Ford of Europe may seek to benefit from the boom in crossover sales by adding more rugged versions of its mainstream models -- a style popularized by Audi’s Allroad quattro range
“We see a big growth area in vehicles that are a bit rugged. They are not SUVs but they still have a more active look to them,” Barb Samardzich, Ford of Europe’s chief operating officer, told Automotive News Europe.
The look could be applied to any segment, Samardzich said, even on a smaller vehicle such as the Fiesta subcompact. "Put some black cladding in the right places, a roof-rack and you could get it looking a lot more active,” she said.
Ford has said it will launch five all-new or redesigned vehicles in Europe in the next three years that will compete in the “SUV and crossover space.”
Samardzich wouldn’t comment whether the Mondeo midsize model is included in the five. She said two are the Edge large SUV and the face-lifted Kuga compact SUV.
Volkswagen Group has expanded its rugged-look cars beyond the Audi A4 and A6 allroad quattros to include the VW Passat Alltrack, Skoda Octavia Scout and Seat Leon X-perience, among others.
