The sixth generation Fiesta was shown in a concept car form as the Ford Verve at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2007, with introductions in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Australasia, and Africa.

Martin Smith, executive director of design for Ford of Europe, described the Verve as "a chic, modern and individualistic statement for a sophisticated, fashion-aware generation.

There are four body styles available for the sixth generation Fiesta, including three- and five-door hatchbacks, four-door sedan, and a three-door van.

The three-door hatchback version was sold in Europe (except Russia), Australasia, and select parts of Asia such as Singapore.

First introduced in Paris Motor Show in late September 2012,[20] the facelifted Fiesta for the European market went on sale in 2013.

On the inside, the ST provided heavily bolstered Recaro front seats (optional in North America with partial leather, and available with either partial leather or cloth-only in other territories) and sportier decor; North American versions were offered with the MyFord Touch infotainment system.

[29] The Fiesta ST is powered by a 1.6-litre Ford EcoBoost engine to deliver performance while it was said to provide good fuel efficiency.

It includes a 1.6-litre EcoBoost four-cylinder engine, six-speed manual transmission, overall steering ratio of 13.6:1, increased roll stiffness at rear axle, 15 mm (0.6 in) lower body height than base model, electronic Torque Vectoring Control and 3-mode electronic stability control (standard, sport or off).

[30] The engine is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission which features Ford's Torque Vectoring Control system to brake the inside front wheel to aid agility, and has three ESP modes.

The chassis remained the same, but torque vectoring (powered by braking the inside wheels rather than an active differential) helped to reduce understeer whilst cornering.

The Fiesta ECOnetic achieves its environmental credentials through weight loss and aerodynamic adjustments, and its emission figure exempts the car from UK vehicle excise duty.

[40] The North American Fiesta features a redesigned front end and rear bumper compared to the European version, to match the reworked frame underneath in order to meet US crash standards.

Other changes include stiffer springs to make up for the added weight, and some fine-tuning to adapt the car to American driver-friendly all-season tires.

[43] In July, Ford said initial shipments were delayed for up to two weeks by Hurricane Alex that hit Northern Mexico in late June, and subsequently by Tropical Storm Bonnie.

[45] Ford dealers in the US offer optional laminated vinyl graphics applied to the car's exterior, expected to last 3 to 5 years before replacement.

[46] Also, certain dealers partaking in a new Ford Retail program provide an "unwrapping" digital package loaded with a photograph of the buyer taking delivery of his/her new car.

[49] Subsequently, Ford brought the cars to public venues nationwide to offer 100,000 test drives over eight months.

Late in July, six European Fiestas arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to begin a similar demonstration tour across Canada.

[53] In North America, the Fiesta is available in several trim levels, which are base S, SE, SES, SEL, Titanium, and ST performance model.

The 2014 Ford Fiesta features redesigned front and rear fascias, whereas the previous models in North American market do not have the trapezoidal grille.

In Brazil, the Fiesta sedan was imported from Mexico since 2010 before local production of the hatchback version started in 2013 at the São Bernardo do Campo plant.

The PowerShift 6-speed dual-clutch gearbox is available in North America as an option in addition to the 5-speed manual, which may be sold with a diesel in Europe in the future.

[70] Ford customers in the United States had filed multiple class action lawsuit since 2012, due to the issues involving 1.5 million vehicles which consists of 2011–2016 Fiesta along with 2012–2016 Focus which were allegedly built with defective transmissions prone to “shuddering, slipping, bucking, jerking, hesitation while changing gears, premature internal wear, delays in downshifting and, in some cases, sudden or delayed acceleration.”[71] Owners have reported replacing clutches, output shafts, and entire transmissions, and opting for software updates.

[72] According to court documents, Ford issued multiple technical service bulletins but the problems were never fully resolved.

"[74][75] A Free Press "Out of Gear" investigation published in July 2019 revealed for the first time internal company documents showing Ford was aware the transmission was defective before putting the vehicles on mass production and continued producing and selling them over the past decade as customers spent thousands on repairs.

Ford whistleblowers described to the Free Press in 2019 a fearful atmosphere within the company that led to silence during the development of the DPS6 transmission and, in one case, downgrading the risk assessment of the clutch and control unit due to "political reasons."

Ford later stated that the newspaper held "conclusions that are not based in fact," but the transmission has nonetheless created numerous complaints to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of rough shifting and sometimes interruption of power.

In January 2020, Ford proposed an updated settlement of a minimum of $30 million in cash reimbursement in a class-action lawsuit over PowerShift problems, which had since been approved by a federal judge in March 2020.

[83] The Fiesta was featured on episode 6 of series 12 of Top Gear in a series of "serious" road tests conducted by presenter Jeremy Clarkson, from escaping 'baddies' driving a Chevrolet Corvette C6 in the Festival Place Basingstoke shopping mall, to participating in an amphibious beach assault with the Royal Marines.

[84] In February 2019, Green NCAP assessed Ford Fiesta with a 1.0-litre EcoBoost 100 PS engine and manual transmission: Only models sold in Continental Europe and the British Isles are shown, overseas territories often have different offerings.