how cheap can ford get ?

[gary s]

i think i have a right to be disappointed. ford has the nuts to put a cheap crappy ( what they call chrome ) overlay on my new 07 limited with the " limited " chrome package. now i know why it is called the limited chrome package, they are very, very limited as the amount of "chrome " on the wheels. i just noticed that the crappy " chrome " overlay cracked at the edge of the wheel. otherwise the other chrome items that come with this package are ok. it's just that i think most people would expect a true chrome wheel, not this crap at on a vehicle that sticker priced at $ 39,500. !



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[Tom Schindler]

That is old news. If you read the options list, you need to read what they are saying. Crome Clad wheels. That is caused by salary personal and the union has nothing to do with that design...just in case you were wanting to blame someone.





Tom

 

[gary s]

tom, i know they were "chrome" clad, not "chrome" plastic !

the reason why salary psnl makes crappy and cheap desicions is because they have to cut corners to help support the overpaid union psnl and their ridiculous pensions !

 

[Tom Schindler]

I knew you would come up with some type of excuse to blame it on hourly personal.



Honestly, blame the source and not look for blame.



Just because Ford did not fund the pensions when time were good does not mean those that were promised those benefits are to blame.



Let not forget those CEO's that make more money in 3 minutes then the average worker makes in a year. Those are not the ones to blame.





Tom

 

[Nelson Atwell]

Blame R. He designed it. :lol:

 

[gary s]

tom , come on now . 40k and thats the best you can do on the wheels.?

just take a step back and think about why the domestics are in trouble. i did my part and purchased a ford. i could have easily purchased a toyota, or other import, but i still have passion for the sport trac. i probally got it for that reason ( not the best reson ), than the overall quality. also ford was throwing a " sick amount of money " to stay with them as a lease commercial customer.

i think i read in todays paper that once again toyota is chipping away as the number one, and why is that ?

if it is not the overpaid union worker and the " anchors " attatched to them why is ford in so much trouble ?

 

[Josh Langel]

...and people wonder why Ford is on its way out.



I really think it's quite funny to see the commercials with the big F-150 and the announcer saying "Built Ford Tough." They are verrrry tough, just don't microwave them...:lol:

 

[Tom Schindler]

if it is not the overpaid union worker and the " anchors " attatched to them why is ford in so much trouble ?

Overpaid worker? Since when is $50K/year over paid? The media says they get paid $75K/year but my father has NEVER seen it. Can you put the blame on sopmeone else when you had the opportunity to save X ammount of dollars to invest in the future, but you decide to spend the money on CEO's and CFO's? To add insult to injury , you spend your time and energy on trucks and SUV's and let your customers to buy SOB (Some Other Brand) of automobile and never think about the day the sales of those large automobiles start to drop.



Get real! For crying out loud, you could not produce a car someone wanted or a mini-van that was worth a hoot. Gas prices hit 3 bucks a gallon and what do you do? Redesign an SUV while your other vehicles are still the same after close to 10 years.



You honestly think it is fair to blame it on the union workers? They are only working for what is fair. Are they overpaid? Maybe. Are they overpaid as much as the media makes it out to be, not one bit. When a CEO makes more in a week then most guys make in a year, we have our problem.





Tom

 

[gary s]

tom,

your right ! its all the ceo's fault at all the domestics. your right, at time when spending money for redesign , they do not have to worry about the union draining the resources.

we can go on forever, but i want to go watch my nj nets try to grab a win tonight.

i still owe you a beer, a foreign beer that is !

 

[Tom Schindler]

your right ! its all the ceo's fault at all the domestics. your right, at time when spending money for redesign , they do not have to worry about the union draining the resources.

Lets get real here. When a vehicle type, such as a mid size SUV has sales drops across the board and small cars are selling, the last thing to do would be to redesign a sinking ship and let the life boats sit on the deck. That is exactly what Ford did.



When you have a great job that is paying a good wage, the best thing to do is start putting money away for the future. If you do not put that money away and you lose your job, can you blame anyone but yourself? That is exactly what Ford did.



If you take a job and you are promised $20.00/hr hour so you take the job. You get your first paycheck, but are only paid $5.00/hr would you not be upset? Lets just imagine the company your work for invested their money in a lab testing method that is not used as much as other methods. Would you be willing to give the company that $15.00/hr out of your pocket for your stupid mistake? I can not speak for you, but I can speak for myself and I would be pissed and in my opinion...rightly so!!!

i still owe you a beer, a foreign beer that is !

