Ford has done a splendid job with the Mustang. There isn't one thing regarding the new Stang that I would do differently, from design to marketing. And Ford's cleaning up on the car.

Ford is also doing well with the F series trucks.

However, like GM, Ford has relied too much (IMHO) on trucks and SUVs for their money. Now that sales of these have swung back in favor of cars, Ford's caught a little off guard I'd say.

Unlike GM, though, it seems Ford is going limp on us. Mustang's future (as well as performance versions) are all but secure. But the rest of Ford North America's lineup seems lacking and the word I'm getting is that it may get worse.

I have at least 2 credible people who tell me the Crown Victora is going to be replaced by a derivitive of the FiveHundred. I also hear that Lincoln Town Car's replacement is going FWD/AWD. The Cougar still isn't a sure thing unless there's something else that's going to be built along with it.

GM has some really exciting stuff coming as Bob Lutz's product standards, Ed Welburn's design leadership, and Rick Wagoner's willingness to delegate to the car guys kicks in. But Ford is focusing on profit margins....alot.

I'm not saying Ford is going to go under, and J. Mays is automotive's leading fashion designer (no one can top his ability to take a mundane shape and make it look stylish or even come close to his interior styling tastes IMO). But I just don't see Ford taking the lead in anything beyond pony cars and trucks in the forseeable future.

Yet, they still have the perfect series of sedans in Australia.

 

Agree completely. Hope you're wrong though.

 

I kinda thought that J Mays was best at taking a mundane shape and making it look like an A6, TT, or New Beetle.

I'm not inclined to rank Ford and GM relative to each other. I think they've got distinct but similiar problems, and I think that as one goes, so will the other. I know a lot of people still want to frame the US auto market as a Ford vs. GM battle, but that's so 20 years ago.

Ford's passenger-car problems, I think, can best be summed up by looking at where they're getting their platforms. If I'm not mistaken, only the Mustang and DEW were engineered by Ford - the rest were done by subsidiaries. While Mazda and Volvo make some great cars, I feel that Ford's reliance on them is indicative of its woes.

And other than the supercharged Mod motors, I can't think of a single Ford engine that gets me excited. Despite a lot of changes in the market over the past 30 years, exceptional engines still sell cars.

 

well,lets see, the five hundred is just an good motor away from being one of the best sedans on the market(and ones coming).The new cars from ford and merc based on the mazda 6(I think fuzion or something)promise to be good cars just based on what we know about the mazda.I believe there will be SVT versions too.I don't think ford has too much to worry about for the future.

 

Maybe not but I was just thinking this on the way home and I passed a Ford dealership.

It but be equal parts joy and suck working their. I'm sure they have about as hard of a time selling Mustangs as selling ice water to people in hell. And the F series have always sold. But the rest of the lineup...it must be slow torture trying to push a 500 when they have to compete against the 300. Heck even the Mercury version of the 500 is more appealing. I really do hope for Ford's sake the Fusion does become a good selling vehicle because they have NOTHING other than the Mustang that's remotely acceptable in the car market.

 

i'm a sucker for anything diesel, but personally i agree. If it ain't an 03 cobra engine, i'm not very interested (they deffinitely deserve respect).

 

Let's give credit where credit's due.

The F series truck design breaks no ground whatsoever, and even looks like a step backwards in design over the last F series. But there is something to the truck that looks incredibly stylish.

The new Mustang is very very familiar. Not only does it have alot of cues from previous Mustangs, it also has wheel arches that have been on Stratus sedans for the past few years. Yet the Mustang, again, is very fashionable car.

Ditto the 427 concept inspired Fusion. It has a relatively boring shape, but the details his styling department has added in make the car again look like it took a trip to a fashion designer's studio.

The A6, TT, and new Beetle are years old already, and FWIW (heading off what I expect someone else to say) Thunderbird was already done before he got there.

 

Wanna see Ford SVT get some of SRT's crowd?
You just gave them the answer how to do it right there.
I belive the 427 would give SRT 8 more than a good run for the money, and heaven knows they need something to compete in the market with the Caddy CTSv and derivatives.

I also think Ford should get back to the V10 engine development program we saw in the Boss 351 and the Shelby Cobra showcar. If DCX has any incling of putting a V10 in a Charger/Challenger, Ford should have no problem putting a counter-offer on the table. The GR-1 is still on the table for post-gt40 days, and it should have the N/A aluminum V10 IMO.

Cougar MUST happen IMO. It needs to be the upscale version of the Mustang - and everyone here knows that options are where the money is for carmakers, so it should be very profitable as-sold in an upscale market. (BTW, the problem for Cougar as I hear it is not finding a platform to share (that's the D2C for sure). The problem is manufacturing capacity... with the AAI group running at capacity doing Mustangs and Mazda 6's, they are already doing weekends and planning a third shift just to keep up. There's no way you can throw another 40-60k units on that line, and there's nowhere else tooled to build D2C at this time.

