Ford pulls the plug from the Fiesta after more than 46 years and that is quite a bit. A fixed value within the Ford range will soon no longer be. A wise move? I do not think so. At least we lose a car that had almost everything in it. Shame.
The Ford Fiesta will call it a day next year and just miss its 50th anniversary by a few years. That anniversary had a wonderful fiesta that the Fiesta absolutely deserved in my eyes, because we can really speak of an icon from the car industry. A car that arose at the time when the compact hatchback (quite rightly) was considered a kind of egg of Columbus began to conquer the European car market, but it also managed to maintain its success long after that. Ford managed to keep its grip on the segment over the generations with the Fiesta, turning the Fiesta into a sales success that Henry Ford would have been proud of.
Has the Fiesta become the Model T of the modern age for Ford? In a way, yes. Just look at the sales numbers (over 16 million). You will find a Fiesta in almost every corner, they have always been affordable – especially as a used car – and they mainly offered practical transport for the sober consumer. A ‘sensible’ car, that’s what many people love. The Fiesta was and is, in my opinion, almost everything you need in a car. Most Fiestas were reliable, roomy enough for the size, – except for the fifth, in my opinion – looked smooth for their time and drove well. Especially the latter is quite a plus of the Fiesta. If you’d like to leave a compact hatchback because it feels too ‘weedy’ to you, try a modern Fiesta. If you don’t necessarily need the space of a compact middle class car, a Fiesta will soon be more than enough. If you also want sporty driving behavior and your wallet allows it, you can go for an ST.
What’s not to like? Well, a Fiesta (except for the ST) is not really exciting and you probably drive the same car as your cousin, neighbor and one of your friends. For me that is reason enough not to buy one, even if I would have done so if I saw a car primarily as a useful utensil. It is precisely because of the latter that I understand very well why so many people end up on a Fiesta. As with the Polo, by the way, although it lacks in my opinion just that edge of cheerfulness compared to the Fiesta. The Fiesta is an exceptionally down-to-earth choice without too much fuss. For that reason there is no poster above my bed of a Fiesta and there never will be, but that’s exactly why I’m going to miss it.
At a time when one super strong SUV after another is presented with glimmer from front to back, the Fiesta was a wonderful place to rest. A fixed value. A loyal friend who has ‘remained so nice to himself’. He will probably hand over the baton to, how could it be otherwise, an electric crossover. A car that has more pretensions than the Fiesta because of its bloated body alone, will undoubtedly become more expensive because of its electric powertrain and for the time being will be far removed from the average mortal looking for an affordable second-hand car. Shame. Such a shame.
And last but not least; although I do blame Ford a bit that it deletes the Fiesta, in my opinion the following ‘farewell’ is nicely done:
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl