Fields says Ford Would Only Enter Micro Car Market When It Creates Distinct Product.

The market for subcompact autos in the United States could reach 600,000 units annually by the end of the decade, according to Mark Fields, president of Ford Motor Co.'s Americas group. But he says Ford will not enter this growing domestic segment until it has something different to offer consumers.

"I want to make sure that we come in with a product that's distinctly Ford," Fields told a group of reporters Tuesday on the eve of his address to industry leaders at the Management Briefing Seminars, an annual automotive conference organized by the Center for Automotive Research.

Known in the industry as "B-cars," the subcompact category includes vehicles like the Chevrolet Aveo and Toyota Yaris.

Fields said the increase in demand for these small cars will be driven by rising gasoline prices and the emergence of the so-called "millennials" as an important consumer segment. These are the children of the baby boomers, and Fields says they will be looking for something quite different than the big sport utility vehicles and minivans their parents drove.
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