Of The Big 2.8, there's no question that Ford has the best chance of emerging from America's Summer of Shiva, uh, intact. But that doesn't mean they will, or can– despite the Obama-like blessing bestowed upon the ailing American automaker by the mainstream automotive press. Tomorrow, The Blue Oval Boyz are taking a leaf out of GM's PR playbook. FoMoCo will announce its new new new turnaround plan on the same day that they reveal some shocking financial losses. To say the press is in the tank for Ford would be something of an understatement, as two of its heavy hitters have already praised Ford for its courage, perspicacity, common sense, speed and general good looks. Self-styled Autoextremist Peter DeLorenzo leads the charge. The big news here: Sweet Pete's finally using a typeface that doesn't make you want to do an Oedipus. But seriously, "Instead of doing a series of baby-step changes over the next three years, Ford will bring its 2012-2014 products forward to the 2010-2011 time frame in a blaze of models and configurations that will set the U.S. market – and its competitors – on its ear." Woo-hoo! While The Detroit News' Daniel Howes is a lot more cautious, his piece is generally supportive. "Ford is taking giant steps in the right direction," Howes pronounces, without waiting for a glimpse at the big picture. "At last."
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I have such conflict with Ford. Their company seems to have the most promise as their cars are pretty decent now (major thanks to Volvo and Mazda) and their crossovers are also decent (same gratitude). But Ford can make such terrible decisions and get caught with recalls frequently involving fire (sometimes they try to hide these defect too – from crooked management and Ford family’s undue influence to make all the money it can).
I like Mulally and he seems to have faced reality where GM and Chrysler are still hiding and playing the games they’ve played for some 3 decades. He seems to be trying to get small cars and try to make a profit on them. GM and Chrysler still just don’t get it. I really wish Ford would go through bankruptcy and sever the Ford family undue influence and cut out a lot of management that presided when the Explorer was rushed through design with it’s tippy tendencies or approved and continued to install those cruise control devices even though internal testing proved fires were a very real possibility and those who let Fords cars rot on the vine.
I think AutoExtremist has been very blunt in its hammering of the domestics for their mistakes. His criticism of the inflated egos in the business (I’m talking about YOU, Ferdinand Piech and Rick Wagoner) has been relentless.
While DeLorenzo obviously has an axe to grind with Detroit’s marketers, I think he generally gets it right, and he deperately wants to see the automakes succeed.
Let’s hope he got it right this time.
PS: His updated typeface is much better on the eyes.
PDL has been consistently fair (unlike some other sites that will remain unnamed) in his assessment of the D3. He has given credit and admonishment when due.
I agree with Zarba, he generally gets it right.
I’ll side with Pete on this one. Ford needs some cheerleaders now, I’ll volunteer as long as I can be at the bottom of the pyramid (if you know what I mean).
I used to have a lot of faith that Ford will pull themselves out of this hole, but recently I’ve been having doubts.
1. Despite Ford being in the best position to survive, that’s still no guarantee. Ford still have to perform a turnaround in conditions where Nissan and Toyota are losing sales.
2. Ford’s best products have been derivatives of Volvos and Mazdas. Have Ford engineered a car from scratch without Volvo or Mazda’s help?
3. Mismanagement. Now I know that I don’t like Mark Fields, but I do wonder why they don’t send Fields to Europe to run Ford there, since it is going great guns (even he can’t cock that up!) and bring Lewis Booth to the Americas division to help do for Ford Americas as he did for Ford Europe?
4. They’ve still got a lot of management who have meaningless job titles. Case in point: Sonia Shrank, Ford Brand DNA manager. Brand should be at the forefront of EVERY manager’s mind in their decisions (a la Toyota or Honda). If you start making decisions where the value of the brand is put to one side, then you end up in a place like….well, Ford!
Alan Mullaly has done well with Ford, but I’m starting to wonder whether this task is beyond him….?
I applaud big bets for big problems. If Ford can really step up the new models that quickly, then they should do it.
I’ll echo PDL, Zarba and Raskolnikov. AM deserves credit for at least facing the music and making some big changes as quickly as possible, which is in stark contrast to what we have seen from GM & Chrysler.
