Ford Fiesta fans on why they love their cars

Plumber Andrew Scott was given an old 1980 Fiesta in return for fixing a toilet

After more than four decades of manufacturing, the last Ford Fiesta has rolled off the production line in Germany as the model is discontinued in favour of more electric vehicles. What does this mean to those in the UK who love and cherish their cars?

Dale Browning usually has about 20 Fiestas in stock at his garage in Colchester, in Essex, which specialises in selling used, low-mileage cars.

Today he only has nine for sale, because, he says, the interest has gone "through the roof".

He owns a 1999 T-reg 1.25 Fiesta Ghia, which had one previous driver who clocked a modest 11,000 miles when she handed over the keys.

"It's obviously a sad day," he says.

"Anyone with any heart would have continued to make them and we would have liked it to make its half century.

"It's been around so long. Everyone has either had one, or knows someone who has had one - your nan has one, your mum has one, you've been brought home from hospital in one - it's a family name."

Dale Browning says he has owned thousands of Fiestas since starting business in 1986

Dale Browning has nine Fiestas for sale and says interest has "gone through the roof"

Leslee Harrington, 68, has never owned a Fiesta, but the car still occupies a special place in her heart ever since she was scouted as a model to feature in the 1976 promotional launches.

The former travel agent was picked up from her home in Southend-on-Sea and driven to landmarks in London for a photoshoot, including Tower Bridge and St Paul's Cathedral.

"That has always been my party piece," she says.

"I tell the builders who come in and they say 'wow can I get your autograph?'."

Staff from Ford in Basildon drove to Southend to collect Leslee Harrington for a photoshoot in London

Ms Harrington (pictured) says recalling the photoshoot has always been her "party piece"

Plumber Andrew Scott was both delighted and surprised to be gifted a blue Fiesta 1.1L by a woman whose toilet he had just fixed.

"I've always had a soft spot for a Fiesta," the 56-year-old from Cambridge said.

Mr Scott's 1980 model, given to him in 2006, was built before the days of padded steering wheels and electric windows, but it still has a working push-button radio.

The interior of the 1980 Fiesta is fairly basic by modern standards

The plumber thinks he got a good deal on the free Fiesta

Getting an XR2 was like "having a bit of my youth back", says Fiesta fan Mr Scott

"It's just reliving a bit of my youth," says Mr Scott.

He owns four other Fiesta models, including the sporty XR2 he hankered for since childhood that he bought in 2007 for £2,000, which is likely to be worth significantly more now.

Mr Scott plays his old tapes while driving the XR2

His white F-reg model is in its "totally original condition".

Although he has no intention of selling, he says: "I've seen a couple go through auction pushing £20,000 or just over - and they weren't as original as this.

"It's demand, isn't it? If someone wants one they're going to pay the money, I suppose."

He still keeps music cassettes in his XR2, including ones by Earth, Wind & Fire, and ABC and one of the Now That's What I Call Music various artists series.

"How sad am I?" he jokes.

The F-reg Fiesta XR2 still sports its original paint job

Fiesta facts

• Launched in 1976, the hatchback was the company's first internationally successful front-wheel drive model and was first manufactured in Valencia, Spain

• The first model built in the UK rolled off the production line in Dagenham, east London, in 1977

• The Fiesta's development budget was $870m (£753m), making it the largest in Ford's history at the time

• It was created as a more fuel-efficient, small car in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, which the price of oil quadruple

• The Fiesta is currently produced in Germany

• More than 20 million have since been built for customers worldwide

Source: Ford/BBC

George Watson, chairman of the Fiesta Club of Great Britain - of which Mr Scott is a member - is not surprised by the popularity of the car.

The fan club, based in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, has about 300 members across the UK.

The Ford plant at Dagenham was one of the UK's largest car factories

"My dad actually got one of the first Fiestas off the production line, as a salesman," he recalls.

"I've been around Fords all my life.

"The car I passed my driving test in was a Fiesta.

"I'll never forget - it was a D-reg MK2 XR2 in rosso red. It was like the rounder version of the original Fiesta... but it was a sports model with all the alloy wheels and the body kit.

"I've lost count of how many Fiestas we've had between me and my dad, and we've still got two at the moment."

His latest acquisition is a burgundy 1990 H-registration Fiesta.

"It's a little 1.1LX which I picked up from a lovely young lady - well she was 95, and just decided to give up driving and she wanted the car to go to a good home," he says.

Mr Scott's Fiesta has had a respray but is otherwise in its original 1980 condition

Mr Scott, with a touch more sadness, adds: "The Fiesta still has a big following and is still a very popular car - 100% it'll be missed."

Mr Watson agrees: "If you've got a couple of kids and you don't want anything really too big, and obviously as a first vehicle, it's the ideal car."

The Fiesta was the ninth best-selling new car in the UK over the last 12 months, with 15,359 registrations, according to the latest data from industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers.

Ford says that although production is being discontinued at the factory in Cologne, it could still be bought as a rally car via its engineering partner M-Sport.

A spokesperson said: "At Ford in Europe, we are rapidly transitioning to an electric future."

This article has been updated and was originally published in October 2022.