As a Hybrid driver, I am aware of the place of electrified vehicles. I was pointing out the illogic of Ford's argument for chopping sedans when they still command one-third market share.

 

 

Sorry, didn't mean any disrespect. I know you know your hybrids. Ford's most recent argument is simply "another reason" to get dealers to buy in, and to get off corporates back

 

No problem. Thanks.

 

Well, actually, no, it doesn't (accurately) sum it up......and Sulu, over several of his posts, pretty much explained why. Ford is dropping sedans in spite of the fact that they are still one-fourth to one-third of their U.S. market. I agree wth him that it doesn't make sense.....but, Hey, Ford has made major marketing-errors before, especially with King Henry II running the show back in the 1970s. History repeats itself.

 

The Accord is actually selling very well now, not too far off the Camry, at first they were having some trouble moving them but for the past few months it has been selling well, the good sedans are selling well, it is the mediocre ones that aren't. Camry 27,640 vs Accord 25,357 and Accords do sell more to buyers vs fleet.

Luxury sedans like the ES, 3 series, C class, etc are selling wells too. Sedans still sell better to much better then many other types of vehicles like most hybrids/electrics/super small econo cars yet automakers are not rushing to kill them.

What major advantages does your RX have over a larger family sedan when it comes to room or utility? A RX is no more roomier then a Lexus ES, Avalon, or Accord, seats the same amount of people unless you get the rare 7 seat version. Unless you stack up which blocks your rearward vision it can't really haul anything more if someone is sitting in back. I had a RX as a loaner a couple weeks ago and was surprised how small the trunk/cargo area was. It looked a good deal shallower then my GS's trunk and looked like I would not put a full sized suit case in there and push it back with more storage like I could with my GS when I took it on vacation recently. I was pleasantly surprised how much stuff I could fit just in my GS's trunk, not to mention in the rear seat. A larger sedan has a lot of utility and room, very similar to most most medium sized 5 seat CUV's. Family sedans and larger sedans are roomier then small CUV's and actually offer more utility in most cases unless you have nobody sitting in the rear of the CUV and fold the seats down but you can do that with some sedans too which offers a lot of utility.

As far as sedans vs CUV's when it comes to styling, in just about all cases sedans are much better looking compared to frumpy CUV's. RX ain't exactly a good looking vehicle while IS's and GS's are attractive and have lots of potential for modding to make them really good looking, just check out some of the pictures of modded GS's and IS's on CL.

I still don't agree with Ford dropping sedans, I don't believe in just giving up, they should have improved them over just throwing in the towel and giving up.

 

 

If Ford, knowing that Trump is slapping tariffs on domestic vehicles sold here in the U.S. that are built overseas, decides to open another Mexican plant and import those vehicles across the border, that that's on them. It is possible, though, that tariffs on some Mexican-sourced vehicles will be exempt (or lessened)......Wall or no wall, Trump still wants Mexican President-Elect Obrador to help control mass-immigration, and Trump may make some concessions in return.

It looks like the impressive Continental's demise, though, is probably a done deal. Even though I didn't buy one, I'll certainly miss it. But, like it or not, nobody else bought one, either. I've seen maybe four or five on the road, even here in the car-rich D.C. area, where virtually everything sells. Normally my response is that one cannot sell what one does not build...but the Conti, sadly, was one of those unusual cases where it didn't sell even when it WAS built. And I still can't get over the fact that the auto press simply wouldn't write it up when it first came out a couple of years ago....you and I (and Steve) had to do it LOL.

 

Mexico is not overseas. And NAFTA was rejigged and renamed. There won't be an issue importing from Mexico if Ford chooses to do it.

 

i agree with, however, cross overs are what people want right now.

 

 

Focus Active was subsequently dropped from the US market due to the tariff situation (not profitable to make it here, not profitable to import). So the Mustang stands alone.

 

 

Your points are valid, but you don't address the issue of the cost to upgrade their platforms and plants and such. Ford will never be able to erase the erosion of market share caused by Toyota, Honda, and Nissan. GM is next.

 

I was thinking the same thing after I wrote my last comment. The total, American market share for sedans is 30% but that may be skewed by Japanese brand sedans (Camry, Accord, Altima, Civic and Corolla, as you said). And the total American market share of pickup trucks is only about 18%, a number that, again, may be skewed by the fact that the Japanese brands sell many more cars than trucks.

I suspect that the market share of Ford's pickup trucks, within Ford's American sales (and only Ford's sales) is much greater than 18%; and I suspect that Ford's American share of its sedans is (much) lower than 30%. So what are the numbers? I have not looked it up.

Using overall American market share numbers to justify its decision to kills its sedans was a bad argument, but if Ford has numbers that show its (current and projected) sedan sales are much, much lower than --- let's say -- 10%, let's see them.

The Fusion is a good sedan. I much prefer it (when I have rented it) to Chevy's rental car fleet equivalents.