New Ford Fiesta SportVan on sale in UK; diesel gets 56 mpg
Click above for a high res gallery of Ford Fiesta SportVan
Sleeker and smaller than a Transit Connect but also serving as a fuel-saving delivery vehicle that can carry up to 515 kg (1,135 lbs) worth of stuff, the new Ford Fiesta SportVan is now on sale in the UK. With a diesel powerplant that gives off CO2 emissions of just 110 g/km, the SportVan will cost you £10,780. The new diesel SportVan also, well, sports 56 mpg (U.S.) on the combined cycle. Opt for the petrol versions and you'll get 41 mpg (U.S.) and 133 g/kkm of CO2, starting at £9,025.
What's different about the SportVan from the standard Fiesta? As you can see in the image above and in the gallery below, the rear side windows are swapped out for solid panels that match the body color. Rear seats are similarly made more functional by removing them, turning the back into a 1,000 cubic liter cargo space with a standard half-height composite bulkhead and DIN-compliant tie-down hooks. More details are available after the jump. An earlier version of the Fiesta SportVan has been a part of the small delivery van market in Europe since 2006.
Gallery: Ford Fiesta SportVan
[Source: Ford]
PRESS RELEASE:
NEW FORD FIESTA VAN DELIVERS LOW RUNNING COSTS
- New Fiesta Van range now on sale from £9,025 to £10,780
- Available with a choice of three engines and three series: entry, new "Trend" and the top-of-the range SportVan
- Competitive payload of up to 515kg
- Best-in-class fuel economy up to 67.3mpg
- Low insurance groups
- Dagenham-built diesel engines emit just 110g/km CO2
BRENTWOOD, 9 March, 2009 – The new Ford Fiesta Van is now on sale from £9,025. Low running costs make this new entry into the car-derived market a sound business decision. Frugal fuel economy of up to 67.3mpg*, insurance groups of 1E and 2E and a choice of engines and trim levels make it a class-leading package.
Steve Kimber, Ford of Britain's commercial vehicles director, said: "Fiesta Van is a main player in the car-derived van market with around 25 per cent of all sales. We expect to build on this, as more and more of today's businesses look to keep their costs under control.
"The van model was an integral part of the new Fiesta product plan and its superior quality really shows. Being competitive has never been more relevant and that's why Fiesta Van, with the range-topping SportVan, is a great addition to our 2009 line-up."
The fuel efficiency of the Fiesta Van is best in class: the petrol engine has combined fuel consumption of 49.6mpg and CO2 emissions of 133g/km. Both diesel engines have a combined fuel consumption of 67.3mpg* and CO2 emissions of just 110g/km.
The new Fiesta Van is available in three versions: Fiesta Van, the new "Trend" and "SportVan" with prices starting at £9,025 for the 1.25 Duratec 82PS petrol to £10,780 for the SportVan 1.6 TDCi 90PS with coated diesel particulate filter (cDPF). The addition of the Trend series is set to appeal to a wider group of customers. It is ideal for image-conscious businesses who may be delivering small packages, transporting compact equipment such as meter reading tools or for the site engineer who does not need a large capacity for tools.
Engines
The new Fiesta Van is available with a choice of engines: 1.25-litre 82PS Duratec 16 valve petrol unit and a frugal 1.4-litre 68PS Duratorq TDCi turbo diesel. The top-of-the-range 1.6-litre 90PS Duratorq TDCi turbo diesel is standard in the Fiesta SportVan. The closed-loop coated cDPF is optional on the 1.6-litre 90PS Duratorq TDCi turbo diesel on all series. Both diesel engines are built at Ford's wind-powered plant at Dagenham, Essex.
Car becomes a van
A payload range from 490kg to 515kg gives customers a competitive option for transporting their products. The rear side windows are replaced by body-coloured solid panels, and the rear passenger seats are removed to provide a load box area of 1,000 cubic litres, with a maximum useable load length of 1,296mm, as well as a maximum load box width of 1,278mm (1,000mm between the wheel arches) and a height of up to 806mm. A half-height composite bulkhead and DIN-compliant tie-down hooks are standard.
New Fiesta Van is equipped with the acclaimed Ford EasyFuel capless refuelling system which is clean and easy to use and also has a mis-fuel inhibitor that prevents the wrong fuel filler nozzle being inserted. This feature is a major benefit to commercial customers, particularly for mixed fleets and vehicles that are used by multiple drivers.
This new model also inherits the best technologies and features from its car cousin including: a chassis designed for a safe and controllable ride under all loading conditions, the new Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS) for steering accuracy and lower fuel consumption, and anti-lock brakes (ABS) including Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD). Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) is available as an option with all engines (standard on SportVan) and includes Emergency Brake Assist (EBA).
Fiesta Van feature specification:
* EasyFuel capless refuelling
* Three engine options
* Body colour roof spoiler
* Electric door mirrors
* Stereo radio CD, MP3 connection, four front speakers and steering wheel mounted controls
* Adjustable steering column
* Electric front windows
Fiesta Van Trend features in addition to Fiesta Van:
* Front fog lights
* Body-coloured, power folding, heated door mirrors
* Automatic windshield wipers and headlamps
* Auto dimming rear view mirror
* Trip computer
* Driver's seat lumbar support
* Heated front windscreen
Standard features of Fiesta SportVan in addition to Fiesta Van Trend:
* 1.6-litre TDCi (90PS) engine
* Body colour sports "aero" kit including high intake front grille, rear bumper and rear spoiler
* 16" five-spoke sports alloy wheels
* Bluetooth hands free and voice control, including multi function display
* Air conditioning
* Sports style front seats
* Leather trimmed steering wheel
* Rear sports spoiler
* Perimeter alarm
* Sports-tuned suspension with lowered ride height
* ESP/traction control
* Driver's knee and side airbags (head and thorax) and active head restraint
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Kumar 2:02PM (3/09/2009)
If that is a US gallon figure, then thanks. Nice work as well on omitting the pound-dollar conversion that never fails to draw comments from the nubs.
