Ford Fiesta – Servicing Schedule

Quick answer - service your engine every 12,500 miles or one year. Cambelt and water pump should be changed at minimum 72,000 miles or five years. Other components vary with mileage and age and should be replaced when they're worn out.

Servicing your Ford Fiesta is something that you need to do on a regular basis to maintain your car, ensure it runs optimally and maintains its value. However, not everybody understands exactly when they should service certain components on their car. There can often be conflicting information available, particularly online - people saying that the OEM service intervals are too long and the car should be serviced more frequently, right down to people who don’t service their cars at all.

In this article we’re going to go through all of the consumable parts of a Ford Fiesta and determine when they should be serviced, so you’re completely and fully aware of when everything needs to be done on your car. This includes your standard engine oil and filter, but also parts such as the clutch, battery and fuel injectors. I’m using my experience of having maintained countless Ford Fiestas in my years as a mechanic.

This article is a mix of official figures from Ford, as well as a touch of my own experience - sometimes parts are notorious for failing early and therefore should be serviced or replaced before the recommended interval.

Engine Servicing

An engine service consists of at least an oil and oil filter change. This is referred to as a minor service. If you go for a full service or a major service (which you should be doing every two years) it consists of a fuel filter, air filter and pollen filter change. You’ll also have your spark plugs changed if you run a petrol Fiesta.

In this article we look at the servicing intervals for each engine part, when they should be changed and (if applicable) at what mileage. However, be aware that the part is due a service irrespective of which milestone you hit. For example, if the service interval for a particular part is 10,000 miles or one year, and after a year you’ve only done 5,000 miles, you still need to change that part - the guidance is whichever is soonest, not when you hit both.

Petrol engines

Diesel engines

Later models of Fiesta (2017+) may be on a two-year servicing schedule, which means you should extend the relevant interval from 12,500 miles to 18,000 miles and one year to two years.

It’s worth mentioning that if your Fiesta is subject to what’s called “abnormal conditions” you must have your car serviced more often. If any of the following apply to you, you must halve the service intervals above - so 12,000 miles becomes 6,000 miles and one year becomes six months:

• If your vehicle is used as a taxi, driving school or delivery vehicle

• If you live in a country where fuel quality is poor

• If you live in a country that has a dusty environment

• Constant slow speed driving under 12mph

• Start-stop driving and short journeys where the engine does not warm up fully

Timing belt 

To my knowledge all modern Fiestas are fitted with a timing belt. Irrespective of whether you drive a petrol or a diesel, the timing belt interval given by Ford is the same - 144,000 miles or ten years. Most of these engines have dry timing belts - meaning that they don’t run in oil. I know of only one engine fitted to the Fiesta that has a wet timing belt that runs in engine oil, and that is the 1.0L EcoBoost engine. 

I really think that a wet timing belt is a terrible idea and I’ve had a lot of experience replacing these on Peugeot petrol engines, where a wet belt is a significant issue because the engine oil causes the belt to disintegrate and then block up the oil pickup, which can starve the engine of oil. The 1.0L EcoBoost is no exception to this - and I would highly suggest that if you have this engine and want to maintain your car, you get the belt changed at half the recommended interval - 72,000 miles or five years.

When you get the belt changed is ultimately down to you and your financial situation - just be aware that a timing belt change is likely to cost you at least £500, but the cost of a new engine will be much greater. All Ford Fiestas are fitted with interference engines so if the timing belt breaks, it will cause damage (likely terminal) to your engine, and you will need to replace the engine in your car.

Personally, if it was my car, I’d be replacing any wet timing belt at a maximum of 72,000 miles and any dry timing belt at a maximum of 100,000 miles.

Brakes

Servicing the brakes on a Ford Fiesta has no set service interval - you change them when they need changing. When your brakes need changing is largely dependent on your driving style - if you’re often braking harshly and aggressively you will find you get less wear out of a set of pads and discs than if you use lots of engine braking and you drive more gently.

Pads and discs

I would say you’re likely to get between 30,000 to 40,000 miles out of a set of brake pads on a Ford Fiesta, depending on how you drive. You’ll notice when it’s time for a new set of pads because you’ll hear the metal grinding against the front discs - this is a sign that all the friction material has worn away, and your pads need to be replaced.

Brake discs should last you between 50,000 to 60,000 miles. The Fiesta is fitted with brake discs at the front on all models, and only on some at the back - some of the lower trim models have brake drums at the back. These very rarely need replacing and will usually just need servicing at a similar interval as if you’d change brake discs. I’d suggest you plan for a brake service at around 60,000 miles if you want to keep your brakes in tip-top condition. 

Brake fluid

This should be replaced every two years as part of a full service regardless of mileage. This is because brake fluid is hygroscopic (it absorbs water) and therefore becomes less effective over time.

Battery

A battery ought to be changed out when required and not at any kind of set interval but you should get at least four years out of a battery. If you have a start-stop model of Fiesta you may need a higher-powered battery, so just double check you’re buying the right one. 

Clutch

A clutch, again, has no set service interval. It depends entirely on how you drive your car. You may get anywhere from 30,000 miles to 100,000 miles out of a clutch depending on how you drive. You might even get more if you do a lot of motorway driving. My advice with the clutch is to change it as soon as you notice any kind of problems with it - a burning smell, slipping clutch, problems selecting gear, etc. Don’t leave it to chance or you could end up on the side of the road with no drive.

Another thing you can do to extend the life of your clutch is to ensure that you take your foot off the clutch when stationary in traffic - put your car into neutral and take your foot completely off the pedal. Keeping the clutch in puts excessive wear on your release bearing and if this shatters, you will be left with no drive.

Injectors

Fuel injection on the Fiesta tends to be pretty reliable - I’m not aware of any notorious fuel injection problems affecting any of the engines. Again, this depends on the quality of the fuel you use, the kind of driving you do and how often the car has been serviced. I would not expect a normal Fiesta owner to see fuel injection problems until well past the 100,000 mile mark. The thing about injectors is that when one fails, you often have to replace all the injectors at once - which could mean a big bill, as fuel injectors are not cheap.

Tyres

Tyre servicing depends again on the kind of driving you do and the brand you buy. Cheaper models of tyre like Landsail may only last up to 12,000 miles before they need to be replaced, whereas good tyres like Dunlop or Goodyear might last up to 30,000 miles.

Additionally the type of driving you do influences this - lots of motorway driving makes for even wear, and if you rotate your tyres, you’ll get even longer out of them. I would strongly suggest buying the best tyres you can afford. Tyres are the only thing that separate you from the road, and therefore it makes sense to spend as much money on them as you can afford.

Change your tyres when there’s around 3mm of tread left and check your tyres regularly for cuts, punctures or bulges. Check the pressures regularly to make sure they are correct. Here’s how to check your Fiesta tyre pressures.

We’ve written a number of articles on the Ford Fiesta - so if you’re looking at buying one, or you’re having problems with your car, check out some of the other articles we’ve written.