Ford Future Lineup: Keeping up with the Car-dashians

 

As the automotive world experiences momentous change, a Nasdaq report tackles the Ford future lineup and innovations as they try to stay on top.

 

Endless Evolution

 

The times, they are a changin’ … The car world has never been in quite so much flux as it is now. Sedans are dying out, hybrids are taking over, and robotic self-driving cars are just around the corner. It’s an uncertain time for the big automobile companies. Uncertainty can be crippling in such a fast-paced industry. Yet, Ford has managed to navigate the changing landscape with ease. A new Nasdaq report offered insights into how the automobile giant has forded the flow of flux with an impressive Ford future lineup.

 

Sayonara, Sedans

 

One of the biggest changes in focus for the Ford future lineup came in 2018, when the automotive company decided to cut down on sedans in favor of trucks and commercial vehicles. Ford saw the dominance of sedans was coming to an end and shifted gears to compensate in a big way. As the Nasdaq report showed, Ford plans to have nearly 90% of their North American lineup consist of trucks, utility and commercial vehicles.

This trend is not just an American-centric development. Ford’s European offerings have dominated the medium and heavy-commercial vehicle landscape. Ford’s European market share has never been higher, reaching over 14%, bolstered heavily by commercial sales. 2018 was a dominating year for the company, who saw their best commercial vehicles sales in 25 years.

Ford has no plans to slow down this sedan-light lineup anytime soon. In fact, it is expanding development and partnering with other companies to do so. This past January, Volkswagen and Ford announced a new partnership to create new fleets of commercial vans and medium-sized trucks. The goal of this alliance is to drive down production costs with shared research and development.

 

I’m Sorry Ford, I Can’t Do That

 

Commercial cars are one thing, but driverless cars are a whole new world, one that the Ford future lineup is working hard to rule. Since 2016, the automaker has worked on a host of autonomous technologies in the hope of putting out fully autonomous vehicles by 2021. Ford wants to tackle the booming ride-hailing world and tackle giants like Uber by cutting out the middleman: the driver.

The first hint of this dream became a reality when Ford released Co-Pilot 360 in 2018. The technology suite remains one of the most impressive driver-assistance programs on the market. Automatic emergency braking, lane keeping and blind spot information systems are just some of the amazing features already available to drivers, with more in development.

Communication between driverless vehicles is a critical component of any future autonomous fleets, and Ford is taking no chances in this field. By 2022, the automotive company aims to include a new cellular service to connect cars with one another, dubbed C-V2X. The hope is that C-V2X will compliment the senses of the vehicles already provided by advanced LiDAR, radar and camera sensors to create cars that are more proactive than reactive.

Currently the carmaker hopes to have the first at-scale operations on the road between 2020 and 2022, alongside deployment of similar driver-assistance developments for consumers. Not content to simply provide taxis, Ford continues to explore partnerships with consumer giants such as Walmart and Postmates to provide delivery services.

 

Swapping Gas Tanks for Batteries

 

Autonomous vehicles may be in the future, but electric vehicles are already here in a big way. Ford has been at the forefront of hybrid and electric vehicle development and plans to increase their efforts to take over this energizing field with their future lineup.

Billions are being thrown at the electric field, with Ford pledging $11 billion towards research and development by 2022. While other car companies are putting out hybrids or electrics at a painfully slow pace, Ford plans to go big, with 40 electrified vehicles planned by that same year.

Partnerships are being produced in this field as well. Ford announced in April that it would work with Rivian on a $500 million electrified vehicle project. The two companies plan to create a brand-new, cutting-edge fully electric vehicle to add to Ford’s growing collection.

 

If you’re ready to get a taste of the Ford future lineup, check out our selection at Flagship Ford!

 

Tags: battery, commercial, electric, EV, Ford, future, hybrid, innovation, lineup, sedan, truck
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