Ford farewells Fiesta: Production to end after 46 years, 4.8 million sales

“It never rains but it pours.” It’s a well-known proverb, meaning that bad news seems to come in rapid succession – or at least, it’s an observation of the human tendency to remember all the bad times.

This week, Ford has confirmed what has been expected for some time – the Fiesta is dead, after 46 years and 4.8 million sales.

The news is worse than expected, however, with reports earlier this year suggesting it would be only the three-door Fiesta sent to pasture. A logical decision, that would have been, and certainly in keeping with market trends. Alas, it’s the full Fiesta line-up Ford is seeing off, just months after confirming the larger Focus is also signing out.

There is perhaps some irony here, too, because when Ford announced the current Fiesta range, it said: "Moving with the times to set new standards for fun-to-drive, technology and efficiency has been a huge part of Fiesta’s enduring success".

In reality, the times have moved beyond light hatches in favour of little SUVs – such as the Puma that now becomes Ford's smallest offering. The Fiesta will endure no longer.

Of course, it’s really not much news for Australian buyers – most of the Fiesta range left this land years ago, thanks both to shrinking sales and and a decision for production to centre in Germany, killing the cheaper Thai-built model we got here.

The current generation arrived in 2020 with only the hero ST grade, but Ford confirmed in August that it’s done with that one, too. (Along with the Focus ST.)

Along with announcing the Fiesta’s end, Ford has published a touching video (the sort that if released a few years ago with a more positive tune, might’ve spurred buyers to consider the Fiesta once again) to celebrate its history.

The video ends with a fleeting glimpse of the electric Puma SUV expected to debut in 2024 – one of seven new EVs Ford intends to launch in Europe over the next couple of years. How many of those we’ll see in Australia is still unclear, although the company’s local arm has confirmed electrification is a future focus (if not in the form of a Focus).

We can likely expect the Mustang Mach-E to be among the brand’s first local electric passenger offerings, though.