Ford News: Ford Plans On Triming Nameplates

[William Maley]

As more consumers head over to crossovers and SUVs, automakers find themselves making changes to their lineup. Case in point is Ford which is considering dropping some of their nameplates because of the change in demand.

“Over time, there should be some pruning of the portfolio to support growth in other areas. Clearly we’re going to invest in growing the SUV portfolio. We certainly intend to have a strong car base as well; we don’t know where the market’s going to go. But there will be some pruning over time as there should be in a nameplate and portfolio,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford president of the Americas.

Ford's car sales are down 14 percent through November with sedans being the big losers.

• Fiesta: Down 26 percent year-to-date
• Focus: Down 17 percent YTD
• Taurus: Down 11 percent YTD
• Fusion: Down 10 percent YTD

Hinrichs didn't say which nameplates could be cut, but mentioned that former popular vehicles such as the Ranger were dropped after demand fell.

“If you look at our past, there’s been some nameplates that have dropped off and other nameplates have been added. Given where the market is going, the demands for capital investment and the regulatory changes coming at us, we’ll continue to always look at the total portfolio and see where’s segmentation going and where should we be phasing out,” said Hinrichs.

We think the Taurus is one of the vehicles on the chopping block since sales of it have been falling for the past couple of years.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

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