The Auto Writer

Built in Europe for the American market, the first wave of Ford Fiestas have now arrived in the states. The "test fleet" is geared toward raising awareness of the hot-selling Fiesta to young American drivers, those people born between 1979 and 1985 in particular.

Like invading troops, 140 Ford Fiestas have come ashore at ports in Baltimore and Oxnard, California signaling the first salvo in a war that the Ford Motor Company hopes to win beginning next year when the cars are made available to a wider audience.

The Fiesta Movement

In the meantime, as part of the automaker’s online and offline marketing campaign for its line of all-new subcompact cars, Ford launched the “Fiesta Movement” to generate buzz about the car, itself at the vanguard of several European models the company plans to unleash on America over the next few years.

Last Spring, as gas prices began to surge and consumers quickly abandoned trucks and large sport/utility vehicles, Ford realized that it had a problem on its hands. Customer demand for its aged compact Focus went through the roof, but the automaker didn’t have enough model variety to attract people to the Ford brand.

Small European Cars For America

But, the automaker already had in place a handful of smaller models sold in international markets, particularly Europe, which could also be sold in the states, thus Ford management decided to transfer that technology to several North American plants beginning with the Ford Fiesta.

Well before a Mexican factory comes online to build the American spec Ford Fiesta, the company had its Cologne, Germany plant build a number of test models which comprise the cars that are now passing through American ports. Ford solicited applications from young drivers who might be interested in getting their hands on the Fiesta for a six-month period, choosing 100 to be public ambassadors for the new car.

Sharing Their Fiesta Experience

In exchange for getting to drive a Fiesta, the so-called trendsetters are expected to publish their experiences online, through sites such as Facebook, YouTube and Flickr. Right now, I’m following at least one person via Twitter who will be sharing his tweets in the months ahead.

As I write this, Ford is in the midst of a resurgency that is bringing numerous new and updated models to its Ford, Mercury and Lincoln brands over the next two years.  For example, the next generation F-150 pickup truck rolled out late last year while the 2010 Ford Fusion is already out and includes its first ever hybrid model. A new Mustang arrives this Spring and the Taurus will be pushed upmarket to compete against large sedans when it rolls out this fall.

Photo Credit: Ford Motor Company

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