Is Ford about to drop the ball on Fiesta Movement?
I’ve been following Ford’s Fiesta Movement from the beginning. In fact, not only did I consider putting my name in the hat to participate, I was already directly or indirectly following several of the final 100 chosen via blogs or Twitter. For me, Fiesta Movement was not about raising awareness of the car, but rather a test of whether a fun-to-drive European hatchback could really become cool in the US — something automakers have been telling us for years was impossible and that a vocal minority have been saying was not only possible, but already a reality.
I have been at the front of that vocal minority for years. Upon returning home to the US after years lived in Europe in the ’90s, I couldn’t believe that the US car market had such a horrible void at its bottom end. The small, cheap and clever cars that Europe adores were simply missing over here, and the argument seemed to be that automakers couldn’t make enough profit from them and that, quite frankly, nobody wanted them anyway. I did, and still do, and I know others do too. I’ve walked the walk too, owning both a VW Golf and a MINI Cooper in the past decade. And now I’m looking to buy a new car.
The Fiesta instantly jumped to the top of my list based on the positive reviews that it’s received in Europe and in recent tests on US websites. I want a 5-door hatch that is small, fun to drive, and, yes, looks cool (I’m still a designer, you know). And I’m looking to spend around $15K on it. And here is where Ford’s problems start. They have been very vague about everything to do with the US Fiesta. When will it arrive? How much will it cost? Will they put some horrible higher-powered but inefficient and unfun engine in it or maintain the Euro spec? Will they tweak the styling for “American taste” (meaning, the complete lack of taste, if the current Focus is any indicator). We just don’t know. And there is real-world competition for it, on the ground, in the US, right now.
The Honda Fit has been a huge success since it arrived a few years ago if my neighborhood in Philadelphia is any indication. It’s small, clever and a pretty decent drive. It’s almost the exact same size as the Fiesta but vastly more useful. Its got those flippy seats and a flappy-paddle gearbox and the new model even looks pretty good. A Euro-spec Fiesta bests it in driving pleasure, I hear. The Fiesta also looks better — if they keep it the way it is. And maybe it will be cheaper? Yeah, we don’t know that either. Ford’s been extremely tight-lipped on the subject. Which leads me to one conclusion: it doesn’t matter how much goodwill and interest has been generated by Fiesta Movement if buyers can’t put numbers and dates and specs on their shopping list.
I probably won’t be buying one. In a buyer’s market, a new Honda Fit, Kia Soul, Nissan Cube or even a VW Rabbit or Mazda 3 is potentially competitive. In the current used market, the sky’s the limit. If the Fiesta’s arrival is imminent, I might wait, but a recent Ford press release says “More than nine months before the 2011 Ford Fiesta goes on sale in North America”. Nine months? How will they keep up the excitement for that long? Who’s going to wait nine months in the small-car space for a mysterious car that you can’t compare, spec or price? I won’t, and I blame Ford. Hopefully this won’t doom the Fiesta upon its arrival, but with Mazda readying the 2 and Fiat importing the 500, I think Ford is wasting its opportunity to get on buyers’ shopping lists.
But if you want to do a second round of Fiesta Movement, give me a call. If the car’s as good as you say it is, having it sit in my driveway next to a Fit should be the perfect way to show off everything that’s good about it.
