(A new weekly feature. Vehicles not currently available in North America — for whatever reason.)

2009 Mazda Demio

The Mazda Demio, as it is known in Japan, will, in a way, be coming to North America in 2010 as the new Ford Fiesta. Ford owns a share of Mazda (for now), and the Mazda 2 (as the Demio is known in Europe) shares its platform with the new Fiesta.

In Japan the Demio offers a choice of 1.3- and 1.5-liter engines and a range of transmissions: five-speed manual, four-speed automatic, and CVT (depending on engine choice). Prices in the home market range from ¥1,190,000 to ¥1,580,000 ($12,147 to $16,128). Although Ford hasn’t announced U.S. Fiesta pricing, industry followers expect it to be in the 12-to-14 grand range, and probably offer the 1.5-liter engine.

2009 Ford Fiesta (built to Chinese spec)

Ford announced that last week it built 100 Ford Fiestas to U.S. specifications at its plant in Cologne, Germany. The cars will be shipped here and given to 100 “millennials” (those born between 1979 and 1995) to drive and give feedback to Ford product planners before the car’s official launch in North America next year. “It’s all part of a plan to build excitement and spread the word about the arrival of the new Ford Fiesta to the next generation of customers,” said Sam De La Garza, Ford’s small car marketing manager. “These 100 socially-vibrant Fiesta Movement ‘Agents’ will then relate their driving experiences through social media sites such as Facebook, FlickR and YouTube.”

Pretty cool, if you happen to be one of the lucky “Agents.” Guys like me, who missed being a millennial by a couple of decades or so, patiently await a call from Buick for input on upcoming orthopedic seat designs and special night vision windshields.