Ford was the biggest car company in the world but it's hit hard times, and isn't alone

Has there ever been a more unbelievable start to a calendar year? I think not. It’s not just the wet weather, woeful economy, weak or warmongering politicians and wicked actions of certain high-profile scumbags that have been creating havoc.

The car world has, for very different reasons, had its drama, too – largely due to China’s relentless march forward with a mix of capable, good-looking products that real-world buyers quite like and can actually afford. Meanwhile, a growing number of established but dithering car-producing countries and companies go backwards as they continue to stall on the electric car front; completely halt production; price themselves out of the market; sell far fewer cars… or commit all four of these potentially ruinous motor industry misdemeanours.

The USA – once the No.1 car producer in the world, but now only the ninth or 10th largest – has seen its favourite corporate son, Ford, suffer on two fronts. First, Uncle Henry’s half-hearted dabble in the hitherto unfamiliar business of EV design and production has failed to hit the spot. Next, BYD outsold Ford on the world stage.

The result of all this is that Ford had to go through a reset on its EV strategy that led to an $11.1 billion (£8.10bn) net loss in the final quarter of last year. Not since America’s Great Recession has the company lost so much wedge in such a short period. 

With Jeep, Fiat, Peugeot and 11 other car brands, I’m not sure whether Stellantis is an American, Italian or French outfit these days. But I do know that this particular automotive empire has just suffered an electric vehicle-related writedown of $26.5 billion (£19.5bn). Time for one or two of its 14 marques to be killed off or sold?

And sticking with the ‘unbelievable but true’ theme, is it really the case that – in January 2026 vs. January 2025 – Jaecoo sales in the UK were almost 570 per cent up (to 4,850), while Jaguar found six cars to register as its factories remain shut until the all-electric GT starts production later this year, prior to first deliveries in 2027? Let’s hope there are enough buyers around with the will and wallet to buy them for a minimum of £120,000 a pop.

Talking of factory output, there’s no need to worry yet, but in the longer term there are plans in some influential quarters to replace production-line workers with AI-driven humanoid robots. Hyundai – which has plants in Korea and across other countries and continents – plans to start rolling them out from 2028. The first fully dark or blacked-out factories ‘staffed’ by such robots, supposedly responsible for building entire cars 24/7, could be up and running five years from now in, you’ve guessed it, China.

Did you know you can sell your car through Auto Express? We’ll help you get a great price and find a great deal on a new car, too.