Ford’s European division has announced it will skip this year’s edition of the biennial Paris Auto Show.
The decision comes as a surprise. While it’s not unusual for car makers to skip smaller events like next week’s Chicago show, the Paris show is one of the biggest events of its kind in Europe. However, the Blue Oval told industry trade journal Automotive News that the Paris Auto Show “doesn’t fit with its launch schedule.”
“It’s about picking the right place and the right way to deliver your news, and Paris didn’t hit the sweet spot,” explained a spokesman for Ford’s European division.
There’s no word on whether the decision is linked to Ford of Europe’s recently-announced restructuring plan. The regional division finally returned to profitability in 2015, but it closed three of its factories over the past couple of years and it’s preparing to ax a number of nameplates that aren’t profitable enough.
Having a presence at an auto show is exceptionally expensive for car makers, but Ford will nonetheless trek out to the Geneva Auto Show that will open its doors in less than a month. On the other hand, BMW’s MINI division has confirmed it will skip the Geneva show for cost reasons, and Volvo will also sit out Paris because it decided to limit its annual presence to one major auto show per region.
Note: Ford Ka pictured.
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