An historic line-up of 40 Ford Fiestas came together in convoy to mark it's 40th birthday at the Ford Summer Festival.

• Convoy of classic and modern Fiestas attend 40^th anniversary event
• Run from Dagenham to Brighton ends at new Ford event
• Stunning selection of cars on display

An historic line-up of 40 Ford Fiestas came together in convoy to mark the model’s 40^th birthday at the Ford Summer Festival.

Setting off from Dagenham, the Fiesta convoy was made up of classic and modern Fiestas, driven by owners’ club members, Ford employees and prominent motoring journalists.

The cavalcade included some very special Fiestas, including the all-new ST200, a super-rare Mk 1 Fiesta Van, A Fiesta Fly Crayford Convertible and the last Fiesta to leave the Ford site at Dagenham, which – in 14 years - had covered a mere 17 miles from new before going on the run.

The run was also joined by a car that joined Ford’s heritage fleet just a day before the event – a silver Fiesta Mk 4 that was donated to the company by its previous owner, having covered only 22,000 miles.

“We got it on the ramp, put some new brake pads on it, and away we went,” said Ivan Bartholomeusz, who looks after the company’s heritage fleet.

Others from Ford’s own collection included two immaculate Mk 1s, a 17,000-mile from new Fiesta Mk 2 and a pair of original, unrestored XR2s, one of which was driven to the venue by a prominent European Car of the Year Juror who remembered driving it when new.

The birthday run concluded at Brighton Racecourse with a cake-cutting ceremony, while a display of even more classic Fords meant there was plenty for guests to look at.

The People’s Choice award for car of the day went to Dave Lane for his Mk1 Cortina Estate, while the award for furthest travelled went to Avelino Pirin, who had driven 235 miles to get to the event.

Organised by the team behind Fast Ford, Classic Ford, Fast Car and Retro Cars magazines, the event also featured live music for a Rod Stewart tribute act, a casino and a Scalextric competition, along with guest appearances from TV host Ant Anstead (who presented the awards) and former racing driver Barrie Williams, who has a long-standing history with the Blue Oval brand.

Event manager, Katherine Chappell, said: “The festival was a great opportunity for Ford to celebrate the 40^thanniversary of one of its icons, and we were delighted to have such an incredible turnout of Fiestas on the day.”