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Ford Fiesta Powershift (Automatic) seen testing again

By now, you would be knowing that Ford will be launching an automatic transmission variant of the all-new Fiesta in India shortly. The company has kept no secrets about it and the car, to be dubbed as Fiesta Powershift, will be launched on 28-Feb-2012 in New Delhi, as per reports circulating in the media. Earlier this month, we posted a couple of snaps of the Fiesta Automatic undergoing testing at Maraimalai Nagar on the outskirts of Chennai, not far from Ford India's factory. Thanks to one of our readers, here are a few more snaps of the same car, seen testing yet again in the same location.

To those who do not know, the Fiesta Powershift will be the first car in the mid-size segment to offer dual-clutch transmission, a technology that was only available in the premium models until now. Technically, a dual-clutch transmission will have two clutches that will be independently working on odd and even gears to ensure smooth and seamless shifts. Being a six-speed automatic, Ford claims that fuel-efficiency is not compromised and the automatic variants will be as efficient as the manual variants. Media friends who have driven the car have not stopped raving about the car's superb handling and fun-to-drive factor.

With the existing variants of the Fiesta not exactly setting the sales charts on fire, Ford should be careful enough in the way it positions and markets the Fiesta Powershift. A further premium from the existing prices will ring the death-knell for the new Fiesta in India. Ford should instead contemplate repositioning the existing variants and launch the Powershift at the existing price levels itself. If not for anything else, we would love the new Fiesta to become a big success in India just for its sheer driving brilliance.

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