Photo: Catalin Garmacea
After previously announcing that passenger cars are no longer in favor with the North American public, the Ford Motor Company prepares for another change that will polarize opinion. This time around, the Blue Oval talks about a “business transformation” that will start with “restructuring activities.”
Without further beating around the bush, the Ford Motor Company is following in the footsteps of General Motors. An updated footprint “largely outside of North America” will help the automaker save some greenback, but that’s not all. The Blue Oval also plans to shift “to five flexible architectures,” translating to 20-percent savings in the time it takes from sketching to producing an all-new vehicle.
As part of the plan, Ford found ways “to manage up to 70 percent of each vehicle's value through increased component sharing.” The CD6 platform is the perfect case in point, shared between the 2020 Lincoln Aviator, all-new Explorer, and the next generation of the Mustang. In the process, Ford has also established ten teams that will manage product lines as end-to-end businesses.
Stong inventsments in autonomous and electrified vehicles were also announced, with Ford expected to invest $4 billion and $11 billion in these domains by 2022. No less than 40 electrified vehicles will be launched by then, and the Mustang-inspired electric SUV that was previewed under the Mach 1 nameplate will go official in 2020 with at least 300 miles of range.
Another bullet point comes in the form of “capacity utilization,” which will see the balancing of capacity according to consumer demand. The shifting vehicle portfolio has one goal, and that is to bring the percentage of SUVs and trucks of the North American lineup to 90 percent by the end of 2020.
Ford highlights the phasing out of “slow-selling traditional sedans,” all in the name of freeing up “capital for new entries in growing segments.” By that, the Dearborn-based automaker refers to more trucks and SUVs, as well as the electrified onslaught mentioned earlier.
Last, but certainly not least, Ford came clean about the strategic alliances with Volkswagen and Mahindra. The potential collaborations cover “a number of areas of our business,” and the Ford Motor Company is “encouraged by both sets of talks.”
As part of the plan, Ford found ways “to manage up to 70 percent of each vehicle's value through increased component sharing.” The CD6 platform is the perfect case in point, shared between the 2020 Lincoln Aviator, all-new Explorer, and the next generation of the Mustang. In the process, Ford has also established ten teams that will manage product lines as end-to-end businesses.
Stong inventsments in autonomous and electrified vehicles were also announced, with Ford expected to invest $4 billion and $11 billion in these domains by 2022. No less than 40 electrified vehicles will be launched by then, and the Mustang-inspired electric SUV that was previewed under the Mach 1 nameplate will go official in 2020 with at least 300 miles of range.
Another bullet point comes in the form of “capacity utilization,” which will see the balancing of capacity according to consumer demand. The shifting vehicle portfolio has one goal, and that is to bring the percentage of SUVs and trucks of the North American lineup to 90 percent by the end of 2020.
Ford highlights the phasing out of “slow-selling traditional sedans,” all in the name of freeing up “capital for new entries in growing segments.” By that, the Dearborn-based automaker refers to more trucks and SUVs, as well as the electrified onslaught mentioned earlier.
Last, but certainly not least, Ford came clean about the strategic alliances with Volkswagen and Mahindra. The potential collaborations cover “a number of areas of our business,” and the Ford Motor Company is “encouraged by both sets of talks.”
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