Yes, those features plus the projector beam headlights, turn signal mirrors, amber rear turn signals, Ocean Blue, and those 16" 7-spoke alloys would likely be just the thing to keep the Fiesta at the top of my list over the new Focus or anything else come spring of 2011.

[GhiaFan]

Some more positive seat comments from a Fiesta agent with very credible seat time Fiestavus has put on over 13,000 miles already in his Fiesta.
Great read Thirteen13 Report Part 1 | "Your butt must be crazy sore." | The Art of Adventure

[golf strom]

Originally Posted by azulejost

Now to work on keeping the uprated Euro sport suspension at least a standalone option--I don't want the aero kit to be lumped with it, just available as another option.
.

I'd be VERY surprised if Ford went to the extra expense of using two seperate grills for the sedan and hb models, I don't think it is likely you'll see this outcome.

I'm definitely NOT a fan of the Verve grill, but I could live with the mule version IF they have a blackout of the slats with only the chrome surround remaining.


I hope Ford does allow you to order the euro sport suspension without the boyracer aero cladding, I like subtle and I would bet that most potential folks looking to buy this car do as well.

Glad to see that there are a large number of Fiesta Agent drivers that seem to LOVE their euro spec seats. I simply don't believe there is ANY reason to change what is for 99% of potential buyers, perfect as it is!

[Mark Kleis]

Originally Posted by golf strom

Glad to see that there are a large number of Fiesta Agent drivers that seem to LOVE their euro spec seats. I simply don't believe there is ANY reason to change what is for 99% of potential buyers, perfect as it is!

This guy seriously cracks me up. I don't know what makes me laugh more, the fact that 9 out of 10 of your posts about the Fiesta are negative, or that the other 1 out of 10 involve numbers picked from the sky.... (99%? Really? lol.... ok...?)