What's to like/dislike about WS Fiesta 2009

[Fiesta Girl]

Only had the vehicle a couple of days which I know hardly makes me an qualified to talk about this but thought I'd mention the following and see what others might like to add or comment on.

LIKE
* Ride
* Appearance
* Paint quality (exterior)
* Instrumentation
* Headroom
* Voice recognition (A little gimmicky but works better than I thought it might)
* Gearchange (Admittedly, I did come from a Hyundai Excel and if you've ever driven one of those you'll understand why I think the gear change on the Fiesta is so much better)

DISLIKE
* Lack of paint finish under bonnet
* Some difficulty pressing the "up" section of the Navigation Control on the dash
* Lack of interior lighting for rear seat passengers
* Lack of "carpeting" on the back of the rear seats
* Lack of lining material beneath the hatch lock on the interior back of the vehicle. Even has some sealing material visible. Does everyone else have this as well or is this something I need to have looked at?

[dannyhilton]

I had to run out to my car to have a look then! Yes I have it too Fiesta Girl.

Dislike

- Interior vision. Out the back vision is quite horrible thanks to those massive C pillars. The front A pillars are quite large too.
- No light for rear passengers. A basic issue, but in the 3-Door you really need it.
- You need big wheels to make the car look 'complete.' My 16 inch rims look tiny!
- A few pannel gaps misses. Under the headlights is horrible, never has been a Fiesta good point though.
- Noticable difference in the painted body and bumpers/spoiler/skirts. The body looks much brighter, the plastic bits more creamier.
- Another gear would be great!
- Only an average fuel consumption readout, no instant.
- Access to the back seat in my 3-Door is much harder in my WS compared to my WP.
- Sterio quality lacks the crispness of my WP Fiesta.
- Not my car, but I'm really not a fan of the grey inside. Looks less expensive, and has a blue/grey look which cheapens it.
- The doors have a beautiful solid thunk when they close, but the boot sounds tinny.
- No carpet on the backseat so objects in the boot scratch the backing.
- The accelorator has a 'dead patch' where you push but nothing happens. Only appears when moving from a standing stop, so you kinda have to watch your revvs.

Great

- Looks. I mean it's hot.
- Drive. Steering feel, response, handeling, ride, finess on the road, feedback from the car to driver is the best, bar none.
- Steering is great around town.
- Fuel economy
- Comfort
- Gear change. Beautiful.
- I don't need to double clutch on reverse! Yahoo.
- Bloody roomy. Not Jazz smart inside with space, but it feels massive.
- Build quality is great. Soft touch, hard plastics look great and don't scratch easily.
- New car smell! Mmmmm.
- Lane interchange! Love it.
- When you hit the indicator it always finishes a full flash even when the lever clucks back half way through a flash. Yes I have EXTREME OCD.
- Features. Audio and controlls are great once you get used to them. USB, Bluetooth, it's wonderfully modern.
- Seats and adjustment great, as is the steering wheel feel and adjustment.
- Quite powerful the little Zetec. More than enough balls to get me away quickly, if not insanely fast.
- Cruise control works a treat.

It's great overall. I'm very picky with quality, so I've been blown away here. The buttons all make a nice noise (horrible passenger window switch aside). A few minor niggles, but hey that's why they have a series two isn't it?

I love my car. I didn't have that bond witg it at first like my first car, my WP Zetec, but I've accepted that that was my first car, this will NEVER replace the WP. Now I've realised that I hug my car, talk to my car like I talk to babies or small animals, and never stop talking about it. The Fiesta has grown up since the WP, and I think I have too!!!

[Fiesta Girl]

Wow...a more thorough list than mine.

