Ford has announced its first-quarter sales for 2024, posting a modest 5.7-percent increase overall versus 2023. Things look good on the surface, but a deeper dive reveals some interesting trends. And frankly, we'd be shocked if there isn't a little bit of concern swirling around Ford headquarters right now.
The Bronco and Mustang are trending downward. The Bronco is way off the mark, sliding 25.8 percent with 24,066 sales compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, the Jeep Wrangler stepped up to 38,308 units sold for 2024 so far, a very minor 1-percent increase. It firmly establishes the Wrangler as the sales leader in this niche off-road segment.
Gallery: 2024 Ford Bronco Raptor Code Orange Package
Ford Mustang sales aren't down nearly as much, but they're still 6.8 percent off last year's pace, or 13,707 pony cars. It's not at risk of losing the top spot, obviously, as the Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger are dead. That being said, Dodge still sold 9,737 Challengers this year so far. It's not that far behind the Mustang, a vehicle that's still young in its current generation. Furthermore, Mustang sales have largely declined in recent years to the lowest they've ever been.
Truck news is usually good for Ford, but not this time. F-Series sales are down 10.2 percent, with 152,943 pickups sold so in 2024 so far. It's easily enough to top the Chevy Silverado's 129,987 units sold. The poor Ranger, however, is languishing at the bottom of the leaderboards. Just 1,918 of Ford's midsize trucks found homes.
There is a major caveat to both F-Series and Ranger sales, of course. A facelifted F-150 only reached dealerships in March, so it's reasonable to believe buyers were waiting for the latest version. Similarly, the next-generation Ranger also arrived in March, replacing the outgoing model that was over 10 years old. Q2 sales will reveal how buyers feel about the new trucks.
The real gain is coming from Ford's crossovers. The Edge jumped up 73.3 percent with 35,157 sold for the period. The Escape also had a 73-percent increase, reaching 36,595 sales. There's some terrific irony here, because the Edge is dead after 2024 and rumors point to the Escape being killed after 2025. There's also the Ford Maverick, which had 39,061 sales in the first quarter. That's an 81.9-percent increase for the tiny truck. The big Expedition's sales also increased by 11.4 percent.
In short, mainstream SUVs and the Maverick are doing some heavy lifting right now, but EVs are holding on, too. The F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E, and E-Transit combined for an 86-percent increase in electric sales, led by the Mach-E at 9,589 units. Ford sold 7,743 Lightnings, with 2,891 E-Transits rounding out the group. With electric production already scaled back at Ford, it'll be interesting to see how Q2 EV sales compare to hybrid and combustion models.
