Thinking of buying a Ford Fiesta, are they worth it?

[Jamieking86]

Hi guys, I'm new here but after a bit of advice. I currently have a 2009 Audi A3, I love the car so much, but we we are trying for a baby so we need a 5 door and my fiancee has 2 jobs and she's constantly putting petrol in every few days, it's so thirsty. We are seriously considering part x'ing for a Ford Fiesta. The one I've seen and are going to view on Saturday is a Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCi Zetec, 5 dr Diesel. It has nearly 104,000 miles, 12 months MOT etc, are they worth it? Are they good on fuel etc? I had a car accident last year in my Clio, and our courtesy car was a nearly new Ford Fiesta, it was so comfortable to drive it really was lovely and it was good on fuel. I've seen another Fiesta which is really nice but it's up a £3995, he said he'd give me £3000 for my Audi so wants £995. My Audi is worth much more than that. Thanks for any help given.

[lwatson99]

Personally - if you’re going for fuel economy, you’re best getting the ecoboost unless you like instant high speeds. You can get 60mpg without even trying in one.

 

but yes they’re great for fuel economy, and spare parts are plentiful if you ever need any.

Mileage sounds quite high for the price, however like most things it depends on how it’s been driven not the distance.

 

word of warning - the reverse gear has a nasty crunching or grinding habit due to the no-synchro design. 

With a car that high a mileage - you may find the reverse gear is quite worse for wear 

[Jethro_Tull]

id steer clear of a 105k miler unless it was indescribably cheap.  There's no shortage of used Fezzas, you'll easily find better for less.

 

And yes, they're worth it.  Even the most humble versions have sharp handling and are good to drive.  They may be cheap, but they have plenty of cheer.

[Jamieking86]

Thanks for both your replys. I did think it was quite high mileage but my dad's always said he doesn't worry about mileage with modern day cars etc, he knows what he's talking about so I never dispute that. I am really keen on this one, has low mileage with warranty etc but I didn't want to pay too much cash as i personally think my Audi is worth about £4000. Would it be worth part x'ing for £3000 plus £995 cash for this?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201705105289878?model=FIESTA&sort=year-desc&transmission=Manual&annual-tax-cars=TO_100&postcode=ls165de&quantity-of-doors=5&seller-type=trade&advertising-location=at_cars&maximum-mileage=80000&make=FORD&radius=40&price-to=4500&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly New&onesearchad=New&maximum-badge-engine-size=1.4&page=1

[Banana Co]

i think you need to consider if a fiesta is compatible with a baby, we have a three year old and its manageable with him, but looking back to when he was a baby and all the stuff you have to lug around with them then i'd make sure you can at least get your desired pram/buggy in the boot.

[Bobr]

I agree with Tim.   We have young grandchildren who we look after.   I have a Fiesta and my wife has a Focus.   We couldn't manage the children in the Fiesta but manage quite well in the Focus.

You would almost certainly be better off with a Focus.   If you get one make sure it has the Isofix child seat retainers fitted.

[Jamieking86]

We have looked at the focus but the newer models are out of our price range and not keen on the older models. My friend has twins, and has the same fiesta we are looking at. She says she manages perfectly fine with it having a big boot etc. I suppose women are miracle workers when it comes to kids though :D

[Banana Co]

Maybe have a look at a B-Max? assuming you can find one in budget, might be a little easier, there is also a bit of bending when putting the child into the car seat. I presume a B-max would be a little higher.

[Jamieking86]

1 hour ago, Banana Co said:

Maybe have a look at a B-Max? assuming you can find one in budget, might be a little easier, there is also a bit of bending when putting the child into the car seat. I presume a B-max would be a little higher.

Thank you for the recommendation but i wouldn't be seen dead in one of them lol, their horrible.

[Bobr]

3 hours ago, Jamieking86 said:

We have looked at the focus but the newer models are out of our price range and not keen on the older models. My friend has twins, and has the same fiesta we are looking at. She says she manages perfectly fine with it having a big boot etc. I suppose women are miracle workers when it comes to kids though :D

That's something new.   A Fiesta with a big boot.

[Jethro_Tull]

41 minutes ago, Jamieking86 said:

Thank you for the recommendation but i wouldn't be seen dead in one of them lol, their horrible.

They're brilliant, very clever cars, and its not like the Shell suit and medallion image of an Audi A3 is anything to get moist over.

[isetta]

The main reason I have a Fiesta (as opposed to another make car of similar size) is the Quickclear windscreen - most, but not all, fiestas have it. I would not want to be without it.

[Bobr]

5 hours ago, Jamieking86 said:

We have looked at the focus but the newer models are out of our price range and not keen on the older models. My friend has twins, and has the same fiesta we are looking at. She says she manages perfectly fine with it having a big boot etc. I suppose women are miracle workers when it comes to kids though :D

Our Focus is a 2010 model and it's great.   It is a Ghia though.

