Ford would sell more cars if it hadn’t murdered the Fiesta, Focus and Mondeo

I hope and pray that the Ford Motor Company knows what it’s doing. But, increasingly, I fear for it, its future and its paying customers.

My concerns began in the 2010s when a bloke called Jim Hackett got a job at the firm’s world HQ. After a lifetime in the detergent and furniture industries, he was in his sixties and shopping for a pipe and slippers prior to imminent retirement. But the Ford offer came along, and he fancied the idea of entering the automotive business he knew next to nothing about, so he took the gig as his last hurrah.

Trouble was, in 2017 he was somehow given the job (and multi-million-dollar annual salary package) of CEO of the entire Ford empire. His lack of industry knowledge was obvious. He was one of those here-today, gone-tomorrow types who spent only a small part of his working life in the car business. Yet he had a profound impact on it.

One of his most controversial and damaging decisions was to announce Ford’s gradual abandonment of the car business while concentrating instead on making and selling trucks, utility vehicles, vans and the like. Utter madness. But that’s what he thought and that’s the suicidal road he took. First to bite the dust in early 2022 was the Mondeo, despite the fact that it sold well. One year later, the even better-selling, more accessible Fiesta was killed off. Then earlier this month the last Focus rolled off the production line.

True, Hackett left the company in late 2020, before this trio was murdered. But thanks to his ‘we’re a truck company’ edict, he has to accept most of the blame for the death of these cars, two of which (the Fiesta and Focus) are as relevant as the still strong-selling VW Polo and Golf. What’s next to go? The Puma? We need a yes or no from the company.

The murder of the Mondeo and Fiesta was one of the main reasons why Ford lost its number one status in the UK sales league. Now that the Focus has gone, the company is in danger of selling even fewer cars – especially as the customers who used to buy them can still get their Mondeo, Fiesta and Focus-type models from other brands.

We were promised an update on Ford’s passenger car business this month, but alas, that now appears to have been pushed back into 2026. How much longer can the company wait before either hedging its bets on trucks and commercial vehicles, or going all-in on electric cars? I doubt we’ll see the return of small cars like the Fiesta – although, as we found out at China’s Shanghai Auto Show in April, tech tie-ups with automotive giants such as Volkswagen aren’t out of the question.

There’s a danger Ford is shooting itself in both feet here. Current sales figures prove it. As does the mass defection of once-loyal Mondeo, Fiesta and Focus customers to rival brands. Uncle Henry – the ultimate car guy – must be turning in his grave.

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