Why Bankruptcy Is a Forgone Conclusion for Ford Motor Company

[guspech750]

It’s sad to read this.

Especially given how awesomely dependable our Fords have been. Our Marauder, SHO, two F-250’s and Expedition have been flawless minus general maintenance.

I do see some new Explorers now finally. They look great. I do recall there is/was a recall on them right from the start. It’s funny how Ford and GM decided to stop building cars. But all the other manufactures continue to build and sell cars along with their SUV’s. Dumb decision on Fords part. They should at least have one or two cars in their lineup not including the Mustang. And that whole transmission issue with the Fiesta and Focus. How much does that cost Ford in the long run with warranty repairs, legal fees, settlement on top of what has been mentioned previous posts? Makes me laugh when some say blame the unions. LOLzzzz. Yeah. Let’s always blame the little guy even though there is so much more going wrong with the company.

 

[Stink Star]

They stopped making cars because they didn’t sell well. They didn’t sell well because all the cars they made were outdated and shit

 

[FirstWorldProblems]

They stopped making cars because they didn’t sell well. They didn’t sell well because all the cars they made were outdated and shit

The fusion was particularly surprising, damn thing was made in mexico and transported to the US for dirt cheap. I feel like basic refreshes would have kept it profitable & selling even if it was mostly a fleet car.

Lots of poor decisions from the top IMO

 

[LikeABauce302]

The fusion was particularly surprising, damn thing was made in mexico and transported to the US for dirt cheap. I feel like basic refreshes would have kept it profitable & selling even if it was mostly a fleet car.

Lots of poor decisions from the top IMO

Agreed. The Fusion was a great car. If they would have stuck with it and continued to refine the platform, I have no doubt it could have been a player and competed with the Camry and Accord.

 

[Stink Star]

I feel both ford and GM for the most part had great cars the first year they were released. But 2 problems that plague them both are not updating them until it’s way too late, and also Only selling the plebeian shit version of every car, but only having advertising for the nice looking car. People expect all the cool features and nice screens and such, but when they get to the dealership, 90% if the cars on the lot have seats made out of cactus and a 2” grayscale radio with 7” of shiny plastic bezel surrounding it and a half dozen empty switch locations with the blank plastic inserts. Why not just simplify the assembly line and sell only the nicer interior and differentiate the features using software

 

[EmersonHart13]

Sounds like Tesla

 

[Pewter-Camaro]

The security company at my work has dropped Ford as their vehicle supplier because they can’t get cars. They have all chevys now. Also heard a few companies with fleets dropping ford because they usually have trucks and cars in their fleets. Such a Stupid decision to drop all cars from their lineup.

 

[Stink Star]

Sounds like Tesla

They make basically 2 versions of the interior. Greatly simplifies assembly and makes the car cheaper in the long run

 

[jason05gt]

Here's an actual legitmate financial viewpoint-

At Ford, $37 billion in the bank and strapped for cash

Ford is sitting on $37 billion in cash, one of the 10 biggest balance-sheet hoards in corporate America, but with a difficult transition to electric vehicles and other pressures in the auto sector, Ford's financial managers need every penny.

www.cnbc.com

This article seems to be written by someone trying to "short" Ford as it lacks factual details.

Ford has been run by two poor CEO's in my opinion. Mark Fields took a good plan and vision down the drain. Hackett seems to be cost cutting the company to death as evidenced by recent product launches.

Ford has recently gotten really poor reviews on the recent launches of the Explorer and Escape pertaining to overall build quality and bottom barrell interiors. This is 100% unacceptable in today's competitive environment, particulatly amongst two vehicles that make up significant volume for Ford.

 

[jason05gt]

I feel both ford and GM for the most part had great cars the first year they were released. But 2 problems that plague them both are not updating them until it’s way too late, and also Only selling the plebeian shit version of every car, but only having advertising for the nice looking car. People expect all the cool features and nice screens and such, but when they get to the dealership, 90% if the cars on the lot have seats made out of cactus and a 2” grayscale radio with 7” of shiny plastic bezel surrounding it and a half dozen empty switch locations with the blank plastic inserts. Why not just simplify the assembly line and sell only the nicer interior and differentiate the features using software

Simple-Cost. Not everyone can afford a car with all the bells and whistles.

