Essentially, it means you can tune your car to be much safer for the kids, while not hampering your own driving experience. It's something you'd expect to find in a much more expensive car, not a supermini Ford Fiesta.
4. Keyless entry
Coupled with MyKey, Ford's provided the new Fiesta with keyless entry. It means the car has one of those nifty start-stop buttons, which you often associate with more premium cars.
Up to eight keys can be associated with one car at any one time, enabling you to each have a key, with any number of them being governed by MyKey. When more than one key is within the vehicle, including MyKeys, then the administrator key takes dominance, removing all the possible limitations set by the MyKey system.
5. Eco-boost
Ford's new eco-boost engine, which first appeared in the 2012 Focus, boasts the power of a 1.6L engine with the fuel economy of a much smaller 1L engine. Ford managed this impressive feat with a series of engine add-ons.
First up is the turbo, which ups the power of the small engine without drastically increasing fuel consumption. That's coupled with direct injection and independent variable valve timing, providing you with decent low-range torque from about 1400rpm up to 5000rpm out of just a three-cylinder engine.
The traditional three-cylinder engine vibration has also been removed, through counter balancing and engine-mount dampening, meaning that any shaking is neutralised, leaving a very sporty, aggressive-sounding engine note. Thankfully, it's not all bark and no bite either, since the 1L eco-boost is surprisingly sprightly, with good pulling power, as long as you're in the right gear.
Ford's put long gears in the eco-boost to help with fuel economy, which means you've generally got to be in a lower gear than you normally would in other cars to get the power down. A decent compromise, given the impressive low-range torque of the eco-boost engine.
6. Auto start-stop
Further helping to reduce city driving fuel consumption, the Ford Fiesta comes with automatic stop-start technology, which turns the engine off when you're idle at traffic lights or stuck in a queue of traffic, starting it again when you put your foot on the gas.
It's becoming an increasingly common feature in the medium-sized car category and up, and it's nice to see Ford putting it in a supermini like the Fiesta. It should help cut fuel wastage, and therefore dampen the hurt to your wallet at the filling station.
7. Eco-mode driving gamification
To help you make the most of the new Fiesta's eco credentials, Ford's included eco-driving modes, essentially coaching you to be a more fuel-efficient driver from the 5-inch in-dash display.
It rates your driving skill under three different categories: driving speed; gear-change revs, and anticipation, which essentially measures your ability to avoid braking, by predicting traffic flow ahead of you.
The Fiesta uses a range of petals around a daisy-like flower icon to show your proficiency in each of the three categories, rewarding you with a little trophy icon when you've filled the gauges. This 'game' is a gimmick, but it makes the drag of eco-friendly driving a little more exciting, and could train you to be a better, more economy-focused driver in the process.
8. Smart regenerative charging
The new Ford Fiesta also comes equipped with what Ford is calling "smart regenerative charging". Before you go thinking that means the Fiesta is some sort of hybrid or electric car, think again. Instead, it's an intelligent system of control for charging the car's battery.
Previously, the alternator was permanently hooked up to the engine when running. Here the Fiesta only engages the alternator when you're coasting, slowing down, or idling, which reduces wear and tear on the engine and other components in the system.
