More Bad News From Ford HQ

[Michael Fazzina]

See link.

 

[Rodger Tellefson]

That is not good. I hope there's now shades of Enron.

 

[Johnny O]

If Ford goes under, does that mean our Sport Tracs will be collectors' items? :lol:

 

[Tom Schindler]

Ford Motor Co. said Monday its loss widened to $5.8 billion in the third quarter, <B>weighed down by the costs of its massive restructuring plan aimed at reshaping the company and cutting expenses so it can compete better against lower-cost rivals from overseas.</B>

Maybe Ford needs to invest into a new SUV again.



Does Ford offer a small nice looking car? No! Does Ford offer a small car that gets GREAT gas mileage? No!



It wouldn't take much to turn Ford around. Unfortunatly, those that can do it choose not to.





Tom

 

[Gavin Allan]

What vehicles has Ford worked on over the past 15 years?



They haven't done anything to update Ranger.



The didn't do much for the once huge-selling Taurus.



The Crown Vic is nearly the same as it was in the 70's.



The T-bird was overbloated and underpowered and too expensive, so it died.



The Mustang had the same crappy handling and rear axle setup for years.



Quality on all Ford vehicles has gone back in the toilet.



Great vehicles are made by Ford in Europe and Australia, but they won't bring them here.



Sure-- the F-150s have had some updates, but what does Ford expect?

 

[TomT]

Maybe they need to bring back the Excursion.

 

[Keith Lewis]

They need to bring some of the European models to the states...most of the models they offer over there have a diesel engine option, which is a hot seller over there (that and they have better small performance cars over there)

 

[Todd Cloutier]

Unless they can make a diesel that passes California emissions, you won't see one in the US market.

Ford has a 2.7 liter 6-cylinder TCDi diesel that would be perfect for the SportTrac/Ranger/Light SUV segment. DaimlerChrysler has a diesel that they have been working on for a while that they designed specifically to meet Calif. emissions, and it still could not pass.

 

[Fred]

California Shmalifornia. Let the rest of the states have the diesel and let Commiefornia bite it. :lol:

 

[Mike Ioco]

Maybe Ford needs to invest into a new SUV again.



Does Ford offer a small nice looking car? No!

IMO, yes...

Does Ford offer a small car that gets GREAT gas mileage? No!

23/31 on the Fusion, I wouldn't call that GREAT.

27/37 on the Focus. Not bad.

It wouldn't take much to turn Ford around. Unfortunatly, those that can do it choose not to.

I diagree. It takes A LOT to turn around a company of that size, that far in debt. It has to be a long term plan. It's not done overnight.

What vehicles has Ford worked on over the past 15 years?

They haven't done anything to update Ranger.

Maybe a little....

[Broken External Image]:

[Broken External Image]:

The didn't do much for the once huge-selling Taurus.

I didn't even know they were still producing this. Production is scheduled to stop this month I guess. You're right here though. The last redsigns did nothing for it.

The Mustang had the same crappy handling and rear axle setup for years.

The current Mustang is a home run for Ford. "Nearly one out of every two sports cars sold in America this year has been a Mustang". They just need one of these in every vehicle segment. This has been a profitable small car for them, which few cars are.



Much of the profits in the past 10 years or so came from full-size trucks and SUV's. With the war, economay, and fuel costs, the sales of those have plummeted along with profits. But the automakers still have their big ticket expenses.



The auto makers need to get lean and flexible before they can be profitable again.

 

[Nelson Atwell]

I agree with Gavin. Specifically, Ford needs to bring the SportKa and European Focus to the US.

 

[Kevin Palmer]

The technological advances alone have had to be astronomical.



Can you imagine the cost into the research side of the new electronics. This alone has had to be in the billions of dollars.

 

[Gavin Allan]

Costs almost as much as the PENSIONS!!!

 

[Brian Stutzman]

If they would build a decent product they would not be having these problems. I have a 04 Sport Trac, that has been nothing but a piece of junk. I am waiting now for it to get out of the shop agian this time for the O/D Light Off flashing. A shift Solenoid went out of it 700 miles after warranty. $603.00 I am trading it in soon as the piece of crap is out the shop, I am buying a Toyota or KIA, at least they stand behind thier product. I hope Ford goes under!!!!!



Former Long Time Ford Ownwer

 

[Tom Schindler]

Here is an interesting article about the Taurus.

In the late 1990s, the Taurus became symptomatic of Ford's current ills. The company focused on high-profit trucks and sport utility vehicles, leaving the car almost unchanged for 10 years with little advertising support.



In the meantime, competitors had copied the Taurus and refined their models, and the Taurus eventually became solely a rental car and fleet vehicle.

Read more at the link below.





Tom

 

[Nelson Atwell]

Taurus eventually became solely a rental car and fleet vehicle.

...and then Ford decided a couple of years ago to stop giving huge discounts to rental fleets, because it was not profitable.

 

[Tom Schindler]

That is why Ford is in the condition they are in. They spent too much energy on trucks and SUV's. They totally ignored the cars. At one time Ford had the Festiva, Escort, Tempo, Mustang, Taurus, Thunderbird, and Crown Vic. A large selection of vehicles to choose from. They they went to only the Focus, Taurus, Mustang, and Crown Vic.



