Bill Ford steps down..

Topic: Bill Ford steps down.. (Read 5068 times) previous topic - next topic

Bill Ford steps down..

September 06, 2006, 08:09:00 AM

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14686147/

Hopefully Ford can get their chit together, I think something drastic would have to happen though. Their cars just arent selling other than the puppiesanese engineered/mexican built Fusion and with gas prices the way they are, the F150 sales have taken a serioushiznit. Guess only time will tell..

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #1 – September 06, 2006, 09:51:55 AM

Ford's problem isn't management, it's shiznitty cars. The sooner somebody in charge (I suppose that would be management) realizes this the better. 200-horse dead-boring Five Hundreds and ten-year-old Focuses are not the way to make a successful company. The Mustang and Fusion have been successful, but not enough to offset the failures. Large trucks and SUV's are going by the wayside because of high fuel prices (and because any fad ends eventually), a lesson I fear GM is about to learn at great cost after dumping its car development in order to push development of the GMT900 full size trucks. Ford needs its own Camry/Accord and Civic/Corrolla. Until it can match those cars it will falter.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #2 – September 06, 2006, 01:19:37 PM

Another reason Ford is suffering so much is because of its bad service and warranty departments. People will tolerate a car that has a few mechanical problems as long as the warranty covers it and the service department will take care of the problem. I know people who have brand new Fords that have been to the dealer 5-6 times since they purchased them and the service department cant seem to fix it until the warranty is expired. What kind of BS service is that?

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #3 – September 06, 2006, 01:21:32 PM

Bill Ford steps down

Some other douchebag steps up... :shakehead

:disappoin

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #4 – September 06, 2006, 02:14:03 PM

Quote from: Thunder Chicken

Ford needs its own Camry/Accord and Civic/Corrolla. Until it can match those cars it will falter.

They did it was the Taurus/Sable and Tempo/Topaz for some reason they killed those.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #5 – September 06, 2006, 02:49:04 PM

Quote

some other douchebag steps up...

LOL! That made my day. Unfortunately we won't know for some time whether or not that's a true statement. One thing to remember is, despite any moves made today, it will take years for the repercussions of Bill Ford stepping down to hit the product cycle. Whatever is 'set in stone' for products as of right now will continue to be that way. The 2007 and 2008 model years are completed at HQ. So a new leader at Ford won't change that. He can affect 2009 and up though. So sit back, buckle up, and see where this ride takes us...'cause it's gonna be rolling for awhile...

What's sad is, Ford has the perfect amount of product in the U.S. market. Not too many, not too few. They should be much better off than GM or DCX in that category. And yet we have "The Way Forward" (i.e. massive job cuts) anyhow. So something was pretty screwed up at Ford HQ for a loooooonnnnnggg time--say, maybe, the last 3-5 years or so (?). That's quite a large hole to dig, and it's going to take many years to get out of it. FoMoCo has a pretty good perception, honestly, of what a Ford vehicle is. They just don't get Mercury or Lincoln. So 1/3 of the company has a reasonable semblance of a soul, at least. Now let's work on that other 2/3 already, please! If this guy can do the right thing--build the Continental concept car from a few years ago, for example...and maybe throw in a Cougar for the "So Obvious To Us" crowd here LOL--then maybe Ford can get back on track in a big way, and perhaps start taking back market share from imports. As I said, they're in the best position of the Big Three to do this. They just need product that people want. They've had it before, they've nailed the show cars...but very few desirable vehicles have actually made it to the streets lately. That has to end NOW. Never been a better opportunity in the last 15 years.

I sure hope this guy doesn't end up being a flaming ass in like Nasser. Sheesh.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #6 – September 06, 2006, 02:59:02 PM

The Taurus/Tempo sucked...hard.

The Taurus/Sable is a disaster to own. My parents bought one thinking it was a good deal, well since they've bought it I've worked on that car so much its sad. Its had the transmission go out, Ive replaced both headgaskets, waterpump, ps pump, alternator twice, starter, shocks/struts, persistant major electrical problems, dash lighting out, consistant charging issues, and a overpressuing of the coolant system that I cannot figure out aside from a cracked block(already pressure tested heads).

Its been sitting in the driveway for months broken down again due to suspension issues.

