What do we think about the fiesta?

The first of many what car threads from me.

Looking at earlier models *11-13 under 100k, non st, automatic.

Daily life, real world mpg, maintenance, fun, comfort, etc.

Auto? Ford can't replace transmissions in them fast enough.

Yep, those early PowerShift DCTs are bad news. Friend bought a '11 brand new and it was a fixture at the dealer for transmission problems.

Nothing but good things to say about the manuals, though I find the center stack hideous.

Yeah.. No. Don't touch that automatic.

Wife had a second year one, mpg was amazing I think she got about 42 not tying and isn't known for getting good gas mpg.lol but yeah it did have to have the Trans fixed. Something about a seal leaking on the clutches so they had to open it up.

Steering wheel adjusts for both rake >and< reach. So, somewhat oddly, it has one of the best driving positions for me of any car. I wouldn't own the auto, as noted above, but the manual transmission is rubbery and blah. With the 1.0 turbo it's fun.

So, aside from the automatic, great little cars?

And this is for a daily, not a toy. Something to pound MILES on. Duster and elky are the fun cars.

Why the dislike of the auto? Failure? Just sucks? The fact that it's an auto?

In reply to Dusterbd13:

The Powershift "auto" was one of the first mainstream mass-produced dual-clutch transmissions, and Ford unfortunately learned the hard way that they weren't quite ready for the limelight. It took until 2014 IIRC for them to figure out the reliability (early ones developed weird shuddering problems and burned through clutches). Also a lot of people just don't like the way they feel, they drive quite a bit differently than traditional torque converter automatics.

To me, it's more a feel issue. I don't like how they creep or drive away at slow speeds. A good launch, and they feel better- but that driving is against the nature of people driving in a FE manner.

Before you buy, see if you can rent one. That will be a very abused version, which should be a good try. And if most of the miles are moving, the trans issues are lessened a lot- as they are more about the drive away and city traffic.

I have a 5 speed in my car, and it's good. Not remarkable, but good.

So, it's not so much failure, as odd feel and behavior from a stop? What's the longevity and maintenance look like?

And alfa, you said 5 speed. Auto or manual?

Manual- the auto is 6 speed.

AFAIK, there's no maintenance- it supposed to be just like an auto. If you get one used, check the extended warranty- as I thought that the trans got an extension.

I just rented one this week in Alabama. That tranny struggled up the hills so you end up flooring it and wailing away.

Then the air shuts off as your going up a hill on a steamy 90dgF 'Bama day. Also looking back sucks as you can't see but this is the case for a lot of cars now.

Not a bad little car, but a bit of a buzz box. And auto trans reliability issues. For the coin, I'd look at the Kia Soul...bigger, more reliable, but not quite the same mpg. I just bought a '13 Hyundai Elantra to beat the puppy snot out of. Very happy with my purchase, though mine is a manual. It's a step up from the Fiesta/Spark/Accent/Rio class.

In reply to Klayfish:

If one was going bigger, then the Focus comes into focus. Which also gets really good fuel economy.

In this class I prefer the Mazda 2. It shares platform components with the Fiesta, but has a much livelier feel. The steering is better, the manual shifter is better, and I like the interior better. The Fiesta isn't bad, but the Mazda 2 is actually a lot of fun to drive, where the Fiesta is just ok.

and no.....I wouldn't touch the auto version of either.

You can kill the transmission with fire IMO. Love our Focus and my parents bought a Fiesta and did it correctly, SE sport pkg with a stick and it's a crackin' little car. The 14 Focus is sadly an auto-tragic, it works great sometimes but other times it's flat out dangerous to drive with the near stalling and violent shuddering. The only saving grace is the trans warranty on the powershift/select shift (auto) is 10/100K

I'm about 6 months removed from being the Fiesta/Focus trans specialist at a Ford dealer. The warranty on early auto's (called the DPS6 internally), was extended to 7yr/100k miles.

That said, DO NOT GET ONE. Between leaking input shaft seals (yes, 2 input shafts, 2 seals), various clutch failures, software and module problems, and the 'feel' issues, they're absolutely terrible... though they put a lot of food on my table.

They drive like a manual trans. If you let go of the brake and creep, how do you do that in a manual? You slip the clutch, the more you drive it like a normal automatic, the worse they shudder.

If you drive it like a race car, it may never shudder, if you drive like grandma... let's just say I replaced clutches at the same time as the first oil change on some.

If there's anything else you'd like to know, just ask.

I got put off by the 3k@65mph cruise RPM in the Fiesta manual I drove looking at cars to replace my Dakota....

To date I have had an '11 SE with 42K miles. currently have a '13 SE approaching 37K miles, both with the Powershift. The '11 shifted fine. The '13 may end up being looked at. It has an occasional shudder and I noticed a small oil leak when changing engine oil. Might be the main shaft seal. The source of the clutch problem. The problems have been with the clutches. There have been relatively few transmission failures.

The car is a blast to drive. Seat all the way down, wheel out and down as far as allowed. The transmission has 3 driving programs. Normal, Hill Assist/OD lockout and low/sport. Some models have shift buttons also.

The hill assist as said, locks out 6th gear, better engine braking, it also will down shift when you hit the brakes and it holds the gear when coming out of the corner. Low/sport goes to redline in each gear before shifting, fun but not really practical.

I find that it is hard on tires and brakes. Tires at 36.5K and brake before long.

Ford has issued an extended warranty on the seals an clutches to 7 yrs. or 100,000 miles. The warranty stays with the vehicle.

Did I mention the great gas mileage ?

I have had an '11 Mazda2, '12 Focus (wife's), and '15 Fiesta. manual, auto, manual. The auto was the only thing I disliked about the Focus. It is the same unit in the Fiesta. Autos are junk, manuals are great. If you aren't doing a lot of 70+ mph driving, I would find a Touring Mazda2 manual. It is a blast and the Touring will get you cruise. Very fun but will also provide lots of maintenance free driving.

In reply to singleslammer:

bionic leg. cant do stick every day anymore. just hurts too bad.

Car and driver liked the transmission.

From '14 and up I believe most of the problems have been solved

In reply to Dusterbd13:

That sucks, I would look elsewhere then.

If you want something for DD and must have an auto, how about a prior gen Fusion? Has a regular transmission, nice looking, should be reasonably cheap by now.

In reply to iceracer:

Having driven the newer versions, I would disagree.

My friend's wife bought one new in 2011. I think the transmission has been replaced twice since then under warranty.

Also, my wife was looking into getting one back in 2011. We test drove a brand new one, and it also shifted funny and made bad clutch burning smells. It had about 10 miles on it.

I'd avoid and get something else like a Chevy Sonic, Chevy Cruze, or Skyactiv Mazda 3 if you need an automatic.

DWNSHFT wrote: ...the manual transmission is rubbery and blah.

Really? Is that another thing they improved on the ST? Because mine's awesome.