Ford Fiesta ST concept (2011) at the Frankfurt motor show

This is the new Ford Fiesta ST, just unveiled at the 2011 Frankfurt motor show. It’s just a concet car for now, but we know a production version of the new Ford Fiesta ST will be revealed at the 2012 Geneva motor show, and that sales will start in the UK in time for next September’s plate change. It’s the same format Ford followed with the Focus ST, revealing a near-production concept at the 2010 Paris motor show, and then pulling the wraps off the real thing last night.

Bar the Renaultsport Clio and Suzuki Swift Sport, all the significant pocket rocket hot hatches use forced induction engines, and the new Fiesta ST is no different. Under the bonnet is a 1.6-litre Ecoboost engine (that means a turbocharger, direct injection fuel tech, and variable valve timing), producing 178bhp. That’s up from the standard 148bhp the 1.6 offers when ensconced in the Focus.

There’s 177lb ft too, power is sent to the front wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, and Ford claims the concept will manage 0-62mph in under seven seconds, and reach at least 138mph. Plus the CO2 emissions are under 140g/km; the old Fiesta ST was a 148bhp/140lb ft warm hatch that took nearly eight second to do the benchmark sprint, and emitted 177g/km.

Of course there’s some beefier bodywork, which Ford is keen to claim is influenced by the WRC Fiesta, but we reckon is actually rather subtle, despite widened wheel arches. Other tweaks include new bumpers front and rear, 17in wheels, twin exhausts (alas it wasn’t possible to mirror the Focus ST’s central pipes), a faux diffuser, and a little roof-mounted spoiler. What isn’t subtle is the huge trapezoid front grille (a styling solution pinched from the new Focus ST), or the bright Molten Orange paint. Inside there are a set of Recaro seats for the driver and passenger.

‘The Fiesta has a rich history of high-performance models so a new ST performance model is a logical next step in our performance vehicle strategy for our global small cars,' said Derrick Kuzak, Ford's global product development boss. Jost Capito, Ford's director of global performance vehicles and the man behind the last Focus RS commented: 'The Fiesta ST concept shows in the most dramatic way possible that the qualities that define an ST are not limited to one model.'

By Ben Pulman