Fiesta Hatches-A-Go-Go

7/24/08 Update: It's settled, we are getting the sedan and five door model.

7/14/08 Update: Automotive News has published its annual "Future Product" summary for Ford and the Fiesta is listed as having two body styles planned: a sedan and a five-door hatchback. This is interesting because there has been such uncertainty about the hatch version. In case you've missed the circus of events, let's recap. Autoweek ran a story quoting Automotive News which in turn quoted a Ford of Mexico official who said that the US would get both three and five door hatches. Then Automotive News ran a story that said it was unclear whether the hatch will be a three or five door model. I called Ford PR for clarification and was told that there would be no official announcement for quite awhile. I have speculated that it might not be until November, 2009's LA Auto Show before we find out. Now Automotive News appears to be under the impression that it will be a five door hatch that will arrive in showrooms. Could the author have been confused by the news that the next generation Focus will be offered as a sedan and five door in the USA? Skipping the three door model would seem to fly against the belief that the Fiesta could have some tuner potential. I'm all for the five door because I have a family, but I could see a lot of first time buyers not wanting the extra set of doors. I'm sure that we'll be revisiting this issue again before the official announcement.


6/4/08 Update: There has been some confusion about the Fiesta hatch model that will be launched in the United States. Based off the AutoWeek story, which quoted Automotive News which quoted a Ford official in Mexico, the US will get both the three and five door hatches. HOWEVER, every other story I've read has simply stated that the US will get a hatch but that it was not officially announced which configuration it will be. To get to the bottom of the issue, I called Ford PR and spoke with Said Deep, Ford North America and Global Product Communications Manager. The official line is that no announcement has been made as to which hatch(es) will be made available in the US market. Given the 2010 release date for the Fiesta, don't look for anything official until the end of 2009 at the earliest. I'd peg the official announcement at 2009's LA Auto Show. I'd also venture a guess that the US will get the three door and not the five door at least initially. I would estimate that the Mazda2 would have a better shot at launching sedan and five door variants in the US market.

Original 5/30/08 story:

I'm might drug addled, but I can still celebrate the announcement of a new hatchback for the US market. Automotive News/AutoWeek is reporting that Ford will not only bring its Fiesta sedan and three door to the US but also the five door. It had been anticipated that Ford might bring the three door hatch, but up until recently the five door's chances were considered slim. Some had speculated that Ford was leaving the five door space for the Mazda2, but perhaps now we'll get both.

The Automotive News story (sub required) points out that the three door will be an "entry level model" and that is a bit troubling for me. I would like to see the hatches available with the full slate of options.