* Checked around the headlights and yes, there is a rather large gap on the underside
* Can't notice any difference between painted plastic or painted metal. maybe its related to the colour being used?
* Another gear would have been good. Went for 6th yesterday and...well it just wasn't there.
* Wanted to get a three door originally but found entry more restricted than my previous three door Excel and with aging parents........
* Haven't noticed any "dead patch" yet (or difficulty starting as mentioned by others)
* Only 180kms on the clock so still a lot to discover. :>)

[Zetec Dave]

Originally Posted by RapidTyphoon

I had to run out to my car to have a look then! Yes I have it too Fiesta Girl.

Dislike

- Interior vision. Out the back vision is quite horrible thanks to those massive C pillars. The front A pillars are quite large too.
- No light for rear passengers. A basic issue, but in the 3-Door you really need it.
- You need big wheels to make the car look 'complete.' My 16 inch rims look tiny!
- A few pannel gaps misses. Under the headlights is horrible, never has been a Fiesta good point though.
- Noticable difference in the painted body and bumpers/spoiler/skirts. The body looks much brighter, the plastic bits more creamier.
- Another gear would be great!
- Only an average fuel consumption readout, no instant.
- Access to the back seat in my 3-Door is much harder in my WS compared to my WP.
- Sterio quality lacks the crispness of my WP Fiesta.
- Not my car, but I'm really not a fan of the grey inside. Looks less expensive, and has a blue/grey look which cheapens it.
- The doors have a beautiful solid thunk when they close, but the boot sounds tinny.
- No carpet on the backseat so objects in the boot scratch the backing.
- The accelorator has a 'dead patch' where you push but nothing happens. Only appears when moving from a standing stop, so you kinda have to watch your revvs.

Great

- Looks. I mean it's hot.
- Drive. Steering feel, response, handeling, ride, finess on the road, feedback from the car to driver is the best, bar none.
- Steering is great around town.
- Fuel economy
- Comfort
- Gear change. Beautiful.
- I don't need to double clutch on reverse! Yahoo.
- Bloody roomy. Not Jazz smart inside with space, but it feels massive.
- Build quality is great. Soft touch, hard plastics look great and don't scratch easily.
- New car smell! Mmmmm.
- Lane interchange! Love it.
- When you hit the indicator it always finishes a full flash even when the lever clucks back half way through a flash. Yes I have EXTREME OCD.
- Features. Audio and controlls are great once you get used to them. USB, Bluetooth, it's wonderfully modern.
- Seats and adjustment great, as is the steering wheel feel and adjustment.
- Quite powerful the little Zetec. More than enough balls to get me away quickly, if not insanely fast.
- Cruise control works a treat.

It's great overall. I'm very picky with quality, so I've been blown away here. The buttons all make a nice noise (horrible passenger window switch aside). A few minor niggles, but hey that's why they have a series two isn't it?

I love my car. I didn't have that bond witg it at first like my first car, my WP Zetec, but I've accepted that that was my first car, this will NEVER replace the WP. Now I've realised that I hug my car, talk to my car like I talk to babies or small animals, and never stop talking about it. The Fiesta has grown up since the WP, and I think I have too!!!

LOL yeah I think you may be suffering from OCD. But then again who doesn't? He He He...I know I do. LOL.

[dannyhilton]

Don't listen to me Fiesta Girl, I'm a Fiesta freak with extreme OCD. Not a good combination. The clutch doesn't have a dead patch per sa, I dunno it's hard to explain I'm probs too used to my old Fiesta and it's touchy/need two legs to depress clutch! Lol.

[greenfoam]

Like: Almost everything

Dislike: Seat winders, dodgy reverse gear in cold weather, no option for traction control off?, diff ratios could/should be better for Australia OR another gear. The door handles are rather stiff too sometimes

[vegabass]

I HATE THE ROAD NOISE!


I dont mind the cost to fill it up :

[greenfoam]

So long as you don't get in a car with body deadner inbetween you get used to the noise after a while...

[Fiesta Girl]

I HATE THE ROAD NOISE!

Really!!!! I thought it was rather quiet.

