2019 Order Placed!
Since no one has answered my question (except Dpro), I will now provide my own answer...
I took Dpro's tip to heart and placed a special order on Jan 24th for a 2019 FiST to my precise specs:
Orange Spice
Molten Orange ST Recaro Pkg
Ebony Black 17-inchers w/Red calipers
Navigation
NO Moonroof (I have no use for it, and it is very difficult to find an existing build with all the other specs but no moonroof).
Today (Feb 6th) the dealership informed me of the car's VIN. So I guess it is happening!
I had an interesting time finding a dealership to take the order. I sent out an e-mail with my exact specs and a request for a cash price quote for a special order to six Ford dealers in my area.
One dealership responded to my e-mail almost immediately and said they would get back to me within an hour with a price quote.
Two dealerships responded to my e-mail about 10-12 hours later, just trying to get me to come on in so that they could sell me another existing FiST that did not meet all my specs.
The final three dealerships did not even both to respond to my e-mail, ever.
The one dealership that did respond with the price quote has turned out to be a jewel of customer service. It is a dealership in a small, rural town: B&B Ford in Barnwell, SC. All my dealings have been with Billy Baldwin, the Digital Sales and Marketing Manager (bandbford.sales@gmail.com). So far, all our communications have been via e-mail (except for one phone call when I gave my info for the deposit charge). The ordering documents have just gone back and forth via e-mail. The first time I will probably set foot in the dealership will be when I go collect the car (about a 45 minute drive).
The price quoted was fine with me. Invoice (which I independently verified), minus $2,500, and no BS documentation fee. Any questions I had were answered almost instantly. Billy offered a free “concierge service” (for a Fiesta?!?) for whenever the car needed to go in for future servicing, but I think I will do that driving myself. Plus he proactively got me on the queue for the ST Octane Academy. As soon as Ford notified him of the VIN, he shot me an e-mail. This is better service than I have gotten from some Porsche dealerships.
The FiST should be showing up by late April. Probably it will be one of the Last of the Mohicans.