Ford is completely changing its catalog for Europe!

At Ford, no less than 10 models have been discontinued recently. But how far will the American manufacturer go and what future for the brand in Europe?

Chez Ford, the year 2023 has been full of changes. Or rather, synonymous with deep cleaning! Many models have been arrested, and the catalog has changed in depth. What does the future of the American manufacturer hold for us?

More than 10 models removed

Last year, Ford made a 7.6% increase sales in France, with 47,095 cars sold over the period. The manufacturer benefited from a fairly extensive catalog, with several categories: city cars, compacts, sedans, minivans without forgetting the utilities.

But at present, if we take a closer look at the catalog, it’s a massacre! The list of deleted models is endless. Starting with minivans S-Max et Galaxyarrested since last April. Produced since 2015 in the Valence factory, 1,100 jobs have been lost. One year earlier, in April 2022, production of the Mondeo which had ended in this same factory, after a career of almost 30 years.

Retro cars car FORD FIESTA 1976 After 47 remarkable years, 7 generations and more than 22 million sales, Ford ended production of the Fiesta today this July 7, 2023 RIP it’s very sad it was a great car, the end of an era you will be missed pic.twitter.com/QSBsJfc7ut

— Mémoire2Ville (@Memoire2cite) July 7, 2023

The citadine Inwhose career ended in September 2019 in Europe with the The+, signed the discontinuation of small 3-door city cars. And very recently, it is above all the incomprehensible stoppage of the mythical Fiesta, whose latest models were released on July 7, 2023 from the factory based in Cologne, Germany. As a reminder, the Fiesta is all the same 47 years of career, 7 different generations and 22 million copies sold since 1976! Difficult to see clearly when you know that the city car market is not weakening one bit on the Old Continent!

Other models were also discontinued, such as the Ford EcoSport, the C-Max and his grandfather Grand C-Max (arrested in June 2019), theExplorer thermal or the FordEdge, also arrested in June 2019. If we do the count, these are close to 10 models that have been removed from the catalog in less than 3 years and almost as many vehicles that have not been replaced.

a Focus in 2025 (the German plant in Saarlouis is up for sale).

The current range reduced to a minimum

If the catalog has been so emptied, it is because Ford wishes to become more American. The Detroit manufacturer wants to save money and must therefore harmonize its North American and European ranges. Exit the duplicate models and even less the city cars, market can carry in the United States.

The American group will rationalize its range as much as possible, primarily towards crossovers, 4X4s and pick-ups. If we take a look at the current range, we notice that the catalog is very thin: the Puma remains, in thermal version, the Plague Also. The mythical Focus, produced in more than 16 million copies since 1998, is also in the hot seat: Ford plans to stop for 2025! Remain the new Bronco, just presented in Europe, at find in our last essay. Presented on September 14, 2022, the Mustang of 7th generation also makes resistance on the thermal, with always the V8 5.0 L in the catalog. Probably one of the last times…!

On the electrical side, the Mustang Mach-E, produced since October 2020, is still available. But the electrified SUV had a hard time selling, especially in the United States. Finally, the recreational vehicle Tourneo Connect is still in the game… but for how much longer?

The future will be electric

At Ford as at others, the future of the manufacturer will obviously be electric. Starting with the SUV Pumawhich will arrive in 100% electric version by 2024. Derived from the current thermal Puma, it should however change little in terms of design.

L‘Explorer, which saw its arrival postponed in Europe a few days ago, should also be an important model for the manufacturer. Technical cousin of Volkswagen ID.4 since the partnership between the two brands operated in 2020, the Explorer EV is based on the same MEB platform of the Wolfsburg firm. On the utility/MPV side, the Tourneo will also have an electrified version by 2024 with the Courier.