I wouldnt buy a new Ford passenger car for anything. Ive had my truck to the dealer atleast 10 times since Ive bought it new last July. Three times alone for brake failures that resulted in master cylinder/brake booster replacement. Right now Im troubleshooting an engine vibration that the dealer cannot figure out, its a year old. I also need to take it in for cam phasor replacement issues that cause engine ticking at operating temps. That combined with the spark plug siezure dilemma puts this thing over the edge. I appreciate the old Fords like these Foxes, but the new stuff, I dont want any part of it. The mod motors are junk, Ford cannot seem to get away from the outdated 4spd auto trannies, and overall quality assurance is going down the tubes. Unless your a loyal Ford customer, theres no reason to buy Ford anymore.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #7 – September 06, 2006, 03:02:09 PM

Quote from: EricCoolCats

What's sad is, Ford has the perfect amount of product in the U.S. market. Not too many, not too few. They should be much better off than GM or DCX in that category. And yet we have "The Way Forward" (i.e. massive job cuts) anyhow.

Ford is running at 79% of production capacity. Jobs cuts due to factory shutdowns should be par for the course.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #8 – September 06, 2006, 03:03:37 PM

The only "Bold Moves" Ford is making is laying off thousands of employees and closing numerous plants, including the truck plant here in Norfolk, VA.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #9 – September 06, 2006, 04:08:20 PM

Quote from: EricCoolCats

I sure hope this guy doesn't end up being a flaming ass in like Nasser. Sheesh.

ROFL!!! THAT made my day!

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #10 – September 06, 2006, 05:50:21 PM

Quote from: chrome302jr

The Taurus/Tempo sucked...hard.

The Taurus/Sable is a disaster to own. My parents bought one thinking it was a good deal, well since they've bought it I've worked on that car so much its sad. Its had the transmission go out, Ive replaced both headgaskets, waterpump, ps pump, alternator twice, starter, shocks/struts, persistant major electrical problems, dash lighting out, consistant charging issues, and a overpressuing of the coolant system that I cannot figure out aside from a cracked block(already pressure tested heads).

Its been sitting in the driveway for months broken down again due to suspension issues.

Yet my DD ('98 Taurus) has been nearly flawless, it only needs minor/normal repairs on typical wear items like rear springs (typical sag common amongst many fords), maybe tires in the near future, and perhaps a tune up. Beyond that it's been great. Now I will confess that before I got ahold of it, it was in the dealership shop to have about $1400 of work done to it, but I honestly feel that for a 120,000+ mile car the issues were justifiable, both in what they were and how much they cost. I'd have to say that your parents got the exception not the rule. So in a nutshell, I'd have to disagree with that initial statement.

BRB, gotta go knock on wood now...

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #11 – September 06, 2006, 06:35:07 PM

Actually, that agrees with my initial statement, that Fords QUALITY ASSURANCE sucks. One vehicle will be flawless and one vehicle will be a defect, its the toss of the coin which one you will get. Proper quality assurance programs seek to eliminate the occurance of defective products.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #12 – September 06, 2006, 06:44:47 PM

We've got a 200k mile 96 taurus, had the tranny replaced at 150k. Other than that its been fine.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #13 – September 06, 2006, 07:23:17 PM

I've never owned a Taurus, so I can't speak first hand, but aside from the 3.8 version Ive heard nothing but good about them. The 3.8 version of course suffers "3.8-itis" (head gaskets) and for some reason the trannies bolted to the 3.8's don't hold up, but other than that they seem to be pretty good.

The Tempaz might be a POS by today's standards, but by 80's standards, when they were designed, they were leaps and bounds ahead of anything the contemporary domestics had to offer. They had independent rear ends and SEFI when GM and Chrysler had beam axles and carburetors. They had modern shapes while the others looked like the boxes they came in. The only problem with the Tempaz was that Ford let it stagnate. When Ford finally did decide to do something with them they went upmarket with a downmarket car (Contour/Mistake) and the cars were failures.

Stagnation is a Ford hallmark. Look at the Fox Mustang (essentialy unchanged from 1979-1993), Taurus/Sable (1986-1995, then 1996-2006), MN12 (1989-1997) F-150 (1980-1996), Econoline (1970ish-present), Ranger (1983-1993, then 1993-present). Every single one of those vehicles were very competitive, even ahead of the curve, when they were introduced, but Ford sat back and let the vehicles stagnate while the competition vaulted ahead. Sometimes this worked because the competition did likewise (F-150, Mustang), but others it was almost shameful the way Ford treated them.

