LOS ANGELES -- The Ford Fiesta and Mazda2 are two budget cars on the same platform, but Ford and Mazda still labored to differentiate them.
The cars have different engines, lengths and sheet metal. Ford will offer a sedan and hatchback in the United States, while Mazda will sell only a five-door. Mazda also sells a three-door in Europe.
The two vehicles made their world debuts in U.S. trim last week at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Both got redesigns for Europe in 2008.
Each brand's variant carries its own parent company's engine. Despite Mazda's "zoom-zoom" marketing, the Ford engine is more powerful and features variable camshaft timing.
Ford also is debuting a six-speed, dry-clutch automatic transmission here, mostly because the European market prefers stick shifts, said Steve Pintar, Fiesta chief program engineer.
