Ford to Kill Mammoth Excursion/Lincoln Aviator Next Year - Source
12-14-04, 10:08 AM
#1
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Ford to Kill Mammoth Excursion/Lincoln Aviator Next Year - Source
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...s_ford_suvs_dc
Mon Dec 13,12:36 PM ET
Add to My Yahoo! U.S. National - Reuters
By Poornima Gupta
DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. will kill off the Ford Excursion, its largest sport utility vehicle and a lightning rod for criticism from environmental groups, next year, a source familiar with the plan said on Monday.
Photo
AP Photo
The mammoth vehicle will stop rolling off the assembly line in September, as Ford moves to free up production capacity for the refreshed Super Duty pickup truck, said the source, on condition of anonymity.
The Excursion and Ford Super Duty F-Series pickups are assembled at the automaker's Louisville, Kentucky, truck plant.
A Ford spokesman declined to comment on the product plan.
Ford sources had said in 2002 that the company would discontinue the 19-foot Excursion, but it wound up getting an extended lease on life.
The second-largest U.S. automaker is planning to fill the gap in its full-size product lineup with an extended version of its Expedition SUV, the source said.
U.S. sales of the Excursion, which was launched in 1999, are down 25 percent so far this year. The Sierra Club (news - web sites), which dubbed the Excursion the "Ford Valdez" after the infamous Alaskan oil spill, called it an environmental disaster because of its poor fuel economy rating.
Official gas mileage figures are not available from Ford or the Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites), but a review on Kelly Blue Book's Web site says the Excursion gets about 14 miles per gallon on the highway and 10 miles per gallon in the city.
Apart from the Excursion, a mid-size SUV from Ford's lineup will also be killed.
Lincoln Aviator, which made its debut in 2001, will be replaced with a car-based SUV in 2006, said Lincoln spokeswoman Sara Tatchio. She declined to say exactly when production of the Aviator will stop.
U.S. sales of the Aviator are down 20.3 percent year-to-date
Mon Dec 13,12:36 PM ET
Add to My Yahoo! U.S. National - Reuters
By Poornima Gupta
DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. will kill off the Ford Excursion, its largest sport utility vehicle and a lightning rod for criticism from environmental groups, next year, a source familiar with the plan said on Monday.
Photo
AP Photo
The mammoth vehicle will stop rolling off the assembly line in September, as Ford moves to free up production capacity for the refreshed Super Duty pickup truck, said the source, on condition of anonymity.
The Excursion and Ford Super Duty F-Series pickups are assembled at the automaker's Louisville, Kentucky, truck plant.
A Ford spokesman declined to comment on the product plan.
Ford sources had said in 2002 that the company would discontinue the 19-foot Excursion, but it wound up getting an extended lease on life.
The second-largest U.S. automaker is planning to fill the gap in its full-size product lineup with an extended version of its Expedition SUV, the source said.
U.S. sales of the Excursion, which was launched in 1999, are down 25 percent so far this year. The Sierra Club (news - web sites), which dubbed the Excursion the "Ford Valdez" after the infamous Alaskan oil spill, called it an environmental disaster because of its poor fuel economy rating.
Official gas mileage figures are not available from Ford or the Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites), but a review on Kelly Blue Book's Web site says the Excursion gets about 14 miles per gallon on the highway and 10 miles per gallon in the city.
Apart from the Excursion, a mid-size SUV from Ford's lineup will also be killed.
Lincoln Aviator, which made its debut in 2001, will be replaced with a car-based SUV in 2006, said Lincoln spokeswoman Sara Tatchio. She declined to say exactly when production of the Aviator will stop.
U.S. sales of the Aviator are down 20.3 percent year-to-date
Last edited by LexFather; 12-14-04 at 10:10 AM.
12-14-04, 10:12 AM
#3
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Posts: n/a
When are some luxury car companies going to wake up with **** poor rebadging? Do they not understand how tough it is to project a luxury image or how tough it is to protect resale when you have constant discontinued models? It is pathetic and the whole product development team should be forced to drive Kia Rios to understand what car buyers want.
12-14-04, 10:29 AM
#4
Pole Position
Resale doesn't really matter to Ford because in 10 years it's an unusable heap that no one will want anyway. Not even the junkyards.
Compare any Ford product to any Toyota product of the same vintage and you'll see what I mean.
As for killing off this barge, good. It was being sold for the wrong purpose. It's obviously a commercial/industrial tool and every single one I see is hauling children, not heavy equipment.
And don't believe it's only sales figures and the tree huggers that killed the Excursion. Ford can surely use the higher corporate MPG average with this thing gone. They can sell more F-150s and Explorers now without whoring the Focus like they do.
And don't get me started on the Focus. I am absolutely appalled at the cheapness, poor build quality, lack of thought, and just plain NEGLIGENCE that went into the design and production of the Ford Focus.
The wires are too thin and the plastics substandard and overused. Quick example: 2001 Ford Focus, 60k miles, the headlight housings are melted right over the stock Ford-installed H4 bulb. Yes, Ford won't even put plastic in the car that won't melt under normal use of it's own headlight. It's not that they don't know how, they refuse to do it right. Go ahead and check for yourself. Find a Focus and look into the reflector housing. Note the chrome area directly above the bulb.
The Japanese would NEVER do this.
Compare any Ford product to any Toyota product of the same vintage and you'll see what I mean.
As for killing off this barge, good. It was being sold for the wrong purpose. It's obviously a commercial/industrial tool and every single one I see is hauling children, not heavy equipment.
And don't believe it's only sales figures and the tree huggers that killed the Excursion. Ford can surely use the higher corporate MPG average with this thing gone. They can sell more F-150s and Explorers now without whoring the Focus like they do.
And don't get me started on the Focus. I am absolutely appalled at the cheapness, poor build quality, lack of thought, and just plain NEGLIGENCE that went into the design and production of the Ford Focus.
The wires are too thin and the plastics substandard and overused. Quick example: 2001 Ford Focus, 60k miles, the headlight housings are melted right over the stock Ford-installed H4 bulb. Yes, Ford won't even put plastic in the car that won't melt under normal use of it's own headlight. It's not that they don't know how, they refuse to do it right. Go ahead and check for yourself. Find a Focus and look into the reflector housing. Note the chrome area directly above the bulb.
The Japanese would NEVER do this.
12-14-04, 10:36 AM
#5
Originally posted by jpa2400
GOOD!
I hate these huge *** rollin death SUV's
GOOD!
I hate these huge *** rollin death SUV's
.From a quick glance at the title, I thought ford was going to kill the excursion and come out with a new model "Mammoth"
Thank goodness that I read it wrong.It was crazy enough when the suburbans were out.
But, it really doesn't matter since the Explorer, Expedition, and every other SUV keep getting bigger and bigger
12-14-04, 11:05 AM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Originally posted by 1SICKLEX
the whole product development team should be forced to drive Kia Rios to understand what car buyers want.
the whole product development team should be forced to drive Kia Rios to understand what car buyers want.
Got news for you..............more and more people ARE buying Rios. My supervisor bought a 5-speed Rio Cinco wagon a couple of months ago for commuting....loves it.
But...as far as the Excursion's demise....Score another one for the Greenies. In America here we are supposed to have CHOICE. One MORE choice has been taken away.
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