[dannyhilton]

Coming from my WP Zetec with the Sports Suspension, it's very smooth and quiet!!!

[vegabass]

Im going to fill it up with Dynamat. That should enable me to hear the cd player

[Fiesta Girl]

Must have a very quiet CD Player. ;>)

[greenfoam]

Compared to a full size car full of deadner and fat they are VERY loud, but it seems like they are pretty normal for a little car. I just hadn't driven one before

[WASP]

Like:

• Wife loves it.
• Build quality very good for the money
• Styling and appearance (looks sensational, front, back, inside, outside)
• Love it in panther black with the chrome
• Optional 17" wheels make the car. Must have investment IMO
• The way the car handles and rides (very smooth)
• Interior finish, colour and lighting
• Love the visability (no blind spots at all)
• The engine is very quite and smooth
• The auto is a little gem, again very smooth and quite.
• Road noise is very low for this type of car

Dislike:

• Electric window switches. You need to put yourself in very unnatural positions inorder to active them :togo:
• Turning circle (rack limited with the 17" and you notice it)
• Performance - 1.4 auto is adequate but too small for this car
• Petrol tank capacity- too small, need to fill up too often
• Fuel economy - only done 1500kms so far but it's using 9ltrs her hundred, which is higher than I expected. My 270kw FG XR6 Turbo uses 11ltrs :
• No interior lighing for rear passengers
• Drum brakes on the rear
• Driving lights need to be reset every time you want them on.
• Better speakers needed with the sound system.

Colville

[Vision Zetec]

Originally Posted by CDAA

Like:[*]Driving lights need to be reset every time you want them on.[/list]Colville

Sorry can you elaborate a bit more on this? cheers

[WASP]

Originally Posted by Vision Zetec

Sorry can you elaborate a bit more on this? cheers

To turn the driving lights (spot lights) on, there is a button that you need to activate once the head lights or parker lights are switched on. Once the vehicle is stwitched off you then need to reactivate the driving lights again if you want them on. In a Falcon for example, once you turn your driving lights on they stay on every time you activate the head/parker light switch.

The driving lights are not bright and designed to provide low level illumiation of the road surface. Both my wife and I tend to drive with them on at night along with the head/parker lights of course. Because you need to remember to activate them each time you restart the vehicle, we often forget to do so. It's no biggy, just a pain for those that use them.

[curik]

Hey, I want to share with you guys about something happened when I turned the ignition on. A warning came up saying "ESP Off", but I didn't know what I did to be able to turn it off. Any ideas? Happened only once though.

[Candyman2]

They are not drivng lights or spot lights, they are fog lights (as per manual)

They should not be used unless you are driving in fog and people that use them (seems to be a lot of Commie V8 and Falcon drivers and Subaru owners) should get fined as per road regs if they do use them.

:

[Candyman2]

For the type of car it is ...

Likes
Styling (class leading)
Audio system (class leading)
1.6L Engine is a pearl.
Gearbox is a joy to shift. Accurate, direct, smooth but with good feel
Economy. Delivering on spec.
Paint quality is good and Vision (together with the other light colours) really suit this small car. Perfect colour and texture match with bumpers etc
Visibility is good
Stock 16 inch wheels - suit the style of the car. Any bigger seems to make it look like it is on stilts
Handling is excellent.

Dislikes
Fit and finish a little suspect (when you start looking)
Rear view mirrors mounted too far back
Electric window switches mounted a touch too far back
No Titanium level option
Too low to the ground
Steering wheel in Zetec is low qualty "leather wrapped". Poor quality

[oldsoftboss]

Originally Posted by Candyman2

owners should get fined as per road regs if they do use them.

:

Here Here.

The comment that they are not bright is obviously from the drivers perspective. When comming towards you they are a pain the a@#%

[InTrail]

Originally Posted by Candyman2

They are not drivng lights or spot lights, they are fog lights (as per manual)

They should not be used unless you are driving in fog and people that use them (seems to be a lot of Commie V8 and Falcon drivers and Subaru owners) should get fined as per road regs if they do use them.

