Ford To Spark Up Line With Performance Models

NEW YORK, Sept 4 Reuters reported that the Ford Motor Co., looking to put more pizazz in its ageing U.S. vehicle lineup, will announce on Wednesday that it is gearing up to offer a broader array of high-performance models across all three of its North American brands, The Wall Street Journal reported in its online edition.

Ford has scored small-scale hits with high-performance Special Vehicle Team, or SVT, versions of its Mustang coupe, Ford F-150 pickup and Ford Focus subcompact, the Journal reported.

But the SVT Mustang Cobra, SVT F-150 Lightning and SVT Focus have been relatively low-volume products confined to the Ford brand, according to the Journal.

The company was not immediately available for comment.

Though the SVT version of the Focus came out early this year, the other two first hit the road in the early 1990s, the Journal reported. Typically, these cars have higher horsepower, stiffer suspension and features reminiscent of race cars, the Journal reported.

The No. 2 U.S. auto maker is expected to announce Wednesday in Chicago a more aggressive strategy to tap what is known in the auto industry as the "vehicle personalization" market, the Journal reported.

Ford wants to boost its share of this multibillion-dollar business, offering high-performance models in its Lincoln and Mercury brands as well as its Ford brand, the Journal reported. The SVT name, however, will remain exclusive to the Ford brands, according to the Journal. The company hasn't disclosed what performance badges it will use on Lincoln and Mercury models, the Journal reported.