 

[Stink Star]

Simple-Cost. Not everyone can afford a car with all the bells and whistles.

But it would be cheaper to make the car in maybe 2 versions and then simplify the assembly and purchasing of the vehicle. I mean do you really think a navigation radio costs $2500? How about power seats? Do they really cost $4000 more than manual seats? Legacy auto makers completely made up the ridiculous cost of higher trim levels. If they just made 1 radio they Could greatly simplify the wiring and software of the vehicle and just software restrict the higher trim level features. That way down the line let’s say you pay the car off, you can “unlock” XM, Nav, streaming, etc.... for a small fee. or you could do the same for heated seats or memory seats.

 

[Jeffs FRC]

The company I work for just dropped Ford for our fleet vehicles mainly due to the poor reliability of the 3.5 Ecoboost in our Transits, which make up 99% of our fleet vehicles. The last year we stopped ordering Transits with the Eco and went to the 3.5 NA motor, but I guess the damage has already been done. Looks like my next pickup is gonna be a SilverAYdo.

I see the previous model all over the place, but not the new ones.

Previous model was on the road for a decade. New model been out for what, 4 months? lol

 

[sickmint79]

quite a ways away from the company that seemed to be financially well poised to handle the recession without gov help.

 

[CMNTMXR57]

I really think the main problem here is Ford's decision making, with the union being a smaller part of a huge issue. Most line workers make ~$20/hr or less nowadays, and ford has invested heavily in mexico where labor costs are dirt cheap. Hell for a while the starting pay was somewhere around $14/hr for their US line workers.

It boggled my mind when Ford invested over $1 billion in the plant south of Chicago, ever since then all you read about is the poor quality and the botched explorer launch. Why the f*** would you invest that much money in a plant with an expensive, poorly performing workforce in an expensive state. I think they made a major mistake there.

IDK about you guys, but I literally never see new explorers on the road

They are everywhere. My brother in law just bought one. Hoosiers don't drive them because built in Illinois.

Yea, I saw 4 or 5 this morning taking the critters to school. I still don't like that front end with the LED light bar on top.

 

[FirstWorldProblems]

Yea, I saw 4 or 5 this morning taking the critters to school. I still don't like that front end because it has a blue oval on it

Fixed this for you

 

[CMNTMXR57]

I won't argue...

Actually, I liked the previous gen front end. But disliked the rear taillight treatment, of which I prefered the tail light treatment of the first version. If you put those two together (the front of the previous gen and the tails of the previous previous gen), it was a winner.

 

[EmersonHart13]

I only like the way the STs look and I do really like them....

 

[Great White Drake]

Wait, I missed it, how did they botch the launch on the new explorer??

 

[EmersonHart13]

I got you Phil

Ford Botches Explorer Launch, Putting CEO Back on the Hot Seat

Ford Motor Co.’s Jim Hackett and Wall Street analysts started this year frustrated with one another. Sure, the automaker had been underperforming, but the chief executive appealed for time to show he was fixing things. He assured them the redesigned Explorer SUV rolling out months later would be...

www.bloomberg.com

2020 Ford Explorer launch hardly went according to plan, company admits

The botched rollout of one of Ford's most important vehicles was due to a number of factors.

www.cnet.com

The Launch Of The New Ford Explorer Has Been A Mess

Ford can’t get the new Explorer right, Volvo will be making an electric XC90 in South Carolina, the United Auto Workers’ General Motors contract ratification vote is happening, and more for this most glorious Morning Shift for Monday, Oct. 21, 2019.

jalopnik.com

Ford Admits To Errors In 2020 Ford Explorer Launch

Ford admits that it botched the 2020 Ford Explorer launch and says that the problems are ironed out, and production is fully under way.

fordauthority.com

2020 Ford Explorer launch hardly went according to plan, company admits

New Ford Explorer SUV, built in Chicago, had so many quality problems Ford had to delay deliveries. Sales of the vehicle fell 48%.

