2009 Ford Fiesta?

[TominMO]

The new Fiesta thats coming to the states is based of the new Mazda2 which is available in Japan (so it really is like the new festiva). I also heard that the Mazda2 w/ the 1.3l gets 60 mpg. This car has my attention.

Hmmmmm....I seriously doubt 60 MPG for a modern, non-hybrid, non-diesel car. Possibly you could pull this off with computerized fuel-management tricks though. There is a diesel version, and maybe it could get 60 MPG highway. This car will certainly be fairly heavy compared to a Festy or Aspire due to modern safety requirements. And it'll cost $12 - $15K. I have to laugh when I see people rave about "high-MPG" cars like Fits or Yarises (Yari?) like they've just been invented!

[codex]

specs I heard for the 2008 mazda2 which is what this is based from is 2100 lbs and 60 mpg, it was from a promo video that told the mpg

The new Fiesta thats coming to the states is based of the new Mazda2 which is available in Japan (so it really is like the new festiva). I also heard that the Mazda2 w/ the 1.3l gets 60 mpg. This car has my attention.

Hmmmmm....I seriously doubt 60 MPG for a modern, non-hybrid, non-diesel car. Possibly you could pull this off with computerized fuel-management tricks though. There is a diesel version, and maybe it could get 60 MPG highway. This car will certainly be fairly heavy compared to a Festy or Aspire due to modern safety requirements. And it'll cost $12 - $15K. I have to laugh when I see people rave about "high-MPG" cars like Fits or Yarises (Yari?) like they've just been invented!

[todd00]

i read 52.5 in mixed driving cycle. we shall see. i still wouldnt buy one.

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/07/22/how-the-new-mazda2-shed-the-pounds/

[TominMO]

I'll believe it when I see it. 2100 lbs makes it about as heavy as the Aspire, with the same motor size and EFI. Also, bear in mind that MPG claims are usually exaggerated by about 10% here, compared to real-world results, because of how they test here (that is being addressed for 2008 though). Overseas, testing may be even more unrealistic. The best mileage I've seen is in Geo Metro XFi, maybe 55 MPG but only a 1.0 liter 3 cylinder, and Honda CRX HF, around 50 MPG with a 1.5 liter.

The only way they could pull off 60 MPG is with some breakthrough in fuel management at highway speeds, like shutting off fuel to two cylinders or drastically leaning out the mixture. And even if they can do it, a Festiva will still cost far less, even with repair costs (to include new FMS motor and all possible performance/handling upgrades). So you might have about $3,000 - 4,000 in a mint Festy--or $12,000 in a Mazda 2, which of course will depreciate. And did you pay for full-coverage insurance while you were financing it? More hidden expenses.

If you've got the money and are passionate about a particular new car, by all means get it. But economically no new car is as good a buy as a well-engineered used car you can pay cash for.

[TominMO]

What you have to weigh is:
a. Do you love it and have to have it, expenses be damned?
b. A $4,000 greatly enhanced Festy will be a lot more fun because of power/weight ratio and handling; but
c. Do you care more about modern safety features like airbags and engineering improvements to make the car more crashworthy?

It's all about priorities; no right answer for everyone.

[TominMO]

Autoblog says the combined mileage is 43.6 for the 1.3 liter. This makes a lot more sense for a 2100-lb car. But Car and Driver says that if it does come over here, we will only get the 1.5 liter, so figure on no better than 40 MPG. Mazda is waiting to see how the Yaris and Fit do. Just makes Festys look all the better...