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Fiesta SE Turbo?

Nathaen

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Yucca Valley
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CA
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United States
What I Drive
2018 Fiesta SE
#1
I bought a '18 Fiesta SE hatchback a couple years ago and was not really into cars but knew I liked hatch's. I was broke and got a really bad deal on the SE and with that it's not going anywhere anytime soon. I was curious if there was a turbo kit out there for the SE. I am not super knowledgeable on vehicles but I know the basics and am willing to put in the time and effort to get more power as buying an ST is not an option. I understand the ST has more than just power but my goal is power and stick with the auto trans because my friend is disabled and can not drive stick but I want him to be able to drive it too.

I have found upgrade kits for the ST such as this and was curious what I would need to make this work on an SE: https://www.mountuneusa.com/mountune-Fiesta-St-Mrx-Turbocharger-Upgrade-p/2364-tu-aa.htm
 
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MO
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2019 Ford Fiesta SE
#2
You won't be able to tune a standard Fiesta to benefit from having a turbo, plus I doubt the auto can handle much more power than stock. Even the Ecoboost 3 cylinder is manual only.
 

econoboxrocks

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Elkhart
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'17 ST
#3
Yeah, don't go there. The turbo engines are built stronger than the non-turbo engines to handle the extra power. The auto transmission isn't built to handle it, either. For the money, you'd be much better off just getting an ST.
 

scotman

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2011 Fiesta SE hbk Blue
#6

View attachment 4427

Where there is will,
There is a way...​

One way to look at getting a turbocharged fiesta that would almost 100% be proven successful is to walk into a car dealership and buy one!
You won't have to worry about any tuning or drivability issues.
 

econoboxrocks

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Elkhart
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'17 ST
#7
I really wish some tuner would make a tune that would give the base engine just a few more hp. There are a dozen making go-fast goodies for the ST, but the SE gets no love.
 

scotman

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#8
I was there on day one, man! I went on the Ford website and "raised my hand" by making a online spec and price. There were thousands of people who showed Ford their intention to purchase the new Fiesta. Most of them were indicating they wanted a manual transmission Fiesta.
That inital group of buyers was the core of the market for a reflash or tune. I don't understand why Ford decided not to unlock the pcm, at least for the pre ST 1.6. The customer was present and seeking a slightly hotter Fiesta. People were spending real money on body kits, wheels and all the rest!
I really had hoped for the ability to do premium fuel tune, hotter camshafts, higher capacity injectors, less restrictive intake system and a bigger throttle body. Then do the quaife differential with a better final drive, a better lower trans mount and a short shifter.
I didn't really care about a turbo.
 
Last edited:

econoboxrocks

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'17 ST
#9
It's sad. There are enthusiasts, but most people see cars as an appliance.
It's kind of astonishing how fat the aftermarket is for FiSTs. There are lots of tuners. There are several bigger turbos you can get. There are at least 2 companies who sell an LSD. There are a ton of intercoolers, intakes, exhausts, spoilers, aero, suspensions, wheels, rally stuff, race engines, you name it. Mountune even sold stuff for the 1.0.

And yet, they can't make even a few go fast things for the SE, which is a much more common car, and has plenty of people who like it. There's a neglected market there. Somebody should make a tune for it. Give it 10% more power.
Most of them are out of warranty, anyway. Why not? The autos are f*cked, but the manuals will last a long time.
 

Handy Andy

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Grand Rapids
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2018 Ford Fiesta SE HB
#10
I being a 1st time Ford owner, came across FORD as being a line that still provided Manuals (Standard) for their line.

Only I learned, in the time of owning it, that many other makers, including the ones I've owned previously, all have switched to Automatic systems, and nearly all of their new lines are for the All Wheel Drive. They seem to have "dropped" support - if it was not for their name sake and Brand - I've been left "empty" by FORD, for the last vehicle I owned, their aftermarket is still going very strong.

I hope their ST line continues - else I can't see how FORD can pass up such an opportunity as ST is a "Ca$h cow" for them.

