Ford Fiesta Owner Quality & Ownership Survey

[Ford Fiesta Forum]

Fiesta ST Forum is interested in getting some feedback from our Fiesta ST owners. Please take a moment and complete the survey. Select all that applies to you.

 

[rodmoe]

I was torn on the last question as I didn't want anyone else to have one of these so I almost said no to tell a friend so I could kick butt in AutoX LOL

 

[Mike]

I voted, I was torn in the interior quality. While most of the int. parts are nice, for $25k I would expect just a bit more quality material.

 

[stuntdoogie]

I voted, I was torn in the interior quality. While most of the int. parts are nice, for $25k I would expect just a bit more quality material.

Exactly, but I think the reason behind the plastic cheap material was to keep the weight of the car low.

 

[Tall Timbers]

This Fiesta is built way better than the Honda Fit I have. I'm going to get rid of the Fit and buy another Fiesta or two.

 

[MKVIIST]

This Fiesta is built way better than the Honda Fit I have. I'm going to get rid of the Fit and buy another Fiesta or two.

I completely agree, the materials used on my Fiesta is was better than the Fit. My wife and I test drove one before we purchase our ST.

 

[Corvair]

My Fiesta was big disappointment. Lots of mechanical and electrical problems. It didn't even has the power shift. Had it only four years. More issues than the 26 years of previous cars combined. My Honda Accord, bought new, now with 100,000 miles has had zero issues. Tires at 70,000 miles and wiper blades. Normal scheduled maintenance. Only three mpg less, about the same in winter. Much much quicker too. Ford let me down.

 

[rooSTer]

My Fiesta was big disappointment. Lots of mechanical and electrical problems. It didn't even has the power shift. Had it only four years. More issues than the 26 years of previous cars combined. My Honda Accord, bought new, now with 100,000 miles has had zero issues. Tires at 70,000 miles and wiper blades. Normal scheduled maintenance. Only three mpg less, about the same in winter. Much much quicker too. Ford let me down.

Have you considered getting an ST? Mine has been problem free so far.

 

[Corvair]

It was by far the worst car I ever had. In just under four years I owned it, it required over 40 trips to the dealer for repairs for 17 problems. Some were minor, some weren't. Even the manual transmission had issues. The tires were the worst tires I ever owned on any car I've had. Assembly quality was good, gas mileage was good, but my much bigger and faster Accord gets only 10% less and about the same in winter. It was a nice car to drive to work, except for the issues. New tires greatly improved it's wet and snow performance.

 

[econoboxrocks]

Bought my '17 new. Just got back from another road trip and I am still loving this car. It's quick and nimble. 80 all day and some city driving, and I got 31.2 mpg, and that's with a tune. The ride could be considered sporty, but most people think it's rough. I don't mind it a bit. I like sporty.
Haven't had any issues or had to take it in for anything.
I was very particular about oil, break-in, and maintenance because I intend to keep it as long as possible. Build quality is good, feels like it will last.
It's an economy car, so the interior and features are about what you'd expect. Nothing fancy, but adequate for a modern car. The sound system is OK, not great. If there were an optional sound system upgrade, I'd have bought it.
No rattles or squeaks yet at 28,000m.
Some of the earlier models (even the ST) had a few problems, but those were fixed by '17.

Small cars don't have to be boring. This car makes me grin all the time. Clean used ones that haven't been abused will hold their value pretty well, I think.

 

[Handy Andy]

My issues have been more with the dealership I had purchased from...

Here's an example...

​

Oil leak caused by poor oil change reassembly - seal failed..."rinsed off motor and rechecked oil level, did not drop"

Taken in several times for "alignment check" - they said alignment ok still had "left-bump steer" causing constant correction.
- I had to correct this myself - article to explain that might come soon. They told me - too many miles now so you'll have to pay a fee to have us check it - again. (after 3 different visits amongst several months apart to allow the vehicle's' suspension to settle down - they suggested)

Sync II - unable to disengage the TRAC Controls when you drive in bad weather - have to come to a complete "stop" to have the SYNC release the menu options so you can turn off TRAC control - via APIM menu. No button on the console to do a manual override for those oh sh*t moments.