We still don’t have all the facts yet, though. I have to believe that there will be some ‘gems’ in the announcement tomorrow…
Ford’s financial situation may be at an all time low but at least they have the cavalry coming over the horizon to save the day in the form of their European products contrast that to GM where the hell is the Chevy Beat or those other neat mini cars GM previewed 2 years ago. Oh thats right they weren’t seriously going to do them hence nothing on the horizon to save the day.
And the’re full speed ahead with the new 5.0l mod motor coming out of Essex Engine Plant.
Mulally does seem to get it. Just a matter of if there is enough time and money to save the company. Expect a big dead cat bounce on the stock.
It will take an aeronautical engineer to get Ford out of this flat spin.
I applaud a great hire by Bill Ford.
Katie,
Mark Fields was in Europe, sent there to run FoE (or was it PAG?) after his stint with Mazda, but was recalled (no pun intended) to Ford North America.
As for the best cars deriving from Volvo/Mazda, aren’t you forgetting all of the goodies you Brits get to enjoy: Mondeo, Focus, etc? While maybe not engineered in Dearborn, they are ALL Ford products whether built in England, Sweden or Japan and all it takes is someone to kick butt (go Alan go!) to make it work in America.
Between Ford’s moves and what I expect will be coming from CLLC, PDL’s prediction of a management change at GM by Q1 ’09 might be a pretty good call.
I’m a big fan of RW and BL in general, but it’s hard to argue that GM is facing issues that call for some dramatic as opposed to gradual responses.
@KatiePuckrick et al:
This whole contention that Mazda and Volvo engineer all of Ford’s cars thing is not accurate. For example, the C1 platform is Ford derived. Mazda and Volvo use it for their vehicles. The C1-2 underpinning the Focus launching in 2010 is Ford-driven. The upcoming B platform is a Ford-Mazda partnership – not Mazda-sourced. Ford’s EUCD was a heavy Volvo-Ford partnership. The existing D3s in the U.S. are based on the old P2 that was Volvo-sourced, but has been significantly changed by Ford to meet evolving crash standards and vehicle dynamics and stretched significantly in size. The current D3-2 under the Flex and MKS is very different from the original P2 and is almost all Ford with some Volvo partnership.
I guess I am a Ford cheerleader, because I want to make sure that facts about Ford (and generally the Detroit 3 – although Chrysler I can’t describe as anything other than a disaster right now) are straightened up, like above.
As a “Ford Guy”, I opened the post with great expectations – and was not disappointed!
Bravo, Robert….Bravo!
I may actually get back to reading it…
And perhaps we shuold give them the benefit of the doubt until after the press release?
It looks like DeLorenzo’s new crush is Alan. How will Formerly Maximum Bob take the news?
I have a new slogan for Ford: Reborn From Jets :).
From what I’ve read in articles on the Internet (must be 100% true) is that Ford used several Volvo original design platforms and then had Volvo and Mazda spent a lot of time critiquing and revising said platforms for improvements. Outside of the BOF platforms – whether Ford / Volvo / Mazda originated platforms (Volvo and Mazda have done the majority of getting the best out of these).
James2
Mark Fields ran PAG not FoE. PAG still didn’t turn a profit (surprise surprise, Mr Fields). Ford Americas needs someone like Lewis Booth, not Mark Fields.
As for the “goodies” of the Mondeo and Focus, have them! Seriously, take them off our hands! I drove the Focus (twice) and hated it. There’s only one Ford car I like which is the Ford Focus Cabriolet and Ford didn’t engineer that, it was Pinifarina.
Out of all of the Detroiters, I wanted Chrysler to succeed.
If they bring the European style cars to the States without losing the styling, then go for it.
And I would start by bringing over any Ford that the guys at Top Gear love.
This one is way down in the queue so the Boss may not see it, but I have a suggestion.
We already have an assortment of Birth and Deathwatches running.
How ’bout a “2010 Watch”, intended to be a simple running list of things promised to us in that year?
