That headline might sound a bit dramatic but bear with me. This isn’t an article about hating electric cars, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. I’ll soon be an EV owner and I think they’ll have their place alongside synthetic fuels, hydrogen, or whatever else is invented in the years to come.
But to explain that headline, I first need to go back to a time when even Elon Musk wasn’t thinking about electric cars.
A time when Ford was making things like the Escort Mexico, Lotus Cortina, Capri, Sierra RS Cosworth, and in more recent years ST and RS versions of all their family hatchbacks. These are the sort of cars that made people love Ford. And it wasn’t just the enthusiasts that were taken care of because even the cheap as chips base models drove far better than any sensible shopping car has the right to. These are the cars that built a loyal fan base for the blue oval but sadly, all of them are either already long gone or are soon to be killed off with no direct replacement.
The Fiesta, Focus, Mondeo, S-MAX, and Galaxy are all set to be abandoned and replaced by a range of VW-based electric SUVs and crossovers. This, according to a Ford Spokesperson speaking to Auto Express, is because “Ford cannot continue to be a volume manufacturer making okay products” and they “want to deliver vehicles that put a smile on customers’ faces and that they’re proud to own.”
So is this spokesperson seriously saying that an Escort Cosworth or a Racing Puma is just an “okay” car and won’t put a smile on the owner’s face?
Well, one thing we know for certain is that a 1987 Sierra Cosworth recently put a big enough smile on someone’s face they were willing to pay £600,000 for it.
I’m not saying that Fords were always the absolute best cars available but whether it was being driven to school in one, passing your driving test in one, or just going for a Sunday drive, they were always good enough to create lasting memories and keep you coming back to the dealership whenever it was time for an upgrade. This loyalty doesn’t seem likely to continue with Ford’s current plan for a range of more premium, American-style crossovers.
Maybe they will prove me wrong, and I hope they do, but I think anyone that wants a £50,000 SUV will buy something from Germany and Fords traditional customers will be left looking to the Koreans if they want an “okay” car that is still fun enough to make you smile every once in a while.
If you want to know more about the new all-electric Ford Explorer I mentioned in the title, check out this article here, and let me know your thoughts in the comments. Do you agree with me, or are Ford just doing what’s necessary to survive in a changing world?
Published in All Rants
This partnership with VW will allow Ford to stay alive. Ford US isn’t doing well. Kind of stuck. They don’t have the capital to go EV. Europe is different in terms of strategy for automotive pollutants. The US doesn’t do anything while Europe is going straight EV. That puts Ford in a bind. They have to cater to both markets. In the US, there is particular contention between Ford and Chevy owners with a few on the Mopar bandwagon. TRUCKS are the thing here, sadly. Ford has to keep making ICE trucks here. No choice. Else they lose more than they can afford. F150 is, literally, their bread and butter. Hence this mixed platform sharing. Only way Ford can stay alive right now.