The next generation Ford Fiesta ST was first spotted testing in the US, with engineers using a sporty variant of the 2011 Ford Fiesta three-door hatchback as their guinea pig. The sportiest Fiesta is expected to continue with the ST namebadge when it goes on sale late next year as a 2013 model.

The first taste of Ford’s new global effort for the ST range will come early next year when the bigger 2012 Ford Focus ST goes on sale. The Fiesta ST won’t enter the spotlight until after that, but as we can see, Ford’s Team RS and SVT performance engineering divisions are putting prototypes through a punishing testing regime to hone performance and driving dynamics. Today we add to the Fiesta ST’s unmasking with these shots of the car during competitive testing on the notorious Nurburgring circuit in Germany.

New to the game are the Recaro seats spotted in the cabin, confirming this is more than just an EcoBoosted Fiesta. A front-mount intercooler with piping on either side can clearly be seen in earlier prototypes. Other telltale signs that this is a performance variant of the Fiesta are the dual exhaust tips, diffuser, sporty bodykit and 17-inch alloy wheels – the latter of which were probably installed to house a set of bigger brakes. Sadly, the full roll-cage seen on these prototypes won’t be a production option, but it proves the technicians are getting down to serious business and testing the limits of the car.

Ford is planning to introduce a new four-cylinder EcoBoost engine to the Fiesta, which suggests that the engine in this prototype also features direct injection technology. The engine is most likely based on the regular 88 kW 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine from the 2011 Ford Fiesta, but, with the aid of EcoBoost, power should be closer to the 132 kW mark – on par with VW’s Polo GTI.

The previous-generation Ford Fiesta ST sold overseas was fitted with a naturally aspirated 2.0-litre Duratec engine and had 112 kW on tap, so expect the new 2011 model to offer a definite power bump. The new 2013 Ford Fiesta EcoBoost should make its debut in the second half of next year, possibly with an unveiling at the Chicago or New York auto shows that same year.

via MotorAuthority

You’ve seen the wildest Focus ever – now meet its crazy little brother! Ford is preparing to unleash a Fiesta ST – and with power from an all-new turbocharged engine, delivering at least 132 kw, it should finally unlock the supermini’s potential for fine roadholding.

The ST is a result of the ‘One Ford’ philosophy, which commits the firm to building a handful of global models – including the Fiesta and new Focus. A hot ST variant of the latter has already been confirmed. The economies of scale that this produces mean the manufacturer can now justify building faster machinery.

Despite a Ford spokesman dismissing claims that new spy shots – which you can see here – were of an ST, we know different. He said the car was one of four modified US-spec Fiestas prepared for this year’s LA Motor Show. But there are a handful of fundamental differences which disprove his theory.

Spotted close to Ford’s global headquarters in Dearborn, near Detroit, the prototype seen on our website is a European-spec car. It features a green sticker in the bottom corner of the windscreen indicating that the model was built in Ford’s factory in Cologne, Germany instead of in Mexico.

The mule boasts some telling addenda too, such as an intercooler clearly visible in the lower front grille, confirming that there’s a turbocharged engine under the bonnet. That almost certainly points towards the 132 kW direct-injection 1.6-litre EcoBoost unit first introduced on the C-MAX people carrier.

While no performance figures are available yet, the ST is likely to deliver the 0 – 100km/h sprint in less than seven seconds and a top speed of more than 220 km/h. This will allow the Fiesta to take the fight to VW Group rivals such as the Skoda Fabia vRS and Volkswagen Polo GTI. To compete with these cars and their hi-tech DSG gearboxes, expect Ford to fit the fast Fiesta with a six-speed Powershift dual-clutch transmission, controlled via wheel-mounted paddles. Twin exhaust pipes, a rear diffuser and a bodykit will improve the Fiesta’s sporty ‘kinetic design’ even further and boost the car’s high-speed aerodynamics. An extended roof spoiler will also help to mark out the ST.

The Fiesta will make its debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show and go on sale in summer – three years after the basic model first arrived in showrooms.

Adapted from AutoExpress

Here are some spy pics of a dressed up Ford Fiesta spotted on the streets of Dearborn, Michigan. The North American market Fiesta is expected to get a hotter-hatch variant sometime next year and this could be a prototype for that model which Ford is testing.

The Fiesta seen here is a modified European-spec model fitted with Ford’s Titanium trim level and with one of Ford’s direct injection EcoBoost powerplants underneath the hood. Which one exactly, we don’t know. But, given that the last Fiesta ST came with a 2,0-litre Duratec engine with 110 kW, we can expect Ford to plant a 1,6-litre turbo into the tiny Fiesta from its EcoBoost range of engines and provide the hatch with a significant upgrade in power. A 1,6-litre turbocharged EcoBoost engine would be good for about 125 kW.

The next generation Ford Fiesta ST should be a looker if these spy photo’s are anything to go by. Telltale signs include an intercooler mounted in the front lower bumper grille, rear diffuser, double exhaust pipes and 17-inch anthracite Speedline rims.

It could be that Ford is just grooming a groovy model to show off at the SEMA show in Las Vegas in November. Or maybe this is close to what will hit dealerships as the hottest Ford Fiesta around sometime in 2011.