Ford’s hot hatch journey began with a modest attempt in 1980, when the Fiesta Supersport was launched. Things got more serious the following year with the beefier Fiesta XR2. However, it was the 1984 Escort RS that truly cemented the company’s contribution to this exciting niche of practical performance cars. 45 years after the Supersport, the Blue Oval is now exiting the segment. After the Fiesta ST was discontinued a couple of years ago, the Focus ST has now followed suit.
In a statement to Motor1, Ford confirmed that new Focus ST orders are no longer being accepted. The company’s European Communications Manager, Finn Thomasen, stated: “All Focus ST factory orders until the end of production have now been reserved.” This disappointing news follows a recent announcement from Ford UK about the retirement of its last remaining hot hatch.
Although configuring a new Focus ST is no longer possible, Thomasen mentioned that unsold vehicles are still available in most European markets. As previously reported, production of the Focus and its derivatives will cease in November. Once that happens, Ford will be left without a regular car in Europe, where the Fiesta was retired in 2023, the Mondeo in 2022, and the tiny Ka in 2020.
Sure, the Mustang remains, but it’s ultimately a niche product. The pony car’s 5.0-liter V-8 is both a blessing and a curse: while it’s an excellent naturally aspirated powertrain, high EU taxes on large-displacement engines make it a tough sell. The smaller, turbocharged 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder was pulled from the European market at the end of 2020.
With the Ka, Fiesta, and Mondeo already gone and Focus production winding down, Ford’s European sales continue to decline. According to figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), deliveries through April decreased by 2.2% to 149,601 units across the EU, the UK, and the EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland). For perspective, Volkswagen sold 488,033 cars in the same period. Even South Korea’s Kia and Hyundai surpassed Ford, with 183,095 and 174,106 units delivered, respectively.
Whether new models are on the horizon, let alone another hot hatch, is unclear. The combustion-engine era appears to be winding down, so any future performance offering would likely need to be electric. VW’s sales and marketing chief, and former Ford of Europe head, Martin Sanders, has hinted at the possibility of Ford gaining more access to the MEB platform to develop new models. These would follow the ID.4/Explorer and ID.5/Capri.
Still, it’s too early to say whether Ford will launch something akin to the ID.3, or the upcoming ID.2 and ID.1. VW has committed to electric GTI models, so perhaps one day the Fiesta ST or Focus ST could return as EVs. Meanwhile, crossovers like the Puma and Kuga must do the heavy lifting in the EU, EFTA, and UK regions, where Ford’s market share is currently at 3.4% or roughly three times less than VW’s.
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