One of Britain's best-selling cars, and could soon get the axe and, with it, one of the best hot hatches on the planet.
We’ve become increasingly accustomed to topsy-turvy occurrences in the headlong rush to electrification. Car manufacturers, beset by a requirement for wholesale change, are doing things they previously wouldn’t have dreamed of implementing. Lotus is building a vast, electrically-powered SUV. McLaren will soon follow suit. Mercedes-AMG is abandoning the V8. BMW is designing cars blindfolded. We’re through the looking glass, people.
While such a move would hardly be unprecedented it is already being treated as seismic shock in the industry - and with good reason. The Fiesta wasn’t just a popular and long-running supermini, but also the top-selling car in Britain from 2009 to 2020. The Sun says 4.8m Fiestas have been sold in five decades on sale, and there are few cars that can claim to feature in so many personal car histories. Matt Bird’s mum owned one. Cam Tait still does.