Back on the roads with a vengeance! (Ford Fiesta Freestyle 1.25 16V)

Member Name: crispy

Product:	Ford Fiesta Freestyle 1.25 16V
Date:	26/02/02 (5094 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: brilliant performance, looks cool

Disadvantages: not many standard safety features, drivers seat could be better

So yeah, I've just got a new car. Well, to be a bit more accurate, my mum and dad have been forced to replace the car that my brother and I have access to. However, mum and dad are both perfectly happy driving their own cars, and Matt is away at university (Kent, Drama, 3rd year), so basically I've got a new car! Woohoo!

They were forced into replacing our old VW Jetta after finding out it was going to fail its MOT abysmally. Rather than throw more money into a knackered car, mum and dad sensibly decided to replace it. What we were looking for was a little run-about, a couple of years old, for about 5 grand. However, the old Crispy magic came out to play, and dad ended up parting company with 7 grand for a ten-month-old Y registration Fiesta Freestyle. We managed to discount a whole bunch of small cars from the outset, based on dad's prejudices of certain companies and countries. Further culls to the selection were made based on me sitting in cars at showrooms and playing with the controls. It's amazing how many cars just don't feel right.

One of my main criticisms of a lot of the small cars we looked at was that the gearboxes felt incredibly vague and imprecise. Test-driving the Citroen Saxo, I was at times literally feeling my way through the gearbox, and still ended up in the wrong gear on more than one occasion. My other main criticism of several cars was that the interiors were ghastly! The Vauxhall Corsa was a particular sufferer on this count - the entire dashboard was made out of this horrible hard shiny cheap-looking plastic, and there was no flair in the design or sense of style or anything. It spoke volumes to me, but the gist of what it said was 'I am a horrible, cheap, nasty car. Do not buy me!'

As soon as I sat in the Fiesta it felt right. We test-drove various models, including a V-reg 1.4 Fiesta Ghia, an X-reg 1.3 Fiesta Flight, and a Y-reg 1.25 Fiesta Freestyle. The one I liked most was the 1.
25 Freestyle, dad agreed, and that's what we've now got parked outside.

So, what's it like?


**Performance: the important stuff

This is where the Freestyle really scores big with me. It has Ford's new Zetec engine, and the difference this makes is really amazing. Its 1.25i 16V engine easily out-performed the 1.3 I drove with the non-Zetec engine, and was pretty much on par with the 1.4. Acceleration from a standstill is excellent ? the brochure quotes a 0-62 mph figure of 13.1 seconds, which is pretty nippy (and it's only group 6 to insure!). The car also accelerates well at speed, which is extremely handy for motorway driving. It is in fact extremely difficult to keep the car to the speed limit on the motorway - virtually zero pressure is required on the accelerator - and the car seems a lot happier cruising at 80mph or even 90 (which it maintains quite comfortably at around 4000rpm), which is great because I am too...
;-)

Not only does the car perform well, but it is also extremely economical. The quoted combined (urban and extra-urban) fuel economy is 40.9 mpg. I haven't calculated any figures myself to back this up, but it sounds about right. It's hard to compare with my previous car as the fuel tank is a lot smaller - whereas before if I filled up (unleaded, obviously) from a quarter-tank it would set me back about £30; now it's about £20. I can get down to Southampton from London (about 60 miles) on just under a quarter of a tank without being especially careful about my economy, so you do the maths!

The driving position feels good, and while the steering isn't adjustable, I don't feel it needs to be as it's perfect for me. The power steering is a big bonus, as my previous car didn't have it, and was also extremely heavy - the Fiesta's handling is positive and feels feather-light compared to our old VW Jetta! The suspension feels stiff and sporty, and the
car holds the road extremely well.

As far as safety and security is concerned, it's got a drivers airbag, high security anti-burst locks, central locking, and an engine immobiliser.

My one real complaint is about the drivers seat. I can't really say anything about the others, as I've yet to sit in them! It's fine for short journeys, but after an hour or two it starts to get uncomfortable - there isn't quite enough lumbar support, and my back gets a little sore. My dad commented on this pretty much as soon as he sat in it, but he is used to the fantastic seats of his Audi A4 Turbo Sports, so he can pretty much sod off...


**Looks and other less important details

The Fiesta Freestyle is a pretty good-looking car, for a run-about. I mean, obviously it's no Elise, but it beats all the other small cars except the Peugeot 206 in my book. And the 206 is more expensive, and I didn't like its interior much...

Anyway, the Fiesta Freestyle is supposed to be the slightly sporty, fun model of the Fiesta. The interior lives up to this image. It has an extremely stylish dashboard - largely black, with the instrument panel in a contrasting silver plastic. The dials on the dash are white, and glow a luminous green with the lights on. The steering wheel is partially stitched leather, which is a great touch, and gives a real feeling of quality when you're behind it. The upholstery is black, with panels of one of four different colours intended to match the exterior paint-job. My Fiesta is Aquamarine Frost (it's the very pale metallic green that you see a lot of Focuses in) and my upholstery is in Pacific Green. It looks great, although to be honest I'm largely just glad it's not silver! Every man and his dog's got a silver car these days, and I try to be at least a little bit original...

Externally, the Fiesta Freestyle looks great. Mine is a Y-reg, as I've said, so it's
the most recent Fiesta shape - although a new one is due out soon which makes it look even more like the Focus. The Freestyle model has a set of fog-lights below the bumper - they look great and they're incredibly powerful, but I'm not entirely sure of when I'm legally allowed to use them! It also has alloy wheels, a sunroof and a boot spoiler, which greatly add to the sporty look of the car.

The other thing the Freestyle boasts as standard is a CD player. I don't know how it compares on the grand scheme of these things, but it sounds a whole lot better than the £250 Blaupunkt we stuck in our old Jetta. Of course, the speakers in that car were probably knackered, but there you go... It also sounds a lot better than the stereo I have in my room, but again that is both old and cheap. Overall, it probably isn't the best in the world, but it sounds good and goes up to a nice high volume without distortion. Of course, if your name is Darren or Gary and you like sharing your drum n bass with the entire high street you'll probably be swapping it for something a little better...


Overall, the Fiesta Freestyle is a great car. It's sporty and stylish in both looks and performance, but won't break the bank completely. It's brilliant fun to drive, and if I were to go back I'd definitely pick the same car again. In fact, I'm now thinking of a Fiesta for when I eventually buy a car of my own. Either the Freestyle with the 1.6 engine, or maybe even the Zetec-S hot hatch... Mmm...

Thanks for reading!

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