Ford: Reports of Mondeo’s death are greatly exaggerated

Ford has refuted suggestions it's planning to axe the Mondeo, arguing it's a "core part" of the European model range.

A report in The Telegraph earlier this week said there's "mounting speculation" the Mondeo range will be culled, along with the Galaxy and S-Max. With the reshuffle would also come 24,000 job cuts, as Ford moves to focus on the growing global demand for crossovers.

The company has since come out and reaffirmed its commitment to the mid-sized Mondeo sedan and wagon – along with its people-mover cousins – pointing to a set of upgrades coming later this year as evidence.

“We have upgrades coming for Mondeo later this year, which will see new powertrains as well as exterior and interior updates as well as enhancements to the Mondeo Hybrid range,” the company told Automotive News. We've already seen prototypes running around in camouflage, giving credence to that promise.

Ford Australia has confirmed the Mondeo "will still be on sale for the foreseeable future" but, should the car be culled from Europe, it seems likely to leave our showrooms as well – unless Ford switches from the Spanish-made Mondeo to the Chinese-built Fusion for Australian supply.

The talk of cost-cutting comes as the spotlight is firmly focused on Ford's operations in Europe, which announced a pre-tax loss of $98 million for the first half of 2018. When the earnings were released, there was talk about the company's Blanquefort transmission plant being closed down or sold.

A company spokesperson is quoted in The Telegraph report as saying "aggressively attacking costs" is a focus in Europe.

Bob Shanks, Ford CFO, told reporters the "low-performing part of our portfolio represents a majority of our volume, revenue and capital deployed in the region" in reference to the brand's range of "cars and multi-activity vehicles".

Having announced plans to slim its passenger car range to just the Mustang and Focus Active in the USA, the Blue Oval has reportedly scrapped plans for the high-riding Focus, after tariffs from the Trump Administration bumped up costs for the Chinese-built hatch.

MORE: Ford Mondeo on the chopping block
MORE: Ford Mondeo news, reviews, comparisons and video
MORE: Everything Ford