Ford’s August sales report delivered plenty of body blows to the company, with sales trending downward across much of its model range, including its pickup trucks.

However, a similar slump in SUV sales is painting a critical picture of Ford, and it’s the latest sign of things not being well in Dearborn.

Stumbling SUV sales come at a bad time for Ford

While a 10.9% slump in F-Series sales is nothing to write home about, the SUV side of the business was down 25%, which is a bigger problem for the company to solve. The company recently invested massive sums of money into SUVs and other utilities in an attempt to maximize its presence in a hotly contested segment.

However, the loss of the entry-level Ford Escape caused an unforeseen ripple effect in Ford dealerships. Without the Escape to create an entry point into Ford’s utility range, the burden was shouldered instead by more expensive models like the Explorer and Bronco. These two models couldn’t replicate the reach the Escape had, and all of that unsold inventory is now piling up at dealerships across the country. Ford’s tally of 55,032 SUVs last month represents a 24.8% decline from August 2025.

Meanwhile, the loss of the Federal EV Tax Credit and other factors have caused sales of the Mustang Mach-E to freefall, with similar inventory problems popping up for that model as well.

Ford is also feeling the pain from tariffs

In addition to facing a potential glut of unsold inventory across multiple nameplates, the Bronco Sport is also exposing Ford to another problem: tariffs. The Bronco Sport is built in Mexico, and the country is the subject of beefed-up tariffs that were levied by the Trump administration.

As a result, the Bronco Sport’s profit potential has been eroding in the face of these tariffs, and this might force Ford to raise prices, which will undoubtedly make the problem of excess inventory even worse. To sum things up, the Bronco Sport currently has 32,300 units in dealer inventory, which indicates production is outpacing consumer demand. The Explorer (52,800) and the bigger Bronco (34,500) are facing similar supply problems.