Most Current Ford Sedan Owners Say They Plan to Switch to Another Brand

Back in April, Ford shocked the industry when it announced plans to cancel most of its U.S. car lineup in order to focus on crossover sales. Even the Focus will only be offered as a lifted hatchback, making it more of a subcompact crossover. The consequences of the decision have yet to be seen, but according to the latest study, if Ford is betting on converting its current sedan owners into crossover buyers, it may be disappointed.

Cox Automotive recently surveyed a total of 2,697 Ford owners, of which a small minority owned sedans. Half of the 104 sedan owners said they plan to replace their car with a new or used sedan from another brand, while only 10 percent say they’ll switch to a crossover. Interestingly, 5 percent said they’ll buy a Mustang, and another t3 percent have their eyes on a Ford truck. As Automotive News points out in its report, the sample size is relatively small, but the results may still be concerning for the American automaker.

“Ford’s got some work to do in terms of clearing up the message to owners of these vehicles if they want any shot of keeping them,” Michelle Krebs, executive analyst for Cox-owned Autotrader, told AN. “They need to do some educating.”

But while Ford may struggle to retain the majority of current sedan owners, that may not be that big of a problem as it initially appears. Midsize car sales in the U.S. are down about 14 percent through July of this year, and smaller car sales are down about 12 percent. With those trends unlikely to reverse themselves, Ford’s crossover-heavy lineup may end up attracting more buyers than it loses.

Ford has also previously defended this decision by claiming it isn’t profitable to sell sedans here. Official numbers haven’t been disclosed, but one analyst estimated that selling cars in the U.S. loses the Michigan-based automaker around $800 million per year.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription required)

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