Ford says internal combustion 'isn't dead' and vows to only build 'sexy' petrol-powered cars like Mustang and Ranger Raptor

Ford not only plans to keep selling petrol and diesel powered vehicles but has also declared none of them will be boring.

In fact, Bill Ford, who is Executive Chairman of the company his great-grandfather founded, says the Blue Oval is focused on only making the “sexiest” internal combustion vehicles, like the Mustang, Ranger and F-150. 

While the brand has invested billions in electric vehicles (EVs) and is rolling them out globally – with the Mustang Mach-E and E-Transit already on sale in Australia – Ford told CarsGuide that the internal combustion engine (ICE) will remain a part of its future for the foreseeable future.

“You know, whether it's EVs or hybrids and all their flavours,” Ford said. “There's lots of different types of hybrids that are either on the market today or coming soon. And all of them will have appeal to people, but the ICE business isn't dead.

"One of the decisions we made that I feel really good about was when we decided to stay in the ICE business, we decided to stay with our sexiest products. Whether it's Bronco, whether it's F-150 and all the Raptor versions, Bronco Sport, Mustang, obviously V8 Mustang,  all those things, we've doubled down on our ICE business in terms of really fun, accessible vehicles," said Ford.

“We have no generic vehicles in our ICE line, and we won't moving forward. That was a conscious decision. But we're also electrifying quickly too, so I think however the customer decides they want to go, we'll be there for them.”

While Bill Ford was discussing the plans from a global perspective, his point is acutely relevant to Australian audiences.

Ford Australia has been trimming the less popular models from its line-up for years, with the likes of the Mondeo, Focus and Fiesta all dropped from its local range in recent years as sales of small and medium passenger cars declined.

The Edge, Escape and Puma SUVs have also been discontinued as the focus has shifted to the Ranger/Everest duo as well as the Mustang and Transit line-up.

Ford Australia will launch the new-generation Mustang before the end of 2024 to extend its ICE life locally. While, on the flipside, the all-electric Puma Gen-E has been locked in for our market, to sit alongside the Mustang Mach-E. The larger Explorer SUV is still unconfirmed for Australia, despite confirmation it will be produced in right-hand drive for the UK market.