At least back in the day, though, Ford actually DID develop competitive vehicles. They went all the way (again, for the day) and produced the right car for the right time. Nowadays it seems Ford is content to produce the right car for ten years ago. The Fusion is a decent car but still well behind the imports. The Five Hundred is a joke (how many magazine articles have to call the car "A great chassis waiting for a great engine" before Ford acknowledges it???). The current Focus is already half a decade behind the European version, so when Ford finally does bring the Euro version here it will be old.

...And the Mustang. A smashing success by any measure, it definitely caught GM and DC with their drawers down. It is alone in its market. That is a bad thing, because Ford will let it stagnate, just like they did with everything else. Then when the competition finally wakes up Ford will ignore the threat and let the car stagnate further. I've read countless arguments from Camaro and Challenger guys that state "The (insert concept car here) will run rings around the Mustang when they are produced." The Mustang fanboys invariably say "Well Ford won't just sit on its ass, it'll answer the call of the 400-horse Camaro or 425-horse Challenger. You'll see, Ford has plans..."

Ford has plans, alright. My crystal ball isn't known for accuracy, but I have an idea that by the time the challengers (no pun intended) arrive on the market the Mustang will have evolved from a 300-horse, stick-axle, 5-speed pony car into... um...

A 300-horse, stick-axle, 5-speed pony car. OK, maybe 330 horses. Definitely not the 400+ and six speeds it will need to compete against the competition ($45k GT500 aside). Remember 215-horse Mustang GT's against 275-horse Z28's and Trans Ams? To quote an Asterix book quotation of Julius Caesar, Bis repetta don't always placent, (things that repeat don't always please) and this time the competition promises to be a good deal more compelling than the Isuzu-resembling old Camaros were.

Remeber a few posts ago when I said that Ford needs a Camry or Accord? Scratch that. Like Shame302 says, Ford needs another 1986 Taurus/Sable and 1984 Tempaz. Not literally, of course, but Ford needs those kinds of successes. If it doesn't soon have them you'll be looking at Ford, a division of BMW or VW or Nissan/Renault or Toyota, or... you get the idea.

Chrome302Jr: The Windsors are gone. They are not coming back. The mod engines faltered out of the gate but are finally becoming good engines. They produce power that is competitive with import engines of similar displacement, often for far less money. 300 horses out of a 4.6 liter 3-valve engine is not too shabby. 500 out of a 5.4 4-valve is quite impressive, supercharger or not. The modular engines are here to stay, and that's finally starting to be a good thing.

As for transmission, Ford is leading the (domestic) industry with its 5-speed automatics, CVT's and now six-speed automatics. Transmissions are one of the few things Ford has done right.

There is even some light at the end of the tunner for passenger car engines. The new 3.5 Duratec seems to be quite modern and competitive. Now all Ford needs is a decent car to install it into (or even the will to install it into existing cars like the Five Hundred and Fusion). That day will come eventually, but it needs to come NOW. The Five Hundred should never have been released without it.

Bill Ford steps down..

Reply #14 – September 06, 2006, 08:39:41 PM

I think part of Fords problems are Blahness...other than the stang there is not one car they produce that would make me smile and get the warm fuzzies when I look at it, even if it had some good power and performance. 2 years ago I bought my first import(for the misses) and still can't believe i did but there is nothing from Ford or any other domestic for that matter that looks good and is as reliable at a good price. The sad thing is I have bought another Import to replace the first. The first was a loaded Mazda 3 sedan and that was a fun car with good power from a 4 banger and the interior was awesome and i actually liked to look at and lots of cool options.The second was a step up to a loaded Mazda 6 and this car is great...lots of power good looks (look at Mazda 3 and 6 interiors they are pretty awesome!)and we have had NO problems at all with the cars other than the fast wearing Goodyear tires that came with them. The BS part of it is that Ford i believe has some controlling owner ship in Mazda! Looks and appearance is what initially brings people to buy cars and if you add in power and reliability you have it made. They needsome designers IMHO, Just my 2 cents...