The party's over... The Ford Fiesta Story

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Big Car is quick on the ball with their Ford Fiesta story after the model's announced end.

👍︎︎ 26 👤︎︎ u/historicusXIII 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies

Fond memories of a 50 quid fiesta with the battery held on by a block of wood so it wouldn't short on the bonnet.

👍︎︎ 12 👤︎︎ u/positive_charging 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies

Weird to see, Ford, one of the oldest and biggest car makers strip all yhe normal cars and do just crossovers and pickups. Which only crossovers are in europe, like 3 models is their lineup. Even Mitsubishi has more models

👍︎︎ 6 👤︎︎ u/Jazzkky 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies

Damn I didn't know the Fiesta had such a history.

Another American moment I guess.

👍︎︎ 5 👤︎︎ u/Tarcye 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies

Love mine, shame its getting discontinued.

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/fraxy33 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies

I love Big Car. Such a high quality channel.

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/MarioRex 📅︎︎ Oct 27 2022 🗫︎ replies
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If it hadn’t been for Ford’s CEO,  Henry Ford II and his right-hand man,   Lee Iacocca pushing to build the Fiesta,  Ford of Europe may well not have built it.   It was big gamble to create a new front wheel  drive platform that wasn’t needed for any of   their other cars, and with Fords selling like  hot cakes, and little profit in superminis,   why take the risk? But take it  they did, and it’s become the third   highest selling Ford vehicle of all time. Why was the Fiesta so popular for so long,   and why did it all end with the seven  generation? This is the Ford Fiesta Story.  (music) Even before Fiat rocked the automotive world  with their 127 supermini hatchback in 1971,   Ford was looking at creating something smaller  than their new Escort, and the orders had come   straight from the top – CEO Henry Ford II. So,  by 1971 the design department had already got to   work, producing some interesting designs. Ford’s  boss was keen for the Europe operations to lead   the project, but they had their hands full with  the second-generation Escort, Capri and Granada,   so Detroit took the lead. With the launch  of Fiat 127 Ford had a rabbit to chase,   and what Ford was great at doing in the 1970s  was catching and beating their competition.  Ford’s development team suspected front wheel  drive was best, but they needed to be sure.   They built two similar cars, one using  parts from a front wheel drive Fiat 127,   and the other using a chopped down rear wheel  drive Escort. Just for good measure they asked   Ghia to produce something based on the Fiat 127.  All three cars were tested by the public and it   quickly became clear front wheel drive was best. That was bad news. All of Ford’s cars in Europe   were rear wheel drive which meant a lot of money  to develop something new, including the cost to   turn their Kent engine 90°. So, if they were  going to make something to beat Fiat, and now   Renault with the new Renault 5, they would need  to spend big, and hope whatever they made sold   well. Even if the car was a runaway success, it  still wouldn’t make the development money back,   and might take sales away from their  other cars. But if they did nothing,   they could become irrelevant by the 1980s. If  Ford decided to make a supermini, they needed   to amortise the front wheel drive technology  with their other cars, possibly a future Escort.  There hadn’t been a single design that interested  Ford’s management, but Ghia’s car had and they   asked them to produce a follow up. The result,  the Ghia Wolf got even more attention. By now,   the middle of 1973, Ford of Europe’s  design teams had completed their Escort,   Capri & Granada design work. Would they  like to produce something like the Wolf?   Well, of course they would! The team took on the project with relish. UK & German design teams were pitted together   to see which of their Wolves would win out.  It was a close thing, but the German team   were victorious. As it was so close, and as  an act of contrition the German team asked   to take elements from the British design. The  exterior would be designed in Germany, while the   UK design team would produce a smart interior that  wouldn’t have looked out of place on larger cars.  