Ford May Stop Making Minivans

[Joey D]

Ford May Stop Making Minivans
Source: www.usatoday.com
Written by Sharon Silke Carty

DETROIT — In an attempt to exit unprofitable and flagging markets, Ford Motor is expected to say Monday that it will get out of the minivan segment, according to two sources familiar with the plan who didn't want their names used ahead of the official announcement.

Ford will lay out an overall restructuring plan that will include plant closures, layoffs and executive departures Monday when it announces fourth-quarter earnings.

Ford spokesman Jon Harmon would not confirm a minivan announcement, but he said the restructuring plan includes some changes in the company's product lineup.

The automaker is expected to post a profit for the year but lose money in North America. Through the first three quarters, Ford lost $1.34 billion in North America.

Ford's minivans have been weak performers in a crowded segment. Last year, Ford Freestar sales were down 25.1% from 2004, and Mercury Monterey sales were off 53.1%, according to Autodata. Freestar, formerly known as Windstar, was remodeled for the 2004 model year.

If Ford quits making minivans, "What they're essentially saying is, if you can't be No. 1 or 2 in a segment, then it's not worth being there," says David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research.

"We have to pick and choose where we want to compete," Mark Fields, Ford's executive vice president and president of the Americas, said in an interview last week. "The idea you have to be in all the segments, that's an old way of thinking."

Ford already has announced that new products will be going into the plant where it currently makes the Freestar and Monterey minivans. The company announced earlier this month that it will add the new Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX crossover vehicles to the Oakville, Ontario, plant, starting production in October.

Blazin's Note: Seems odd they'd get outta the market.

 

[VIPFREAK]

I'd think GM should more than Ford but both of them suck ass in this depatment.

 

[Joey D]

As far as mini vans go you can't really beat the Honda.

 

[VIPFREAK]

Actually I keep forgetting Mazda is part of Ford... I'd definitely keep the MPV( I think they still make it) or the Mazda 5 (MPV replacement?)

 

[Joey D]

Why? The Mazda mini van is nothing more then a rebodied Ford, if Ford sucks then so does Mazda...it works both ways.

 

[Poverty]

Eww the freestar is ugly. Why dont ford just offer this instead.

Ford have also said they theyre going to have a design change for their lineup. They said that theyre gonna stop trying to make european looking cars as theyre not as good as the germans and go back to making american cars. I find that comment weird as Ford of europe is doing well so surely they must be doing something right.

 

[VIPFREAK]

Mazda is the only good part of Ford... They make good cars for cheap.

 

[Joey D]

You're kidding right? The Ford F-Series is the best selling vehicle in the world...I think they are doing something right.

 

[Poverty]

Volvo is good aswell. The new S40 shares the focus platform which I think is also used or is going to be used by mazda.

 

[VIPFREAK]

Ford have also said they theyre going to have a design change for their lineup. They said that theyre gonna stop trying to make european looking cars as theyre not as good as the germans and go back to making american cars. I find that comment weird as Ford of europe is doing well so surely they must be doing something right.

I still don't know why car makers make a bunch of different versions for different contents and I think the rules and regulations is bull ****. If Ford brought over european cars like that damn Focus RS there wouldn't be any issues here. Ford and GM both need to take their heads out of their asses...

 

[VIPFREAK]

You're kidding right? The Ford F-Series is the best selling vehicle in the world...I think they are doing something right.

Good for what? though... I hardly think so in a MPG situation we are in these days.

 

[Joey D]

What are you stupid? The F-Series truck is the best selling vehicle in the world and right up there with the best selling vehicle ever. I honestly can't believe you are actually knocking it.

The Mustang is selling very well as well and the new Fusion is an awesome car.

Don't knock Ford, they are doing better the Chysler at the time being.

 

[Jay]

A friend of my father bought a couple year old Ford F250, he had nothing but problems with it so he sold it and got another one, he has problems with that one also, he still has it but doesnt like it much.

