Ford's Hot Hatch Is Now Officially History

Focus ST orders are over

The end is here for Ford’s last hot hatch as the company confirmed to Motor1 that every factory build slot for the Focus ST is spoken for. “All Focus ST factory orders until the end of production have now been reserved,” European communications manager Finn Thomasen said. Dealers across the Continent may still have a few unclaimed cars hiding in back lots, but once those are gone—and when Focus production stops in November—the book will officially close on Ford’s 45-year hot-hatch chapter.

A shrinking showroom in Europe

The Focus joins a growing list of Ford passenger cars already in the rear-view mirror. The Fiesta bowed out in 2023, the Mondeo in 2022, and the tiny Ka back in 2020. Without them, Ford’s European portfolio is dominated by crossovers such as the Puma and Kuga.

The shift has taken a bite out of sales: through April, Ford moved 149,601 vehicles in the EU, U.K., and EFTA markets—down 2.2% year-over-year and less than a third of Volkswagen’s haul over the same period. Even Hyundai and Kia have pulled ahead, underscoring how much ground Ford has ceded without its affordable hatchbacks.

The Mustang isn’t a mass-market savior

Yes, the seventh-generation Mustang still flies the performance flag, but it’s hardly a volume play. EU taxes punish engines bigger than two liters, dogging the 5.0-liter V-8, while the smaller 2.3-liter EcoBoost was pulled from European order books at the end of 2020. The pony car, therefore, lives on as a niche halo, not a substitute for the daily-drivable, budget-friendly thrills once delivered by ST-badged Fiestas and Focuses.

Electric power could rekindle the flame

Whether Ford ever revisits the hot-hatch formula likely depends on batteries, not boost pressure. Former Ford of Europe boss—now VW sales chief—Martin Sanders has hinted that the Blue Oval could tap further into Volkswagen’s MEB electric platform, the foundation for the forthcoming Explorer and Capri EVs. VW has already promised an electric GTI; a battery-fueled Fiesta ST or Focus ST revival isn’t unthinkable if the economics line up. For now, though, enthusiasts must look to the used market or pivot to rival brands still flying the internal-combustion hot-hatch flag.

Final thoughts

The Fiesta Supersport of 1980 lit the fuse; the Escort RS, Fiesta XR2, and decades of ST variants kept the fire roaring. With the Focus ST’s curtain call, the combustion-powered Ford hot hatch becomes history. What replaces it, if anything, will almost certainly hum rather than howl. Until that day arrives, the faithful will remember the glory years and, if they’re lucky, snag one of the last STs before they’re gone.