- A Ford Fiesta ST wins the award for recording the biggest improvement in fuel efficiency compared with official figures at a real-world driving challenge
- Fiesta ST achieves 3.6 l/100 km, compared with 5.9 l/100 km – a 39 per cent improvement – after completing a 494-kilometre route along public roads
- Racing drivers Harrison Scott and Louise Richardson finish ahead of 25 other entrants to win the “Best Improvement” award at the ALD Automotive/Fleet World MPG Marathon, U.K.
A Ford Fiesta ST was honoured after achieving a 39 per cent improvement in fuel efficiency, compared with official figures, in a real-world test of fuel economy on public roads.
The Fiesta ST, equipped with a 1.6-litre EcoBoost petrol engine, achieved 3.6 litres per 100 kilometres at an average speed of 56 km/h. This showed an improvement of 39 per cent compared with the official combined fuel consumption of 5.9 l/100 km, according to the New European Driving Cycle.
“This achievement shows that while many people will choose the Fiesta ST based on its performance credentials it also has the ability to surprise in terms of its outstanding fuel efficiency,” said Juergen Gagstatter, Ford Fiesta ST chief programme engineer. “It also underlines the power each driver has to make a significant difference to their individual fuel consumption by adapting their driving style.”
Fiesta ST is Ford’s fastest-ever production Fiesta, able to achieve 0-100 km/h in 6.9 seconds, and has a top speed of 220 km/h. The 1.6-litre EcoBoost engine features technologies including turbocharging, high-pressure direct fuel-injection and twin-independent variable cam timing.
Racing drivers Harrison Scott, 18, and Louise Richardson, 21, finished ahead of 25 other vehicles, including three electric vehicles and three vans, to win the “Best Improvement” award at the annual ALD Automotive/Fleet World MPG Marathon, in the U.K.
A Ford Focus ST driven by rally veterans Andrew Marriott, 71, and Andy Dawson, 63, was runner-up after achieving 5 l/100 km – a 31 per cent improvement compared with the official fuel economy figure of 7.2 l/100 km
“The Fiesta ST is a seriously quick car but if you ease off, and carefully optimise all of its fuel-efficient capabilities it’s surprising just how little fuel it consumes,” Scott said, after he and Richardson completed the 494-kilometre route to become the youngest ever winners of the award in its 14-year history.
Scott, who competes in the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship driving a car powered by the same 1.6-litre EcoBoost engine, added: “The cars are fitted with a tracking device to ensure we follow the rules of the road and are not just coasting at every opportunity. We simply employed fuel-efficient driving techniques that anyone can use in their everyday driving, such as avoiding harsh braking or sudden acceleration.”
Ford previously won the overall MPG marathon award in 2013 and 2012 with a Ford Fiesta ECOnetic. Recently a Ford Tourneo Connect 1.6 TDCI was the outright winner of the 2014 Tour of ALD Ecomotion Automotive in Madrid, after recording an 8 per cent improvement compared with its official fuel consumption figures.
