Bill Pierre Ford

Acceleration is no more than passable with the 1.3-liter engine and manual transmission. With automatic, or with more than one occupant aboard, a Festiva feels even more timid. The engine produces little power at low speeds, and gets noisy above about 4000 rpm, thrashing rather raucously. Gas mileage is exceptional, with 30-plus mpg on average.
Don’t be surprised if the Festiva’s body tilts precariously, as it skitters around corners on its 12-inch tires. Expect quite a bit of body roll through turns as well as irritating understeer. Few cars are easier to parallel-park than a Festiva.

Surprisingly supple, the Festiva’s ride is actually rather comfortable, but the short wheelbase keeps it from ever becoming exceptional. Noise levels tend to be high, and road and engine sounds combine to produce a loud din at freeway speeds.

Passenger and cargo room are limited, though the upright cabin provides surprisingly good head space. Even leg room ranks as adequate. Thin roof pillars, plenty of glass, and a short nose translate to great outward visibility. Interior furnishings are sparse. Even with the rear seatback folded, in fact, storage space is mediocre. Radio and climate controls are within arm’s reach.

The name Festiva evokes bad cruise line commercials from the ’80s and was certainly emblematic of the economy at the end of the decade of decadence. Ford needed something to buy it lots of pollution credits to offset the production of extremely profitable trucks and the then beginning SUV hemorrhage.

Ford is confident the 2006 Ford Fusion will experience similar success, both on and off the track.“Fusion’s bold, new styling and its dynamic driving personality are very consistent with what you would look for in both a production car and a race car.

“We believe that Fusion is a car that demands to be noticed, and in a sport like NASCAR, there’s going to be millions of race fans tuning in every week who are going to have a great opportunity to see Fusion in a winning situation, and associate that winning with the Ford brand.”
Ford believes the demographics of the NASCAR audience and the customer interested in Fusion match up very well.”NASCAR fans, and the Fusion customer, both encompass a broad spectrum of America,” said Burt Diamond, global marketing manager, Ford Racing Technology. “One in three adult Americans consider themselves NASCAR fans, so that’s a huge population base that we have to work with in helping Ford Division market the car.
“We know the NASCAR fan base is more family-oriented, and is becoming more ethnically diverse and more affluent than ever before, so it really makes sense for us to feature this new car among these audiences.”
The new Fusion production car and the new race version will start appearing together this Saturday when the first of nine Ford Racing Innovation Drives takes place at Kentucky Speedway.
Several thousand consumers will get the first chance to drive the new production Fusion and other Ford products on the Speedway track, while the new NASCAR Fusion, unveiled today in Charlotte, will make its first public appearance at the event.