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How Ford/Navistar Fight Could Affect Your Health

Quick, think about how an engine dispute could impact you! Well, you may have read about the on again off again dispute that Ford is having with International Truck (Navistar) about diesel engine production. A quick refresher: Navistar supplies diesel engines to Ford. The previous engine design turned about to be craptastic causing Ford huge warranty bills, vehicle buy backs and disgruntled consumers. Mmmmm. Disgruntled consumers. Well, now that a new 2008 Super Duty is out there is also a new non-craptastic 6.4 liter diesel. Ford can't make enough of the high profit trucks, but it is still seething over the last motor's costs and decided to mess with supplier Navistar a little bit because isn't that what you do when you have a hit product on your hands?

Ford decided to debit about $160 million from Navistar's invoices (maybe they won't notice). Ford also "adjusted" the agreed upon price for the engine from $7,673 (pricey little devil, isn't it?) to $6,167. Maybe I'll try a similar trick with my auto loan. On second thought, I don't think I will because the above tactics didn't work for Ford. Navistar simply said "YOINK" and the engine supply dried up: apparently Ford didn't anticipate this. In the end Navistar is getting its cash and Ford is getting it's engines.

Now, before I go further I should say that Ford may have some grounds here. From all accounts, those "camless" hydraulic rail fuel injection engines were very trouble prone. Some customers didn't even make it home from the dealership before troubles occurred. However, with the problems that Ford is facing right now, I think the dispute over the engines should have been removed from the current production. Ford can make up to $17,000 in gross profit on the Super Duty and the 2008s are flying off the lots at sticker. The Super Duty buyers are Ford's most loyal customers, so why piss them off any further with a shortfall in production?

This isn't the first squabble between these two love birds. Ford and International got into some fireworks over an aborted V6 diesel project. But hey, who needs an efficient V6 diesel, right? Don't worry, Ford is bringing over a modified PAG diesel from Europe shortly to rectify that situation.

Anyways, I guess sums things up. What? Oh yeah, your health! It seems that the recent court settlement, the one in which Ford coughed up the cash, didn't extend to the older line of 6-liter engines used to build more than 90 percent of the nation's ambulances. Ford has already run out of the engines and has stopped shipping van chassis. On the other side of the coin, International has plenty of the engines waiting, but as the spokesman said “You will have to ask Ford why they don’t want to pay the price for them."

My solution? I've seen a lot of Sprinter ambulances in Europe and they look pretty sharp. Maybe it's time ambulance manufacturers look elsewhere. It's either that or a gas powered V10 from Ford.