Sure. My favorite is either Molson Canadian or Labatts Blue draft. Both are union made, therefore I buy them.





Tom

 

[TomT]

I paid 19,500 for my Trac. It was well worth it and I couldn't be happier with it but the ST was never meant to be a 40k vehicle and I cannot believe anyone would pay that for one. I don't care how much crap you get on it, it's still a 20k vehicle underneath.

 

[blksn8k]

I think its a little misleading to imply that any manufacturer, including the infallible Toyota, can react to the price of gasoline in a matter of days or even months. That's simply impossible and everyone knows it. Or should.

 

[Tom Schindler]

I think its a little misleading to imply that any manufacturer, including the infallible Toyota, can react to the price of gasoline in a matter of days or even months.

I don't recall saying Ford could react to the price of fuel in days but the Focus is finally getting a redesign about 2 years after the gas spike, but the Explorer, including the Sport Trac had the redesign during that time.



The Ranger is not even slated for a real update for another 3 years.



While Toyota has the Matrix, Corolla, Yaris, and Prius as their small fuel efficiant line, Ford has one, the Focus.



You can go to the Toyota dealer and compare between the 4 or go to the Ford dealer and take what they have.



Ford has no plans on adding any new small cars.





Tom

 

[David J 3]

If you think your Ford is build cheap now, what do you think the future Ford vehicles will be built like? Ford is fighting for it's life, and to cut costs they will no doubt cut corners to save money.

 

[tony stewart]

3/4 of the people who say "overpaid" couldn't do the job for a week w/o quitting or complaining! If anyones "overpaid" its the ones who sit behind a desk, leave work early ,or just dont come in to work cause their "salary". If it wasnt for the union worker the work wouldn't get done!This statement is also trrue for the "lazy" union worker also. TAKE PRIDE IN YOUR WORK AND PRIDE IN YOURSELF...

 

[tom prudhomme]

If it wasnt for the union worker the work wouldn't get done!

Ahh, sure it would. Paying a lugnut installer $28+ an hour is not so bright. Me thinks that's why there are assembly plants in Mexico so they can pay the worker a little closer to what the skill level is worth.

 

[Tommy VanNess]

A friend and I were discussing Ford's problems last night. He came up with a really good point. He mentioned that Ford needs to re-tool. They have been using factories that are from the 50s and 60s. They won't spend the necessary billion dollars to build a new facility and invest in new technology. They still use the old factory with all the old engines etc. I thought it was a valid point.



Since buying the Sport Trac, I have become a Ford fan. But I just can't believe what they have turned into and where they are headed.

 

[EddieS'04]

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[Tom Schindler]

Ford is not using old engines. They do have a few such as the Ranger's 3.0L Vulcan engine, but they are all relativly new.



Their plants, though old, are not all filled with old equipment.



Ford problems are more then that. They offer a small choice of vehicles and they have too many different parts across the board.



I posted an article about Toyota. They essentially have 1 firewall design that could almost be installed in any vehicle they make. Ford has HUNDREDS of firewalls. Different designs cost money.



Ford historically is very good at what they make. Best selling small truck...Ranger. Best selling small car...Escort, Best selling full size truck...F-150, Best selling Full Size Van...Econoline, Best selling SUV...Explorer, as examples. Unfortunatly, in greed by Ford CEO's, they pushed all their priorities on high profit vehicles like the Explorer and F-150 and let the import car makers get the car sales. Once you allow your customers to visit other stores, you stand a chance to let your customers to sway their buying habits.



I was reading in a Ford World magazine, employee only publication, that 60% of F-150 owners have something other that a Ford parked next to it. Of those 60% of vehicles, something like 40% of those vehicles are imports.



That is very sad.





Tom

 

[Richard L]

Caymen,

Nobody mentioned anything about the union or the hourly workers! You immediately replied and said, "Don't blame it on the Union" ?? Who was blaming the union? He was blaming Ford in general.



And what's the difference between chrome plating and chrome cladding?? It appears to be that chrome plating sticks and chrome cladding flakes off. If there is a difference, then the average consumer does not know what the difference is.



Plastic is cladded in vaporized aluminum in a vacuum chamber and then given a clear coat to protect the aluminum and make it look like chrome. To clad metal exposed to the elements it is a cheap rip off, and was not caused by the hourly workers. It was budget limitation that will come back to bite Ford in the ass.



And they wonder why they are losing over $4K for every vehicle they sell ??



...Rich