Ford Motor Co.'s revenue fell 2% to $36.99 billion in the third quarter, partly because the company bungled the launch of the new Ford Explorer SUV.

www.chicagotribune.com

2020 Ford Explorer Launch Not Going As Smoothly As Expected

With problems that require major reworks at other Ford plants after 2020 Explorers have been built, the launch of the totally redesigned SUV is not going well, at all.

www.torquenews.com

Ford Claims Victory Over 2020 Explorer Launch Issues

The redesigned 2020 Ford Explorer will play a major role in the automaker's sales, just like its predecessors. Its corporate cousin, the Lincoln Aviator, is also set to make up a significant chunk of the premium brand's bottom line. Unfortunately, early production got off to a rocky start, as we...

carbuzz.com

Ford Explorer Sales Plunge 48% as Troubled Launch Stifles Supply

Ford's Explorer posted dismal sales this last quarter, owing in part to inventory troubles.

www.industryweek.com

Ford's Q3 sales dinged by build problems with Ford Explorer - Autoblog

The new Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator have been marred by build quality problems and reports of worker strife. Sales of the Explorer were down sharply.

www.autoblog.com

Launch of 2020 Ford Explorer not going as planned - Digital Journal

Ford Motor Company's CEO, Jim Hackett and Wall Street investors got off on the wrong foot earlier this year, with stats showing the automaker was

www.digitaljournal.com

Wait, I missed it, how did they botch the launch on the new explorer??

 

[Great White Drake]

Yes I could’ve googled it but Iid rather support the site by postin you tickley Timothy.

 

[EmersonHart13]

Fuck, you just gave me nightmares

 

[Yaj Yak]

i like the new explorers

all i got

 

[Blood on Blood]

Who will file first, Ford or Nissan

 

[Mike K]

They deserve bankruptcy. They repeated all the same mistakes from 2008 and this time there isn't anything to mortgage to save themselves. In 2008 they had let their car lineup run stagnant and were heavily invested in trucks. When the market crashed and gas prices went through the roof they had no cars to sell because their entire lineup was garbage. That looked to change in the early 201X's when they came out with the updated Fusion and the Taurus. The revamped Fusion was a solid car when it was released. But they did it all over again. They completely bailed on their cars and put everything into large vehicles.

When the big 3 say nobody wants cars what they should be saying is nobody wants shitty cars. They do the same thing with EVs. "Nobody wants EVs". Correction: Nobody wants shitty EVs. Yes cars are selling at a rate proportionally less than they once did but there is still market share to capture and they simply have no compelling product to capture it.

I wish people would understand what a big racket the GM bankruptcy was. That company was allowed to fold and a new company allowed to assume all of it's assets and intellectual property without the liabilities and it was all packaged up with a nice bow by the federal government. When it happens again, and it will, I hope they let these companies fail like they should have in 2008. Like Volvo and Jaguar, someone will buy the naming rights and continue to run the business if there is money to be made.

 

[Yaj Yak]

They deserve bankruptcy. They repeated all the same mistakes from 2008 and this time there isn't anything to mortgage to save themselves. In 2008 they had let their car lineup run stagnant and were heavily invested in trucks. When the market crashed and gas prices went through the roof they had no cars to sell because their entire lineup was garbage. That looked to change in the early 201X's when they came out with the updated Fusion and the Taurus. The revamped Fusion was a solid car when it was released. But they did it all over again. They completely bailed on their cars and put everything into large vehicles.

When the big 3 say nobody wants cars what they should be saying is nobody wants shitty cars. They do the same thing with EVs. "Nobody wants EVs". Correction: Nobody wants shitty EVs. Yes cars are selling at a rate proportionally less than they once did but there is still market share to capture and they simply have no compelling product to capture it.

I wish people would understand what a big racket the GM bankruptcy was. That company was allowed to fold and a new company allowed to assume all of it's assets and intellectual property without the liabilities and it was all packaged up with a nice bow by the federal government. When it happens again, and it will, I hope they let these companies fail like they should have in 2008. Like Volvo and Jaguar, someone will buy the naming rights and continue to run the business if there is money to be made.

this this and this.

fuck it's mind fucking how people don't get this.