Ford May Scrap Edge SUV, Puts Canada Vehicle Plant at Risk
- Analyst says automaker has no plan for next-generation vehicle
- Company says Edge remains important part of its SUV lineup
Vehicles sit at the Ford Motor Co. plant in this aerial photograph taken above Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Photographer: James MacDonald/BloombergFord Motor Co. is scrapping plans to make a next-generation Edge SUV, putting a Canadian assembly plant that produces the crossover at risk of closure, according to industry forecaster AutoForecast Solutions.
The assembly plant in Oakville, Ontario, used to make the Ford Flex and Lincoln MKT, and currently makes only two models: the Lincoln Nautilus and Ford Edge. The Flex and MKT were canceled last year, and Nautilus production is scheduled to move to China after 2023, said Sam Fiorani, vice president at AutoForecast Solutions in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania. The demise of the Edge, which debuted in 2006 and received a facelift in 2019, would leave the plant with no new product to anchor it, Fiorani said, citing industry sources.