I also think Ford/SVT should revisit the Marauder concept. Now that the blown 4.6 Cobra motor is available off-the-shelf, it needs to go in the Marauder. The Marauder with the blown 4.6 for $32k will sell.

I expect to see a five-hundred with groud effects and suspension upgrades soon.
The AWD version makes a great basis for a corner-carving touring car - it just needs the eye-appeal and a little more umph. Taurus had NASCAR and fleet sales pulling attention towards it for years, whereas the five-hundred is only getting TV and rag ads to move it off the lot. I think Ford needs to get the five-hundred "seen" in action, be it movies, racing, or whatever.

Which leads me to my last point... a MAJOR gripe to Ford Motor Co...
GM develops the GTO in peicemeal form and in record time (for them anyways), yet when it debuts, there is a made-for-TV movie in which the car is the star. to GM for getting the exposure and attention of the US audience via a 2-hour commercial.
Mustang comes out with a good 14 month lead time. There's been 2 years of testing with the same bodystyle before the press is aware it exists. A few Mustang developmental team members even have enough time to leave Ford and start their own aftermarket businesses in anticipation of the new Mustang.
So it's been out almost a full model year now (Nov-July), and the only (and I mean ONLY) 2005 Mustangs I have seen on TV have been in Ford commercials and pacecars at a few NASCAR events.
This is embarrasing. Despite the car's great sales, I think Ford has dropped the ball in promoting it. Where are the shows with stars driving and getting out of the new cars?!?! Where are the testosterone-loaded car chase scenes with new Mustangs and Magnum wagons going at it? Where's the passion?
I liked the Steve McQueen commercial Ford did for the Mustang... and I think I saw it in it's entirety 2 or 3 times in January/February (superbowl times). I hope Ford has some plans inside to bring the firey commercials back out... the ones that have you talking to buddies at the coffee pot the next day asking, "Did you see that badazz commercial with the new XXXXXX in it last night?!?! That was awesome!"
On the flip side, I'm about to puke from all the "GM Employee Discount" and "Ford Summer Clearance" ads I have to wade through every time I turn on the tube... cars on lots and in showrooms with people faking happy emotions while looking at them... now there's some passion...

 

I owned a 98 f150 and the new f150 is worlds beyond that truck!! I dont see how its a step backward in the least. The interior alone is one of the best on the market including cars.

 

Ford has some exciting stuff coming too, they just aren't flashing it in front of the media. Trust me on this one.

Guy - I would be a little worried about D3, but let's give it a year to see how it pans out.

 

I dont see this. Ford's cars are looking better and better. We will see.

 

The Gr-1 has no chance of production from what's popped up lately. The GT plant will be mothballed after production stops.

 

Ford has some neat products...aside from trucks and Mustang. I like the Fivehundred/Freestyle alot. And I see them EVERYWHERE! The Fusion should be a very cool car as well.

I agree with Bryan's point though, it's alittle worrisome to me, that Ford seems to be farming out the majority of their car architecture developement to Volvo and Mazda.

And Proud, I'm with you on revisiting the Marauder. Conceptually, it's just too cool of a package to let go. Lemme ask you Proud, if you were calling the shots at Ford....and wanted a new Marauder.....but wanted it to be normally aspirated (say for cost reasons), which powertrain would you choose?

 

Does ford have more then one performance power train?

 

Allow me to make two replies...

1) For the fastest way back on the lots...
I know it would mean a blistered hood at best because of additional deck height, but I would choose the n/a 5.4 with 4v heads and the Lightning cams. For torque - more than anything else. That was the top complaint of rags and gear heads. The Marauder would actually run pretty well once rolling, but nobody could smoke the tires.

Basically, it would be an n/a version of the 2003 Lighning without the blower. Unfortunately, I don't think the Panther platform will accept a manual tranny without major development and testing costs, so it would have to have the auto tranny. 3.55 rear gears in the live axle have to stay for now since the panther platform rests on it anyways.

I think a slightly domed hood - if detailed right - would actually accentuate the lines of the car anyways. Heck, if the buyer is getting chromed 17's, 3" rolled-tip stainless dual exhausts cut through the rear valence, blacked-out grill and trim... what agressive difference is a 1.5" hood blister gonna make?

2) For the BEST way but might take a few more months than option 1...
Grab the BOSS 290 from Australia and bolt it in place, hit the test yard, crash a few, and sell 'em! That engine has great capabilities in N/A cofiguration. I think (but am unsure) that the engine architecture is similar to the modular engines in North America, so it should fit in size-wise and bolt-pattern wise.
That is 390hp in n/a form from a 5.4l engine and it is already available - ready to ride. Nice-looking engine too IMO... Linky .
From the website...
"So not only is there free-revving top-end power but a wall of torque at low speeds as well."

I have to admit though, that my personal first impulse is simply to put a blown 4.6 in the car that was made just like last year's version - no other changes. (but you clearly stated n/a in your question, so I obliged )