The New Limited Edition Ford Fiesta S1600

Ford's famed hot-hatch history is set to grow this month with the arrival of a new, more powerful evolution of the Ford Fiesta S1600.

Priced from £15,895 on the road, and limited to just 500 examples, the latest Ford Fiesta S1600 boasts 134PS at 6,700rpm and 160Nm of torque at 4,250rpm from its 1.6-litre, Duratec Ti-VCT petrol engine, and can reach 60mph in just 8.2sec - an improvement of 1.7sec.

Based on the popular three-door 120PS Ford Fiesta Zetec-S, the 120mph Fiesta S1600 marks its sporting pedigree with a body styling kit that includes a unique front bumper with flared lower valence panel, extended side skirts, large rear spoiler and rear diffuser, and with 17in white alloy wheels. Frozen White or Performance Blue liveries are available, with contrasting motorsport stripes.

The interior also receives a comprehensive upgrade, including heated, stitched leather sports seats with standard side-airbags, leather steering wheel, handbrake cover and gear-knob, plus motorsport-branded floor mats and scuff plates.

The Ford Fiesta S1600 continues a 30-year sporting bloodline that began with the Fiesta XR2 in 1981 and has included Supersport, XR2i, Si, RS and ST models.

Andrew Paton, Ford of Britain's Fiesta product manager, said: "The sportier character of these limited-edition Fiesta S1600 models will appeal to all driving enthusiasts. The previous S1600 was rapidly sold out which shows how much fun these affordable new Fiesta models are - and now with more power and performance these latest versions are set to be an even greater hit."