Ford Fiesta Zetec Car Review

In the past larger vehicles were very well liked and extremely popular. Now however, smaller cars have taken over the market and are dominating it because they are cost effective vehicles to own. With gas prices constantly on the rise along with the overall maintenance and insurance costs this plays a big factor in today's market. The smaller the vehicle is the less amount of weight there is to put stress on the car. With less weight there is less wear and tear on the suspension and tires giving them a much longer life span than heavier vehicles. Of course less weight also means better gas mileage since the car won't have to push much to get it going. A smaller car in the past forced owners to forgo performance among other features, but this is no longer the case. Manufacturers definitely took note of the issues and made successful changes to do away with them.

I will start off with the exterior of the Ford Fiesta Zetec. As with any vehicle the appearance of the car is up for debate, but in my opinion it is not completely hideous as some may say. In fact, I think it is safe to say that this is one of the best looking super minis available to date. However, for some it may appear too compact and somewhat squished. The Fiesta Zetec was designed in Germany and sports a fairly straightforward but, modern style. The simple look really fits the car and makes it appear to be a very solid vehicle. Some of the noticeable attributes are the headlight clusters, front fog lights, stacked brake lights, and 16 inch wheels sitting nicely in the wheel arches. If you go with the two door model opposed to the 4 door, you will get a steeper raked front and rear windshield along with seven spoke wheels to give it a much sportier look.

Now lets move on to the interior of the car. Just like the outside appearance of the vehicle the inside is also just as interesting. If you are looking for a center armrest then you are out of luck because you won't find one here. This isn't really that bad though since many cars as compact as this don't have them either. When you look at the dash you will surely notice the four round and quite large air ducts that take over the dashboard. The ducts push out plenty of air to help keep the driver and any passengers at a comfortable temperature. Another feature that I liked was the numerals located in the instrument cluster. They are spread out nicely giving the sporty image even more clout. To top it off and add a touch of class to the dashboard there is a digital trip computer that can be found between the main dials. Also, the top of the dashboard is finished off with a soft rubber type material that looks much better than plastic would any day. The seats are quite slim but regardless of that they work just fine. With the new update to Fiesta range came a great new sound system. If you get the Zetec model that is fitted with the 5 speed manual gearbox, then you can enjoy the stereo input connectors on it that allow you to play music from your iPod or any other MP3 player. Since MP3 players are getting more and more popular I thought that this was a great feature to add. The back seats of the vehicle are unfortunately not that great if you judge them by the amount of space they provide. If you move the front seats up a bit then there will be more room, but still not enough if you are used to more spacious seating. Another section of the car that is quite small is the trunk. If you don't find yourself using your trunk much then this won't be a big problem, but if you like to store larger things in there then issues could arise.

As far as safety goes the Ford Fiesta Zetec is quite a deal for the price. You get Antilock Brake System brakes (ABS). Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), and of course a couple of airbags to cover the driver and front passenger. You can get an optional safety pack that will add four more airbags to help protect front and rear passengers. Unfortunately this safety pack is only available for the Fiesta Ghia model which is fairly disappointing. Overall though, the safety features that are found in this vehicle are enough to do the trick.

In conclusion, this vehicle will probably surprise most that give it a chance. Starting at $19,990, it is quite a deal with its 1.6 liter engine, five seats, and all the safety features. Although the design is debatable it actually fits the car very well. The style is simple yet sporty and that certainly isn't a bad thing. One of the best attributes about this car is of course the size as mentioned above in this article. It is not only cost effective to purchase, but maintaining this vehicle will be a breeze and any work that has to be done to it will be far in between. The only negative things to say about the Ford Fiesta is the rear seat room, rear drum brakes, and the fact that it uses the same engine as the normal fiesta models. If you get the opportunity to test drive one of these vehicles I am sure you will end up impressed. The performance and handling is absolutely great and the engine definitely holds its own as well. There are many factors you should look at when you are purchasing a car and the Ford Fiesta Zetec has many of them if not all. In the end it's a great car and I think it will please many drivers who are fans of the super minis. If you can get past its appearance or if you like it, then you are set to enjoy a reliable vehicle for many years.