A Few Specs & Uncle Bill's Checklist

Before I get too far into the pictures and thoughts about the Fiesta's styling, I need to ground myself.

I need to stay true to my roots.

I have an engineering degree after all.

And I like to know the specs on a car.

When I first got into the car they there was a notebook with a few items that would help along the way. Inside, one of the items was a 2-page FAQ list to help me answer questions about the car. One in particular caught my eye:

Q: "What is the Fuel Economy?"

A: "We fully expect the fuel economy of this car to reach nearly 40 mpg."

Uh huh....right - nice politician's answer. I'm going to call them out on this one -- they are sandbagging -- under-promise and over-deliver. Now, I know the European engine won't be the same engine that is in the North American version, but I can't imagine it is going to be much different. The mileage I was getting was much better than "nearly 40 mpg."

In fact, a couple of times before my 20 mile commute, I reset the real time mpg gauge to see what mileage I would get. Without any coaxing and staying fully "off-the-line" competitive with my fellow commuters (you know what I mean), I got ~43 mpg......sweet. I'm sure that if I had nursed it even more I would be pushing into the high 40s.

So that is my experience with gas mileage. How about a couple of more specs?

• Engine: 1.6L TiVCT
  
• Horsepower: 119 hp

While 119 hp doesn't sound like much to us power-hungry Americans, the Fiesta didn't need anymore - I didn't want anymore. This car was meant to be nimble, quick, geared low and extremely responsive. Good news for Uncle Bill who wrote me and said:

"...[all of the cars on his list are] economical, small and nimble drivers cars. A bad car says 'do I have to?' when you press on the gas. A good car says 'OK lets go!' They don't have to be driven fast or hard to be enjoyed. But they do have to be responsive, manoeuvrable, easy to move through traffic or a parking lot."

Join me while I go through Uncle Bill's Checklist:

Economical - Check (see above)
Small - Check (see previous post)
Nimble - Check - you'll have to take my word for it - I took one 90 deg corner...fairly rapidly ;-) ...and the car didn't protest a bit.
A Good Car says "Lets go!" Check - the Fiesta was geared low and responded when I stepped on it.
Responsive - Check - I haven't experienced steering so tight since I was driving back in Europe and the car is so light & the brakes so good that it stopped on a dime.
Maneuverable, easy to move through traffic or a parking lot - Check - (check back in to see my answer to this one in the next post...)