Ford Fiesta earns top safety pick

(August 27, 2010) DEARBORN, Mich. — The 2011 Ford Fiesta is the first mini-car to earn a Top Safety Pick from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) since the introduction of a new roof strength test. The award applies to vehicles built after July 2010.

The Fiesta is the eighth Ford Motor Company vehicle to earn the Institute's top designation — breaking a tie with Toyota for the most “Top Safety Picks” of any automaker.

Fiesta’s extensive use of high-strength steels, Trinity front crash structure, Side Protection And Cabin Enhancement (SPACE) Architecture and advanced airbag technologies helped the car perform well in IIHS testing. Fiesta’s energy-absorbing body structure is optimized for strength and stiffness and designed to absorb and redirect crash forces away from the passenger compartment.

“Fiesta is proof that a small car can deliver big safety, and earning a Top Safety Pick further demonstrates Ford’s commitment to providing all of our customers with world-class crash protection,” said Sue Cischke, Ford’s group vice president of Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering.