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Automotive News & Views Is Ford's End Right Behind Chrysler's?
180 messages, Last post on Nov 08, 2007 at 7:04 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Save it for a redesign. Sends negative messages to the suckers, I mean early-buyers, of the 500. And Freestyle. And Zephyr. And Montego. There really is no right decision on that. A mid-gen facelift, with new names and engines is fine, but the vehicles will not get full value for these changes in the mid-gen.  Waiting for a model change would've been ideal. I don't think Ford has time to wait for the right time. I question whether they know anything about the concept of "timing", or "market strategy".  That comparison, BTW, between a Hyundai and Lexus is a joke, and is mere filler. Only a buffoon would cross-shop those two vehicles. Hyundai called in some favors on that one!  DrFill |
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Replying to: akirby (Jun 04, 2007 8:41 am) I have to respectfully disagree with you on this decision akirby. This move is a clear sign of how desperate Ford is for car sales. The Taurus name no longer has a positive feel. Ford ruined the Taurus with the "dolphin" design and then letting it become a rental car for the past 3 years. In the mid 90s the Taurus was the number one selling car in America. Compare that to the Taurus reputation in 2006. I think you are also forgetting that Ford announced they were killing the Taurus. If the 500/Taurus does increase in sales, it will be because of the improvements to the car and increased marketing not because of the Taurus name. Something Ford should have done the first time they released the vehicle. When you release a new car like the 500 and you HAVE to use an old engine because of prior contracts and poor engine development, that is bad management. The 500 was a nice vehicle that would have been a great car with 25 more hp. The Freestyle should be selling more but when is the last time you've seen a commercial for it. Mulally has made some good decisions by bringing over the European models to the US. Of course someone needs to explain to me why Europe has the better vehicles then the US???? I'm just not sure Ford has the time or money to complete the turnaround. They are still a "bloated" company that is trying to get their production to match their sales. As you know this leads to fewer incentives and higher profits (see Honda). Hyundai versus Lexus.....whatever. A year ago I would have thought Hyundai was poised to do more damage but lately their radio commercials in my area remind me of the Mitsubishi sales tactics a few years ago: "Bad credit, no problem", "Extend your warranty to 20yr/200k miles", "Credit amnesty". It seems like their cars are showing up more on the rental lots too. But a 10yr/100k warranty is nice and the Sonata is a good vehicle.
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Replying to: dtownfb (Jun 05, 2007 8:28 pm) Yeah, me too. Makes me sad as an American that the Fords here aren't better than the Fords everywhere else in the world... 
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Replying to: john_324 (Jun 06, 2007 5:40 am) Then dodged the comment that they're not really built here anyway, they're build in Canada and Mexico (so health care cost differences don't exist) and premium-ified cars like the Mazda3 sell quite well here.
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Replying to: bpizzuti (Jun 06, 2007 7:16 am) But now, the buy-American-only generation is dying if not dead as a market force, and there are tons of very nice, loaded "certified preowned" used cars available for the price of a new stripper domestic. Maybe part of Ford's strategic re-think will be realizing that the real middle market these days is willing to shell out decent money for a quality car.
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Replying to: john_324 (Jun 06, 2007 7:36 am) Great point, but they are going about it all wrong. Take the Fusion ads, for example. They have Car and Driver and Road and Track ads saying that consumers are liking it over the Accord and Camry. J.D. Powers also ranked it higher. But the strategy of going after the Accord and Camry buyers is insane. Toyota and Honda demand the most loyalty out of any manufacturer. They usually only trade their customers for one another. Very few defect to domestic brands. Ford should have used these results as a side note and appealed to the other buyers. They were going after 1 & 2 when they're sitting at 9th! Go after 3-8, move up, develop some credibility, then make a move after the big fish. But now, the buy-American-only generation is dying if not dead as a market force... Check this out, says the same thing -- Buy American Maybe part of Ford's strategic re-think will be realizing that the real middle market these days is willing to shell out decent money for a quality car. If I had Mullaly's ear, I would tell him that the best thing that Ford could do to really get back into the game is to scratch profits from Ford Motor Credit for 12-18 months and put out finance incentives (not cash back, which would hurt the brand and used car values) to attract a new batch of buyers. There are first time buyers programs and college grad programs, but Fords aren't well publicized, nor are they very good. Sell more cars by offering something nobody else does. And I mean WAY more than anyone else does. When GM had Employee Pricing, everyone else did soon after. When Ford came out with 0% for 72 months, everyone else did within a week. Ford, be agressive, stop selling us on quality (for now) and start giving us a reason to buy a Ford that NOBODY else can offer.">link title
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Replying to: usedcarsonly (Jun 11, 2007 8:30 am) There is something to be said for going into a fight picking the biggest, baddest, meanest guy in the group and kicking him right in the teeth. |
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Today's rumors say that Jag and Land Rover are on the block and that Ford has hired Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to help The story also says that a sale of Volvo isn't being explored (at least with this process), just the luxury brands. |
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on the block makes sense. As a package, though, the only company that I think would be interested would be Hyundai, and they seem to think that developing a luxury model and perhaps a luxury brand in house is cheaper than buying the problems and red ink associated with Jag/Land Rover. Keeping Volvo makes sense; it's making money, and Ford has access to Volvo's safety technology. |
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They're chasing after the Accord and Camry, but so is the Saturn Aura. And what will happen next year when there is a new Accord on the market and people think that the Accord is worlds ahead? The same happened with the Sonata and Camry. People thought the Sonata would give the Camry a run for it's money until the new 07 models came out, and then the Camry became the front runner. I think Saturn and Ford have a better shot at going after the Koreans (Sonata, Optima) and maybe the Altima. The Camry/Accord just have too many loyal buyers, and a new Accord is in the works.
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Automotive News & Views Is Ford's End Right Behind Chrysler's?
