Ford Etis: Online

For the uninitiated, ETIS (Ford’s European Technical Information System) looked like a relic from the early days of the dial-up internet. It was a website with a grey, utilitarian interface, zero marketing fluff, and a login screen that seemed to dare you to leave. But for mechanics, restorers, and obsessive Ford fans, it was the Holy Grail.

It told you the exact build date down to the minute the car rolled off the line in Valencia or Cologne. It listed the minor features —things the salesman never mentioned. Did your 2006 Ford Focus come from the factory with a "smoker’s package" (a lighter and ashtray)? ETIS knew. Did your Mondeo have a "cold climate windscreen washer jet"? ETIS had a line item for it. ford etis online

It was the last place you could go to prove that your 2003 Ford Ka was, in fact, a legitimate piece of automotive history—right down to the factory tire pressure label. Rest in peace, you beautiful, grey, confusing website. It told you the exact build date down