Safety, technology and powertrain upgrades are being added to the already popular range, which tops the UK sales charts.

The move brings the Fiesta in line with the manufacturer’s large and medium care line-ups, it also represents a good deal for buyers as ESP previously cost roughly £300.

Additionally, the Studio series will come with heated door mirrors and, remote steering-mounted controls and two extra speakers.

At the top end of the range, the Titanium models now come with Bluetooth and USB connection, worth around £200, as standard.

There are also improvements in CO2 emissions in all three of the engine choices, with the 1.6-litre 95PS the most efficient at 107g, but the biggest drop is in the 1.6-litre Ti-VCT 120PS, which has dropped from 139g to 134g.

Ford recently unveiled its S1600 model, a limited edition released based on the Zetec-S.

Only 650 of the new Fiesta S1600 cars are available, and they come with a standard specification that includes alloy pedals, heated leather sports seats and a choice of engines.

The sporty model boasts a unique front bumper with flared lower valence panel, extended side skirts, large rear spoiler and allow wheels.

Available with a 1.6-litre, DuratecTI-VCT engine or enhanced 1.6-litre Duratorq TDCi engine, the model also comes with side airbags, motorsport-branded floor mats and costs £16,655.

Gill Palmer, Ford of Britain’s Fiesta product manager, said: "Since its introduction, Fiesta and sporting pedigree have never been far apart and the latest incarnation of that is S1600, bringing extra motorsport feel to the award-winning Fiesta style and driving quality."

The Ford Fiesta is Europe’s best-selling car in 2010 so far, with a total of 140,496 sold, according to figures from JATO Dynamics.

In March, the Fiesta led the way from the Volkswagen Golf to be the month’s bestseller, taking it to the top of the charts for year-to-date sales.

In total, 140,496 Fiestas have been sold this year, meaning the Ford model has edged ahead of the Golf, which has seen sales figures of 135,048.

Last month, 68, 630 Fiestas were sold, representing a 25.8 per cent rise on the previous year, while 56,845 Golfs were sold during the same period, the automotive date and intelligence provider revealed.

David Di Girolamo, head of JATO consult, said: "Fiesta has been closing the gap to Golf through 2010 and there are a number of factors behind this. The buoyant sales markets so far this year are those where Fiesta is popular and are also scrappage-influenced markets, driving purchase of small cars."

The Fiesta was also the strongest selling used car during the last quarter of 2009, according to data from Experian Automotive.

There are four standard checks which all buyers should make before committing to a purchase, according to a helpful hints article in the Times Online.

Starting with the interior, check to see if all the switches and lights work, and make sure it is dry, if not there may be a leak.

Check for dents, scratches and rust on the bodywork, making sure to take a close look and keep an eye out for areas that have been re-sprayed.

Don’t forget to inspect the boot and pull back rubber seals in case they are hiding rust or other forms of deterioration in the bodywork.

The article also advises to run the engine and test if the exhaust is smoke free once it’s warm, otherwise there may be a problem.

Finally, always take the car for a test drive and make sure to properly test the steering, breaks and general handling.

Data from Experian Automotive revealed the best-selling used car was the Ford Fiesta.

The car manufacturer’s Blind Spot Information System senses when a vehicle has entered a blind spot zone on either side of the car.

When this happens, the driver is warned by an LED light in the wing mirror on the side that corresponds to where the vehicle has just entered the blind spot.

"In busy traffic, it’s very easy to lose sight of vehicles when they move into your blind spot," said Dr Torsten Wey, Ford’s driver assistance technologies supervisor. "With its distinctive warning light, this system helps drivers to think twice before switching lanes or changing direction without checking their blind spot, hopefully preventing a collision or a near miss."

The system uses two sophisticated multi-beam radars which are mounted in the outer corners of the rear bumper.

Car insurance company Swinton recently said that an increasing number of accidents were being caused by distracted drivers using their mobile phones to access social networking sites like Twitter.

