2002 Ford Fiesta zetec-s from UK and Ireland - Comments

I bought my Fiesta after doing extensive research on the internet. I'd bumped my Punot and was looking for a more powerful car as the Punot only had 75bhp. I'd originally wanted a Puma, but found the purchase and running costs were going to be higher than I was prepared to pay. So the Fiesta (with the same chassis and handling set-up and a slightly less powerful engine) seemed the obvious choice.

I'd also considered the citroen saxo, but there seemed to be too many of them on the road at the time (even more so, now) and I didn't want a car everyone else had. Other considerations were the Vauxhall Corsa, but I learnt to drive in one and wasn't very impressed.

Anyway about the car itself, the first thing I noticed about the car was it's appearance. It comes with a bodykit, not some over-the-top mish mash of plastic, but a subtleone. Just sideskirts, spoiler and a different front bumper to other mk5 fiesta's. Also it has a silver mesh that makes the car stand out more, especially when the car is Panther Black like mine. It comes with 15 inch alloy wheels as standard (which help with the handling no end).At the back of the car there is a "sports" exhaust trim which fits nicely under the rear bumper (again different to other mk5's)

Once behind the wheel you notice the sports seats hugging you (but not as good as in other cars ie renault clio). The interior has silver on the centre console and insert on the gearstick. This gives the car a sporty feel without being too flashy. There is plenty of room in the front for 2 normal size passengers, but the back seat can be pretty cramped especially for taller people.

There are plenty of gadgets on the stanard car like electric windows and remote central locking. ABS brakes and traction control are useful safety features and under heavy acceleration the traction control helps to control the car. I opted to have the air conditioning which is nice in the summer and of course will help the resale value. One thing I wish I had been offered was the option to have a heated windscreen and electric mirrors, but the dealer neglected to offer them. The car comes with a cd player with a silver fascia to match the interior.

The standard stereo set up gives reasonable sound quality with the components I the front, but I replaced the rear speakers as they were prone to distort with much bass. Once I had replaced them it became apparent that the cd player wasn't powerful enough to drive the new speakers. Then I replaced the cd player and am happy with the stereo.

The engine is 103bhp according to Ford and there have been persistant rumour that this is a conservative estimate. I don't know whether or not this is true or the car seems quicker than it is because it has a relatively high torque output. I've read people's rolling road reports and some have had as much as 120bhp out of an un modified engine. I was happy with that until I became used to it and is certainly more than powerful enough to overtake with a full load and not feel that the engine is under strain. After becoming used to the power I looked for options to boost it.

The first thing I added was a pipercross air filter which makes the car seem more responsive and after 3500 rpm makes a lovely throaty roar that will make you feel like you're driving amuch bigger engined car. The general consensus is that induction kits like these can impair performance and that a panel filter gives the best performance gains. Despite this I like the noise of the pipercross and wouldn't like to take it off.

The other modification I have added is a Superchip's Bluefin chip. This remaps the existing ecu via a handest that plugs into the diagnostic port. Once connected it searches through about 5000 remaps to find the one best suited to your car. Once in place it increases the bhp by 10bhp and the torque by about 15%. The main benefit is that the software can be removed via the handset when you take the car for a service and as nothing has been physically changed the insurance is none the wiser either.

I think withmy modifications the car is around 115bhp (my estimate) so it can put larger cars to shame and many a time a vectra/bmw driver has been amazed to see a fiesta bombing along in the outside lane at 110mph!Like booming round corners at 70mph the car handles like its on rails!

All in all a brilliant drivers car.

I appreciate your honest evaluation of the engine power. I've read reviews from guys that changed only the air intake and the exhaust and claimed they increased by 50% the engine power. And if would be the case how did they evaluate that?

I do a lot of engine test bench and I can tell you that is not possible on road.

Ady.

It would be brilliant if that were to be the case, but unfortuantely these conversation become the staple of forums and car-chat in the pub. The power to weight ratio of the car is good anyway without wild tales of power gains.

Just a little update, the car is now at 20000 miles and running like a dream. I recently added a replacement backbox whihc sounds fab combined with the pipercross airfilter. It sounds very sporty and seems a bit more responsive. As said before a very nice car to drive which has been a pleasure to own. As the fiesta st and rs are on the wya, now is the time to get a zetec-s because prices are falling and bargains becoming available. Go get one, you know you want to!

I have just bought a 1997 fiesta and want to know what the options are for fitting a good CD player (there is a tape in at present).

Cheers.