All Cars, All the Time

Uh-Oh: "That's a Ford, Alan"

I mean no disrespect to Ford's new leading man, but it's a bit troubling to hear that prior to his new position he couldn't pick out a Shelby Cobra from a lineup. The setup comes as part of a story in the the latest copy of Aviation Week where Mr. Mulally received the magazine's 2006 Person of the Year honors. A co-worker at Boeing was showing off his Mustang when Alan asked "What kind of car is that?"

Alan's management skills may be enough to pay the bills at FoMoCo, but the above tale certainly does give one pause. In the automotive industry product is king, you can be on death's door and be saved by one fantastically popular model (just ask Chrysler). Having the ability to pick out the winners from the losers is crucial at Ford which only has enough funds to field (yes, pun intended Mark) a limited number of models. Ideally you've got to know what both you and your competitors currently have on the lots and what is coming down the pike. You've got to be able to look at a car and have a gut reaction: "That thing is going to sell like hotcakes!" That kind of sense comes from a passion about automobiles and burning desire for all things automotive. That kind of passion doesn't need to in point blank range of a Shelby Cobra to know what it is. But let's not dwell on all things negative...

Take for example Ford's recent decision to not restart Freestar production at its Oakville, Ontario, assembly plant. Ford recently halted production of the van but had said that it intended to restart production to complete a full model year run. However, Ford decided that it would focus (yep, pun as well) its efforts on the new Edge and MKX production. Good call. The Freestar was a slow horse from the moment the gate opened and it was high time for the glue factory. It may be true that the Edge and MKX have returned marginal reviews, but I have now seen a few Edges on the road and they look pretty fresh. Why not capitalize on the Edge's early momentum before a raft of competitors come knocking. I'm not sure how much Alan had to say in the making of this decision, but it's a positive sign.

I haven't been privy to Ford's future product plans, but just putting my ear to the ground I haven't heard any great rumblings. The cash cow F-Series is under full assault from the likes of GM and Toyota. The F-Series will get a complete overhaul soon, but can it stay on top of the heap? Lincoln still trying to figure out what it stands for. The MKR concept is bold but the less thrilling MKS concept is the reality (at least in the short term). Mercury isn't doing much of anything other than rebadging. Ford is refreshing some products and has the Fairlane minivan replacement in the works. But where's the beef? Looks like we won't see anything until 2010 at the earliest.

I understand that Mr. Mulally has been making a big effort to sample all of Ford's products and that's good to hear. I'm sure that in a few more months he'll be able to sport Ford products coming and going. Mulally has been quoted as saying "Never panic" and if I were a Ford employee I'd be heartened by that kind of leadership but I'd also be counting the number of rows to the nearest exit.