The figures are a five per cent increase on the same month last year and 6,122 sales ahead of its nearest rival firm.

Ford Fiesta and Ford Focus were the first and second best sellers respectively in the UK market, with sales driven by extended scrappage scheme incentives, and the company took 15.7 per cent of January vehicle purchases overall.

Nigel Sharp, Ford Britain managing director, commented that 2010 will present the company with challenges but the group has the vehicles and expertise to maintain a strong sales momentum.

"We have further enhanced Ford’s offer by paying this year’s VAT rise and look forward to new Ford S-MAX and Galaxy models on sale this spring," he said.

This month the S-MAX and Galaxy won awards in the Best Mini-MPV and Best MPV categories respectively at the 2010 BusinessCar Awards.

In the latter category, Ford has come out top for four consecutive years.

Speaking about Ford’s continued success, BusinessCar editor Paul Barker said: "The S-MAX and Galaxy have proved their worth to the business car market, with the people that experience and rely on the products every day – the readers of BusinessCar – voting in their droves for the two models in their respective categories."

Last month, Ford was praised by visitors to FleetDirectory.co.uk, who claimed that the Mondeo was the best fleet vehicle in the UK.

The car was described by Richard Lawton, a spokesperson from FleetDirectory.co.uk, as a hugely popular model with a long-established reputation.

He claimed that Ford’s latest additions to the Mondeo, including the firm’s ECOnetic technology makes its popularity as a fleet vehicle understandable.

According to industry website FleetDirectory.co.uk, the company’s Mondeo enjoyed a sizeable lead in terms of popularity of other shortlisted fleet vehicles – taking 20 per cent of the total vote.

Second place was given to the BMW 3-Series, which racked up just 14 per cent of the vote, with the Audi A6 coming in third with 13 per cent.

Richard Lawton, a spokesperson for FleetDirectory.co.uk, said: "The Mondeo is a very popular, long-established model, fleets and fleet managers trust in its solid manufacture. Add this to its smart innovations over the year, including the recent addition of the ECOnetic technology and the Mondeo is understandably very popular as a fleet car."

Other cars making up the top ten fleet vehicles included the Volkswagen Passat, the Jaguar XF, the Skoda Octavia and Citroen’s C5.

According to Volkswagen, the firm delivered 20.7 per cent less commercial vehicles in 2009 than it did in the previous year.

The Hot Hatch 2020 Design Competition opened in January last year and was won by Coventry transport design student Minwoo Hwang.

His creation has been turned from drawings into a physical design over the last several weeks by clay modellers working at Ford.

Paul Wraith, an experienced Ford designer who worked on the project, commented: "Things that may look good on paper or a computer screen won’t necessarily look good when you turn them into a scale or full-size model."

He added that Minwoo had to make compromises along the way, but described his design changes as intelligent and said he offers an interesting take on how hot hatch design may evolve in the future.

Earlier this week, Ford announced it will absorb the VAT increase imposed by the government during January.

With production scheduled to begin in both Europe and North America later this year, the US manufacturer has confirmed that the revamped Focus will spearhead its new range of C-class vehicles.

Delegates at the Detroit event treated to a preview of the new Focus learned that, as well as a sportier and more dynamic appearance, which includes a striking front end, a stylish interior and a chic driving console, the new Focus benefits from the same technology as the widely-praised new Ford Fiesta.

As such, in addition to high-level performance, the Focus will also boast EcoBoost fuel-efficient technology in its four cylinder turbocharged engines, allowing for fuel consumption savings of up to ten or 20 per cent on all outgoing models, while there will be 80 per cent compatibility with Ford car parts.

Unveiling the new model, Ford president and chief executive Alan Mulally explained that the company’s new C-car range will give customers "an affordable product offering quality, fuel efficiency, safety and technology beyond their expectations".

The Ford Focus was introduced in Europe in 1998, with a US launch following two years later.