SILVERTON, Pretoria – 10th October 2008 – Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa will showcase its latest product offering at this year’s Johannesburg International Motor Show (JIMS). Taking centre stage on the Ford stand will be the all new Ford Fiesta.
The striking Fiesta hatchback is the product of Ford’s global product development process and is the first product of Ford Motor Company built under the ‘One Ford’ vision – a single global company designing and building cars for a single, global customer base, not divided by regional or national borders.
“The Ford stand will feature the all-new Fiesta – the first evidence of Ford’s global product revitalization strategy to provide customers with stylish, fuel efficient, high quality vehicles that customers want and value. Based on Ford’s Verve concept, the Fiesta is a vehicle that has the complete package – comfort, safety, and technology — and drives as good as it looks,” says President and CEO of Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa, Hal Feder.
The new Fiesta has a sexy striking exterior design. From front to rear, the all-new Fiesta exudes presence and individuality. It wears the distinctive, bold Ford ‘face’. Most noticeably, it uses the signature, large, inverted trapezoidal lower grille and large, centred Ford oval badge that characterises both the Verve Concept and other modern Ford family vehicles. The bold ‘cateye’ headlamps create a sense of energy in motion.
The new Fiesta is just as dramatic on the inside as it is on the outside, with courageous use of dynamic lines, full surfaces and bold graphics. The design language for the interior instrumentation was inspired by the design language of mobile phones and personal music players creating a unique and user friendly interface.
The Fiesta will be available in South Africa with a choice of three powertrains. Including an updated 1.4-litre petrol model and the new a 1.6-litre Duratec Twin Independent Variable Cam Timing (Ti-VCT) petrol engine. Completing the range is the state-of-the-art 1.6-litre common-rail Duratorq TDCi engine that features new technologies, enhanced fuel economy, lower CO² emissions and improved performance.
“JIMS is a world-class automotive exhibition that provides local consumers with the opportunity to view an extensive range of product offerings under one roof,” continues Feder. “This allows us to engage with a wider audience of consumers as we take our products to them rather than relying on them to come to us.
“The Fiesta is being launched during the course of October so for many, the Johannesburg International Motor Show will be the first opportunity to see the new Fiesta in the flesh. It’s a truly dynamic car and one which heralds a new era for Ford, as such we are excited to be able to have the Fiesta on display,” he concludes.
Show goers will also be able to have a close look at the current line-up of vehicles available in South Africa as well as upcoming models such as the refreshed Ford Focus range, Ford Bantam and the face lifted Ford Ikon.
