When was the final Escort produced?

[luke83g]

Driving a W reg Escort I have realised how many Focus' have been road registered before my car. I remember the local Ford Dealer (Evans Halshaw Broughton) desperately trying to flog the last Escorts in stock for ages selling them dirt cheap at the time.

 

I wondered when the last Escorts were produced, which factory stopped last, and when were the last registered? See a 02 on eBay a while back.

[Escort Si-130]

I think they last made them in 2000. Focus came out 1998, think some prototypes were out in 1997.

After 1998 most of the Escort range was wound down, so no more 4 door saloon, 3 door models and no more convertables. it was only the 5 door and estate flight and finesse models left. I think they did not sell the last one and it was built at Halewood, think Ford kept it back. It is possible that some may not have been registered until 2001, but they stopped making them in 2000. The escort van continued until it was replace by the Transit Connect around 2004.