Ford responds to criticism over passenger car plans

\"I wish the coverage had been a little different,\" Bill Ford admitted.

Ford has responded to criticism over plans to stop selling most of its passenger cars on the North American market. The company held its ground and defended its position.

"This doesn't mean we intend to lose those customers. We want to give them what they're telling us they really want. We're simply reinventing the American car," stressed Ford CEO Jim Hackett during an annual shareholders meeting.

Executive chairman Bill Ford echoed Hackett's comments. He also added he didn't expect such negative coverage from the media.

"I wish the coverage had been a little different. If you got beyond the headline, you'll see we're adding to our product lineup and by 2020 we'll have the freshest showroom in the industry. The headlines look like Ford's retreating. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth," Ford said during the meeting.

Hackett briefly addressed a long-standing question: what does the future hold for Lincoln's sedans? He explained the born-again Continental will carry on through its life cycle, meaning it will stick around at least until the early 2020s. He stopped short of revealing whether or not the model will be replaced.