Which timing drive does your Fiesta have?
| Timing drive | Worth knowing | |
|---|---|---|
| 1.4 and 1.6 Duratec | Belt | The 1.6 Ti-VCT's has a dynamic tensioner |
| 1.6 EcoBoost | Belt, dynamic tensioner | Listed for the 2013 to 2017 Fiesta ST |
| 1.0 EcoBoost | Wet belt, 2012 to 2019 | Runs in oil, and a chain after that |
Read this before you trust the table
That's the wider Mk6 Fiesta family, coded WS, WT and WZ here. Not every engine listed was necessarily sold in Australia, so have the mechanic confirm yours from the engine code. The service book gives the change interval for your car.
If there's no record of a change and the car has reached it, treat it as due. On many engines, a belt that lets go can do serious damage.
Why a wet belt is different
A wet belt is bathed in engine oil. The 1.0 EcoBoost's can degrade early, and that can cost you oil pressure or timing, and severe engine damage. It wants changing at Ford's interval, or sooner in harsh use. Using the oil Ford specifies is part of looking after it.
If an oil warning comes on in red, pull over somewhere safe and switch off. Don't drive on to see if it clears. Oil pressure warning light explains the next step.
What makes a Fiesta belt job bigger or smaller
Access is the first thing, and it depends on the engine. Then there's what gets done alongside the belt, such as tensioners, idlers and sometimes the water pump. A good estimate lists each one. Our timing belt replacement page has the detail, and timing belt vs timing chain explains the difference.
Other common Fiesta jobs
A new battery. A small car on short trips can run its battery down. Have it tested and matched to the car, and get a stop-start type if yours has that. Car battery replacement explains what's involved.
The automatic. An automatic Fiesta of this generation may have the six-speed PowerShift, the same dual-clutch gearbox as the Focus. If yours shudders or hesitates, ask for a road test and a scan before any parts are ordered, and check your VIN with Ford for any program or recall that applies. Our Ford Focus transmission page explains what's behind it.
Servicing. CarsGuide lists the Fiesta at 15,000 km or 12 months. Mk6 production finished in April 2017, so the book, not the warranty, is your guide now.
What you can check
You can
- Look through the service book and invoices for a belt change.
- Find the engine size on your paperwork.
- Check the oil level with the car cold, on flat ground.
Leave to the mechanic
- Confirming the engine and the belt's condition.
- The belt change. It's precise work and no home job.
- Anything inside the gearbox.
If it were our Fiesta
We'd look for proof of the last belt change before anything else. No proof and a car at or past the interval makes it the priority, and we'd ask for the tensioners to go with it. Tell us it's a Fiesta, the year, the engine if you know it, and the kilometres. A local mechanic who specialises in your car.