The relentless charge towards more eco-friendly machines has seen the sales of ‘green’ Ford models surge 38% in the first six months of this year.

With increasing petrol prices and road tax prompting people to think carefully about their next car, Ford have become a forerunner in offering low emission, frugal cars.

Starting off with the standard 1.4-litre TDCi engined Fiesta, the launch of the ECOnetic range, which features the Focus, Fusion and Mondeo models, has proved to be a significant success for Ford.

The new Fiesta will also join the ECOnetic range this year when it is launched at this month’s British Motor Show in London.

"The British motor show is scheduled to bring half a million car enthusiasts to Ford's East London heartland," said Roelant de Waard, Ford of Britain chairman and managing director. As well as seeing the new Fiesta, he also said that "Many will pass our wind-powered Dagenham plant on the way, where annual production will top 1,000,000 engines this year in response to the shift to eco-friendly models."

The figures were compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), who otherwise revealed that car sales have dropped significantly since the start of the year.

Nonetheless, Ford bucked the trend by seeing retail sales rise by 7.6%. Although the re-organisation of their fleet sales means this falls to just a 1.1% rise overall, the launch of the new Fiesta and Kuga 4x4 are set to increase this further by the end of the year.