Editing Edsel (section)

==="The wrong car at the wrong time"===
One of the external forces working against the Edsel brand was the onset of an economic [[Recession of 1958|recession in late 1957]].<ref name="Warnock 1980"/><ref name="flory2008"/>

Compounding Edsel's problems was that the car had to compete with well-established nameplates from the Big Three such as [[Pontiac (automobile)|Pontiac]], [[Oldsmobile]], [[Buick]], [[Dodge]], and [[DeSoto (automobile)|DeSoto]], as well as with its sister division [[Mercury (automobile)|Mercury]], which had never been a stellar sales success. To make matters worse, as a new make, Edsel had no established [[brand loyalty]] with buyers as its competing makes had.

Even if the 1957–1958 recession had not occurred, Edsel would have been entering a shrinking marketplace. In the early 1950s, when the "E" car was in its earliest stages of development, Ford Executive Vice President [[Ernest R. Breech]] had convinced Ford management that the medium-priced market segment offered great untapped opportunity. At the time, Breech's assessment was basically correct. In 1955, Pontiac, Buick, and Dodge sold a combined two million units.<ref name="encyclopedia-374">{{cite book |author=The Auto Editors of ''Consumer Guide''|title=Encyclopedia of American Cars: A Comprehensive History of the American Automakers From 1930 to Today|publisher=Publications International |year=2006|page=374}}</ref>  However, by the fall of 1957, when Edsels were introduced, the market had changed drastically. Independent manufacturers in the medium-priced field were drifting to insolvency. 

Hoping to reverse its losses, [[Packard]] acquired [[Studebaker]], which was also in financial difficulty. The board decided to stop production under the venerable Packard badge after 1958. The 1957–58 Packards were Studebaker bodied cars using much Packard styling, also known as "Packardbakers". Attempting to capitalize on the emerging consumer interest in economy cars, [[American Motors]] shifted its focus to its compact [[Rambler (automobile)|Rambler]] models and discontinued its pre-merger brands, [[Nash Motors|Nash]] and [[Hudson Motor Car|Hudson]], after the 1957 model year. Sales of Chrysler's [[DeSoto (automobile)|DeSoto]] marque dropped dramatically from its 1957 high by over 50% in 1958. When DeSoto sales failed to rebound during the 1959 model year, plans were made in Highland Park to discontinue the nameplate by 1961.

Despite the presence and influence of the "whiz kids" in the Ford hierarchy and upon this car, the project epitomized the hazards of 'design by [[committee]].'<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/a32380/ford-edsel-history/ |title=Car Culture Vintage: The Edsel Proved Why You Should Never Design a Car by {{sic|Co|mittee|nolink=y}} |quote=Ford had big ambitions for Edsel. Unfortunately, they were too big. |first1=Chris |last1=Perkins |date=January 23, 2017 |work=[[Road and Track]] |accessdate=May 15, 2023}}</ref>

Sales for most car manufacturers, even those not introducing new models, were down. Among domestic makes, only Rambler and Lincoln produced more cars in 1958 than in 1957. Customers started buying more [[Fuel efficiency|fuel-efficient]] automobiles, particularly [[Volkswagen Beetle]]s, which were selling at rates exceeding 50,000 a year<ref>{{cite web |url=https://auto.howstuffworks.com/1945-1959-volkswagen-beetle4.htm |title=HowStuffWorks "1955–1959 Volkswagen Beetle" |publisher=Auto.howstuffworks.com |access-date=2009-05-17 |archive-date=2011-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612150143/http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1945-1959-volkswagen-beetle4.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> in the U.S. from 1957 onward. Edsels were equipped with powerful engines and offered brisk acceleration, but they also required premium fuel, and their fuel economy, especially in city driving, was poor even by late-1950s standards.

Ford Motor Company had conducted the right marketing study, but it came up with the wrong product to fill the gap between Ford and Mercury. By 1958, buyers had become fascinated with economy cars, and a large car like an Edsel was seen as too expensive to buy and own. When Ford introduced the [[Ford Falcon (North America)|Falcon]] in 1959, it sold over 400,000 units in its first year. Ford's investment in expanded plant capacity and additional tooling for Edsels helped make the company's subsequent success with the Falcon possible.<ref>{{cite book |author=The Auto Editors of ''Consumer Guide''|title=Encyclopedia of American Cars: A Comprehensive History of the American Automakers From 1930 to Today|publisher=Publications International, Ltd.|year=2006|page=375}}</ref>

By 1965, the market for medium-priced cars had recovered, and this time, Ford had the right car, the [[Ford LTD (Americas)|Galaxie 500 LTD]]. The LTD's success led [[Chevrolet]] to introduce the [[Chevrolet Caprice|Caprice]] as a mid-1965 upscale [[trim package|trim option]] on its top-of-the-line [[Chevrolet Impala|Impala]] four-door hardtop.