Ford intends on making the most of its American heritage in the European market.
Much like it did in the U.S. a few years ago, Ford is shifting its European line-up to SUVs and crossovers and has already seen the benefits of this, noting that the Puma now outsells the Fiesta. Speaking during the Financial Times Future of the Car conference, Ford of Europe boss Stuart Rowley confirmed the brand has ambitious electrification plans.
“You’re seeing the Ford portfolio change in Europe as we make the shift and grow further in utilities [SUVs],” he said, as reported by Autocar. “Going forward we’ll have a more differentiated, more opinionated portfolio of passenger vehicles, that will all be electrified and we’ll build experiences around them.”
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Rowley added that as Ford is the only U.S. car manufacturer in Europe, this gives it something that its local competitors cannot match.
“Ford is the only American brand in Europe now and that’s a unique position that we can build upon. A lot of people are attracted to some of those characteristics and only Ford can bring products like that to the market.”
Of course, this isn’t to say the Blue Oval doesn’t have challenges to deal with in the Old Continent. Rowley revealed that vehicles not built within the UK-EU traffic-free trade area will now only be offered as niche products in Europe moving forward. Emissions regulations are also thought to be a key reason why the Bronco will not be sold in Europe, even though it would have the potential to sell quite well.
