Ford Laser

The Ford Laser was a small family car sold by Ford in Asia, Australasia, and parts of South America and Africa. It was the basis of later Escort models sold in North America, which is not to be confused with the model of the same name sold in Europe. It was also known as the Lidea in Japan and the Tierra in Taiwan. Updated versions of the Laser known under various names are marketed in Southeast Asia and Taiwan.

It has generally been available as a sedan or hatchback, although convertible, wagon and pick-up versions have also been available in different markets.

The Ford Laser is, in fact, a restyled version of the 323 produced by Mazda in Japan since 1980. (Ford had acquired a 25 percent stake in Mazda in 1979.) The Laser replaced the rear-wheel-drive Escort in Australasia in 1981, proving hugely popular as a hatchback, as well as a sedan (also known as the Meteor, and providing a worthy rival to Japanese models like the Toyota Corolla; the Meteor nameplate died in Australia when the second-generation sedan was launched in 1985, but survived in South Africa until 1995.

Asia Pacific

Many buyers in Australia and New Zealand were totally unaware that the Laser was Japanese at all, with Ford being seen as a 'local' brand. In those markets, the Laser outsold its Mazda twin, but in neighbouring Asian countries, such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, as well as Japan itself, the reverse was the case. However, pooling resources with Mazda allowed Ford to maintain a foothold in the region. This was also the case in South America, Africa, and the Caribbean, where the Laser was also sold, in many cases being locally assembled.

Local production of the Laser in Australia ceased in 1995 when Ford closed its plant in Homebush in Sydney, and imported the model from Japan. Ford New Zealand continued to assemble the Laser locally until 1997, and the range included the old station wagon model, discontinued in other markets in 1989, until it was replaced by the Escort.