Ford's plan to attack sales challenges ahead depends on key vehicles

Ford is preparing for the fourth quarter with dealers asking for more inventory of F-Series pickups and the Mach-E electric vehicle, as the company works to recover from production disruptions affecting the F-150. Ford reported U.S. new car sales down 6.6% year over year from the third quarter and said total third-quarter sales were 509,764 vehicles, essentially flat versus the prior period after excluding the end of Escape and Lincoln Corsair production. Unadjusted, the decline is sharper: Ford brand sales fell 6% to 490,276, and Lincoln dropped 18% to 19,488. Through September, Ford sold 1,516,279 vehicles, down 8.6%. Ford cited paused F-150 output at Dearborn and intermittent pauses in Missouri.