Used to have. Not anymore, they couldn't even purchase a Yugo now.

I think Ford is desperate to sell Volvo. Otherwise, they wouldn't let it go for such a low price, around $2 billion which is 1/3 of what they paid for it.

If Ford wasn't in a hurry, they could've waited a year or two until economy recovers and then sell it for much more.

And as for Mulally's commitment to FoMoCo, he's 64 years old. How much longer he's gonna run FoMoCo before retirement? Another few years?

 

I was refering to Mulally's commitment to the FMC brands not his commitment. He has stated all along that the Ford brand should be the most importmant to FMC.

The point about what FMC "used" to have is to emphasize how no one is safe at the top (even the mighty Chinese who have yet to sell a car in the USA), everything is cyclical . . . . unless your business folds.

Regarding FMC "desperation" to sell Volvo, please feel free to share details of the sale if you know them. Especially considering intellectual property and/or supplier agreements, as well as sharing any accounting information about FMC's operations after the sale and how much debt will be unloaded.

 

I thought we were discussing current market, not what might happen in the future?

I didn't say that Big 3s current condition will always remain like this and that Chinese economy will continue to improve in a fast speed. But that is what is happening now.

 

I was discussing the whole rather than current, but I agree with the assessment about the current state of the Chinese market, with the exception being that currently the Chinese cannot compete in the US market . . . but that will change soon I imagine.

 

Personally, I'm curious about the after-effects of the sale. How much technology will be shared between FMC and the Chinese and for how long?

 

the sheeple... LOL

all busy with their lives not paying attention and find themselves under a dictator... again...

 

Regardless of any sharing agreement, you know the ChiCom's are going to reverse engineer and steal stuff anyway. I mean they have such a good trade reputation and all...

 

But they'll only steal the cheap stuff that's easy to copy...

 

My wife had a 240, a 850, and now a C70. The have all been great. Having Ford backing Volvo was a plus for us on product confidence. With Ford out of the picture we feel disappointed and a bit apprehensive to say the least.

 

While I think Volvo has potential I think the reality is that the brand is going to take an enormous amount of money and a meaningful amount of time to reach that potential. Given the fact that Ford has three other brands that need addressing before Volvo the question then becomes what are the immediate or short term benefits of keeping Volvo? The answer? There aren't many....in fact I'm not certain that there are any.

Why? I would argue that the real question is, what does Volvo really offer Ford right now? Folks often like to mention platforms but the truth is that Volvo has benefited far more from using Ford derived platforms than Ford ever has from using Volvo engineered units. EUCD and C1 are at their core Ford platforms despite the hype, and both are world class. On the other hand the Volvo D3/P2 platform was only adopted by Ford as a cost saving move and, while not bad, the platform is arguably the new Taurus' biggest shortcoming. Put more simply, the Taurus would almost certainly be an even better car right now were it on a wholly Ford designed platform. Without doubt D3/P2 is on nothing like the same level as EUCD or C1.

Engine development isn't a bonus here either with Volvo's newest engine design, the SI6, proving to be a major disappointment. Looks at the strategy over the course of the last few years and what you will notice is a bevy of relatively new Mazda and Volvo engine designs which have been quickly replaced by vastly superior Ford engines either in part or in whole. The SI6 ultimately proved to be impressive only in terms of packaging, and less than three years later Ford was already discussing the possibility of nixing that design entirely and using the new Ford 'Cyclone 'V6 in Volvo cars.

None of this can be blamed upon the brand, Ford should have taken the time to better realize exactly what they were buying when they acquired Volvo. And again, Volvo has potential. That said, in the here and now I think it is pretty difficult to argue that Ford is losing anything by selling Volvo while Volvo is absolutely better off for having been owned by Ford. Ultimately, I think that says more about who will lose more when the brands part ways.