Ford has refocused on affordable vehicles as of late, a move that comes amid years of soaring new vehicle prices, in general. This also comes after The Blue Oval discontinued the Focus and Fiesta in the U.S., with the latter already gone and the former set to go away in Europe later this year, too. We've known for some time that Ford now plans to bring smaller, more affordable cars back to Europe by 2027 or so, but now, it's also reportedly working on an affordable SUV for that same market.
According to Autocar, Ford has big plans to "shake up" its European business in the coming years, all with an eye toward regaining the market share it has lost there in recent years. This strategy includes not only rolling out new, more affordable models, but also, boosting the company's EV sales mix. One of those new models will reportedly be a new mid-size crossover due to arrive in 2027 that will be built at the Valencia Assembly plant in Spain, which currently produces the Kuga and has plenty of extra capacity at the moment.
While the Ford Escape is set to exit production in the U.S. later this year, this report indicates that the Kuga (which is a rebadged Escape, essentially) will not be going away - rather, it will reportedly be sold alongside the new crossover as a separate model line. It will also reportedly be offered with both hybrid and all-electric powertrains, much like the Puma. Both it and the Kuga will allegedly be close in terms of size and share key components - including the C2 platform, likely - to cut down on costs.
In terms of pricing, the new crossover will reportedly split the difference between the Puma and Explorer, with a starting price somewhere in the 30,000 euro range (around $35k USD). Though it's pure speculation, it is worth noting that the Ford Bronco Sport is already underpinned by the C2 platform and shares many components with the Escape/Kuga, making it a potential candidate to fill this lineup gap, though that remains to be seen.
Comments
Adding a gas and hybrid model – in any market – is reason for hope at this point.
And why does Ford think that a Focus owner will trade it for an abominable SUV? I owe one Focus because it is a car. The day I decide to trade that Focus, it will be for another car (hatchback or sedan, but another car). Not an SUV, not a crossover!!! I will go to other brand if Ford doesn´t sell a sedan or a hatchback by then, but there´s no human power that is going to make me buy an SUV or a crossover for the simple reason that I don´t like them. Not everybody like SUV´s or crossovers or is willing to buy one no matter what.
Give us a 5 door hatch back or mini wagon like the original Ford focus
I’m driving A 5 door Focus and trying to replace it with something that sits higher so my wife doesn’t complain, but importantly has no tailpipe.
I think the last line of this article is the most likely outcome – building a hybrid Bronco Sport in Spain and calling it the Focus.