Times they are a'changin'.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/mobile/autos/...rica-1.3902920

Quote:
DEARBORN, Mich. -- Ford Motor Co. said Wednesday it will shed most of its North American car lineup as part of broad plan to save money and make the company more competitive in a fast-changing marketplace.

The changes include getting rid of all cars in the region during the next four years except for the Mustang sports car and a compact Focus crossover vehicle, CEO Jim Hackett said as the company released first-quarter earnings.

The decision, which Hackett said was due to declining demand and profitability, means Ford will no longer sell the Fusion midsize car, Taurus large car, CMax hybrid compact and Fiesta subcompact in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Exiting most of the car business comes as the U.S. market continues a dramatic shift toward trucks and SUVs. Ford could also exit or restructure low-performing areas of its business, executives said.

The company has found another $11.5 billion in cost cuts and efficiencies, bringing the total to $25.5 billion expected by 2022, Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks told reporters. Savings will come from engineering, product development, marketing, materials and manufacturing. The company previously predicted $14 billion in cuts by 2022.


One-third of Ford's belt-tightening will come by the end of 2020, Shanks said

Good.. their stock has been struggling for about two years now.

Nobody wants cars these days it seems. Trucks and SUV's are far more popular. I'll bet other companies are seeing the same.

Ford makes good choices.

Better than waiting till they are bankrupted and than asking for a bail out.

my son was telling me this yesterday as we were driving , I said makes sense count the vehicles we pass how many of them are even cars , almost 90% were some kind of SUV, truck or mini van people aren't buying cars so why sell them. focus on what they are buying.

Cost cutting comes with a loss of domestic jobs usually.

If you think about it how much work would it be to work out of one of their 4WD pickups now? The beds are 4 feet in the air for a truck people won't take off road anymore. Who wants to climb like a circus monkey all day fetching gear it would wear a guy out quickly.

The majority of trucks today are for commuting just fancy, 4 doors with highway tires so they run quiet (Cowboy Cadillac's).

I wonder if the scratched the Ranger they were talking about coming out soon? Nobody makes a true smaller truck anymore even the newer Tacoma trucks are a third bigger now and harder to work out of.

Absolutely need a big truck to trap here,just to get thru deep snow/mud holes\water fording etc, on old logging acess roads, and pull the skidoo/bike trailer for getting into the back country.
I do like the ranger for nuisance beaver work on the roads in summer.

better to cut a % then loose hole plants , I live much to close to Janesville I saw how that effected the hole area in 5 more years I might even be able to get what I paid for my house
6 years before GM pulled out of the area. I bought in 2004 they pulled out in 2010 it is 2018 and my house still isn't worth what I paid for it in 2004.

when the rest of the country was having the real-estate bubble break in 2006 we were fine , house prices dropped a few percent , when GM pulled out my house was surrounded by foreclosures most of my neighbors worked for the plant that made the seats for GM we saw and across the board 30-40% loss in out home values in a few months time.

So, my question is...what happens when gas goes to $5.00 a gallon again, I don't think we'll have a big surplus of refined gasoline on hand forever. Maybe making a small SUV/Pickup with a fuel saving diesel engine that gets 30+ mpg would work?

It amazes me that no manufacture makes a small truck anymore. I can't believe there's not a market for them.

I agree about the cowboy Cadillacs. Some manufacturers still make WT (work truck) trim packages but they aren't anything at all like what a real work truck should be.

Wasn't Ford also talking about bringing back the Ranger again, or did they already?

June of this year was the last I heard was the release of the new Rangers still made in other places not sure why they are not made here like Lug said why nobody makes a mini truck is beyond me! Looks like the new ones are mid sized and 4 doors not the compacts they were before.

Well said Law Dog!

I have a F150 that I wish was about 6-12 inches lower. Sure it looks tough but it isn't practical to have a tall truck.

The problem with the little trucks is they got no better mileage than the big truck. So what is the advantage unless they get them to do better.

And the price-no one is going to buy half a truck for near the same money as a real truck.

People that buy cars prefer jap stuff anyhow.

Ford is a truck company. Focus on what you do best.

Cars/trucks got way better mileage 40 years ago my Toyota is rated 18/23 (V-6) but that is not tested yet. So put a engine in a truck a third smaller and I could live with 25/28 in a smaller truck easy.

Cars are so "cramped" and so low to the ground, that it's hard for old folks to get in and out of them. Miz and I are looking to buy an SUV on our next purchase for that matter alone. On the other end of the spectrum, Jerry is right, they made trucks so tall nowadays, that I can't reach over the side of the bed. I bought a 2017 Silverado, and had to have nerf bars (steps) installed so Miz and I could climb in and out of it.

If any of y'all know where a man can get a brand new 1978 Mercury, let me know.

What 330 Trapper said. Been down that road myself