Ford says farewell to conventional cars (except the Mustang, of course)

Yesterday, Ford announced its first-quarter financials, and alongside all the dollar signs (net income of $1.7 billion is nothing to sneeze at), were a number of bulletpoints detailing Ford’s plans for the near future. Here’s an excerpt from item #1:

  • [B]y 2020, almost 90 percent of the Ford portfolio in North America will be trucks, utilities and commercial vehicles. Given declining consumer demand and product profitability, the company will not invest in next generations of traditional Ford sedans for North America. Over the next few years, the Ford car portfolio in North America will transition to two vehicles – the best-selling Mustang and the all-new Focus Active crossover coming out next year. The company is also exploring new “white space” vehicle silhouettes that combine the best attributes of cars and utilities, such as higher ride height, space and versatility. (Emphasis ours)

That…seems like a really big deal, right? I mean, no cars on Ford lots other than the Mustang and the Active (which as you can see above and below, looks less like a car and more like a small crossover in the vein of the Subaru Crosstrek or the Honda HR-V)? Then again, CNN Money has published an interesting take on why it’s not such earth-shaking news after all.

You can download a PDF of Ford’s Q1 earnings report here.