Customers throughout Europe have warmly welcomed the new turbocharged Fiesta ST and in fact, Ford says it has received double the expected number of orders in its first six months on sale on the Old Continent, with the UK accounting for about a third of all orders.
The Blue Oval initially planned to produce 5,000 examples of the ST in its first year on sale in Europe, but in the UK alone, more than 3,000 orders have been placed since it hit dealerships at the end of March. To keep up with demand and satisfy buyers, Ford said it will increase production by 15 per cent to 60 vehicles per day.
“The customer and media reaction to the Fiesta ST has been extraordinary – it’s really become an instant classic and orders have been extremely strong,” said Roelant de Waard, vice president, Marketing, Sales and Service, of Ford Europe. “We are doing what we can to increase production and try to meet demand.”
According to Ford’s data, the hot hatch’s Pearlescent Molten Orange and Spirit Blue metallic paint colours have been requested on 45 per cent of orders, while in the UK, 56 per cent of buyers have opted for higher specification ST2 models.
Ford recently added a (£599) Mountune engine upgrade with a factory-warranty for the Fiesta ST that lifts output from 182PS (180hp) and 290Nm (214 lb-ft) to 215PS (212hp) and 320Nm (236 lb-ft) respectively.
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