Some progress had been made by Detroit on the  mechanicals while they’d been running the project,   and this was handed off to the European  team to produce Ford’s first supermini.   As new competition appeared, Ford took note and  made sure their car could beat it. Initially it   was conceived as a 2-door saloon or a three-door  hatchback. A five-door version was investigated,   but ultimately rejected, as was the idea of a  2-door as it became clear customers preferred   a hatchback for its all-round practicality. Work progressed smoothly. Ironically, although   Ghia had provided the genesis of the project, the  top of the line Ghia trim level would have nothing   to do with them – it was just one of the interior  styles created by Ford’s British design team.   They cleverly reused parts, such as the door pulls  being grab handles from the ceiling of the Escort!  The car would be called “Fiesta” which is "Party" in  Spanish, and Spaniards must have had a party when   they heard Ford would be building the Fiesta  in Valencia. For Ford it made perfect sense,   Spain had good, inexpensive workers, and  the Fiesta needed to be produced for next   to nothing. Market studies showed the Fiesta  would be a hit, so production lines in the UK   and Germany were tooled up for the expected  demand. With consumers rushing to cheap,   efficient cars after the oil crisis,  not just in Europe but North America,   it made perfect sense to sell the new Fiesta  in Ford’s home market as well, especially as   US Government rules dictated the average fuel  economy of a car manufacturers line-up needed   to hit certain targets. (music) The Ford Fiesta launched in 1976, first in Europe,  and then with right hand drive models in 1977.   Like the larger Escort it came with a 950cc and  1.1L engine. There was a sporty “S” version,   although with a 1.1L engine it wasn’t particularly  sporty. The press was underwhelmed – it didn’t   seem to do anything better than the competition,  and wasn’t any cheaper. But as an all-round   package it worked well, and with Ford’s marketing  machine in full swing the public felt differently.   Everything Ford touched in the 1970s turned to  gold, and the first generation Ford Fiesta was   no exception. They needed it to sell big  to recoup the massive development cost,   and it did – within 14 months they’d sold  ½M cars. Within 3 years they’re reached 1M.  The Fiesta also performed well when it launched  in North America in 1977. To help hit US emissions   standards, ironically Ford fitted the Fiesta  with the larger 1.6L engine from the Cortina   which made it quite a peppy car. Ford even tried  different body styles with the 1978 Fiesta Fantasy   show car. But with the Fiesta selling well,  European sales were prioritised, and in any case,   Ford only wanted to sell just enough to help get  them past the Government’s emissions hurdle. So,   it’s no surprise that they only sold around the  75,000 they needed to sell. It didn’t help that   the German produced cars were getting more  expensive to import due to exchange rates,   so the Fiesta was replaced by the larger,  fuel-efficient North American Escort in 1981.  Ford was excited about its new supermini platform,  and as Ghia had done such good work shaping the   Fiesta design, they charged them with pushing  the supermini envelope. The Fiesta-based Corrida   concept was shown at the 1976 Turin Motor Show.  The door handles might seem in an odd location,   but they made perfect sense for the folding gull  wing doors that were perhaps perfectly practical.   It was easier for those in the front and the back  to enter this two door car in tight supermarket   parking spaces, and had a futuristic style. The  one downside was the side windows couldn’t open.   Ford also tried the Fiesta Tuareg off-roading  concept in 1979, the tall Pockar with space in   the doors for luggage the following year, and the  shorter Ghia Shuttler city car the year after.  In 1977 the European Fiesta light van appeared  by removing the rear seats and filling in the   rear windows. The passenger car would get  a little more power with a 1.3L engine,   but passed up the 1.6L from the American Fiesta.  Ford asked Donald Healey, of Austin-Healey fame,   to come up with a sporty Fiesta. The result was  the 105hp (78 kW) 1.6L Healey Fiesta concept. It   was displayed at car shows, and may have  persuaded Ford to offer the “Series X”   aftermarket upgrades for the Fiesta, delivering  up to 89hp (66 kW). But what Ford needed was a   pre-packaged sporty Fiesta, something to take  on the Golf GTi. Ford tried an RS version,   but it proved to be far too expensive. The XR3  had cracked the price vs performance problem, and   it was transposed into the Fiesta in 1981 as the  1.6L 83hp (62 KW) XR2, sporting a natty body kit.  