Originally launched in 1998, the Ford Focus reached the end of its life cycle last week, when the last unit produced of the compact family car from the blue oval brand rolled off the assembly line at the Saarlouis factory in Germany – in the five-door hatchback body configuration, painted white. The American manufacturer had previously announced that this day would come, but now it is official that, after 27 years in active service, spread over four generations, the career of the model that succeeded the iconic Escort has come to an end.
The news comes less than two months after the announcement of the production of the last Focus ST, the sportiest variant of the model. It is worth noting that, in recent years, this is already the fourth member of Ford’s lineup to be discontinued: the wave began in 2020, with the small Ka, followed by the Mondeo in 2022, and the famous Fiesta the following year. In terms of passenger cars, with the exception of the Mustang, Ford’s entire offering in Europe will now consist of SUVs.
“We have always competed in the mainstream segment of the passenger car market, which did not work very well for the Mondeo, the Focus, and the Fiesta. They were models appreciated by many customers, but they never managed to justify a greater allocation of capital and investment, unlike, for example, commercial vehicles.” Statements like this, from Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, to the British magazine Car, during the past year, justify the decision.