The Focus has been ugly since it debut in 2000. It has had a minor facelift, but it still looks the same. So far, 6 years and it still looks the same. Crown Vic's are virtually unchanged over the past 10+ years. Taurus same thing. The Mustang, as someone else pointed out, is a huge hit.



The original new Mustang design had an IRS, but Ford listened to their customers and gave them want they wanted. A solid rer axle. Lets not forget that a Mustang is not a sports car. The Ford Mustand is a pony car. They are not supposed to handle great. They never did. A Mustang is not supposed to compete with a Corvette. The Corvette is a Sports Car. To compre a Mustang to a Corvette is like comparing a Ranger to a Ram SRT-10. Both are pick-ups, but totally different vehicles. With that being said, the Mustang is selling like hot cakes.



People want something cool and exciting. The Fusion is nice looking and I like the Fivehundred. It isn't enough. I think Ford needs to dump the Focus. The Focus does not sell like the Escort did.



As others have said, Ford took the Focus design from Europe, why can't they bring the Ka to the USA? A small car that looks great. How many little cars actually look great? Neither the Yaris, Fit, or Versa look as sharp as the Ka does. That is something to be said.



Ford can turn the company around. Personally I think there is a reason Ford isn't doing it.



I read a book a while back that made the assumption that GM is using Delphi to bust the Union. You seperate the company and let the smaller of the two suffer. You let them scare the rest of the company, then follow suit. So, Delphi almost goes under, them GM says "We need..." and the Union says no problem. The CEO's gets his "bone-us" while the employees can not afford to put food on the table.





Tom

 

[Mike Ioco]

If they would build a decent product they would not be having these problems

I respectfully disagree. My family has been loyal Ford buyers for over 15 years. We've never had major quality problems. Even if there was one lemon, we wouldn't say all Ford's suck because of it. The problem is what I mentioned earlier in this post.

 

[blksn8k]

It truely amazes me how people are so quick to jump on the "Bash Ford" bandwagon. If you were running a company, any company, would you not build and sell the type of vehicle that the consumer wants? Exactly why do you think Ford and GM concentrated their efforts on high profit (hint) trucks and SUV's? Duh! Because that's want people wanted and, yes, they did make more money on each vehicle sold than they ever could selling Foci and Rangers. Why would you spend R&D cash on small cars when you were never going to be able to compete with mostly non-union labor costs (including health-care and retirement costs)? Simple economics. Did any of you predict that Katrina was going cause a disruption in oil refininery capacity? Or any of the other factors that contributed to $3 gas? And if Ford quality is so lousy why is the F-Series the top seller year after year? Get real folks! :angry:

 

[Gavin Allan]

Ford will pay new CEO Mulally at least $20.5 million in first year



by Bill Koenig / Bloomberg News



Ford Motor Co. will pay at least $20.5 million in the first 12 months to new Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally, recruited from Boeing Co. to restore profit at the world's third-largest automaker.



Mulally will get a $2 million annual salary, a $7.5 million hiring bonus and $11 million to offset forfeited payments he would have received at Boeing, Ford said in a U.S. regulatory filing Friday.



Mulally's total compensation last year at Boeing, where he headed the commercial airplane unit, was $9.96 million, including $7.58 million in long-term incentive pay.



Mulally took over as chief executive from Bill Ford Jr., who remains as executive chairman, as the automaker reached outside its ranks for a leader for the first time since 1946.



Bill Ford recruited Mulally after a $1.44 billion first-half loss and amid a plan to cut 30,000 jobs and close plants to help revive North American auto operations.



"I'd gladly pay $21 million to get a creative, talented manager who could cut much more than his compensation out of the expense line," said Brian Bruce, who helps manage $18 billion at PanAgora Asset Management in Boston, including Ford shares.



At Boeing, Mulally eliminated more than 30,000 jobs to make the commercial airplane business profitable as demand slumped. Bill Ford, 49, said Mulally's experience at the aircraft maker would apply to the world's third-largest automaker. Mulally, 61, led the Boeing unit as demand for commercial planes plummeted after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.



Mulally's hiring date was Sept. 1, Ford said in the filing. That would mean he would collect about $600,000 in salary the rest of 2006. His annual salary is more than double the $825,000 he was paid last year. His hiring bonus and payment to offset potential Boeing payments are to be paid by Sept. 15.



Dearborn-based Ford also said Mulally will have the opportunity to earn at least $6 million in restricted stock units, at least $5 million in stock options and a target bonus of $3.5 million for 2007.



The company granted Mulally options to buy 3 million shares at $8.28 a share, with one third vesting after one year, another third after two and the final third vesting after three years. The options have a term of 10 years. The grant price is based on the average of the high and low price on Sept. 1.



He also received options for 1 million more shares, also at $8.28 a share. Those 10-year options vest depending on when Ford's stock reaches prices ranging from $15 to $30.



Mulally was granted 600,000 restricted stock units, of which one-third vest on Sept. 1 of each of the next three years. The value will depend on the closing price when the restrictions lapse. At today's close, the value would be $5.26 million.



Ford shares Friday rose 19 cents to $8.77 at 4:18 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.



Bill Ford, a great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford, collected $13.3 million in compensation last year as chairman and chief executive officer, a 40 percent decline from 2004. He has taken most of his pay in options and restricted shares.

http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060908/UPDATE/609080443