Autoblog

Twenty-five year-old females in Milan. According to global product development chief Derrick Kuzak, that's who Ford is hoping to satisfy with the new Fiesta. Well honestly now, who isn't? But that's some ambitious target, to attract the attention of the most trend-savvy (make that trend-setting) demographic in the world capital of fashion.

We didn't pass through Milan while driving the new Fiesta through the Italian countryside, and so, to our dismay, didn't have a chance to test out that particular target. But we did pass by a local road works crew on the winding mountain passes of Tuscany, dutifully working to keep that legendary tarmac silky smooth. They reacted to the Fiesta as if the car were the twenty-five year-old Milanese fashion model, taking notice as we approached and turning to ogle as we passed by. (They may have been shouting cat calls too, but we wouldn't have heard them from inside the Fiesta's whisper-quiet cabin.) That may be an even greater testimony to the new Fiesta's styling than the Blue Oval crew had hoped for. As for our impressions, and why readers in America and around the world alike should take note, just follow the jump to read on.

Photos Copyright ©2008 Noah Joseph / Weblogs, Inc.

Click image above for a photo gallery of the Fiesta Zetec S

While the official unveiling of the 2009 Ford Fiesta is still a couple weeks away, that hasn't stopped Ford from tossing sneak peeks of a sportier Fiesta Zetec S out to the hot-hatch followers. Nowhere near as aggressive as the Focus RS, the Zetec S is differentiated by its body kit with new front splitter and side skirts. The European Fiesta will be offered with five different engines, but the Zetec S will feature only the Duratec 1.6-liter rated at 118 hp. Tuned for efficiency, yet designed to be fun-to-drive, the new hatch will scoot to 62 mph in less 9.9 seconds and squeeze an impressive 50 miles out of a single gallon of gas.

[Source: Auto Express]

Click above for hi-res images of the new 2009 Ford Fiesta

We had to fly all the way to Switzerland to see it, and while it may not be until late next year, the new Ford Fiesta will be following us home. As we reported, the new Fiesta draws its styling from the Verve concept, which we saw the last time we made the trip across the Atlantic for the Frankfurt Motor Show last September. Today Ford brought out the production Fiesta in both three-door (green) and five-door (magenta) versions, although the American version will likely be arriving only as a four-door sedan with trunk and all.

Taking center stage underneath the bright lights of the Geneva Motor Show, the new Fiesta makes a decidedly bigger impact than the model it replaces, which, stylistically-speaking at least, could have more aptly been called the Siesta. But don't take our word for it, have a look at the images in our high-resolution gallery and judge for yourself.

click above image for more spy shots

Brenda Priddy & Co. caught a Euro Fiesta mule filling up its gas tank in North Sweden, and the car can already be seen wearing a few cues inspired by the Verve Concept that debuted in Frankfurt. First and foremost is the large front grille that punctuates the cladding this mule is wearing. This car's beltline also sweeps up dramatically from front to back, and the rear taillights are mounted on the C/D-pillar just like the Verve's. Of course, we're interested in the European Fiesta because after it debuts over there next summer as a 2009 model, it will arrive in the U.S. virtually unchanged the following year as a 2010 model. Expect both three- and five-door hatchback models to be offered, which makes the loss of those model types in the larger Focus lineup a bit easier for us to swallow.

[Photos: Brenda Priddy & Co.]

click on image above to view both spy shots of the 2009 Ford Fiesta

KGP photographers are the first to have caught the 2009 Ford Fiesta testing on American soil. These shots give us, and many Europeans, our first look at the sub-Focus car that will be sold in both Europe and the U.S. As we learned back in March when Ford announced the new European Fiesta would also be sold in the U.S., the two cars will be virtually identical save for a little longer nose on the U.S. version to meet our own crash safety standards. Based on the same platform as the Mazda2, the new Fiesta will wear a more conventional look that will likely please the masses more than the Mazda's swoopy design. Though the camo does its best confuse the corneas, we can definitely make out pronounced wheel arches on the car, and a more typical set of rear taillamps that don't climb up the C-pillar like on the Focus. While rear overhang is virtually absent, the nose on this test mule does project far out in front of the lead wheels, which implies that Ford may be far along in making the design and engineering tweaks necessary to sell the Fiesta in the U.S. While there's no clear shot of the Fiesta's face this time, one can clearly see the influence of Ford of Europe's design language in the shape of the headlights and the grille. Our sources say we'll get no three-bar grille, as the Fiesta marks the first official comingling of Ford's Red, White and Bold (U.S.) and Kinetic (Europe) design themes in the same market. Though the Fiesta isn't expected to go on sale until at least late next year as a 2009 model, we want to know if you think it will be worth the wait.

[Photos: KGP Photography - do not republish]