Fast Fords will survive into the electric era

Ford is committed to making performance models in the future despite the slimming down of the Ford Performance range for ST and RS models in recent years.

With the Focus ST soon to follow the Fiesta ST into retirement, only the Puma ST and the Mustang will remain on sale.

Autocar spoke to Ford of Europe design director Amko Leenarts in a wide-ranging interview on the firm’s future (see below).

Asked if there is still a future for fast Fords, particularly in the electric era, Leenarts said: “Definitely. If you look at Ford Performance, we’ve been bigger than ever: Formula 1, Dakar, WRC, Pikes Peak, Nascar. I can’t think of another brand that is present everywhere, so that must have an influence on our daily cars.”

He added: “If we’re not doing that, we are making the wrong investments. So it’s got to transition to our normal car lines globally.”

Q&A: Amko Leenarts, design director, Ford of Europe

We have seen the new Explorer and Capri usher in a new look for Fords. Where is the brand now in terms of its development?

“Twelve months ago, if you walked into a Ford dealership and you wanted to buy an EV, you could only get one [the Mustang Mach-E]. At the end of 2024, we’re looking at an entire range at different prices.

“It’s been such an important part of where we build our strategy. We have to stand out and we have to, in the end, offer a really, really wide range of good cars.”

We’ve gone from the likes of the Fiesta, Focus and Mondeo all following the same look to this bolder approach. What freedom does that give you as a designer?

“From the moment I took over design in Europe [in 2017], I was challenged a lot from the outside. ‘Amko, what do you call the new design philosophy?’ People want to know its name, and then you apply the same recipe, same DNA on each car. This kind of Russian doll strategy has worked for us for a while, and then it doesn’t any more.

“People are looking for vehicles that tell a story, that have a personality. It’s not a Russian doll any more. [For us] it’s still the Ford brand.”

Volkswagen has talked about becoming a ‘loved brand’ again and Ford’s approach is changing too. Have people fallen out of love with mainstream car brands?

“It’s just a logical era. We came from everybody kind of wanting to copy the Germans as an example of great perceived quality. Before that, it was maybe Italian flamboyant design, or there was a period where everything was aero-driven, and then it went out again.

“But they [car makers] all have to reinvent themselves, because just being one millimetre further [on panel gaps] or having slightly better lighting is not enough any more. It has to be a total package and tell a different story.”

Do you think we’re in a good era of car design that we’ll look back on fondly?

“Yeah, I would say so. Even though there are groups of cars that kind of look alike, the variety is bigger than ever. There are small cars, big cars, low cars, high cars, sports cars; there is obviously a whole army of SUVs. But even in that, there is just an enormous amount of differentiation.

“We’ve got an incredible amount of freedom. You’re not restricted any more. On the face, lights can go anywhere. On the rear, you can see that people are experimenting with it. I would say it’s a great time.”