Strong sales in Europe meant the Fiesta  crossed the 2M barrier in 1981. The front   wheel gamble had paid off, and helped reduce the  development cost of the third generation Escort   that was also selling like hot cakes. “The small car share of the market has  more than doubled over the last 10  years to over 23% of the total in   1982. The cars are small, the stakes are big.” But in 1982 the Fiesta was outsold in the UK by the new Austin Metro, and the supermini category  was becoming crowded. Good thing the second   generation Fiesta was coming in 1983! “Second  generation” might be a little flattering. It   sat on the same chassis, with a new slightly  more aerodynamic body that wasn’t a patch on   cars like the new Fiat Uno. The new front end  gave a clue as to what the fourth generation   Escort would look like three years later. Inside  it got a chic update to keep the Fiesta selling.  The new lean burn CVH engines provided a little  more power and economy along with a little loved,   unrefined diesel. The updated engines meant it  could use the 5-speed gearbox already used by   the Escort. This was something Ford commonly  did with its models – major updates to the   running gear in one generation followed by  engine updates in a subsequent generation.   It allowed Ford to always have something new  and improved to talk about. That’s not to say   the handling remained the same – Ford did some  work in that department, but only minor tweaks.   Superminis were selling well, but with lots of  competition there were razor thin margins. That   meant little money for development, so Ford had  to stretch its limited budget as far as it could.  Like Volkswagen with their sporty Polos, Ford  had to be careful the lighter Fiesta XR2 didn’t   outperform the more expensive Escort XR3. So, the  Escort would get fuel injection while the Fiesta   would have to do without. It’s a problem Peugeot  didn’t have with the 205 GTi, which is why it ran   rings around the XR2. But with Ford’s stranglehold  on the UK company car market the XR2, and the   cheaper “S” sold well, and at double the profit  of a regular Fiesta, Ford was very happy it did.  They designed a constant velocity gearbox  with Fiat, and it was introduced on the   Fiesta in 1987. It proved to be noisy, which  Ford acknowledged by using the same sound   insulation it used on its diesel models.  Customers didn’t warm to it, although Ford   continued to offer it into the 2000s. But back  in the late 1980s the whole Fiesta package,   designed in the early 1970s was really looking  its age, and decisions taken then to make it   only a three door were starting to affect sales.  Thankfully, Ford had been working on a third act.  The development of the third generation car  would cost about as much as the first generation,   and all the money was poured into the new  body and running gear. Ford had to make   sure it produced a car that could beat the  competition. It had to be bigger inside, if   not outside, and it must, definitely have 5 doors. The first serious design was the Libra concept, an   attempt at making a family car look like a coupé.  It was a little wild for management’s tastes,   so the second Libra concept went for something a  little more conservative that, like the Volkswagen   Polo went to hatchback extremes to pack in as much  space as possible. The third concept in early 1983   clearly had influences from the just released Fiat  Uno, but management were worried it was a little   too safe. It didn’t look like something that could  be turned into a fire-breathing XR2 for example.  They could shoot for something like the new  Peugeot 205, but then the new Honda Civic   appeared and the designers were torn. Which  way should they go for the new Fiesta? This   was at a time when management were second  guessing every decision coming out of the   design department after the aerodynamic  gamble that was the Ford Sierra launched…   and bombed. Not a good time for indecision. It fell to Ford’s management to choose. They decided the new Fiesta should be something prettier than the  Peugeot 205, with just one body shell for both 3   and 5 door models. Detroit was asked to submit a  design, along with Ghia. These designs along with   ones from Ford of Europe were given a fashion  show in front of a select few members of the   public in early 1985 to help decide. The winner  was something instantly recognisable as a third   generation Fiesta, but the design team would  spend another 6 months tidying up the design,   especially around the rear with the Fiesta’s  trademark wraparound rear lights. The Fiesta   sold well but Ford didn’t take that for  granted. The new car had to be truly great.  