WE ARE DRIVING the new Ford hatch in the heart of Toscana, Italy. A test area we really like because of its 1) winding roads, 2) the beauty of the scenery and 3) the attitude of the local police.
And to make this day perfect: Dry tarmac, bright sunshine and a little more than 20 degree Celsius.

FRONT WHEEL DRIVE and fast mountain roads. The perfect match to many drivers – perhaps it doesn’t give you the same thrill as a rear wheel drive BMW or Ferrari. But on this type of roads the powerful FWD is just as fast – and to some drivers even faster.

THE FIESTA SPORT is one of the cousins to the best ever FWD, the Ford Focus RS. Perhaps that is why we are not surprised that the new Fiesta is so good. The steering response is as sharp as you can image – with out the car being nervous “out of zero”.
The grip going in is impressive, and driving at dry tarmac power understeering is no problem. Unfortunately you lift-off-steering – the back end of the car is totally dead. We have to wait for the coming Fiesta ST to get direct throttle-steering.

WE ARE DRIVING Continental 16” rubber with all the grip you can ever dream of.


CHASSIC SPEC

FRONT // MacPherson type front suspension with L–shaped, sub-frame mounted lower control arms. Struts with Twin-tube shock absorbers and dual path Top Mounts. Anti Roll Bar.

REAR // Twist-beam rear suspension with angled pivot bushes. Coil springs. Mono-tube shock absorber modules located behind wheel centre.


CAPTIONS
1 // Digging into the next right hander – no roll, just sharp and precise.
2 // Heading the apex we would like more throttle-response.
3 // Open bend with a lot of speed – the balance is alright.
4 // Power is 120 bhp – power understeering is never a problem.
5 // Through an open S-bend – still in full control.