2000 Ford Fiesta Zetec from UK and Ireland - Comments

Since new:

* The engine has never seemed to be properly tuned although Ford insist it is (rattles, sometimes misfires, small oil leak that cannot be traced).

* Brakes and wheels were not correctly balanced from new, which lead to me having to replace 3 tyres due to uneven wear and poor braking performance.

* Poor starting during the 1st winter caused by water in the electronics. Which will indefinitely stay there because of Ford's incompetence.

* Battery went dead in the Spring. Unexplainable??

* Needed a replacement radiator due to an unexplainable hole?

* Needed new shock absorbers after 10000 miles (maybe the councils fault for the excess of speed bumps!)

* Central locking failed to work several times, each time I had to have the remote reconfigured by Ford, cost £15 each time even though it wasn't my fault!

* Radio buttons broke, £130 for a new radio, the only solution according to Ford.

* Water leaking onto the seats due to apparently poor design.

* Rattling dashboard, can't stop it, very irritating on a long drive!

* Rust on the bottom of the doors, Ford manage to come up with a load of cobblers as to why it's not covered by the 7 year corrosion guarantee, MY FAULT as I didn't spot a small chip caused by a stone at an earlier date.

* Rust around the boot seal, again no point having the corrosion guarantee.

* Sunroof leaks from near the handle.

Having read the reviews of this car I thought it sounded perfect, but sadly I was mis-informed as many of us appear to be. It's drastically overrated. Ford demands you take a closer look, I wouldn't, you may find a lot you dislike. Personally I think the car has the following bad points:

Poorly built.

Noisy ride.

Very bland to look at, practically the same as 1989 except a few more curves.

Uncomfortable and uninspiring poorly manufactured interior.

Very unresponsive engine and gearbox, what can only be classed as a 'long' ratio gearbox.

Unreliable.

Ford do not want to know, once you have bought the car you are on your own. Utterly appalling customer service. Everything is YOUR FAULT, not the incompetent manufacturers or the dealers.

Thank goodness it's nearly September, the time of the new car, I will definitely be returning to the Vauxhall Astra which gave me 8 years of trouble free motoring before. Thankfully my finances are running much more smoothly than this Ford Fiesta...

I agree, Ford do not have the slightest clue how to mass produce cars, yet they're the ones who invented it!!

The experience I have of warranties / customer service within the motor trade and elsewhere is that people only want your money, and in a disturbing number of cases, don't even seem to want that.

Basically, if something goes wrong with your car, the only real solution is to buy a Haynes manual and fix it yourself. Even for major jobs, if you have to hire or buy tools, it will still be cheaper than taking it to a garage. If you can't fix the problem scrap the car and buy another one.

I do appreciate that you can't do this on a new car covered by a warranty.

The situation with most consumer durables (I.e. washing machines) is similar.

I thought that the UK was bad in this respect, but the rest of the world seems to be the same.

Look mate, I realise your frustration and I own a Fiesta Zetec myself, but you have just had rotten luck. Take away the appalling customer service which I received myself, and it would just be totally unlucky, which you probably don't want to know about.

I am currently looking for a decent second hand car. Fiesta was on my list but I have read most of the reviews here and there is a disturbing number of rust problems. That really puts me off.

I think I will go for a Peugeot 106 or a VW Polo.

I don't know why your car is so bad, but I find the latest fiestas a delight to drive, the engine is superb, as is the gearchange (how can you say it is unresponsive, for a 1.2 it flies) and reliability is excellent as my dad has one as his driving school car, he has done 30000 miles in about 7 months it has never ever let him down despite daily abuse from learners.

Had LX for two years{zetec 1.25).Very nippy, great on fuel. Found Ford aftersales O.K...after small engine niggle at 10k.They sorted it after two attempts. Air con and elec windows too. Must have zetec, as the Endura{1.3) sucks.

I totally agree that Ford build poor quality cars, however I am disturbed to find people defending Ford quality as bad luck. He must be a trader!.

Have to say that I'm not overly pleased with my Fiesta Zetec. Poor build quality, poor fuel economy and poor customer service. Luckily I've found an independent Ford dealer to service my car who seems a lot more helpful than my local main dealer (who says "yes, they do that" whenever you go in with a problem.) Don't think I'll be going back to Ford when I can afford to change my car.

I agree that Ford build quality is not all that great, I must admit that apart from the seats the interior feels 'cheap'.

My uncle bought a Fiesta Zetec a few months ago and talks about how great it is. I currently own a Nissan Micra 1.0 and I would say that in most aspects my car is a lot better. My car has not got poor build quality. His car is the five door model and my car is a 3 door, yet Nissan have still managed to give more cabin space (Front and rear) in my car, where his car is cramped. I also have the japanese reliability factor on my side.

All that I would say to anyone considering buying a first car is to go for a Nissan Micra - they are totally under rated. You have great performance for a small engine, reliability and more space. Ignore the "Feminine" image looks, it is just the fact that the automotive press in this country are image crazy. I mean who wants a good looking car if it has problems i. e poor reliability, small cabin and reading the reviews RUST!

My dad has a 1996 1.3 fiesta. It has done just under 200,000 miles with no problems. which shows ford do know how to make a good car!!!