A quick review of recent items here reminds of these topics, and there are certainly others…
For 2010, we’re promised:
– All new Ford products
– The Chevy Volt
– First M/yr for the new Camaro (out in ’09)
– Chevy Cruze (maybe)
– New Porsche Cayman
– GM scheduled to make a profit. Or not.
– Entire Mercedes line is turbo’d
– A hybrid version of the next-gen Golf
– More electric vehicles than Amtrak
– A new Honda supercar
How ’bout it, Boss?
I’ve said it before, but I want Ford to survive. I used to hate Ford due to some immediate family members bad experiences with Ford products. But, of all the “American” car manufacturers, Ford/Mazda/Volvo is the only one with more than one car that I would consider buying (Chrysler – 0 and GM – 1, the Corvette). I love my Mazda6s, think the various Mazda3 variants, Mazda Miata, and Mazda RX-8 all offer good points that make them a good choice in each of their segments. I think that the Ford Mustang is the quentisential muscle car that has returned to its roots. While the current Focus is hardly a looker, Ford has several promising cars just released or planned for release, I guess within the next two years now. Finally, at least Ford seems to get it. Building better cars that people want to buy is the way out. Simply reducing costs and prices will not result in a strong manufacturer. Simply put, I think Ford offers better products than GM or Chrysler, and I want them to be able to grow and build on those products.
Cap’n Kirk will keep Ford alive, woo hoo!
I like Katie’s idea of swapping Mark Fields and L Booth. Cologne is further from Florida than Detroit is, so very clever KatieP – keep MF out of the way by having him in a plane most of the week so he can’t do any damage in Europe who are at least making money.
As for the Euro Fords coming out of Mazda and Volvo – so what, at least FOE had the sense to use them if that is the case. If true, Ford Europe had the sense (and humility?) to recognise superior product and adopt – finally getting rid of the “not invented here” attitude tha Alan is grappling with in the glass house ‘back home’.
BTW, I also like the Focus Cabrio, nice looking car, but did Pininfarina really engineer it, or just do the styling and assembly? Don’t see many around though.
Good article, right on the mark.
I think the cheerleading article should become a series; maybe “Cheerleader of the Week,” or something…and not just for the pictures.
That said, however, I must extend my thanks to you for giving us a temporary reprieve from yet another picture of a wrinkly old man, large-headed woman, or boring old lithograph.
ahhhh. more cheerleader photos. Thank you sir, may I have another?
A whole new range of fuel burning products, but they didn’t see the electric thing. I think they just chartered the wrong course. Chose the wrong path. Thought euro cars would save the company. Those soulless cars won’t change a thing. Just not enough.
Ford Focus, while different looking, is still just the same. Can you get a hybrid, diesel, or electric Focus? Just a fuel burning four banger model? Not even an “XFE” version?
And Ford thinks because they changed how the car looks or where it was built that it would suddenly be a hot seller? Same old car underneath!
RF: “Tomorrow, The Blue Oval Boyz are taking a leaf out of GM’s PR playbook. FoMoCo will announce its new new new turnaround plan on the same day that they reveal some shocking financial losses.
I don’t disagree with your statement—just think it is a myopic view through the lens of the auto industry. This is SOP in corporate America when bad results are announced…rightly or wrongly.
The cars don’t matter. As long as Ford cars keep getting red circles all over Consumer Reports and getting the top spots in JD Power they’ll be OK and will be on top before long.
At a town hall-style meeting this year, he (Mulally) expressed frustration when one employee suggested that making small cars was a money-losing proposition.
“Why can’t we make money on small cars?” Mr. Mulally said, according to two people in attendance. “Do you think Toyota can’t make money on small cars?”
At virtually every management meeting, Mr. Mulally would repeatedly refer to charts showing that smaller vehicles constituted 60 percent of the global automotive market.
Each time an executive suggested that Ford’s future lay in expanding its truck business, Mr. Mulally pulled the charts out.
I am starting to get concerned about Ford. This Flex thing seems like it will be a big loser. Not good. The Flex is a great vehicle for the 20th century when gas prices were cheap.
PDL is full of the same hot air as many detroit exec’s. His ego is about as big as Rick Wagoners. I find him arrogant and a self-important knowitall.