Also watching Jeremy Clarkson review a F series and showing all the cheap interior plastics, cheap buttons and sloppy steering, that combined with my fathers friends experience would make me very reluctant to buy a F series if I were ever in the market, I think I would import a Chev truck before buying a local F series.

But I guess they must be doing something right for them to be selling so many.

 

[YSSMAN]

...This is the US-Market Freestar Blazin' was talking about:

I dunno, the Minivan segment in the has pretty much come to a halt in terms of sales. Although I have seen many Saturn Relays...

And what the hell does Clarkson know about trucks? I respect him as one of the greatest automotive journalists in the world, but seriously... No one in the UK has ever expirienced a real full-size American truck, nor would they understand what the hell its all about. The steering is supposed to be sloppy, the ride is suppose to be harsh... Its a goddamned truck!

 

[Joey D]

The top gear show is retarded when it comes to trucks. He took a Lighining off road. What a moron.

 

[YSSMAN]

...Speaking of the Lightning, what the hell ever happened to the SVT Thunder (aka S/C 5.4L Expedition)?

 

[ND4SPD]

Volvo is good aswell. The new S40 shares the focus platform which I think is also used or is going to be used by mazda.

Actually I think Mazda made this platform first. It's used in the mazda 3, S40 and the european Focus.

 

[YSSMAN]

Mazda was a great investment for Ford to make back in the late '80s and early '90s, offering up a ton of engines and platforms for Ford to play with. Similarly, Ford's purschase of Mazda made the company more respectable in the US market, and taknfully the cars have maintained their "Zoom Zoom" qualities without Ford sucking the life out of them.

 

[Jay]

The only F series I've been in is a F250 pickup (maybe F350 I forget) with a flatbed type tray that we hired in Canada to haul engines and parts around while we were there, I never drove it so I cant comment on it steering but it did its job well engine and its Turbocharged V8 diesel seemed very capable for pulling. I can see why it sells well for reasons like that, plus I noticed you can get it in so many variants.

 

[niky]

But Mazda still doesn't have volume in the US, even though they desperately need and deserve it.

About time Ford started trimming its line-up of non-performers.

The F-series trucks are indeed big sellers for Ford. Say what you will about cheap interiors, they're still good trucks with tough engines. I don't see gas price concerns affecting sales of big pick-ups as much as they're affecting SUVs, as people who usually buy trucks hold pulling power in much higher regard than fuel economy concerns.

Though Ford trucks and SUVs are a pain in the ass if you actually need something fixed out here.

 

[McLaren]

Agreed.

There's no argument when it comes to the impact the F-Series has made on the US.

It's offered in almost any style you could want.
For style, there's the Harley Davidson models.
For Heavy Ass Duty, the F-350.
And of course, the all around American truck, the F150.

Though Ford and Chevrolet do tend to overhype their trucks in their commercials, it does get the point across that they can tow some incredibly heavy stuff.

 

[a6m5]

F-Series trucks are workhorses, so interior quality and handling(even for truck) might dissapoint. But as far as work trucks go, I think the F-Series Super Duty trucks are the most dominating in the market here. I also love the redesigned F-150s. Interiors are much closer to those of SUVs now. I don't like the Ford's claim of F-Series being the best selling vehicle though. Series are made up of at least three different trucks IMO.

As for Ford dropping their minivan, I think they should. I think Ford can be very competitive if they were willing to put in the effort. But when I look at their weakass excuse of a minivan like the Freestar, I think they should have dropped their minivan line when the Windstar was done. When you see Freestars, it's clear that Ford had no intensions of competing against the likes of Odyssey, Caravan and Sienna.

 

[Wolfe]

The top gear show is retarded when it comes to trucks. He took a Lighining off road. What a moron.

Uh...yeah. He took a truck and drove it off-road. What a concept.

I'd say the morons are the people at Dodge, Ford, Toyota, Chevy, and whoever else who decided the world needed "sporty" pickup trucks.

If everyone assumed trucks and SUV's were intended for off-road use or hard work, we wouldn't have so god damned many of them on the roadways, burning lots of fuel, getting in the way, and giving ordinary people the impression that they're invincible.

