# Ford is Mostly Leaving the Car Business

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-is-mostly-leaving-the-car-business/813139>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [April 26, 2018, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-is-mostly-leaving-the-car-business/813139 "2018-04-26T04:52:45Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\
**Post date:** [November 26, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-is-mostly-leaving-the-car-business/813139/61 "2018-11-26T18:06:04Z")

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> [@jz78817](#):
>
> and Toyota might be inching in the same direction…
> 
> [6 vehicles Toyota should kill, starting with Prius, Avalon](https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/mark-phelan/2018/11/24/toyota-prius-c-avalon/2075236002/)
> 
> though I’m sure they’ll keep the Camry and Corolla going for as long as it makes sense.

They’ve been keeping the Land Cruiser alongside the Lexus LX for now and they’re pretty much the same thing. GMC is also mostly Chevrolets rebadged with a more “classic” look. But the Avalon fills a niche that isn’t very popular in any brand and isn’t particularly cheap.

On the other hand the FJ Cruiser hasn’t been made since 2014 in the US and I see more and more every day. I think it’s the McRib of vehicles - scarcity makes it iconic and expensive. See also, Mazda RX series.

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**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\
**Post date:** [November 27, 2018, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-is-mostly-leaving-the-car-business/813139/62 "2018-11-27T00:00:51Z")

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> [@DSeid](#):
>
> What will they do with the plants now producing passenger cars in North America (both in the states, especially MI, and in Mexico)? Just shutter them and the employees all fired? Or do they get repurposed for the other segments, inclusive of their plans for fleet autonomous vehicles?

The St. Paul, MN Ford plant (where they used to make Ranger pickups) was closed a few years ago, and the workers laid off (with a fair amount of notice).

But the 135 acres (55 hectares) of land on a bluff directly above the Mississippi River that the plant sat on is now being developed in to condos, retail, etc. Ford will make much more money from that than they did from the plant.

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**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [November 28, 2018, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-is-mostly-leaving-the-car-business/813139/63 "2018-11-28T13:13:37Z")

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The Econoline is still available as a [cutaway](https://www.ford.com/commercial-trucks/e-series-cutaway/), by the way. There are several companies that buy these and add their own back end.

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