Once the base car was completed, Ford moved  on to style the high margin sports versions.   Interior work carried on in parallel with design,  and soon the final package came together. By 1987   the body was ready to be mated to the new  running gear to produce the third generation   Fiesta platform. Then the decision came to  produce an RS Turbo version. The design team   had to make something a little wilder than the  XR2 look, without making it looking silly. The engineering team had to work out how to fit  a turbo into the already cramped engine bay!  (music) The new Fiesta broke cover at the end of  1988 and sales began the following year.   The wheelbase had grown 16cm (6”), but the  interior grew by more than this using clever   design tricks. Inside it was all new, with  creature comforts such as electric windows,   central locking and ABS. The new XR2 got fuel  injection which gave it a little more power,   but no more acceleration with the car  weighing an additional 50kg (110lb).   The RS Turbo turned the Fiesta into a  pocket rocket with a 0-60 time of 7.7s.  The refined, better handling, more fuel-efficient  Fiesta was a hit with customers, proving the team   that designed the acclaimed mk3 Escort then the  much-maligned Sierra hadn’t lost their touch. It   was soon Britain’s best-selling car, and by  1991 over 1M third generation cars had been   sold. The Fiesta van continued to be sold,  as well as a new box van, the Ford Courier.  Ghia produced a couple of concepts to see if Ford  could use their new Fiesta platform for other   purposes. The Bebop was a mini pickup pitched as  a sport activity vehicle, and the Urba was built   around city driving and shopping. It got a single  door for the driver, but two on the other side for   passengers. Features such as a fridge in the boot  to keep the shopping cool didn’t make it, but a   built-in garage opener and parking aids would  eventually come to almost all passenger cars.  An update in 1993 focused on structural  improvements to help safety. The XR2i got a Zetec   engine, and the new RS1800 replaced the outgoing  RS Turbo. But joy riders were stealing hot hatches   across the UK, maybe why the updated Fiesta got  an immobiliser. The “S” had always been the entry   level sports model, so it was perhaps inevitable  that when the XR2i name was dropped for the ”Si”,   it didn’t exactly set the pulse racing. But it  didn’t need a second mortgage to insure either.  The priority for the fourth generation Fiesta was  fitting the new Zetec engines into the cramped   engine bay, and improving crash protection which  was becoming increasingly important to customers.   To this end, all cars got a driver’s airbag  for the first time. This wasn’t going to be   a major update – the essential  platform would remain the same.  As far as styling updates, Ford initially tried  a Porsche look, then a happy buggy design, but   soon coalesced around flat headlights and an oval  grille that would appear on the mid-90s Escort and   Mondeo. This would bring some corporate identity  back to Ford’s disparate line-up. The interior   would have the same swoopy oval design that  would appear on the upcoming Ford Ka, which would   also be built around the third generation Fiesta  platform as would the Ford Puma. Ford was in love   with ovals in the 1990s, even the North American  third generation Ford Taurus got its fair share.  The luxury model that Ghia lent its name to had  been a little unloved with the third generation   car, but the 4th generation Fiesta Ghia got  power steering, optional air conditioning,   CD changer and a healthy dose of leather and  something that looked like wood. The new Zetec   engines were about as fuel efficient as the  outgoing models while offering a bit more   get up and go. But with hot hatches being a  dying breed, the best the new generation could   offer was a 1.4L fuel injected 16V engine which  couldn’t crack 10 seconds in the 0-60 sprint.   Speed junkies would have to look elsewhere,  unless they wanted to swap their engine for   the 153hp (114 kW) 1.7L beast in the Ford Puma. But those small engines meant low insurance   premiums. The Fiesta was reliable and as always  running it didn’t worry your bank manager. The   new car continued to sell well. It topped the  UK sales charts again in 1996, and would stay   there until toppled by the new Ford Focus in 1999. Ford had a deep partnership with Mazda, and the   Fiesta would be rebadged and sold as the Mazda  121 in markets such as South Africa and Europe.   