Yes, Virginia, There Will Be a 2019 Ford Fiesta ST (and Fiesta ST-Line)
It’s a Fourth of July miracle!
It’s long been assumed that the Ford Fiesta ST was dead as a doornail in the United States, with the seeming killing blow being dealt earlier this year when Ford confirmed plans to kill off every car save for the Mustang and upcoming Focus Active. But someone at Ford must have made a saving throw, because it seems that there will not only indeed be a 2019 Ford Fiesta ST, but that it will also effectively port the ST-Line to the United States.
Per CarsDirect, order guides for the 2019 Ford Fiesta ST indicate that there are no changes from the 2018 model year — despite a $55 uptick in price. Still, it’s another opportunity for drivers in the United States to enjoy this fun-to-drive hot hatch’s fireworks, which is good enough news in and of itself. Whether this would be the Fiesta ST’s last hurrah is as yet unknown — Ford confirmed earlier this year that production of the Fiesta is set to wrap in May 2019, which might at least leave time enough for a limited edition to see the Fiesta ST off with a bang.
If you want the flavor of the Fiesta ST but a little bit less of that bang — or if you just don’t know how to drive stick — you can opt for the 2019 Ford Fiesta ST-Line, which takes the idea popularized in Europe and brings it stateside. Ostensibly, the Fiesta ST-Line looks very much like a Fiesta ST. There are noticeable aesthetic differences to consider: The ST-Line gets 16-inch black painted aluminum wheels and P195/50R16 tires as opposed to the Fiesta ST’s 17-inch Rado Gray wheels with 205/40R17 summer tires, loses three ST-specific exterior colors, gets bucket seats instead of sport seats, and isn’t available with Recaro sport seats.
It’ll also lack the Fiesta ST’s punch: The ST-Line is listed as being offered with a 1.6-liter inline four-cylinder, and it’s not unlikely that this won’t be the same 120-horsepower engine offered with the regular Fiesta. The Fiesta ST-Line will also be offered with a five-speed manual transmission and available with a six-speed PowerShift automatic, and it will miss out on the Fiesta ST’s sport suspension.
For all that the Fiesta ST-Line lacks compared to the Fiesta ST, it will also see a significant drop in price. CarsDirect has the Fiesta ST-Line starting at $17,625, which is $3,715 less than the Fiesta ST’s starting price of $22,215.
News Source: CarsDirect
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