 

[Poverty]

And what the hell does Clarkson know about trucks? I respect him as one of the greatest automotive journalists in the world, but seriously... No one in the UK has ever expirienced a real full-size American truck, nor would they understand what the hell its all about. The steering is supposed to be sloppy, the ride is suppose to be harsh... Its a goddamned truck!

EH? Why does the steering have to be sloppy. Obviously it will have to have a harsh ride to be able to tow heavy things but it doesnt need to be sloppy. Plus you guys have trucks and so have we. What you think we never need to tow things around? The only difference is that we use proper trucks. But maybe thats the point of the F series etc you can use it for work and personal use whilst with our trucks we would never used them for personal commuting.

PS. We have plents of dodge rams over here and mitsubishi trucks aswell.

The top gear show is retarded when it comes to trucks. He took a Lighining off road. What a moron.

He was making a point of how pointless the lightning was. Like he does with SUVs that arent 4wd. Whats the point of them if they cant go offroad???

 

[niky]

Price of gas getting to you, Wolfe?

While I have enjoyed using pick-ups for their intended purpose, I do agree that there are too many of them being driven as grocery-getters.

Oh, and American pickups are just way too fast, and way too powerful. We get along with Japanese pickups with diesel engines half the size of the American gasoline ones just fine. And yes, we do take them deeply deeply off-road.

 

[Sniffs]

I see the "utility" argument is starting up again

I'm one of the people out there who's actually USING a 4 by for the purpose it was intended. I haul Loggers, and have been crawling through half a meter worth of mud for a couple weeks, and haul a few pounds/kilos home with me cause of it.

unfortunately, what I bought isn't a bare bones utility. every 'bare bones" utility is so primitive and noisy or so damn expensive for what I need (a full size extended or quad cab with a "reading utility box" instead of a bed tends to run in the 50k range...USED) and gets such horrendous milage. remember, america uses it's crappy deisel for vehicles, and the good stuff is burned for fuel or used in Offroad equipment.

you can complain about "grocery getters" all you want, but arond here, it's the only vehicle with the requisite room and HEADROOM. especially if, as I do, you run Amish 6 days a week. (nicky: if you don't know, the Amish are a cultural minority here that keeps the old ways of pre 20th century life. they're pretty cool)

I know I'm not contantly wading through mud like Niky probably is out in the literal Boonies (i believe boondocks was a Fillipino island group word to begin with), but i am actually going OFFROAD, not softroad...and with a busted 4wd and a horribly bent controll arm I can't afford to replace (the wheel in my Avatar, btw)

I think trucks were the replacement for america's lost love affair with the RWD hotrod that overzealous government regulation peeps killed. now that they're back, in a sense, trucks may be demoted back to bare bones utility...but still cost 50 grand

now...i say tell em all to just...give it up. let Japan have the car segment. they've even taken the SUV's over...

i think, personally, that america will soon be shoved out of the transdportation market completely, except in long distance hauling, for a while.

 

[Joey D]

Uh...yeah. He took a truck and drove it off-road. What a concept.

The Lightining never was designed to go off road, it was designed to be fast as hell, which is does awesomely. The regular F-Series is fine off road, but Clarkston is an idiot for doing that. Everything is built with a purpose...even that pointless Veyron I'm told has a purpose.

 

[Poverty]

So you think the lightning is more worthwhile than the veyron. The lightning serves no great purpose. The veyron does. Technologyfrom the veyron is already starting to trickle down to VAG cars for the consumers benfit.

 

[Joey D]

Actually the Lightining was created to be the fastest street pickup ever, just like the Veyron was created to be the fast street car ever...they both have a purpose.

I think the Veyron is pointless...hence the little joke at the end of my post. Jesus lightin up a little.

 

[Poverty]

Its not hard to make the lightning the fastest pickup ever. I bet you its not much faster than the second fastest pickup. If it did over 200mph or around that figure then I would give it credit.