Ford will stop selling its smallest SUV next year. The subcompact Ford EcoSport will disappear from dealerships faster than a discontinued model normally does. Automakers often give more than a year’s notice before ending sales of a model. But Ford expects the last EcoSports to arrive on dealer lots in mid-2022.
Convenient but Underpowered
The little EcoSport is a convenient choice, particularly for city dwellers. It is compact and very easy to maneuver in dense urban areas. It’s available in front- or all-wheel-drive. And its unusual side-hinged tailgate makes parking garage clearance a non-issue.
But its tiny 1.0-liter 3-cylinder engine is one of the least powerful on the market. Buyers can step up to a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder model, but that comes at an added cost. Perhaps that’s why the EcoSport never really caught on. According to Ford sales analyst Erich Merkle, sales of the model fell 22% this year compared to last.
Part of Ford’s Mode to Close Factories in India
The EcoSport models sold in the U.S. are built in India. Ford last week announced plans to stop building cars in the world’s second-most populous country. It will continue to build the EcoSport in Romania for the European market but will not begin shipping those to the U.S.
The Least Expensive Ford Will Be a Truck
The move means that the upcoming Ford Maverick compact pickup will be the least expensive model on Ford dealer lots and the only one with a starting price under $20,000 (the Maverick squeaks in under that line at $19,995 before destination charges). The Maverick is built on a compact car platform and has a low load height for a pickup, which might make it a reasonable option for many buyers otherwise interested in SUVs.
Ordinarily, this is where we’d tell you that dealers will often accept a lower offer for a discontinued model, and shoppers looking for a subcompact SUV might want to make a low bid on one of the remaining EcoSports. But with low overall inventories, that trick might not work on even the humble EcoSport this year.
Class of 2022: All the New and Redesigned Cars, Trucks, and SUVs
