RIP to one of our favorite small cars.
The up-and-down saga of the Ford Fiesta is coming to a close as production in the UK is set to end on July 7, 2023.
This latest update comes via the UK publication Autocar. The Fiesta's death is more relevant to other parts of the world as Ford axed the tiny subcompact from its US lineup after the 2019 model year. Though it wasn't always made available stateside, the Fiesta nameplate stuck around for 47 years and eight generations, which is a massive success by any measure.
Ford plans to keep the final two Fiesta units produced in the UK. One will live in the Blue Oval's international heritage fleet in Cologne, Germany, while the other will go to the UK heritage fleet. Ford announced that the Fiesta would be killed off in 2022. The vacancy left by the Fiesta will be used to produce the UK-only electric Explorer, built on a Volkswagen platform.
“We decided to build our first high-volume electric vehicle here in Cologne,” said Martin Sander, general manager of Ford Model E Europe. “There comes the point where we need the space for construction because we are turning the Fiesta plant into a fully battery-electric plant. This is why we had to make a decision that we have to stop Fiesta production.”
Fans of the Fiesta will remember the hot ST variant, which graced US shores for the first time in the 2014 model year. With 197 horsepower on tap and a roughly $20,000 starting price, it was a dream car for enthusiasts on a budget. Sadly, the follow-up model was never imported to the US.
Though the Fiesta ST was an affordable hot hatch hero, the standard Fiesta never received as much praise.
Quite the opposite, in fact. The dual-clutch PowerShift transmission was plagued with issues, enough to trigger a class-action lawsuit. Ford never directly replaced the Fiesta in the US, instead opting for focus on trucks and SUVs (except for the Mustang). The EcoSport is based on the same platform, but we'd give Ford's smallest crossover a wide berth.
In other parts of the world, the Puma crossover has taken over where the Fiesta left off, offering a fun driving experience in a compact package. There's even a Puma ST with a manual transmission to satisfy hardcore enthusiasts. Unfortunately, Ford has no plans to bring the Puma stateside.
Keyword: The Ford Fiesta Is Officially Dead After 47 Years And Eight Generations