Now, when it comes to Drive by Wire - the throttle / load sense lag effect effect is hurting the economy of the shift points you can use for speed shifting and ease of traffic flow shifting up or down to maintain pace with other vehicles (not becoming a speed bump in congested regions of traffic) it becomes a concern when the vehicle has a throttle to response lagging problem and cannot be "corrected" as part of the customer experience program. Clutch to shift to throttle is the issues I talk about - another would be that the vehicle tended to "stall" - requiring a simple re-adjustment of the Emergency/Parking Brake because of their standards to apply to such a vehicle are - 3 clicks to engage - when better response and less drag is more like 5 to 7 clicks before the pads full engagement.

So, in a way - the vehicle is as expected, as long as you don't raise the bar by much.

Now again, due to Dealer interaction (or lack thereof) is how this vehicle gets downgraded from a A- / B+ down to a C- due to - well, the last oil change wound up getting more than I bargained for...

Come on guys...​

So to me, the vehicle is not a lemon, but is still sour - issues like the above listed could have been avoided...and it's a small sampling.

The Parts department was great from any dealer I worked with - I given them an "A - Rating" simply for the ability to help provide the parts I needed; which if the standards of YouTube were ever included - Parts Department First, then YouTube for the directions, this forum for the answers while Ford's Owners Manual and Dealership oversight are at the bottom of the list

Ford built a good car, it could be a GREAT car, had they stood behind their vehicle and not let a dealer get away with poor workmanship and followed up with the new owner - This is the first time I've even got a chance to give a review so others can see the issues are not by default, but by how well the maker works with the vehicle owner to enhance the driving experience and improve their satisfaction ratings were/are still not there.

Older Magazines used to offer "Reader Information Cards" - I got no such response from Ford ever for this purchase.

Take this post for what it is.

To be fair to Ford, they did not do this intentionally, but knowing now - beck to what I had asked them to do earlier - tighten hardware - you decide...
This "stem" goes to the Mirror as to fasten it to the door. The "stem" was left rattling around inside the door - Afterwards, when this all occurred they released the vehicle back to me - no charge (ahemn) and while driving I needed to roll down the window so I can look back past the side pillar to check for traffic since this is my Drivers side mirror. Window jammed part way down, IT only went down part way and jammed there - until I could stop somewhere to jiggle the controls to raise and re-lower the window to free it - and is how I was able to even know of the below.

It was missing a nut... top portion you can see is stripped off so their "car wash" got it but good...No idea where the nut is but I had to take off the side door panel inside to even get this out.

So you know this is taking over three weeks to resolve - As I can get an R and R (Repair and Report)- ticket and even points on my record for this. They simply said we're ordering one - well that's fine but 3 weeks without income from my job as deliveries sux..

This review could have gone better - I wish it would - but I cannot deal with hypocrisy.

 

[scotman]

I really like the fuel economy and build quality of my 2011 hatchback. I like the performance of my 2016 ST. I should be wanting another ST. But, the body seam rust on the doors hood panel and hatch in combination with the bad paint job have me thinking about cashing in on the ST. I can replace the panels and repaint the car. But i bought it just a few years ago. That's what I do to old cars that I drag home! The ST is ageing in "dog years". Not winter driven, yet yet showing evidence of corrosion issues. Which is even more interesting when compared to my 2000 ZX2 S/R and 2011 fiesta SE which have identical useage and storage spaces. Guess which one looks the worst? Yeah. I just aint feeling the love so much anymore.

 

[musgh]

Before my recent engine blow-up, I would have said I totally love the 1L engine and have no major issues with the Fiesta SFE (2014 model). We did have a few minor issues having to do with A/C vent occur twice.

Apparently at some point, the 1L engine for the Fiesta was designed such that a coolant hose could deteriorate, break off, and the engine would not show any warning at all, meaning the temperature gauge will read normal, there will be zero warning signs on the dashboard that there's anything wrong. Since 2014/2015, this apparently has been re-designed.

I was one of the unlucky ones who did not get the re-designed engine. Coolant hose broke, engine overheated without warning, and a new engine was needed.

Besides this issue, I have been really pleased with the fuel economy and pep of the car. I haven't driven the new engine long enough to know how the fuel economy and performance is.