While there’s no point crying over spilled milk, many people still wonder what led to the decision by Ford to drastically revamp its vehicle lineup for the United States about two years ago. Ford really put its foot down when it said that sedans will no longer be a part of its product offerings, and it definitely looks like there’s no more turning back from it. The final nails in the coffin were the months leading up to now, with the last Fiestas, Tauruses, and Fusions rolling off the assembly lines. That just leaves the Mustang and Ford GT as the two cars left, with crossovers and SUVs taking over.
Talking to Ford Authority, Kumar Galhotra, President of Ford North American and VP of Ford Motor Company, said plainly: “They key here is, not just for us, the sedan segment itself has been in decline for a very long time, and that decline has been accelerating over the last few years.”
A huge part of it is understanding that every product/vehicle is extremely resource-intensive, and must be supported by logistics, suppliers, workforce, and factories with costs than can run into the billions. “The question then became, in that environment, of a finite amount of capital, where do we want to invest that capital? Do we want to invest it in a declining segment or do we want to invest it in a growing segment?”
That growing segment allowed Ford to focus its efforts elsewhere, allowing it to create a host of new products that will offset the loss of sedans. Besides, the sales numbers for crossovers and SUVs don’t lie, and vehicles like the Bronco, Bronco Sport, Mustang Mach-E, and the Maverick compact pickup truck are well on their way to fill in the non-sedan portfolio. It makes perfect sense from a business standpoint and it’s pretty obvious that automakers these days cannot afford to waste resources on what they see as a dying segment.
Time