Ford is ceasing production of most of its passenger cars in the US and Canada in favour of SUV's and trucks. The company will stop making and selling the Ford Fiesta, Taurus, Fusion and the regular Focus models and will have these phased out in the coming years.
Ford will continue to make two passenger cars, the Ford Mustang, which is a sports coupe or convertible and the Ford Focus Active, which is a crossover of sorts. A testament to the high demand for SUVs and trucks in North America and the decline of four and five-seater passenger cars and hatchbacks.
By 2020, "almost 90 percent of the Ford portfolio in North America will be trucks, utilities and commercial vehicles," Ford says in a press release says. "The company is also exploring new 'white space' vehicle silhouettes that combine the best attributes of cars and utilities, such as higher ride height, space and versatility."
This is a trend that is reflected across the industry. GM has scaled back production of Chevy Impala, Buick LaCrosse and the Cadillacs ATS and CTS sedans while Fiat Chrysler has retired the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200. Many German carmakers, who traditionally have a range of sedans, hatchbacks and wagons are also adding mini and full sized SUVs to their roster. Volkswagen has even hinted it is making a pickup truck, something that carmaker hasn't done in decades.
Like any business, carmakers adapt to consumer trends. This was evident when station wagons gave way to minivans in the 70's and 80's. Minivans eventually morphed into SUV's in the 90's and now we have SUVs and trucks as the preferred vehicles over what is considered to be a mature market, at least in North America.
Source: CNN