Sadly, we, as owners and operators using "Standard" transmissions, are a rare type of enthusiast - and getting rarer as time passes along.
 

econoboxrocks

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#11
I'm old enough to remember when automatic musclecars weren't as quick at the dragstrip as the manuals, and weren't as reliable. That has changed.

The Fiesta automatic is a sad exception.
 

scotman

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#12
I being a 1st time Ford owner, came across FORD as being a line that still provided Manuals (Standard) for their line.

Only I learned, in the time of owning it, that many other makers, including the ones I've owned previously, all have switched to Automatic systems, and nearly all of their new lines are for the All Wheel Drive. They seem to have "dropped" support - if it was not for their name sake and Brand - I've been left "empty" by FORD, for the last vehicle I owned, their aftermarket is still going very strong.

I hope their ST line continues - else I can't see how FORD can pass up such an opportunity as ST is a "Ca$h cow" for them.

Sadly, we, as owners and operators using "Standard" transmissions, are a rare type of enthusiast - and getting rarer as time passes along.
Ford isn't going to build any manual transmission cars beyond the Mustang, and even that one looks iffy.
I only prefer an automatic transmission in my pickup truck. It makes towing a trailer easier.
 
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STL
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MO
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What I Drive
2019 Ford Fiesta SE
#13
I know it's not technically a "car", but the new Bronco has 2-doors and a manual, so I think there might be hope for something. There's rumors of a new compact FWD pickup, of course all spy shots shown seem to be 4-doors so far, but I'm really hoping I can get a regular cab with at least a 6 foot bed and a manual transmission.
 

scotman

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#14
I know it's not technically a "car", but the new Bronco has 2-doors and a manual, so I think there might be hope for something. There's rumors of a new compact FWD pickup, of course all spy shots shown seem to be 4-doors so far, but I'm really hoping I can get a regular cab with at least a 6 foot bed and a manual transmission.
The Broncos target competition, the Jeep wrangler, has a manual transmission take rate that has waffled between 10 and 18 percent since 2014. I do know that the rock crawler crowd seem to have gone to the automatic because of the ability to maneuver over things more smoothly. Plus, they are really into front and rear locking diffs! Some of those are driver selectable.
I will guess that Ford will offer it at first, then move the manual transmission into a special option package at extra cost. Because even 12 to 15 percent of sales is going to become very hard to justify as they begin to squeeze every last penny of cost out of the build process.
That's when the "ST effect" will kick in! I would like to be wrong about that. But, a statistical model has already been created.
 

scotman

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#15
I was reading a piece on the new Bronco (not the sport version) a few days ago. It was a piece on Cnet.com, road show. They related that the current pre production take rate. For the manual transmission Bronco is 18 percent. Like Fiesta had, Ford has a website where people who are interested in the new Bronco could configure and price what they wanted before production began. Ford says over 190,000 potential buyers did that. The number of those people who have followed up with a deposit and an actual order is approximately 125,000.
So the percent of mt buyers is initially higher. Up near the peak of the mt Jeep take rates. But those numbers will fall dramatically within a year. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the number of manual transmission Bronco's built will be around 6 to 10 percent of total production. I doubt that Ford will be able to restrain themselves from axing that variation by model year 2023!
 
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76
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79
City
Virginia Beach
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VA
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United States
What I Drive
14 Fiesta SE
#16
Such a bummer to watch manual transmissions disappear. I recently bought my first automatic car (2020 Forester for the missus) and of course they didn't offer a manual transmission. Man, what a lackluster driving experience! I understand that not many people are "car people" but I guess I'm just a little disappointed that so many "car guys" don't/won't/can't drive a stick. We shot ourselves in the foot boys
 
Messages
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MO
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What I Drive
2019 Ford Fiesta SE
#20
The Chevy Aveo is one of the worst stick shifts I've ever driven, but I'd still take it over an automatic. 1 of 4 of my vehicles is an auto... but if I had the parts I would make it a manual for sure.

A manual Bronco will probably hold it's value pretty well if they axe it early on.
 


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