A very pretty Changan-Ford Fiesta S sedan, seen in Beijing in 2016. The Fiesta was in a fantastic shape, with its paint as smooth as new and still standing on the original factory alloys. License plates are from Sichuan Province, some 1800 kilometers away; quite a ride for a small car like the Fiesta.
The Ford Fiesta sedan was the first car made by the Changan-Ford joint venture. Production started in 2003 and ended in 2008. The Fiesta S was a sporty version, it arrived in 2005. The S-package included the aforementioned wheels, bumpers painted in body color, black window frames, and best of all: a big wing on the boot lid.
The Fiesta sedan was based on the fourth generation Ford Fiesta hatchback. The sedan is known in most markets as the Ford Ikon or Ford Fiesta Ikon.
The interior was possibly in an even better shape than the exterior. Those are the original seats! No seat covers, really the real thing. The door panels are a bit dirty but fine, the shiny plastics of the center stack are in a good condition, complete with the radio-cassette-CD player. Even the gear lever knob is the original. It was, even in 2016, so rare to see a Fiesta in such a good shape. I was nearly overwhelmed.
The wing is really huge for a boot lid so small. The ultra cool mudflaps were standard on every Changan-Ford Fiesta.
Power came from a 1.6 liter four-cylinder petrol engine with an output of 91 hp and 130 Nm. The motor was mated to a four-speed automatic or a five-speed manual, as in this car. Top speed was an impressive 195 kilometer per hour and 0-100 was gone in ten seconds.
The S model had black ‘fiesta S’ and ‘1.6’ badges. Note the Ford-branded license plate frame. These frames were very popular in the 2000’s and 2010’s. They were usually sold as extra’s at the dealer but you could also get them at any car market or repair shop.
The characters read 长安福特, Changan Fute, or Changan Ford. The typical ‘ handwritten’ font is still in use today. Traditions are important. Let’s hope our silver Fiesta is still around as well. Otherwise, it should be in a museum.