The next Ford Fiesta will abandon the conservative styling of the current car in favour of the much sleeker, sharper look of this concept car.Described as “hinting at a future small European Ford”, this car gives us the best look yet at the next Fiesta. Senior Ford design sources have said the new Fiesta puts style and good looks above all other considerations. Ford is also keen point out that the concept previews the design themes for other future small Fords, most notably the next Ka. The biggest visual differences between this car and the production Fiesta will be the height of the roofline, which will be taller. But the rear end is very similar to the real thing, right down to the shape of the window and the roof spoiler.At the front, the concept introduces a new Ford grille, paring the usual trapezoid down to little more than a chrome-trimmed sliver. The bonnet reverses the shape of the Mondeo’s, while the production car’s lights will be smaller.This is Ford’s first attempt at translating its ‘kinetic design’ theme into a small car. The project has been overseen by Ford’s European design director, Martin Smith, and has been designed to create the elements of a car that will be recognisable around the world as a Ford. The new Fiesta will be Ford’s first global car, to be produced and sold in markets as diverse and Mexico and South America. The engineering basics were developed by Mazda for the 2, with which the Fiesta shares its platform. Although easy-to-change panels such the front wings and bumpers will be modified for different markets, the core elements of the design, such as the rake of the windscreen, will remain.This strategy will also help Ford to improve the profitability of its small cars; traditionally it is hard to make good money from smaller vehicles. By sharing a platform across the world, analysts forecast production of over a million B-cars by 2011.
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