Ford’s troubled transition continued last month as combined US sales fell 10.3% to 170,681 units, a decline of nearly 20,000 vehicles compared with August last year. The drop extends a difficult year for the automaker, with deliveries down 9.8% year-to-date, as the company works through the fallout of several high-profile model discontinuations and a sharply weaker electric vehicle lineup.
Electric vehicle sales were the hardest hit, plunging 79.4% in August. The axing of the F-150 Lightning was the primary cause: dealers sold just 148 units last month, a 95.4% collapse from a year earlier. The ageing Mustang Mach-E fared little better, with sales tumbling 72.5% to 1,989 vehicles. Ford noted that last year’s figures were inflated by a rush of buyers seeking to complete purchases before the clean vehicle tax credit expired on 30 September, but the scale of the current decline points to deeper structural problems in its EV strategy.
Excluding electric models, overall Ford sales still fell 10.3% to 163,175 units. The F-Series remained the company’s top seller with 67,504 units moved, a modest 1.2% decline that equates to just 814 fewer trucks. The Explorer followed in a distant second place with 19,801 deliveries, down 4%, while the affordable Maverick continued to perform steadily with 13,680 units sold. The Ranger posted a notable 18.9% gain to 6,033 units, and the Mustang rose 12.7% to 3,647, offering rare bright spots in an otherwise gloomy month.
The elimination of the Escape continued to weigh heavily on the sales chart. Deliveries of the compact SUV fell 88.2% to just 1,446 units in August, compared with 12,290 a year earlier. Year-to-date, Escape sales are down 73.4%. The Bronco family delivered mixed results: the Bronco Sport climbed 8.3% to 11,827 units, while the larger Bronco fell 8.8% to 12,204. The recently redesigned Expedition is also struggling, with August sales down 11% and deliveries off 11.6% for the year, a decline partly attributed to high fuel prices and the absence of a promised hybrid variant.
Lincoln, Ford’s premium brand, also endured a difficult month. Sales dropped 10.4% to 7,506 units, largely because of the temporary hiatus of the Corsair, whose deliveries fell from 2,526 to just 266. Lincoln has since introduced the 2027 Corsair with a facelift and a new hybrid powertrain, but pricing has risen by $7,310 to start at $46,495 before destination charges. The Nautilus, built in China, was the standout performer with sales up 28.9% to 3,627 units, while the American-made Aviator climbed 22.4% to 1,732. The Navigator also ended the month in positive territory, with deliveries up 15.8% to 1,881 units.
The August figures underscore the scale of the challenge facing Ford as it recalibrates its product portfolio. The company has eliminated several nameplates in quick succession, leaving gaps in key segments, and its EV lineup now rests heavily on models that are either ageing or newly introduced. With year-to-date sales running nearly 10% behind last year’s pace, Ford will need a strong final quarter to avoid ending 2026 with its worst annual performance in recent memory.