After nearly 50 years, Ford will stop building the Fiesta sub-compact by June 2023. The carmaker has confirmed that plans are in place to replace it with a new Volkswagen-based electric SUV which will be built at the same plant in Cologne, Germany.
The new Ford small EV crossover will use Volkswagen’s MEB electric platform—the same one that underpins the ID4.
The Fiesta, which launched in Europe in 1976, has been one of Ford’s most popular models, but sales have been declining recently as buyers switched from conventional hatchbacks to crossovers such as the Puma.
In the Philippines, Ford launched the sixth-generation Fiesta in 2011 where it became one of their best-selling models. However, with the shift towards SUVs and pickup trucks, it was discontinued after just one model generation. In its short life though, it embroiled the carmaker in a quality-related mess surrounding the PowerShift dual clutch gearbox. Owners in several ASEAN countries actually took Ford to court for damages where they have successfully won. Ford was then allegedly found to have covered up the defects surrounding this dry-type gearbox.
The move to discontinue the Fiesta is part of Ford’s move to accelerate its electrification efforts. The company plans for all its passenger vehicles in Europe to be fully electric by 2030 and all its vehicles by 2035.
The automaker is investing to build electric cars at the Cologne plant, including a new battery assembly facility scheduled to start operations in 2024. A second EV, which Ford has said will be a “sports crossover,” will be built at Cologne starting in 2024. The vehicle is also expected to be based on the MEB platform.
Ford plans to launch seven full-electric vehicles in Europe including a battery-electric version of the Puma small crossover that will be built in Craiova, Romania.
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