For the first time since 2007, the Ford Motor Co. is reporting that its Ford brand has surpassed the two-million unit milestone in the U.S. The automaker is crediting its new small cars (namely the Fiesta and Focus) and the new Explorer for the sales growth. Some of the attribution can be credited to the overall growth in new car market of about 10 percent for 2011 compared to last year. Still Ford says the small Fiesta and Focus are on track for a 20 percent sales increase for the year; and light truck sales, including the new Explorer crossover, are tracking a possible 30 percent increase. In addition, the Fusion midsize sedan is on track for its best year ever, and the Ford Escape has also had a big year. Both the Fusion and Escape are set to be replaced with all-new models next year, which should help Ford continue keep the momentum up in 2012.
“The industry sales rate has exceeded 13 million in each of the last three months,” Ken Czubay, Ford’s vice president for U.S. sales and marketing, told the Detroit News. “This suggests the current momentum is not an aberration.”
Overall Ford brand sales in the U.S. are up 18 percent for a total of 1.86 million sales by the end of last month, beating 2010’s first 11 months by roughly 100,000 units. Net income for the first three quarters of 2011 reached $6.6 billion.


http://wot.motortrend.com/best-since...11-152259.html

 

Proud to be a Ford Fan.


Great Job FoMoCo & Here's to a great 2012.

 

Where did Ford get this from?
Focus' sales were barely even in 2011 (+1.1%). They were up by 22% until the end of April, which is the same time when the all new global model went on sale.

 

Does anyone else think that a 2012 will not be as good as 2011 for Ford in term of sales?

I don't think global Escape and Fusion will be as good sellers as the current models are. And Ford is also killing off Crown Victoria and Ranger, which is at least 100,000 units less.

 

Well, I hope that you are wrong, and I believe that you will be.

 

I hope I'm wrong too.

 

Actually you're probably right. Two of Ford's biggest-volume products are getting the all-new treatment at the same time, so it could be rocky. Also, the current models being on their last run has made them screaming deals, while the new vehicles are likely to less so. And, as ever since Alan took over, profitability is more important than sales numbers for these vehicles.

 

Which could be a problem too, due to contracts with UAW.
According to contracts, Ford has to pay their worker whether they work or not. So if sales are slow, Ford could either lay off their workers and continue to pay them or they can continue to build vehicles and sell them with high rebates (which got the Big 3 in the trouble in the first place). Either way - not good. Quantity is just as important as quality and profitability.

 

With the Crown Vic and Ranger going away, I think you'll see some people move to other vehicles. People shopping for a Ranger will most likely go with a 3.7L F-150 now to fill the void. It's a more capable truck all around, and F-series numbers should go up next year.

The Crown Vic might hurt them a tad, but they really weren't selling large numbers to the public anyways, so it's a moot point. LEOs will have a tough time going with the new Interceptor, but it might do better than I expect.

I read an article not too long ago that talked about Ford's problem. With only half of the car lineup refreshed heavily, it's almost silly to stick with a smaller car. Right now you can walk into a dealer and pick up a well equipped Fusion for the same price as a Focus. With incentives, larger cars are a better value right now. Experts predict that once the CD4 Fusion hits showrooms, that this trend should go away, which will hopefully re-align the pricing structure to a more traditional layout.

The 2013 MY is a huge deal for Ford. I really expect their numbers to improve with the huge influx of new/refreshed product coming in the next year.

 

I don't think this is true anymore with the most recent contract. I could be wrong, but I think this was eliminated.