Yesterday, Ford announced that they are beginning processes to phase out the manufacture and sale of the Fusion, Taurus, Focus, and Fiesta in the North American market and will be focusing on only trucks, SUVs, CUVs, and the Mustang going forward.
I only bring this up here because I've noticed this being a bit of a hot button topic across the interwebs, and we usually have good discussion on these things in here when that happens. So, all you hatchback and sedan loving people, lets see what you think.
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Just as long as he chooses the Hokies, I don't care about his religious views man
Well done.
All Crystal Balls are flipping to Europe.
Soooo, Florida State confirmed.
Well the company fleet has been Taurus or Fusions for the past 18 years. Before that it was Dodge K-cars. This could be quite a change. I liked the fusion.
I wonder how this will affect government mandated mileage requirements.
It won't really. CAFE requirements are categorized so that companies producing primarily larger vehicles aren't stuck with the same standard as Tesla. So by them taking these cars out of the US market, their fleet is now large vehicles like trucks and SUVs which will bring their standard down. With that standard lowered they probably won't have too tough a time hitting it.
They are keeping the Focus... as stated in the title of the article...
Actually, it's the (new) Focus Active that they are keeping.
Edit: This is being kept:
This is not:
The pictures of that actually don't look bad. I for one hate Fords and ,most cars/crossovers but that one doesn't look awful.
yeah, it's not terrible. They'll move it plenty here since it will be the sole option for Ford diehards who want a grocery-getter option to park beside of their overpriced 'Stang or truck
Just don't get one and expect the transmission to ever work right. My company had hundreds of them and every one was trash.
They got a different trans a couple of years ago that are much better. But I agree the older ones are shit. My wife has one and I hate driving it.
Ford is thankfully ditching that transmission with the next redesign.
They have already ditched that transmission.
Last I checked, they still use the PowerShift in the current Focus (albeit improved, according to reviews).
Looks like a wannabe Subaru Crosstrek... which is just an Impreza that's been lifted 8 inches.
you're so right, but I really enjoy my Crosstrek... that 8 inches makes all the difference...
....
......
I bought a Crosstrek as my first car out of college and loved it, but then six months later I did this to it. Man I miss that car...
Story time!
I was driving from Lynchburg to a cabin north of Harrisonburg to spend the weekend with family. My fiance, now wife, was driving the ford in that picture to the same cabin from Delaware. We had planned to meet there at roughly the same time. The way in to the cabin is all dirt roads for more than a mile from the last paved road and there are two pretty steep switch backs on the way in. Those roads are not well cared for during the winter. Snow/ice+hill+darkness makes for pretty rough driving conditions regardless of the car you are driving. So my fiance beat me to the hill by about 15 minutes, she goes down the hill, slides most of the way around the switch back, hits the side and flips and rolls into that large tree. I came along and did the same exact thing, except with the added fun of seeing the underside of another car as I start to flip off the side and assuming I am about to die - because everyone knows that when two cars flip off a road and run into each other they blow up and everyone dies.
Neither of us died, and we were both able to break our way out of our cars and walk away without any injuries.
TL;DR Icy mountain hills suck, no body died, Crosstrek's are nice, cars don't always explode after flipping over.
Wow... can't make that one up... I assume you have that photo framed and hung up in your office as a reminder that maybe you and your wife are like Bruce Willis from Unbreakable... and might just be invincible... ?
I should hang it on a wall, but I would have to frame a write up of the story too, it takes too long to tell people every time someone new finds out about it.
I would love to believe we were invincible like Bruce Willis, but we have had a few to many sprained ankles, broken ribs, and concussions for that one to really pan out for us.
That's an insurance commercial.
Nooooooooooo! Poor car :(
There it is!!! took way too long
Not knocking the Crosstrek at all, I love my Adventuremobile... I have it all kitted out for all my outdoors-y hobbies
Which is funny cause the first line of the article:
The Focus Active is a Crossover. They are discontinuing the regular Focus, which was a hatchback
Really an interesting move. With the recent EPA shift to rescind min. mileage standards and efficiency, most analysts saw Ford and Honda in particular to be really well positioned as they have already made a corporate commitment to that number. In the sense that if other car companies didn't also build engines with the same performance, in a few years we pretty much would only see new Fords and Hondas on the road.
That's obviously not going to be the case now.
I mean, I kinda see where they are coming from.
