Ford Festiva

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The Ford Festiva was a subcompact car sold by the Ford Motor Company in North America, Asia and Australasia, introduced in 1986 in Japan. The car was manufactured by Kia in South Korea, who at the time were part-owned by Ford. It was based on the Mazda DA platform, using Mazda's B Series engines.

The Festiva was sold in North America from the 1988 to the 1993 model years. It was also sold in Europe and some other markets as the Mazda 121 from February 1988 until 1991, when it was replaced by a rebadged Autozam Revue. It was sold as the Kia Pride in some regions. It replaced the Ford Fiesta in North America.

Contents

1 First Generation (1986-1993)

1.1 The SHOgun

2 Second Generation (1994-1997)
3 In Popular culture
4 References
5 External links

First Generation (1986-1993)

In 1986, the subcompact Festiva was introduced to the world market, and it was introduced to North America in 1988. This Festiva sold pretty well, and it fit into Ford's new marketing agenda of selling better built cars. Early in its life, it faced tough competetion from the Yugo, which was slightly larger, and only cost $3,990 USD, but the Yugo quickly fell due to alleged reliability problems, and that left the Festiva nearly monopoilizing the market, with the 4 door Dodge Omni being its only real competition, until the introduction of the aerodynamicly styled Geo Metro in 1989. Inital sales were good, but by the 1990s, Festiva sales started to fall, due to the big car craze in America caused by the introduction of the Ford Explorer. Today (as of 2006?), used Festivas are coming back into popularity due to rising gas prices, while some enthuiasts turn them into pickups, dune buggies, and do other kooky things to them.

The SHOgun

In 1990, Chuck Beck of Special Editions and Rick Titus took seven Festivas, gutted the interiors, and mounted Ford SHO 3.0 L V6's behind the front seats in mid-engine rear wheel drive configuration. There were substantial cosmetic and mechanical changes, including relocating the gas tank to the front of the car, structural bracing and improvements to the chassis, adding wider wheel arches to accommodate a wider stance and larger tires, and a complete redesign of the suspension. These changes resulted in a car that could travel the ¼ mile (0.4 km) in 12.9 seconds at 100.9 mph (162 km/h), and could achieve a lateral acceleration figure ranging from .95 to 1.04 g [link]. Of the 7, Jay Leno owns the silver one, which is number 003 [link].

Second Generation (1994-1997)

For 1994, the Kia Pride was redesigned, meaning Ford got a new Festiva. While it was sold in Europe and other contenents as a second generation Festiva, Ford renamed it the "Aspire" in North American markets. This new Festiva was slightly longer, wider, and more aerodynamic. For 1997, the Festiva got a new front bumper with an oval grille, to keep up with the new Ford styling trend set by the Ford Contour and the redesigned Ford Taurus. Production ended in 1997. This generation is known for its resistance to mechanical breakdown.

In Popular culture

In the Jim Carrey film Fun with Dick and Jane, Dick and Jane trade in their BMW 7 Series for a Festiva as a way to save money after Dick lost his job.
A temporary art protest installation at the Sydney Opera House showed a 1994 Festiva crushed underneath a car sized rock.

References

External links

Ford Motor Company
Platforms | Engines | Vehicles |

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