Ford’s South African factory produced the  Fiesta passenger car but also turned it into   a light pickup - the third generation Ford  Bantam that was a lot more practical than   the Fiesta Bebop concept from 1990. And the  old third generation Fiesta continued to be   sold in some markets as the “Fiesta Classic”  to get some extra use out of the old tooling.  The Fiesta was also sold across South America.  In 1999 it became a four-door saloon for the   first time as the Fiesta Sedan. In this form it  would have a second life into the 2000s as the   Ford Ikon in India, South Africa, Mexico and  China where it would be produced until 2010.  Ford’s new corporate identity was the  New Edge styling of the Ford Focus,   and the 1999 facelift gave the Fiesta as much  of a New Edge makeover as could be done on a   limited budget. It remained true to its oval  roots inside. But it got more leather trim and   side airbags to keep up with the competition. A  larger 1.6L Zetec engine gave a little more pep.  When Ford produced its cars in the 1970s each  of them would get its own bespoke platform,   but by the new millennium this was ancient  history. Sharing platforms was the thing,   as could be seen with the Puma, Ka, Bantam and  Ikon. The fifth generation Fiesta would use the   Global B-car platform that was developed with  Ford’s partner Mazda. It would be used for the   Mazda2 and Verisa, along with the Ford Fusion  MPV and EcoSport SUV. Most mainstream cars grow   over time, and the new Fiesta was no exception,  giving a little more leg and elbow room. That very   slightly longer wheelbase combined with improved  suspension gave a better ride, making it feel like   a much bigger car. The looks naturally continued  the New Edge styling cues from the popular Focus.  “I see you baby!” (music) Ford of Australia clearly seemed to be confused between the new Fiesta and the new Renault Mégane,  which won the contest for the largest bottom!  Inside it was all new with smart doors and seats.  The dashboard was logically ordered and clear   to see, but the solid dark wall of plastic felt  like Ford’s designers had lost the will to live.  On the third generation car, the team had been  denied a different body for the three and five   door version. For the fifth generation two shapes  were permitted, creating better headroom for the   five door, and a sportier look for the three  door. That sporty look wasn’t just for show,   as Ford released the 2.0L ST with a 7.9s 0-60  time. It would still be pipped to the post by the   1990 RS Turbo on the dragstrip, but thanks to the  vastly improved suspension it behaved much better   when a bend appeared. The 182hp (136 kW) Fiesta  Mountune Performance version made for a fun ride   for those willing to pay for it. In Australia the  Fiesta got the coveted XR badge, not called the   XR2 as you would think but the XR4. Ford hinted  at an RS version at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show,   but it would remain just a concept. Customers  were directed to the larger Ford Focus RS.   Joy riding was a less serious problem, and  insurance rates for cars like this, while not   being low, weren’t at least eye-wateringly high. The new Fiesta was, on paper, better than ever,   but it didn’t sell as well as the previous  generation, and it was even usurped in the   UK by its main competitor, the Vauxhall Corsa.  That wasn’t part of Ford’s plan. The facelift in   2005 did better, at least proving more popular  than the Corsa in the UK. It got a light spruce   up both inside and out. Features from other Ford  models made their debut such as Bluetooth, MP3   connectivity and rain sensing wipers. The Zetec  S “30th Anniversary” edition arrived in 2007,   31 years after the first Fiesta appeared.  By the look of the 2006 license plate on   the publicity photos, Ford was a little late  getting the car out of the factory gates!  