First off, their recent bout of sedans and hatchbacks have been largely flops. The sales numbers show that they just aren't selling off their lots, and when they do, the margins on them are so low that they barely make any money off them. Crossovers, like them or hate them, have pretty much taken over that market. They're on the same platform as the sedan, so the gas mileage and ride comfort are similar, but have far more room to make it more suitable for a much larger portion of their customer base. For their bottom line, it just makes sense.
I wouldn't be surprised if Chevy follows suit in the coming years, getting rid of everything except the Camaro, Corvette, SUVs, Crossovers, and trucks. Even then, I wouldn't be surprised if the Traverse makes the Tahoe obsolete soon (the current Traverse has better gas mileage, the same passenger seating, and more cargo room than the Tahoe, for $10k less in cost).
Logically this makes sense, but it underestimates the weight that design aesthetics and perception play. I like the way the Tahoe looks and drove one for a while. I couldn't force myself to drive the Traverse.
spot on, the Tahoe has the sex appeal and mostly unnecessary enhancements that are worth the premium to a lot of people, myself included
The new Traverse is pretty nice and a significant upgrade over the previous model. My wife and I are probably going to end up getting one in the next few months to replace her car now that we have a kid. We test drove one about a month ago and it was surprisingly comfortable.
The funny thing is, the Chevy rep who took us out for the drive said the two designs don't really mess with each other. Tahoe fans won't look at the Traverse and Traverse fans won't look at the Tahoe. They don't necessarily care because their cars still get sold. That said, I could see GM want to make a one or the other decision.
Get a Honda Pilot instead - you'll thank me later
As a former 12-year owner of a 2003 (purchased new in 2003, traded in 2015) Honda Pilot, I heartily endorse this statement. I can add that as a current Toyota 4runner owner, it's a good alternative, especially if you do a bit of off-road or bad weather transit.
I'll 3rd that statement. I didn't like them at first, but ended up with one b/c I got a family deal on a used one that was too good to pass up. It's now hard not to love that thing - does every well.
The traverse is a glorified minivan. The Tahoe is a potential off-road machine with true SUV lines. Also you can't do this to a Traverse
Oh, its not a glorified minivan, it is a minivan without the sliding doors (which... is annoying). We'd be getting ours as our family fan. Its pretty much down to the Odyssey or the Traverse, and while the storage is a bit more for the Honda, we like the ride much better in the Chevy. Plus, the new Odyssey looks like absolute hell.
And you can do that with a Traverse with the Redline trim.
You can do it but that doesn't give you the same look at all. I guess I haven't looked at the Traverse in awhile the lines are still minvan like but not near like what they were in past years
Also I forget every time I reply to you to get in a Go Birds.
Oh the older Traverse looks like such ass. They really did a good job with the 2018 redesign. Much cleaner lines and looks a bit more polished as a whole. Much more in line with the rest of their lineup.
The 2018 Odyssey, on the other hand.... ho-lee-shit. Every time I see one I think it looks worse.
Oh, and Go Birds
I think the 09 was the peak for the Odyssey. The new ones just don't look right.
My Honda 2016, minivan is great. Lots of room, great features and the new sets ones have even more tech built into them.
Honda Odyssey is hands down the best minivan ever made. We put over 350k on a '95 and practically raised 3 boys in it all the way from rear facing car seats to HS graduations.
You can't break them.
I love the way the Suburbans and Tahoes look. I'm glad Ford redesigned their expedition to make it somewhat similar and its ALUMINUM!
I hated what they did to the explorer and especially the escape. It used to look kinda badass
:( I have a 2018 Explorer sport, I can't be badass? :( I liked the old escapes but the new ones are ugly!
You're a total badass, I'm just a fan of boxy cars like my jeep.
Makes sense, hasn't the F150 been like the most sold vehicle in the country for god knows how long? Everywhere I look there is an Explorer, F150 or Expedition. That Cmax car is ugly as hell!
As of last summer it was 40 years as the best selling truck. 35 years as one of the best selling vehicles. On average, over 2,400 F-150s are sold every day.
My wife has a Ford Focus which we call the Ford FuckedUs because the transmission is crap and the warranty response has been worse. The transmission started slipping to the point of shuttering (its and autoamatic) at 12k miles and we were told it was normal wear, when we took it back at 16k miles they told us it was an issue but parts were on back order nationally. We finally got a new transmission and at the 40k mile mark it is shuttering and slipping again. This is apparently common to the Focus and basically the trade in value is nothing on her 4 year old car. Based on the class action lawsuit fliers we seem to get each month, she is not the only one with this problem. Ford makes its name on the F250 anyway, nobody is going to miss the Focus, Fiesta, and other cars found on the road dead.