:

In Queensland, the only restrictions are on the use of rear fog lights.

Transport Operations (Road Use Management—Road Rules) Regulation 1999

217 Using rear fog lights
(1) The driver of a vehicle fitted with a rear fog light must not operate the fog light unless the driver is driving in fog or
other hazardous weather conditions causing reduced visibility.
Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.
(2) In this section—
rear fog light means a light fitted to a vehicle to make it more easily visible from the rear in fog.

Evidently, Hyundai Excels seem to be ignorant or excluded from this law :togo:

[Candyman2]

I assumed he was in NSW.

Section 218–1

The driver of a vehicle must not:

(a) use any fog light fitted to the vehicle unless the driver is driving in fog, mist or under other atmospheric conditions that restrict visibility

Despite no regulation about this in QLD, they are still fog lights. Use them in fog. they are not DRL's

Edit

I note this from the QLD Transport site

Fog lights must not be used except in fog or mist or under other atmospheric conditions which restrict visibility.

[Candyman2]

Back to normal programming though ...

The other thing I do like about the Fiesta is the euro placement of the switches and driving column gear.

The other thing I dislike is the skimping on carpet. FFS, it doesn't cost that much to carry the carpet all the way up the firewall (and other places)

[dannyhilton]

You're right about the build quality in areas you don't often look Candyman2. As Fiesta Girl pointed out, there are a few areas that while you may not see often, when you do see it does look quite cheap. I too noticed that the driver footwell doesn't have carpet even half way up when fitting my Alloy Pedals. Quite strange, but then again these cars are packed full of kit, and quite cheap, so every little bit of carpet soon adds up LOL.

[Fi.ES.TA]

LIKES:
The look of the car its a cut above the rest in the small car class.
The drive is excellent.
Gearbox is so smooth its a pleasure to change gear.
Interior is the dogs knackers.
Audio is excellent for standard in a small car.
Paintwork is spot on no colour difference between the plastics and body.

DISLIKES:
No thermostat reading on the CL which i find very strange.
Electric window switches in an awkward place and no lock for other windows.
No distance to empty reading on the computer.
Handbrake could of been placed in a better place.

But over all for a car in its price range its awsome :sm_headba

[WASP]

Originally Posted by Candyman2

They are not drivng lights or spot lights, they are fog lights (as per manual)

They should not be used unless you are driving in fog and people that use them (seems to be a lot of Commie V8 and Falcon drivers and Subaru owners) should get fined as per road regs if they do use them.

:

Originally Posted by oldsoftboss

Here Here.

Ok, time for you both to get off your self-righteous soap box. You want to get precious about this topic, take it to PM or start another thread.

[Candyman2]

Originally Posted by CDAA

Ok, time for you both to get off your self-righteous soap box. You want to get precious about this topic, take it to PM or start another thread.

Was going along quite nicely thanks ...

Originally Posted by Candyman2

Back to normal programming though ...

The other thing I do like about the Fiesta is the euro placement of the switches and driving column gear.

The other thing I dislike is the skimping on carpet. FFS, it doesn't cost that much to carry the carpet all the way up the firewall (and other places)

Sheesh ...

[Ben85]

I drive with my headlights and my driving lights on during the day and the night. Its up to me whether i want them on or not. I no wat the law says, but i think they make it much easier to drive and safer for myself. Overall it is a stupid law that needs to be changed!!! I speed as well, and i no wat the law says about that as well. Its all about choice. So i agree, get off your high horse and quit telling people what they should or shouldnt do.

[greenfoam]

Just high beam anyone that has them on like I do, wont take them long to learn :P

[Zetec Dave]

So far, I'm liking the Fiesta a LOT but one things that bugs me is the lack of carpet covering below the plastic trim in the boot and behind the seats.