The Ford Ikon got an update with the  fifth generation Fiesta platform in 2007,   and the Fiesta hatchback would be reworked  as the smaller Indian produced Ford Figo,   which was sold all over the world. The Fiesta had been getting heavier   since its introduction, to the point where three  original Fiestas weighed about the same as two   fifth generation Fiestas. For the sixth generation  Ford decided to make it lighter, and therefore   nimbler. No mean feat when customers demanded air  conditioning, airbags, a strong safety cell and   all those natty gadgets to make their little car  feel premium. The new car ended up 66kg (145lb)   lighter, the weight of a fully grown human. The first clue of what the new shape would   be appeared as the Verve concept  at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show,   continuing Ford’s new Kinetic design language  first seen on the S-Max. The saloon also appeared   for those international markets that demanded  it. The press and the public were impressed,   but were sceptical how much of this exciting  shape would make it to the production car.   (music) The final design might not be quite as exciting  as the Verve, but it was damned close. The new   Fiesta went on sale in 2008 and was an instant  hit. The handling matched the exciting looks,   and easily impressed you on the test drive.  It was cheap to run, it was reliable, and as   with all Fords it didn’t give you much trouble.  The platform would be used for the 2014 third   generation Ka, as well as the B-Max mini MPV that  Ford was excited about, but left customers flat.  The interior was inspired by  the buttons on a mobile phone,   just as the world was ditching keypads for a  wall of glass. The exciting shape limited rear   headroom even on the 5 door hatchback, and the  seats didn’t fold flat, making it not the most   practical supermini on the market. But without  any rear seats it was practical enough as a van.  The Ghia badge had lost its allure by this point,  so the highest trim level was “Titanium” like that   credit card advertisers want you to aspire to.  “Titanium” brought you creature comforts like   climate control and cruise control. But the fast  ST or XR models were a thing of the past, at least   for now. Instead of a sports model, Ford offered  the “ECOnetic” with a diesel engine that Ford   claimed would emit only 98 grams of carbon dioxide  per kilometre with an added particulate filter.  The fifth generation car, like the third  generation would be sold alongside the   new Fiesta in India, again as the  budget-priced “Fiesta Classic”.  The Fiesta had exited the US market in 1981. Ford  would sell small Mazdas in North America – the   Ford Festiva in 1986 and the Aspire from 1993 to  2000. After that the smallest Ford was the new   Focus. But with both unemployment and fuel prices  rising, Ford signalled they might be interested in   bringing the Fiesta back once more. They showed  a North American version of the Verve concept in   2008, and the reaction must have been good enough  that the Fiesta appeared in American showrooms in   2011 as a 4 door saloon & 5 door hatchback, and  Ford’s new SYNC infotainment system appeared.   Early problems with the automatic  gearbox hit Ford’s JD Power rating,   but they were quickly addressed. That same  year worldwide Fiesta sales hit 15 million.  An update appeared in 2013 with a restyled nose  that featured the Aston Martin-like trapezoidal   grille that would be used across the Ford  range. Inside there were some minor changes,   and Ford’s troubled MyFord Touch system was  added to the top of the range models, the other   reason why Ford’s JD Power ratings had tanked! Ford had unveiled a Fiesta ST concept a couple of   years earlier, and a new ST appeared with the 2013  update. And Americans also got a dose of Ford’s   mad hot hatch fun. The 1.6L 180hp (134 kW) engine  featured 15 second of “overboost” producing nearly   200hp (147 kw) which made it to 60 in 6.5 seconds  and went on to 137mph (220 km/h). It could also   get nearly 50mpg (5.9l/100km) if driven carefully,  proving the wonders that engineers could perform   getting more and more power out of tiny amounts  of fuel. On the other end of the spectrum was   a new 1.0L EcoBoost engine, delivering 66  combined mpg (4.3l/100km) with a faster 0-60   time than the first generation XR2, and vastly  superior handing. And that wasn’t even the most   economical Fiesta. That honour fell to the 1.6L  diesel that got an astounding 86mpg (3.3l/100km).  The Fiesta ST’s combination of power  and handling were proved on the rally   circuit when the Fiesta won the World  Rally Championships in 2017 and 2018.  The second generation 2015 Figo was based on  the sixth generation Fiesta, and again built in   India and shipped across the globe. In 2018 Ford  released a crossover version. The upcoming seventh   generation Fiesta wouldn’t come to South America,  so the sixth generation got another facelift.  