The car, which is heavily based on the popular Verve concept, was shown in both three- and five-door derivatives with Ford confirming the range will go on sale in UK dealerships in the autumn.

Speaking at the show UK chairman and chief executive Roelant de Waard underlined the importance of the new car for dealers saying it would give them profitable conquest sales.

“The main significance for our dealers is that the new Fiesta will give them conquest opportunities. We think it will be regarded as the style leader in the sector and will generate a lot of interest,” he said. De Waard said he expects dealers to win sales from Vauxhall's Corsa and Peugeot's 207, especially among younger buyers. “If we attract young customers early on then we're very good at keeping them – we have a loyal customer base,” he said. Sales of the current model peaked in recent years at 103,856 in 2006 - with the run-out model shifting 102,872 units last year - and de Waard is confident the UK network will increase these sales in 2009.

Despite the current range's £8,595 entry-point, de Waard said it was a profitable seller for dealers with the average prices being paid being around £10,000 for better equipped Zetec models and he predicted this would continue with the new model, prices of which will be announced closer to launch. “The new Fiesta completes our line-up's move to kinetic design - this is a step change for us. “We will also be richer in our retail mix which will help residual values. When you bring all these elements together it will make it profitable for us as a manufacturer and our dealers,” he said. Ford also unveiled its new Kuga SUV and showed the first images of the new generation Ka which will be built by Fiat in Poland alongside the 500 with which it shares its underpinnings.