Back in November, Ford unveiled the next generation of Fiesta subcompact, leaving us in eager anticipation of a fresh, new version of Ford’s positively peppy supermini (and its awesome ST variant, of course). Plot twist: it ain’t coming to our shores. That’s right, Ford’s economy hatch will no longer be sold in America from the 2018 model year onward. In terms of U.S. availability, the 2018 Ford Fiesta ST will officially be as foreign and exotic as the Alpine A110 revival mid-engined sports car (not really, but you get the point).
When Ford’s B-segment vehicle program manager Robert Stiller spoke with Romanian auto publication 0-100, he clarified exactly where the new Fiesta would (and wouldn’t) be sold. As repoted by autoevolution, “The previous model was a global Ford product, and with the new generation, we are targeting only Europe, the Middle East, and Africa,” said Stiller.
Not surprisingly, the Fiesta’s demise in other regions comes as a result of weak sales (America’s insatiable appetite for crossovers likely had something to do with it, we suspect). “In North America, especially the U.S., China, and Latin America, the demand for such vehicles [subcompact] is declining, and we are reacting accordingly.”
Autoevolution reports that Ford only moved 48,807 Fiestas last year—a 31 percent drop from its peak of 71,073 cars sold in 2013. In contrast, Ford of Europe consistently sells around 300,000 Fiestas every year. Adjusted in terms of Fiestas per capita, the Europeans would still out-Fiesta us by almost 3-to-1.
The report goes on to state that the new, seventh-generation Ford Fiesta will not come as a sedan, saying customers “weren’t fond” of the three-box design, which we feel might be putting things lightly considering what the last one looked like.
Even if they were bringing back the hunchbacked four-door, however, it’s unlikely us Yanks would ever get to see it in the wild anyways.