How does the new 2010 Ford Fiesta drive? Like a Mazda2 with a nicer interior – and that’s a good thing.

Ford brought a handful of Fiestas stateside for its new social media marketing campaign, but it managed to keep a few for media use. Several cars appeared at this week’s New York auto show, and I eagerly jumped behind the wheel for a short spin.

To quote a famous New Yorker, it was “déjà vu all over again.” I’d spent some good time behind the wheel of the Mazda 2 subcompact last month, and the two are more than distant relatives. Although they differ both inside and out, the Fiesta and 2 share platforms and a good number of mechanical bits.

So, for the most part, the Fiesta drives quite a bit like the Mazda. It’s well composed over rough pavement (there’s plenty of that here in Manhattan), feels solidly built, and is rather nimble about town – fortunate, as I made a wrong turn that threaded me between two lanes of parked buses.

This was all what I’d witnessed of the Mazda 2 while winding the car through the hills of Switzerland. But if there’s one area where the Fiesta truly trumps its Mazda sibling, it’s inside.

The physical sensation behind the wheel differs little -- you still sit high, offering plenty of visibility through the expansive windshield -- but then you begin to notice the ambience. Ford worked long and hard trying to deliver an upscale interior, and it pays off. The black-on-black color scheme may not be grace the cover of the New York Times’ "Style" magazine anytime soon, but the quality of the materials – the soft, grained dashpad, the smooth operation of the controls -- makes the Fiesta feel much more upscale than its competitors, including the Mazda2.

That’s a good thing for us Americans, as we’re receiving the Ford and not the Mazda. Although these examples are an odd mix of German- and UK-spec parts, Ford tells us nearly 90 percent of the content seen here -- i.e. Bluetooth interface, premium audio system, etc. – will end up on Fiestas bound for the New World.