Ford expects its electric-car division to lose about $4.5 billion in 2023, yet the brand plans to continue investing in battery-powered vehicles at the expense of at least three familiar nameplates. It will soon send the Edge, the Escape and the Transit Connect to the chopping block.
Industry trade journal Automotive News reported that the three models are living on borrowed time. Without citing sources, it wrote that the Edge will retire from the American market in 2024 so that Ford can use the Oakville, Canada, plant that builds it to manufacture EVs. The model could live on in overseas markets, like China, and there’s no word yet on what the future holds for the Edge-based Lincoln Nautilus.
Next up is the Transit Connect (pictured below), which will leave the American market after the 2023 model year. In March 2023, Ford cited “efforts to reduce global manufacturing cost and complexity, alongside decreased demand for the compact van segment” as reasons for the van’s demise. Don’t be surprised if you see a new Transit Connect on a future trip to Europe, however: the model will carry on in some European markets.
Recent Comments