Ford will stop selling cars by 2022...

[Racecomp Engineering]

...that have 4 doors.

Ford to stop selling sedans in North America in face of unstoppable crossover onslaught
Fiesta, Fusion, Taurus and non-hatch Focuses will disappear from new car lots by 2022; blame crossovers, SUVs and pickups

DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday said it plans to stop selling all Ford brand sedans in North America and that it is nearly doubling its cost-cutting target by 2022 from the plan it laid out only six months ago. The automaker said it will either fix or eliminate unprofitable global operations.

Ford said the only cars it will keep in North America beyond their current generations are the Mustang and the Focus Active arriving in 2019.

Read more: http://autoweek.com/article/car-news...#ixzz5DnVOhJTR

I have a lot of thoughts on this and the future of the auto industry. I think there are a couple of scenarios that could play out in the next 20 years....most of them IMO aren't good for those of us that like fun. But I've still got hope that sports cars will survive in some form.

- Andrew

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Racecomp Engineering

...that have 4 doors.

Any spikes in oil pricing and they're in for a world of hurt.

Not sure I agree with the decision, but corporate America only cares about profit.

[Tcoat]

They say they are keeping the Mustang so there is hope for the sports/Pony/Muscle car crowds.
A lot of Grampas will be pissed though.

[ichitaka05]

I read this story yesterday and not sure they really gonna do it. When they axed sedans they're left with... Mustang, SUV/CUV & trucks?

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by mav1178

Not sure I agree with the decision, but corporate America only cares about profit.

So, what car company doesn't care about profits?

High oil prices will be offset by a further push to electrics or hybrids not small gas engine cars. The false economy of electrics is too good to resist right now. That is when you'll start seeing either mileage based road taxes or an uptick in electric prices (that is how roads are paid for, but most folks seem to ignore that).

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

A lot of Grampas will be pissed though.

Mah, we'll just by Caddies.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by ichitaka05

I read this story yesterday and not sure they really gonna do it. When they axed sedans they're left with... Mustang, SUV/CUV & trucks?

All of which they sell shitloads of compared to sedans. Also all of those except the Mustangs have exceptionally well made rotors!

[ichitaka05]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

All of which they sell shitloads of compared to sedans. Also all of those except the Mustangs have exceptionally well made rotors!

Is it? On the street, I see a lot of F-150 & Raptor, but car wise, I see Focus and Fiesta a lot more than SUV/CUV. Maybe just my area... or maybe I'm not noticing it.

[mazeroni]

Not shocked. There were rumblings over the past year that there would be a day of reckoning at Ford America due to the failures of Mark Fields betting wrong on autonomous cars and not making any real progress with electrification.

You also have to figure that Fields drove the new Accord then took one look at what would be the U.S. Fusion redesign and laughed himself out of the room.

The new Focus looks like it'll be a nice vehicle, but would it compete with the Civic? Also you won't change people's position on crossovers. At least they are still bringing over the "touring" Focus.

Nobody cares about the C Max or the Taurus.

We still got the new Ford GT before Jim Hackett took over. That probably would have been first to go under his reign.

From my perspective... it's not a big deal or worth analyzing. Chrysler did the same thing wit the Dart and 200 and the world is still turning. Also Jeep is racking in fat stacks of cash.

Overall, the sedan and small car market isn't exactly barren or devoid of excellent options.

As for gas prices, its already been shown that shale producers can quickly turn on and off oil fields and flood the market if prices hit a desirable level. Its almost $75 a barrel right now. That's profitable and I would expect to see production ramp up in the coming months, especially if it edges near $100.

Worst case scenario, oil prices spike and demand for small cars goes up, and Ford imports a bunch of Focus' from China.

[HunterGreene]

Wondering how the "import" manufacturers will react to this. On the plus side, Ford's display at the auto show is going to get alot easier to go through.

Thats another thing, hooking new/younger buyers. Not having an affordable sedan or coupe basically tells younger people to go f*ck themselves. I guess they can get into small CUVs/SUVs, but those aren't as cheap or fuel efficient, and one thing that never changes is that Teenagers and young buyers are not flush with money.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by HunterGreene

..one thing that never changes is that Teenagers and young buyers are not flush with money.

They are also a very small part of the new car market, probably not big enough to have any sort of real impact.

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

So, what car company doesn't care about profits?

I forgot a couple of words in my post: short-term.

My concern is that by doing this, they only care about short-term profits. YOu can say you can develop new sedans quickly, but once you're out of R&D for a car and focusing on trucks, you need at least 2-3 years to redo everything to sell sedans again.

It may prove profitable for them now but if oil spikes above $100 again, it will hurt them the most. And if the last 15 years has proven anything, it's that the US is a world leader in not maintaining stable prices in the world when it comes to oil (and fighting wars).

[HunterGreene]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

They are also a very small part of the new car market, probably not big enough to have any sort of real impact.

Fair point. But their parents will still buy them cars, and while there are the "spoiled brat" demographic that will get a mustang GT or Raptor, or special edition Explorer, most parents will be looking for a cheap car that can get beat up without costing an arm and a leg. The used car market will dry up very quickly in that case.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by mav1178

My concern is that by doing this, they only care about short-term profits. YOu can say you can develop new sedans quickly, but once you're out of R&D for a car and focusing on trucks, you need at least 2-3 years to redo everything to sell sedans again.

All reasonable points although I'm not sure there is a huge migration from trucks/SUVs to sedans in an oil price upswing. Most of what I've seen has been the swing back to the bottom end to get the best gas mileage. If you still need the sedan you'll most likely get a smaller CUV/SUV with better mileage.

Changing cars to "save money" on mileage is another myth. It rarely actually saves real money. Again, something most people overlook.