Ford Phases Out All Its Small Cars & Sedans In North America Except Mustang & Focus A

[Ausmartin1]

Ford Will Phase Out All Its Small Cars And Sedans In North America Except The Mustang And Focus Active.

Looks like Ford is doing an Australian Mitsubishi. SUV & CUV all the way with LBJ - LOL!

https://jalopnik.com/ford-will-phase...ica-1825544784

In other News, China may no longer force GM, Ford & VW to hand over intellectual property and designs to do business in China with their partners.*
(Translation - China has now stolen all the information it required and is now standing on their own feet especially in regards to mandated electric vehicles to help clear the very polluted air - even Coal power plants went from 70% to 60
% in 1 year.

*I remember GM having to hand over the details of the 1st Generation Chevy Volt Hybrid Plug in EV over to China to continue doing business in Communist China, I'm sure Ford, VW and many others did the same.)

How big is GM's stake in Communist China ? -
"General Motors, for instance, started its Chinese operations in 1997. It now sells more than 4 million vehicles annually there — more than it sells in any other market, including in the United States.

GM sells vehicles under five brand names in China — Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Baojun and Wuling — and traditionally is among the two top-selling companies there.

The company could enjoy a big financial boost if it manages to shed its Chinese partners. Last year, the Detroit company made $1.95 billion off its 50 percent equity stake in China.

It’s unlikely that foreign automakers would sever themselves completely from their Chinese partners even after the phase-in period, said Jeff Schuster of the consulting firm LMC Automotive near Detroit.

“It’s difficult to unwind; you’ve already got the relationships established,” Schuster said."
http://www.agrinews-pubs.com/farm_eq...799f59974.html

[Jag530G]

And sales of the Chevy Malibu and Impala are pretty low, GM has sold off Opel and the GM Korean factory that produces the Astra sedan is in danger of being shut. GM may well follow suit around the world, no Astra sedan, no Commodore replacement.

Sedan sales are dying, even the luxury sedans like the A8, 7 series, XJ and shadows of their former selves. Only the iconic S- class is sort of OK.

Cheers, Matthew

[Jag530G]

One thing to bear in mind regarding Ford is that the above announcement relates to the US. Ford Europe will still build the Focus, Fiesta, Mondeo and C-Max (C-Max is a pretty good mini people mover, I rented one a few years ago), and some these will also be produced in China so I'd expect the Focus at lease to continue in Australia in some fashion. The small car market is one of our biggest segments. GM doesn't have Europe anymore so that's not an option for Holden.

[Ausmartin1]

And sales of the Chevy Malibu and Impala are pretty low, GM has sold off Opel and the GM Korean factory that produces the Astra sedan is in danger of being shut. GM may well follow suit around the world, no Astra sedan, no Commodore replacement.

Sedan sales are dying, even the luxury sedans like the A8, 7 series, XJ and shadows of their former selves. Only the iconic S- class is sort of OK.

Cheers, Matthew

Very True, On GM Korea they are hanging on by a cats whisker
GM Korea averts bankruptcy but how long will it stay?
Hyunjoo Jin, Ju-min Park
6 MIN READ
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-g...-idUSKBN1HV15G

[Goggles]

the death of the sedan would be ok if the SUV replacements had decent powertrains (i.e. a V6 turbo or V8). Yes I know the world is trying to move to more fuel efficient vehicles, but I would like more variety than weazy motors which do nothing to help people overtake on highways etc.

No wonder I'm keeping my VF if SUVs are the future