The carpocalypse continues and its latest victim is the three-door Ford Fiesta.
According to Automotive News Europe, production of the three-door Fiesta will end at the company’s plant in Cologne, Germany this summer.
This will also spell the end of the three-door Fiesta ST, but the model will continue to live on as a five-door hatchback. That isn’t the only change as Ford will “further streamline the Fiesta range to speed up production,” which has been hampered by a series of part shortages.
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European Fiesta sales have been falling for years as the company sold 270,931 units in 2018. That number dropped to 228,959 units a year later, before plummeting to 156,067 units during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Sales haven’t recovered as Ford only sold 86,385 Fiestas in Europe last year and has moved less than 8,000 units in the first two months of 2022.
Part of the drop can be explained by changing consumer preferences and it’s likely that a number of customers have been swayed by Ford’s popular, but more expensive Puma. Regardless, a number of automakers have axed their three-door hatchbacks so it’s not surprising that Ford is following suit.
Moreover, time might be running out for the Fiesta as the publication notes the Cologne factory is set to become a major electric vehicle hub. An MEB-based mid-size electric crossover is slated to go into production next year, while an electric sports crossover will follow in 2024. This has led to speculation that the five-door Fiesta may also be axed in the future, but that remains to be seen.
