Ford says it plans to cut $14 billion in costs and eliminate unprofitable models as it works to prepare for a fast-changing future.
Specifically, over the next five years Ford will reduce its spending on materials by $10 billion, and engineering costs by $4 billion.
These plans were revealed in a presentation for investors by Ford’s new Chief Executive Jim Hackett, who took over from former CEO Mark Fields in May.
The company plans to focus more attention on electric vehicles and dial back the number of gasoline-powered engines it offers. But Ford doesn’t expect electric cars to take over any time. Hackett’s presentation indicated that the company expects internal combustion cars to share the market with electric cars and plug-in hybrids as late as 2030.
The automaker also said it doesn’t plan to roll out lots of new all-electric models. Instead, it will offer more electric and hybrid versions of existing models rather engineering all-new cars.
Ford has created a new internal group, Team Edison, to focus on developing electric cars.
The automaker will also streamline its products by reducing the number of option packages that it offers on its cars and SUVs. Ford also plans to reduce the amount of time it takes to change over to new and redesigned models by 25%, Hackett said.
