The two millionth vehicle in the Ford Fiesta/Fusion series rolled off the line today at the Ford plant in Cologne

Another production milestone has been achieved today at the Ford plant in Cologne-Niehl when the two millionth vehicle in the Ford Fiesta/Fusion series rolled off the line. The two millionth vehicle was a Colorado Red Ford Fiesta ST, intended for a customer in Great Britain. Around 74 per cent of the two million vehicles built were Fiestas.

Today the Ford car assembly plant in Cologne is recognised as one of the most efficient in the European automotive industry. In 2006, for example, it was awarded the "Automotive Lean Production Award 2006", an international accolade presented for the first time in December that year.

In 2006 high demand from all over the world for the Ford Fiesta and Ford Fusion meant the Cologne plant set a production record in order to satisfy customer orders. A total of 412,688 vehicles rolled off the production lines that year. The previous production record for the plant was 403,000, achieved in 2005.

Almost 90 per cent of Cologne's output is exported to 52 countries. The five largest markets for the vehicles are Great Britain, Germany, Italy, France and Russia.

But some Cologne-built Ford Fiestas and Ford Fusions travel around half the globe to reach their customers. These far-flung markets include Madagascar, Azerbaijan, Gibraltar, Hong Kong and Mozambique. The Pacific island of Tahiti is considered to be the sales market furthest away from Cologne.

Of the two million Ford Fiestas and Ford Fusions produced since 2002, 1.25 million were equipped with left-hand drive, and 750,000 with right-hand drive.