LA PREVIEW: Ford to unveil Transit Connect-based minivan
By Chris Wright | 14 November 2012
 |
'People mover' Transit Connect will be US variation of Europe's Tourneo Connect |
Ford will showcase a seven-passenger vehicle aimed at young families at the Los Angeles Show later this month.
The people-mover will feature sliding doors and will be based on the European Transit Connect commercial van. A five-seat Tourneo Connect version was shown to journalists at a Ford product event in Amsterdam last September. European buyers are already offered eight- and nine-seat Tourneo Custom models based on the larger, mid-size Transit Custom.
The company said the US Transit Connect-based models will be smaller, more fuel efficient and less expensive than minivans sold in the country by Toyota and Honda.
It added that its design - with a high roof and squared-off rear - will not trigger the ‘soccer mom stigma’ among under-30s who are beginning to start families.
Ford's head of global engineering Hau Thai-Tang said: “Many of them grew up in the back of a minivan. Historically, different cohort groups tend to reject what they're familiar with. We think that's another reason a product like this would be appealing to them."
Ford has been selling the Turkish-built Transit Connect in the US since 2009 as a commercial vehicle with about 35,000 in sales a year. The people-mover version will go on sale by the end of next year and be built in Valencia, Spain.
Minivan sales in the US peaked in 2000 at just over 1.3m and have since halved. Ford stopped production of its Freestar minivan in 2007, turning its focus to crossovers such as the Flex and the Edge and SUVs like the Escape and the Explorer.
Analysts say that minivan sales slowed due to a social view that it signals the driver has lost his or her individuality after becoming a parent, such distaste is acute among the younger generation known as the Millenials.
Sectors: Vehicle manufacturers, Vehicle product & design
Companies: Ford, Toyota, Honda
View next/previous articles
14 Nov 2012 -
Currently reading -
LA PREVIEW: Ford to unveil Transit Connect-based minivan
Related company research
Ford Motor Company (F) - Financial and Strategic SWOT Analysis Review
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is one of the leading companies in the global automotive industry. Ford, along with its subsidiaries and affiliates, offers cars, trucks, SUVs and many other products and services to automotive consumers across six continent...
Ford Motor Company - SWOT, Strategy and Corporate Finance Report
Ford Motor Company - SWOT, Strategy and Corporate Finance Report, is a source of comprehensive company data and information. The report covers the company’s structure, operation, SWOT analysis, product and service offerings, detailed financials, and ...
Datamonitor's Ford Motor Company - SWOT Analysis company profile is the essential source for top-level company data and information. Ford Motor Company - SWOT Analysis examines the company’s key business structure and operations, history and products...
Related articles
BRAZIL: Fiat, adding Jeep, raises investments to $7.5bn by 2016
While visiting Brazil recently, Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne told president Dilma Rousseff the automaker would spend an extra US$4.5bn in her country in 2013-2016, much of it to relaunch the Jeep brand.
Q&A with Lear Corporation: Review of vehicle seating
Back in the 1970s, a car seat was a functional component with few or no added value features. Nowadays, with drivers spending more time in their car on longer commutes, they expect a comfortable ride. Matthew Beecham caught up with three top executives of Lear Corp to hear how the seat has become an integral part of the car's overall design and appeal in the showroom. Here, Ryan Burns, Lear's Vice President of Global Seat Engineering led the discussion with contributions from Karl Henn, Director of Seating Engineering and R&D and Mandy Sarotte, Vice President of Global Trim Sales.
Read more on this hot issue
LA Auto ShowThe Los Angeles 2012 Auto Show opened to the media on 28 November. A number of important product launches took place at what has, in recent years, become a more influential event.
There are currently no comments on this article
Be the first to comment on this article