I have an '09 Focus that I got in high school that has been absolutely great. I've had no issues at all. It is a 5-speed so obviously different transmission. It's got 125K on it at hasn't been a problem at all.
I drive an F-150 so I am ok with this. Less little cars getting in my way :)
Sorry, only less little American cars getting in your way.
I LOVE my Ford Fusion so this is super disappointing
This is also a reminder to me why I drive European. Both for performance and aesthetics. Although I will say the Fusion is a really nice vehicle, always enjoyed driving them when I get them as a rental.
As someone who has dealt with my spouses garbage hunk of junk 16 fusion I'm hoping theyll announce a recall to take it back piece of garbage is as useless as taste buds on your, well you know what I mean.
That being said the title was misleading as crap i thought it meant all auto sales.
My very first vehicle was a '92 Ford Taurus. I like Tauruses and will miss them. Other than that, I'm a Nissan Ninja. That's all I have to say about that.
I love my 14 Altima SL
I've got an '08 Sentra. Soon I'll be upgrading to the Pathfinder.
This is short sighted and what happens when you make moves to please the whims of big Wall Street shareholders instead of actually running your business on your own. They've positioned themselves to be in a world of hurt when the market changes (ie gas prices going up, another recession, any other of a number of things) and it will change. Popularity of cars, SUVs, etc etc moves up and down. Strong companies have a foot hold in each and know how to bolster themselves when the winds of change come. To completely get out of that market is stupid. But stuff like this has happened before. This is very similar to the steps that led to the American Big 3 begging for gov't bailouts in the 08 recession and in down turns before. They learn nothing. Of course, would you learn knowing you're going to get a golden parachute regardless of what happens?
Ford didn't take a government bailout. Only Dodge/Chrysler and GM did.
Yes and no. It's technically true but not in practice. They didn't take any TARP money in 2008 and its the TARP that most people think of when they hear about the "bailouts". They most certainly took government loan money through other subsidized program to bolster up their bad decisions just like GM/Chrysler did. I don't recall the name of the loan program but I think they actually took out a bigger loan than GM did. The difference was Ford, wisely, used marketing to tie "bailout" to TARP and sell themselves as the only company that didn't take a bailout like "Government Motors" when the truth is they were right there with them, just under a different loan category . TLDR, Ford's lobbyists went about it differently but the end result is still getting a massive loan from the gov't to fix their mess.
Loan vs bailout isn't just a nuance. It's a different thing.
Sure. The market crashes, all 3 in a bind but Ford just happened to be there in DC for something different at the exact time GM/Chrysler were there begging for money. Total coincidence. /s
Are people going to continue to pay the premium for choosing crossovers over cars, when there's no cars available?
Interesting point but it seems that people prefer to pay the premium for crew cab trucks when manufacturers stopped or reduced their compact truck offerings. It's possible the sedan market will split into crossovers and hybrid/electric vehicles.
This is pretty interesting, especially for me who works for an automotive marketing company.
The average brand loyalty is around 50%. Ford is the top brand with around 55-60% brand loyalty. I can't help but think this will drive this number down and the other OEM's licking their chops who will continue to make sedans.
How much of that brand loyalty for Ford is F-150s, SUVs and other trucks versus brand loyalty for sedans and hatchbacks?
I'll speak on F-150's since that is their bread and butter... Based on our 5 year data with the Ford dealerships who use our technology platform, there is a 60-80% brand loyalty. Meaning, of all the F-150's that are traded in, 60-80% of the time they are buying another F-150. 10-15% of the time they are upgrading into a F-250.
I am extremely brand-loyal to Ford. Both my parents worked there and I grew up knowing nothing but Ford cars.
That said, I have zero interest in a truck or SUV. If i had to buy a new car tomorrow and Ford is no longer offering any kind of sedan, I'm going elsewhere.
yea you are a perfect example on how other OEM's are probably excited to take your business.
I wouldn't be so certain of that. Yesterday the head of GM admitted they have been on the same path for quite some time, and Chrysler/Fiat has been trending this direction for a while as well.
