Ford Fiesta (6th gen) 2008-

[Ferrer]

I found the Fiesta to be disappointing when I drove them. The automatic transmission was quirky, with nice short shifts but a couple of vibrations during those shifts as well as flaring up the revs during shifts. The car felt heavy, though solid and well-built. Roomwise it was fine for a car of its size in terms of passenger space, but the Klingon forehead dash sort of made it feel a bit closed-in. We only got a sedan at the rental company I worked for, and the trunk was decently sized in terms of pure cubic capacity, but really poorly laid-out. Long and narrow, it looks difficult to really take advantage of it. On the upside, as I said, it felt more expensive than it was, and had confident, if not totally responsive, handling, a supple ride, and fuel economy was top-notch. Plus, I think it's a good-looking little car.

Nice for a premium feel in its segment, but not the standout I was hoping for.

Well, it's just a cheap, practical supermini with cheap, practical engines and a cheap practical interior.

I presume the last bit has been improved massively, because we had a loaner car from the previous generation ages ago (back when the Puma was still with us, what a car...) and it went well but certainly not a quality product.

[Ferrer]

New ST200 version with a... yes you guessed it... 200bhp engine.