Hollywood_North GT

While J Mays blabs on about creating a cohesive global design language for Ford in another six years, it seems unlikely that the company will retain enough solvency to last six more years if steps aren't taken immediately.

Meanwhile, Ford HAS the product right NOW, and I can't figure out what the hell they're waiting for! For things to get worse, I guess.

As good as the Fusion is, the Mondeo is several notches better. Check out this new Flash site showcasing one of Ford's best new products.

I really think Ford ought to adopt the kinetic design language for the majority of its cars here AND in Europe, and maintain the three-bar grille for its trucks, SUVs and crossovers in North America. Then, of course, it can retain a few stand-alone specialty vehicles like Mustang, which have enough history and global recognition to maintain their own individual design language.

Heck, even Ford's websites in Europe are better designed and more sophisticated than the gimmickry we get over here. I guess they can afford to spend the money on them because Ford is the number one selling brand in the UK. Gee, I wonder why that is? Maybe 'cause they build cars people actually want to buy?

jsaylor

Bringing Mondeo over wont fix Ford's woes here, and ironically the Fusion that car would replace is the vehicle telling us why this is true. Whatever else people here may rant over monetarily speaking the Fusion reprsents a fantastic deal. The exterior design is easily better than average for the class with both safety and initial quality being very good. The drive is better than average as well with the cars only serious shortcomings being a somewhat under-achieving V6, some chintzy interior bits, and an oddly layed out center stack. That is a relatively short list, and the fact that Ford had to drop cash onto the hood of such a surprisingly well executed, relatively low volume sedan with a price already in the realm of the blue light special should be telling us all something.

But for the sake of argument let us say that those shortcomings are the source of the Fusions woes. In that case dropping the 3.5L V6 and an improved interior in should tune up Fusion sales a bit. But if we use that logic we have a problem, because Ford addressed in varying degrees the same issues with the Five Hundred rendering a seriously improved new Taurus in it's place...and promptly saw no improvement in sales volume for their trouble.

How could this be? is the car that bad? No, the new Taurus is a marvel on the road with the higway ride coming amazingly close to Lexus LS territory and likely beating what the ES can muster. And the sales volume of vehicles like the Camry, as well as the popularity of the Lexus brand, tells us that there are literally millions of people out there who desire exactly that in their transportation. So what gives?

What can Mondeo bring to the table on top of this that would double Fusions sales and give Ford a car which is competitive with the Accord and Camry in sales volume? The answer is simple....nothing. Because as competent as the Mondeo is it, like the Fusion and Taurus, fits squarely into the plain vanilla class of transportation. And if Joe and Jenny consumer want plain vanilla in this day and age they are going to look to the land of the rising sun for it far more often than not. And importing a racier, richer grade of French vanilla over to replace the vanilla bean you already offer isn't going to make an ounce of difference, particularly not in the near future.

The unfortunate thing is that the American consumer has been telling the Big Three what they want from them for years now. They were telling them when truck based SUV's were selling in ridiculous numbers less than a decade ago, they were telling them when the 300 was an out of the gate runaway hit, they've told them that every year that the F150 has been the best selling vehicle in America, and they are still telling them what they want every year the Mustang sells in numbers coupes aren't supposed to be able to sell in any more. How nobody in Detroit can get the message is beyond me.

Mulally needs to be yanked, and not because he wont bring the Mondeo over here as a mainstream Ford offering, but because he probably will. And while he has had more than a few success stories to his credit J. Mays is just too unpredictable to be running the whole show, he needs to be shown the door as well.

Hollywood_North GT

Yes it should. But I'm not convinced you've yet grasped what that something is.

That's right. And why do you suppose that is? I'll tell you. Because Ford needs to furnish cars people want to buy.

Personally, I don't care if they build them in North America, import them from overseas, or pull them out of their a$$...but they've got to do something and do it NOW. Because today IS tomorrow, and they're moving too slowly.

I've said many times in the past that Ford needs to get out of the business of building concept cars, and start building real cars. The Lincoln MKR is a brilliant looking vehicle, that if properly executed, would sell...and raise the brand's profile. The current Cadillac CTS proves there is an appetite for a well designed, compact sport luxury sedan from America.

Ford needs an ethos of beating the competition in every market segment if they're to survive. That can't happen with anemic leadership and beancounters standing over the shoulders of designers and engineers at every phase of development.

jsaylor

Obviously I agree since I said as much. The difference is that you look at cars like the Mondeo and see a vehicle that will remedy the issue and that simply isn't the case. The Mondeo brings nothing to the table that the Fusion doesn't, it just does all of those things a little better than the Fusion and puts a European spin on the equation.

And in a nutshell that is the problem. European flair or not the Mondeo is effectively a really, really nice Accord. And American consumers who want an Accord or Camry are, by and large, going to go to Honda or Toyota for it and nothing Ford can do in the short term will change that. So the question is how does Ford build a vehicle that isn't the same basic thing as an Accord or Camry and which will attract consumers.

Realistically they aren't moving at all since none of the solutions I've heard from either camp (Ford or Gm) will do anything more than save the company from bankruptcy at best, and frankly I doubt that any of the plans I've yet heard can even do that. As for not caring where they are built......a little trivia. Easily the most successful cars from the big three during the course of this century have been the 300, the CTS, the Mustang, and the Corvette. What do these all have in common?

All of them are distinctively American, being both designed and built here in the states (the 300 has some fairly serious MB bits in it but the average consumer had no idea and that likely helped it's case) and all of them are RWD. They are also all rolling statements of what each brand really represents to enthusiasts and the public in general when those brands are doing what they do best. Further, during the SUV craze virtually all of the best selling SUV models had a few things in common. They were all American branded vehicles, built and designed in America, that were rolling billboards of what Detroit does when they aren't chasing the Japanese or the Germans. They all also happened to be RWD with a heavy emphasis on AWD availability. This isn't complicated.

That internet pundits are ignoring the above surprises me not in the least. That CEO's apparently continue to ignore the above no longer surprises me either, although I am amazed that a company will pay a man who can ignore something as blatantly obvious as the above a seven figure income.
I could hire a one armed monkey to ignore the obvious.

The MKR is okay, certainly far better than anyything Lincoln actually plans to build, but it is needlessly radical. On the other hand the Mk9 concept would have been a great foundation for a Lincoln revival. The CTS is superb, unfortunately I have as yet seen GM state that they are even aware of why that car is actually doing so well.

I agree. Ford needs a strong leader with wisdom, intellect, and understanding (that third issue is the one killing them at the moment) to lead the company out of their current crisis (I do so hate that word) Bill Ford is very bright, but I agree with his assessment and think he is where he needs to be at the moment to help this recovery. Fields might be the guy, I'm not really sure since he has had a boss of his own to answer to which means that you don't always see possible successes or failures. past performance has been very good however, and he definately shows flashes of brilliance...and that last term is not used loosely.

Mulally.....Mulally would be great as somebody to keep the guy actually running a company like Ford realistic. 'Hey Alan, I've got this great plan to turn Ford around. Now lets sit down so we can draw on your phenomenal understanding of costs, effificiency, and organization to make this really work.' But that is his niche and right now he is terribly out of his element.

V10

This is deja-vu all over again.
Somehow I remember hearing this same pitch a couple times before.

jsaylor

And it is still as self evident as it was when I posted it before. Heck, you can't even have a thread about the GT500 without the same people posting the same tired complaints. If these forums are going to be rife with something it may as well be an issue which makes people think and not simple negativisim for the sake of negativism. Besides, every shred of evidence we have supports exactly what I state above, so I repeat it here for the benefit of those who may not have heard it before.