Sunset Ford Dealer Blog

In a recent video question and answer interview, Alan Mulally, Ford’s CEO, discussed the role of the compact car and SUV market in America’s future. Here are a few highlights of that interview.

The most important thing Mulally said that compact cars aren’t going anywhere soon. With more Americans switching to smaller Ford cars, he said the automaker is switching its resources to accommodate that demand. He also believes that SUVs will continue to fall in demand as long as gas prices stay as high as they are. Mulally also felt that the demand for SUVs probably won’t increase the same way the demand for larger cars increased following a similar fuel crisis in the 1970s.

During the first quarter of 2008, sales for small, fuel-efficient cars increased by more than 30 percent. As if that figure isn’t staggering enough, the auto market as a whole experienced a sales decline of eight percent overall. Sales of midsize cars stayed about the same as they were last year.

But Mulally also implied that Ford is taking a small gamble on the oil industry. With all of the changes the automaker is making to increase production of smaller cars, it’s almost imperative that fuel prices stay where they are at to make the switchover worth the trouble.

Either way, you the driver can benefit from these new moves. If gas prices stay where they are, you can get a compact Ford car with great gas mileage to save money at the pump. If gas prices go back down, you’ll be spending even less with every mile you drive. It’s a win-win situation for everybody involved.

The Ford Motor Company might be taking its luxury Lincoln brand to the global market in the near future.

In an interview at the end of last month, Ford CEO Alan Mulally said the company is considering distributing the brand in Asia and Europe. Right now, Ford markets it  in the Middle East.

Last year, the automaker sold more than 130,000 units worldwide, but the North American market accounts for 99 percent of those sales. That’s why the focus at this time is on the domestic market. But that doesn’t mean the automaker can’t look to the future in hopes of increasing its brand throughout the world.

Ford’s competitors have tried to expand their brands to a worldwide market, too. Those attempts have been less than impressive, giving Ford pause about putting too much effort into the expansion at this time. GM tried to expand its Cadillac brand to a global market last year, but experienced about 10 percent of its sales outside of the United States.

These talks also come at a time when Ford is lessening  its focus on the Mercury brand vehicles. While the sales volume decreases for Mercury, Ford hopes to increase the volume for the Lincoln. It won’t take the place of the company’s upscale options, which used to be Jaguar and Land Rover.

The Dearborn automaker is also considering taking the Lincoln to the Russian market, where its other Ford vehicles have enjoyed a great deal of success. Hopefully, this will be another way to put the company back on top of the auto market where it belongs.