Sales might have started well for the 2008 Fiesta,  but they’d quickly tailed off. Superminis weren’t   as popular as they once were. Could Ford  turn it around with the next generation car?  (music) The new car was built on a new generation  of the Global B-car platform, and still got   excellent handling. Although much of it was  new, from the outside it looked like just a   small styling update. Ford clearly thought it  couldn’t improve on the 2008 look. The new top   of the range was the new Vignale edition, Ford’s  attempt at recreating “Ghia” exclusivity. Vignale   was an Italian coachbuilder that Ford bought with  the Ghia purchase in the early 1970s. The Vignale   trim level got heated seats & steering wheel,  climate control, keyless entry and updated seats.  Supermini customers were rushing to crossovers,  so Ford tried to appeal to them with the Fiesta   Active which they said had crossover styling.  But being a mere 2cm (0.75”) higher than the   regular Fiesta, probably due to larger alloy  wheels, I’m not sure many people were fooled.  The interior felt premium, mostly. If you  looked hard there was some cheap plastic to   be found. But it continued to get more tech like  a rear-view camera, cruise control that scanned   the traffic signs and maintained the speed limit  and the car could be unlocked from your phone.   There was an EcoBoost engine with a mild hybrid  option. The 197hp (147 kw) ST got a little more   poke, and different driving modes. With the  Fiesta’s excellent handling, and a high spec   it remained a great little hot hatch. Ford made a big effort to produce a new   class-leading supermini, and they succeeded, but  the market was moving on. The Fiesta remained   Britain’s best-selling car, but year on year  sales were dropping. Ford announced the end of   the Fiesta in North America in 2018 as a booming  American economy drove sales of larger cars.  But in other parts of the world,  Europe and Latin America in particular,   the Fiesta was an institution. Leaders  may come and go, but there was always the   dependable Fiesta to get you home from work.  In 2021 Ford launched the mid-cycle refresh   with another small change to the front end. In 1972 Ford had the UK’s number one selling car.   For the next 48 years that never changed, be  it the Cortina, Escort, Fiesta or the Focus.   2021 was the first year Ford didn’t have the top  selling car, and the first time since 2009 that   it wasn’t the Fiesta, ceding the top spot to the  Fiesta’s long-time rival, the Corsa. Ford weren’t   even number 2, or three, or four. The top selling  Ford in 2021 was the Puma at number 8. The Fiesta   wasn’t even in the top 10! What happened? The  global chip shortage was a big factor, as was   a shift to taller cars, but with Ford losing  money on every Fiesta produced, they prioritised   more profitable cars such as the Kuga and Puma.  And with a new Fiesta costing more than double   that of a Dacia Sandero, selling Ford’s venerable  supermini was always going to be an uphill task.   The Corsa might have won the supermini battle, but  it’s a battle that’s almost over. Ford announced   in 2018 they would stop making passenger  cars in the US except for the Mustang,   switching to trucks, SUVs and crossovers. That was  the directions customers were going, and Ford had   to chase profits or die. Customers preferred the  upright Puma that was more practical while still   giving a good ride, and being based on the same  platform as the Fiesta was this what the Fiesta   should have become for the seventh generation? But over seven generations the Fiesta has proven   remarkably popular, as Ford seemed to know just  what customers wanted. At over 17 million sold   it’s a car that has been a part of our  lives. The first car I got to drive was   a first generation Fiesta, and like millions  of others I’m very happy Henry Ford II decided   in the early 1970s to push to make a little  car that could and did beat the competition.  You can get much more about the Fiesta story  in Steve Saxty’s excellent “Secret Fords”   books – link in the description. And if you want  to know more about the Ford Escort, there’s an   equally long video linked on the right! Thanks  for watching and I’ll see you in the next video.
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Channel: Big Car
Views: 377,628
Rating: undefined out of 5
Keywords: ford fiesta, ford fiesta story, ford figo, ford bantam
Id: TEnJruAKOyM
Channel Id: undefined
Length: 33min 16sec (1996 seconds)
Published: Wed Oct 26 2022
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