Still hoping Ford USA decides to throw a diesel in the transit connect.
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jharlan 3:22PM (3/09/2009)
That's what I'm talking about!
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Rain 3:12PM (3/09/2009)
America is ready for diesels again,unfortunately people are still skittish because of the turds GM sold in the '70's and '80's.
Not much has been done to change public opinion since.
If i have to wait for an electric vehicle and I can get away from the gasser that I'm in now, then in the short term a diesel makes sense.
The Ford at 56 MPG(US) is an 40 MPG gain over what I have,that translates to four days of transportation a week for the same money that I pay now.
The reduction in consumption of oil from the Terrorist countries and Hillbilly states then becomes an important factor.
I would prefer an American car made by the UAW,but it seems cozying up to T Boone is more important than selling cars that People will pay on for seven years.
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BoneHeadOtto 10:50PM (3/09/2009)
no people are skiddish because Diesel costs so much more than regular gas, and the diesel autos cost more. I would also worry about the reliability of some of the new diesel tech, especially the emissions.
But i can sure see the benefits. Just not the cost benefits
Dave 11:44AM (3/10/2009)
I don't think people are skittish about buying diesels I just don't think they have been given the opportunity. Most people 40 and under don't even remember what GM did in the 70s and 80s. A 40 year old was only 16 in 1985.
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focus 10:55AM (3/10/2009)
you have to take the MPG numbers with a grain of salt. I've been seeing fantastic numbers for the UK version of the Fiesta, and I'm a tad skeptical that it means the same to people in the UK that it does to people in the USA.
First, the UK mpg rating for the Fiesta is 67 mpg combined (their best fuel economy version). I looked it up on the Ford UK website. I think they (UK rating agency) motor around at 50 mph when they do their test, because comparing apples to apples the numbers are always high in UK.
For instance, by comparing a vehicle that you can get in UK and USA: Focus with 2.0l duratec in UK gets combined 40mpg (from Ford UK website). The equivalent of the Euro Focus is probably Mazda 3 (Mazda 3 is based on the current Euro Focus, or vice versa) 4 door with 2.0l. That gets 24/32 mpg (from www.fueleconomy.gov), so call it 28 combined USA fuel economy. 40UK to 28USA. that's a 42% boost by putting it into UK numbers! And if we were to compare USA focus, 24/35 (from www.fueleconomy.gov), for a combined 29.5. That's a 35% boost by by putting it into UK.
And to cross reference another vehicle that you can get in both places: VW passat TDI with 140 ps 2.0. 51.4 mpg UK (VW UK website), and 30/41 USA (fueleconomy.gov). Call USA a combined 35.5. 51.4UK/35.5USA, a 44% boost by putting into UK.
So I think that 67 mpg that we are hearing on Fiesta is a bit high and would only translate to maybe 45 mpg combined USA cycle. That's still pretty damned good considering it's combined, but it's NOT 67 mpg.
Don't worry about not getting diesel over here, the fuel is pricey. Ford is saying to expect a 15-20% boost in fuel economy from their Ecoboost engines (direct injection gas) that are coming out in next year or two. In Focus- expect MPG to go from 35 highway to 40 highway when 2011 focus with Ecoboost comes out over here. and if you can get 40 mpg highway from a C class car, then the Fiesta with Ecoboost should get 44 mpg on freeway since it's a smaller B car.
I'm not sure exactly where the difference between UK and USA is. There might be more than one measure of a gallon, I recall hearing of 'imperial gallon' and don't know if that's what the USA uses. Also, if you slow down on freeway, MPG improves drastically. wind resistance is function of velocity squared, so the difference between 65 and 80 mph is huge to fuel economy.
i actually have my own 'USA Focus Van', a ZX3 with removed back seats, tinted rear windows a truck bed mat in back. I can haul as much in my focus as i could in a jeep cherokee. I get 33-24 mpg on highway, and 25-28 in the city. I'm just waiting for the 2011 focus to come out over here, and then I'll get myself the wagon version!
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MikeC 1:02PM (3/10/2009)
Is it just me, or does this look like the old Honda CRX?
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wxman 1:30PM (3/10/2009)
The cost gap between diesel fuel (ULSD) and gasoline (RUG) has become less of a factor recently. The difference is down to about 10 cents/gallon in the U.S. (national average according to EIA data - http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/gdu/gasdiesel.asp ). There is some speculation that ULSD will be LESS than RUG this summer ( http://uk.reuters.com/article/motoringAutoNews/idUKLNE51A04420090211 ).
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Cellien 2:26PM (3/10/2009)
Wicked. I love the Fiesta and I'm a FOR SURE future buyer when it comes across the pond.
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Zhe Kong 10:19PM (4/09/2009)
My guess the MPG number is correct. It's just the unit that's a bit different. US mile is not the same as UK mile, and US gallon is not the same as UK gallon.
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