Ford launched a fleet of acclaimed cars to tempt Celtic Tiger consumers in the '80s

As the recessionary ‘80s gave way to the Celtic Tiger era, Irish consumers began to spend again and Ford, retaining its Cork links, launched a raft of models which became industry leaders.

In the aftermath of the closure of the Ford plant in Cork, the company was keen to send a message to motorists across the country: We haven’t gone away, you know.

Indeed, Cork city remained the Irish headquarters of the motor giant, with a nod to the ancestral links of Henry Ford — and is the only major motor company to have its base outside Dublin.