[MJNewton]

On the baby front we are coping well with a 4-week old and our Fiesta but perhaps this is the calm before the storm and she'll out grow it in due course!

[Jethro_Tull]

Mrs Tull had a 5 door Peugeot 107 when our youngest was born and managed fine...just.  You wouldn't have wanted it an inch smaller.

[HappyJam]

Great for fuel economy to be honest. I travel up north regularly from essex and I've seen great mpg driving nicely. And mines the new st-lin, so with what you're looking at I would assume you'll get even better mpg.

 

I would say though, if your current car is worth a lot more than £3,000, then why not look at selling your current car and using that money (or some of it) to put down as a deposit on a finance deal for a brand new fiesta? With a deposit, you'll get your monthly payments down significantly and by the end of your deal you could own a fiesta which is newer than what you're looking at now.

[Luke4efc]

Don't worry about the warranty they try and advertise. If you got it from a dealer, the law practically covers you anyway for most of the warranty they provide. I would go with a focus over a Fiesta. Fiestas have the feel that the 5 door option was thought of after the fact, and can feel a bit cramped in the back (what do you expect with a small hatch though). I've always gone by the fact unless it's a classic (or future classic), then I wouldn't go above 100,000 miles, seems stuff seems to go wrong then. Mechanics will always say that's crap, but it's one of those things I'm not chancing.

[Jethro_Tull]

That depends on how its maintained. If you've maintained or owned it yourself, sweet, but if you haven't then you're buying 100k of someone else's sloppy seconds.

[jbell]

Worth keeping in mind the 1.4 tdci is under 70bhp. Unless you're doing some serious milage look at the ecoboost, there's (approx) 100, 125 and 140 bhp versions to choose from -- going from your Audi the 125 focus might be a good fit. 

[Jamieking86]

10 hours ago, jbell said:

Worth keeping in mind the 1.4 tdci is under 70bhp. Unless you're doing some serious milage look at the ecoboost, there's (approx) 100, 125 and 140 bhp versions to choose from -- going from your Audi the 125 focus might be a good fit. 

Yes i have kept that in mind about the bhp. My partner drives it more than me for work, she's a fairly new driver so bhp doesn't affect her. The reason we are looking at a 1.4 is because their cheaper on the insurance and have more mpg than the 1.2 and 1.25's, accodring to the auto trader details anyway. I'm guessing the 1.2 has a turbo?

[jbell]

4 hours ago, Jamieking86 said:

Yes i have kept that in mind about the bhp. My partner drives it more than me for work, she's a fairly new driver so bhp doesn't affect her. The reason we are looking at a 1.4 is because their cheaper on the insurance and have more mpg than the 1.2 and 1.25's, accodring to the auto trader details anyway. I'm guessing the 1.2 has a turbo?

1.2/1.25 is na. Ecoboost (turbo models) come in either 1.0 or 1.6. other ford models (e.g. Mustang, modeo) also have larger ecoboost options. To complicate it further there is a 1.6 na model too -- so look for the 'ecoboost' name for higher mpg figures & cheaper insurance. 

[omen1314]

I judge a car on forums and how many posts there are about problems and faults and I have never seen a forum with so few complaints about the Fiesta.

My Streetkrap has numerous problems and the Fiesta is a pure joy as i have reached the stage where i find car mechanics a tedious chore now!
Since I lost my dad rainy Sundays under a car are no longer what they used to be!!!
>;o(

Its great on fuel compared to all of my previous cars although the poor power going uphill can be a pain its more than worth it for this little beauty of a car!

 

[winemart2]

On 28/06/2017 at 8:02 AM, lwatson99 said:

Personally - if you’re going for fuel economy, you’re best getting the ecoboost unless you like instant high speeds. You can get 60mpg without even trying in one.

LOL, come and show me how to get 60

That's about double what I get.

EDIT: I just realised where i'm going wrong, I always disable stop/start

[Ticktock]

I have the 2005 3dr 1.4 tdci and find it great on fuel, I'm getting around 60mpg at the moment and with £30 a year road tax it costs peanuts to run. In the winter the mpg drops to around 54 (lights, heating etc).

[kellyloul]

I have just gone for a 5 door 1.5cdti from a focus and have a 6yr old and a 1yr old. I would look at the top of pram you are going to have as that makes all the difference in whether the car will work day to day. 

So far it's no different to my 2005 focus I had apart from smaller boot. I have a Jane Epic pram so can remove the wheels so the chassis is tiny in the boot and plenty of room to the right for bags etc, my main issue is the pushchair section and adding into the boot it takes up more space. Overall it suits my scenario perfectly, looking back when my daughter was a baby she was in a lie flat car seat across the back so again would have suited then as that clipped onto the chassis.

If you are sticking with a fiesta then you need to find a pram that will fit around the car.