FORD FIESTA

Can this mid-life update return the supermini to the top of the sales charts?

The phrase ‘Britain’s best-selling car’ could often be found in a sentence referencing the Ford Fiesta. But no more. Last year, it didn’t even make the top 10, as Ford diverted what semiconductors it could obtain to more profitable models.

Still, Ford has persisted with a mid-life update for its supermini, the biggest visual changes for which are at the front, where there is a new design for the bonnet, headlights and grille.

There are no mechanical changes to the chassis and the engine lineup remains as it was, including the impressive 153bhp mild-hybrid version of Ford’s excellent 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol Ecoboost unit, tested here, which delivers a real-world 50mpg.

The familiarity of that engine and chassis means, unsurprisingly, it’s more of the same from the Fiesta on the dynamic front. The handling is simply a joy at any speed; this is a car that can raise a smile no matter how mundane the corner or the manoeuvre required.

As before, none of this involving handling is at the expense of ride comfort or quality. It transmits to the driver exactly what the road surface is doing while absorbing and isolating from bumps with a sophistication that a car in this class really has no right to.

It’s all backed up with an engine that remains among the most characterful on the market. The 1.0-litre triple is vocal, but it sounds enthusiastic rather than unrefined and delivers excellent performance levels, particularly above 2000rpm when the turbocharger kicks in.

Inside, there’s the addition of a 12.3in digital instrument display, which is a welcome upgrade over the old analogue dials, although it alone doesn’t lift the Fiesta above the criticism that its interior has always received for being on the dark and drab side.

A winning formula hasn’t been altered in this round of changes for the Fiesta. Rivals may offer more

MARK TISSHAW

space, more technology and a richer cabin, yet none of them can match the driving pleasure offered here – dynamic qualities that also lie in models many rungs lower than this £24,440 range-topper.

A simple 99bhp St-line: that’s where our money would go.