Intro	Looks	Practicality / Spec	Engine / Performance
Driving / NVH	On track	Fiesta Zetec S Vs ST	Options / Verdict

Pretty much the same as all our previous 3dr Fiesta’s.  The extensive Options list may not be exactly necessary, but it does help resolve the previous First World Problem of:

“Zetec S for Sportiness? Or Titanium for the Kit?”

It’s even tops out our previous ST-2 for toys now…

The front seating is perhaps a tad high – especially for those who are downsizing and used to sitting on the floor – but at least it’s still lower than a Defender (well, who isn’t? Though, perhaps I’m digressing…).

The optional leather seats look smart and are firm enough to be comfortable for long journeys. They heat up just as quickly as the Recaro’s on the ST, and there’s just enough lumbar support for the driver’s seat. The dark grey / white stitching colour scheme on the rear bench doesn’t look too dissimilar from a friends Mk3.5 Focus ST either.

After the Fiesta ST, the interior’s a brighter place to be in now since we’re without the black headlining. Generally though, the interior is ageing gracefully.

It’s a shame the larger, upgraded centre screen hasn’t been fully utilised considering you don’t gain any more info on there – the extra height is wasted displaying the time and mode; you don’t gain any more lines when scrolling through menus and you don’t even get a bigger font!

Furthermore, if you compare this to the big touchscreens offered on the Fiesta’s rivals, this undeniably looks a bit cluttered in comparison. Lest we forget though, this setup is by far less infuriating than the STs Sony head unit, with the buttons at least placed in a logical numberpad layout.

It’s not all relief mind: the left function buttons have all been shifted down one with a ‘Nav’ button now sitting up top, and a ‘Map’ button is now in place of the ‘Sound’ adjuster.

That Sound adjuster button was quite a useful shortcut for us, and so it’s now a faff going through the menu systems just to adjust the equaliser.

The Sat-Nav tracks smoothly and can be easily muted, while Sync seems to be working contently nowadays and connects to the phone quickly.

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Climate control is appreciatively more useful than I was expecting, with the centre screen showing live updates to the settings. However, we’re yet to see if it can be voice-controlled by Sync like it used to on Ford’s old system too.

The only flaw we’ve found so far is that it isn’t very effective at preventing the windows misting up when left it in ‘Auto’ with the A/C off. Other systems are much quicker and better at reacting to this.

Otherwise the only other differences we’ve found for 2015.5MY is the storage netting in the passenger footwell and the extra moulding in the rear boot handle. The cap-less fuel filler has been updated too, so hopefully this rectifies the issue of when it used to constantly trigger the overflow mechanism in the fuel pump prematurely.

Our biggest First World Problem though is that the ESP ‘Off’ button that used to be standard on Zetec S models has now been replaced with one to turn off Stop / Start.

So the default regime of starting up the car and pressing the ESP button now just means that I’m not saving a polar bear at the lights anymore – can’t we just have both?

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Spec: Zetec S Ecoboost 140 2015.5MY
Engine: 1.0 Turbo Petrol, 138bhp, 155lb ft
Transmission: 5 Speed Manual
Mpg: Official: 62.8mpg Achieved: 47mpg
Performance: 0-62mph: 9.0 Secs, 125mph
Colour: Candy Red
Running Period: Autumn – Present 2015
Options -  Modena Full Leather Pack (Inc Heated Seats), 14" Spare wheel, 
Rear Privacy Glass, EATC Climate Control, Cruise Control, Automatic Headlights, 
Convenience Pack (Keyless Entry, Starter Button, Folding Door Mirrors & Puddle 
Lights), City Pack (Parking Sensors & Electric Door Mirrors), Active City Stop, 
Ford Navigation / DAB System