Ford Motor’s quarterly sales in China increased for the first time in three years!

Ford Motor (China) Co., Ltd. announced its second-quarter sales in China. Its vehicle sales in China from April to June increased by 3% year-on-year to 158,589 units. This is the highest number in China in the past three years. first quarterly sales growth.

Compared with the first quarter, the second quarter increased by 78.7%. After the sales volume dropped by 37% in 2018, the sales volume in 2019 dropped by 26%. This year’s first quarterly sales growth can be said to be a major reversal. .

Among them, the luxury brand Lincoln has performed well after becoming domestically produced. It has achieved month-on-month sales growth for three consecutive months, with quarterly sales reaching 13,800 units, a year-on-year increase of 12% from the second quarter of last year, and a year-on-year increase of 128% from the previous quarter. %; the sales of JMC brand models in the second quarter also increased by 31.8% year-on-year, and achieved a month-on-month growth of 116.1%.

Ford believes that the continued sluggish sales in the past two years are related to the lack of updated models, the breakdown of relationships between the company and its partners and dealers, and the mistakes of the management team. Sales growth in the second quarter was related to effectively addressing these issues. New product launch and localization strategies point the way for Ford Motor's product development direction.

Ford accelerates its replacement

According to the latest sales data in May, Focus sold only 4,480 units in a single month, which is far from its peak, ranking 48th in domestic car sales. In comparison, the Honda Civic, which is also positioned as a sports car, has a monthly sales volume of 26,000 units, and the Mazda3 Encyclopedia also has a monthly sales volume of 7,734 units.

After the demise of the Focus, Ford only relied on one model in China: the Escort. The mid-to-high-end sedan Mondeo also lacks competitiveness compared with the "Three Japanese Musketeers" Camry, Accord, and Teana of the same level due to the delay in product upgrades. Coupled with the emergence of the Ford Escape's "broken axle incident", it is tantamount to adding insult to injury.

The slow replacement of products and the failed layout of three-cylinder engines have become the main reasons for Ford's plummeting sales in China. Fortunately, Ford has realized its difficulties in China and has begun to work hard to improve it. Despite the slow recovery in national sales in the second quarter, Ford occupied 2.2% of the Chinese auto market with a variety of new cars.

Ford’s SUV models sold 20,462 units in the second quarter, which was the same as the same period last year but an increase of 82.1% from the first quarter. Among them, the new SUV lineup, including the Ford Escape, Ford Edge and Ford Explorer, has sold well and contributed to the sales growth in the past few months.

In particular, the all-new Ford Escape is in the stage of steady growth in the early stages of its launch, with sales reaching 11,290 units in the second quarter. The new domestic Explorer, which was just launched in mid-June, has received orders for more than 2,000 units in the first two weeks after its launch, which is also a good start for sales growth in the second quarter.

Moreover, Ford has fully upgraded its Chinese business into an independent business unit and reported directly to the company's global headquarters. At the same time, the Chinese market and the North American market have become the company's core markets.

Lincoln brand strives for localization

In addition to the launch of a number of new SUVs, the sales of newly launched cars under the Lincoln brand are also considerable. Although June was a difficult month for passenger car sales in China, sales have been rising this quarter (Q3), partly due to the strong performance of the high-end car market. It can be seen that buyers in our country are flocking to the high-end luxury car market.

This includes Ford’s luxury brand Lincoln, whose sales increased by 12% in the quarter. The more prominent one is the domestically produced 2020 Lincoln Adventurer Corsair, which sold 6,968 vehicle.

On July 8, Lincoln launched its second domestic car after the Adventurer. The new Lincoln Aviator even carries the slogan "Smartly Made in China." The domestic-spec Lincoln Aviator Avaitor comes in five versions, priced from 509,800 yuan ($72,922) to 759,800 yuan ($108,683), which means its starting price is 119,000 yuan ($17,022) cheaper than the imported version.

Compared with similar products such as Audi Q7, BMW X5 and Mercedes-Benz GLE, it is more cost-effective.

In order to cater to the preferences of Chinese consumers, the Lincoln Aviator is specially equipped with user-friendly features such as a black floating sunroof and a 12.8-inch console touch screen.

In addition to domestically produced models, Ford Motor Company issued a statement saying that the combination of American history and popular culture embodied in the Lincoln Continental has inspired the expectations of Chinese consumers.

And as the full-size premium sedan market continues to decline in the United States, the company plans to stop producing the Lincoln luxury sedan Lincoln Continental at the end of 2020, but the Lincoln Continental will continue to be launched in China in 2021.

JMC and Changan help Ford sales get back on track

JMC, in which Ford has a stake, sells Ford-branded SUVs and trucks as well as Jiangling-branded commercial vehicles, according to a document in early July Zhong said that Jiangling Motors sold 39,192 vehicles in June, a year-on-year increase of 67%. Sales volume in the second quarter reached 80,224 units, a year-on-year increase of 33.8%, setting a sales record for the same period in JMC's history.

The Ford brand contributed significantly to the sales growth. The Ford Transit lineup sold 15,007 commercial vehicles, an increase of 60.9%.

Changan Ford’s sales are currently mainly carried out through the National Sales and Service Organization (NDSD). After the epidemic, they recovered quickly with the launch of new models. In the second quarter, they sold 57,461 vehicles, a month-on-month increase of 43.7%, of which In June, it increased by 7.7% year-on-year, and cumulative sales in the first half of the year increased by 8.7% year-on-year. Changan Ford, which has been declining in the past two years, achieved a breakthrough in the second quarter of this year.

It can be seen that not only Ford Motor (China), but also its partners have achieved a sales reversal in the second quarter. Although it is not as good as the peak period, it also clarifies the future development direction.

Ford has seen the development potential of domestically produced models from domestically produced cars such as Explorer and Corsair. It hopes to seize the current upward momentum in the Chinese automobile market and accelerate the launch of new products and localization. ization strategy.

Ford has formed an SUV product portfolio including Rui Ji, Ruijie, Explorer, Escape, Territory S, etc., and has continued to enrich it, increasing the launch of localized products to better fit the needs of consumers. Chinese consumer preferences.

According to the plan announced by Ford Motor, by the end of 2025, Ford will launch more than 50 new models in China, including 8 new SUV models and at least 15 electric models of Ford and Lincoln brands.

Written by Zhao Yang

Editor-in-Chief Sun Chen

Picture Network

This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent Automobile home’s point of view.