The numbers I read yesterday say that by 2022 coupe/sedan/hatchback sales are projected to make up only 27% of the US market. By that time, the current crossover sales projections for the Big 3 are 84% for GM, 90% for Ford, and 97% for Chrysler, with the vast majority of the sedan sales coming from performance (Mustang, Challenger, Camaro, Corvette) or luxury (Lincoln Continental). The remaining sedan sales figures in the US will effectively consist of Nissan (Altima/Maxima), Honda (Accord/Civic), Toyota (Camry, Prius), Tesla, or one of the Japanese or European luxury/performance brands (BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar, Lexus, Acura, etc).
It just doesn't look good for the future of the US sedan. We've long had our lunch eaten on that front, and the automakers know it. It certainly sounds like they about to pull the plug on the whole lot over here, and just focus on doing what they know they do best. For their bottom line, it makes the most sense.
Nobody knows in reality on how a customer thinks or their preferences. Sure marketing and product knowledge can help sway that. We can throw out stats 4+ years down the road but I still believe there will be a market for sedan's.
I love my Toyota Camry and when the time comes to get another car, I am going to get a newer model year Camry or another sedan because I like the size, mileage, driving/handling and look of it.
No disagreements... I think the market will still be there, but its a rapidly diminishing market and the ones who are feeling the worst of the diminish are the US automakers. They've realized that, even if the market remains, what little market there will be left will be the Camry, Accord, and Altima with everyone else picking up the scraps. Should the market continue to move toward alternate energy, then you can also throw in Tesla and the Prius.
Just didn't make fiscal sense for them to continue in a market where they've already effectively been squeezed out, even if the consumer hadn't yet realized it.
Yea I agree, if it's not financially smart to produce these cars for such OEM, then yea, you got to scrap it. But I also think there will be innovations and product advancements down the road to help make these cars (sedans for this example) cheaper to make. I don't think the average consumer isn't going to want to pay for more for the Camry's/Maxima's/Accord's of the world. Time will tell...
Bear in mind the Honda Civic is an American car. We actually export them to Japan.
That's a bold proclamation from a second-year NFL WR, or from someone who hasn't even decided on a school yet... headline is confusing as to which Ford we're talking about.
I think it's the '19 Ford Devyn that's coming to Blacksburg. The Ford Focus can go to wherever...who cares about that Ford.
This seems like an odd move at first, but read any car magazine review of a sedan and they will point out how the market in the US for sedans has been shrinking for years. Since being "LEAN" is the big thing in corporate cultures nowadays, it makes sense that a large company would cut the fat. If they are losing money on them, why would they continue to make them? It's basic supply and demand.
I say that as the owner of a 2015 Fusion that I absolutely love. I have always preferred sedans to crossovers and SUVs. Apparently, I am in the minority of car buyers. It makes me think about what I will do next time I am in the market for a new car. The wife has a small SUV for hauling the kids, dogs, and their stuff.
How will this affect our use of Ford puns?
I think our fiesta with these will be a lot smaller
I think we'll look back and say this was the move that Taurus apart
Yes, but I think we'll continue to Probe through the mess and find solutions that Contour our creativeness
I just came back from a trip to Europe, and marveled at how large the vehicles are here, as compared to there.
My BMW X3 is tiny compared to most American cars of today.
Seems to me that Ford is going to make what sells. That means SUVs and trucks, and new electronic vehicles for those who care about mileage and global warming. The conventional-powered sedans aren't going to have much of a place in that lineup.
The next move in vehicles as more people want to sit higher than everyone else.
I fully expect to see people driving those like they're sports cars as well.
I mean, why not? This is probably nicer than my bedroom >.>
and possibly the same price as your house
With probably higher maintenance costs to boot and depreciation on top of ut but... I mean, people do also live in RVs which have the same issues so....
correct but I don't think I've seen a shitter in a semi, I've seen one in an RV
The positive for us in Northern VA is that there will be less cars of Ted Britt terrible drivers out there..
Probably not.
They sell a lot of brands.
I just bought a manual '13 Fusion Part of me is liking this news because I think the car now has some decent resale value down the road (lol pun intended) based on it's exclusivity. I genuinely think it's one of the last manual Fusions out there.
First ford starts the trend of no manuals in trucks. Now this shit. Crossovers don't drive as well as cars and aren't as capable as a proper SUV. The rest of the companies will follow suit because people will be convinced by advertising that crossovers are what they want. We could be driving 40mpg cars on the regular, but we're pushing 30mpg crossovers instead. Makes all kinds of sense.
I love my Fusion Hybrid. It's almost time to shop for a replacement though and.. Well I guess I'm not getting another Ford.
The fusion will probably be around for a couple more years.
I really love the levitating bicycle in that picture