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It's an exciting time to be a Bronco customer! I just got confirmation from my cousin that I remain Bronco #1 at his dealership and am in the first batch of builds that start the last week of May. I'll get the planned build date as early as tomorrow and the VIN next week. Sh*t is getting real!

That's a best case scenario, but isn't impossible. Which feels great.

That's why I said F-100 Ranger which would go by Ranger just like Super Duty.

The more I think about Ranger the more sense it makes for it to be a F-100 Ranger and be part of the F series sub brand. It can still be called Ranger everywhere else. The precedent for this is F-250 and F-350 Super Duty. I suppose you could throw Maverick in there too.

Intriguing idea, but I have two words of warning for Ford: Oldsmobile Cutlass.

Might want to fix your sarcasm detector...... ?

https://www.autoblog.com/2021/04/14/ford-f-150-mustang-mach-e-hands-self-driving/ Ford's new hands-free self-driving suite has a shiny new name and a release date, the company announced Friday. BlueCruise will be made available on the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover and F-150 later in 2021 to compete with GM's Super Cruise and Tesla's Autopilot/Full Self-Driving suites. BlueCruise will be offered as an upgrade to the existing Co-Pilot360 system that has been bundled on the 2021 Mach-E and F-150. It offers true, hands-free operation in designated highway "Blue Zones," of which there are 100,000 miles so far in North America, and Ford validated its new system by driving them all in what the company is calling the "Mother of All Road Trips." ADVERTISEMENT "There are highway intricacies and driving conditions that you simply cannot replicate in a lab," said Hau Thai-Tang, Ford chief product platform and operations officer. "Sending these vehicles out for real-world driving experience is just one of many ways we ensured that BlueCruise technology offers confidence and convenience for drivers all across the continent." BlueCruise is an SAE Level 2 driver-assist system, Ford says, like the aforementioned Autopilot and Super Cruise. Unlike Tesla's effort, BlueCruise and Super Cruise can operate hands-free within the designated Blue Zones. Because the system relies on sensors and cameras rather than wheel feedback to determine driver attention levels, it will only prompt for manual control if it senses that the driver's gaze has wandered or the car has left a Blue Zone. Ford also points out that it does not use the cameras to record any visual data, protecting owner privacy. Purchase of any BlueCruise package includes a $600, three-year software "service" charge (Ford doesn't actually call it a subscription). On the F-150, BlueCruise is included in the Ford Co-Pilot 360 Active 2.0 package ($1,595), which is standard on the Limited and available as an option on Lariat, King Ranch and Platinum models. On the Mach-E, BlueCruise is standard on CA Route 1, Premium and First Edition; it’s available as part of the Comfort and Technology package on the Select for $3,200. Those who purchased a 2021 model with the Co-Pilot360 Active 2.0 Prep package can upgrade their vehicles to BlueCruise via an over-the-air software purchase. Ford will start selling BlueCruise-equipped Mach-Es and F-150s in the second half of 2021.

So, I hope Lincoln calls their "Star Cruiser"...

WTF is blue cruise? Sounds like blues clues and is about the age level of the group that named this. Dumb Name....

I just don't see it as necessary.

I like to see Ford make it an option to install a SD card and allow those cameras to be used as a dashcam. But leave it up to the owner to install a card and turn it on.

As a Ranger and Buell owner, both products suffered from being sold by dealers more interested in pushing bloated full size pickups and cruisers instead of the world's best medium sized pickup and a great sport bike. Ranger buyers are not downmarket F150 buyers and Buell riders will not "grow up" and buy a Road Pig... Killing off Buell hasn't helped HOG(NYSE) sales any, and killing off the Ranger will not sell me an F150!

the Ranger Tremor was introduced this year...and its awesome! As for spin offs, and sub brands...and as previously stated...when will the Thunderbird raise its hand?....

It’s definitely not necessary - Ranger can stand on its own. But consider the following from an overall product portfolio view: I expect the new Ranger to have F series styling, features and performance as well as models like tremor and raptor. That was not the case with the original or current Ranger. It seems odd to have 2 BOF pickups under the F series sub brand but not the other one especially if it has F series styling. The precedent was already set with Super Duty.

I agree. Ranger doesn't need the F-series name to generate buyer interest or market penetration. Remember, the point of sub-brand is to leverage a stronger name to sell a new product. Ranger is a known commodity and is the #2 seller in its segment. It doesn't need help like say... Escape which is treading water against RAV4, CR-V, and other much stronger competitor. Replacing Escape with Explorer Scout (I just made that up) makes more sense than replacing Ranger with F-100. But neither is a good use of the sub-brand strategy. The proper way to launch a new F-series or Explorer sub-brand model is with a new segment entry. F-100 may make sense as a new lower range and lower GVWR version of F-150 EV. And if Ford wants to hedge its bet by keeping ICE Escape in production after the next gen EV one debuts, maybe they should launch the EV one as Explorer Scout and keep the Escape going separately.

Since the last mid-cycle update for the 2018MY Mustang, the Mustang is an incredibly refined vehicle that covers all the bases for customers wanting a Mustang... price, performance, features, aftermarket upfit options, etc. Ford's done a great job with it's attention to the Mustang and it's sales performance worldwide is a testament to its heritage. The global expansion has also given Ford the opportunity to produce and sell more Mustang's but at a more profitable price considering the much higher prices for the export vehicles.

Point, zero zero, zero zero, zero zero (etc) six... is the percentage given for possibility of occurrence.... then the demographics of the effected population are, women of child baring years that are taking the pill. Sooo stop the use of and scare the shit out of everyone that got the "the fauci it`s ok, safe, maybe good" single pop variety shot? Then instead of stating the data shows that this group of effected individuals (6 in how many million?) had the potential of the blood clot issues even before getting the one pop shot, then crank up and get started with the messengers (nbc, cbs, abc cnnnn) the sky is falling routine... Is there anyone out there that is getting tiered of this um doctor and if he was the doctor that opened the door of the room you were waiting in to see an attending physician for a check up how many of his off the wall, wishy washy answers would it take to make an appointment with a different doctor? But wait then say "this should not make anyone hesitant to get vaccinated...?" I keep thinking of the post or posts that stated "we" are the medical trial. Then hot off the presses... "Pentagon Scientists Unveil their Microchip that senses Covid in the Body" Scientists at the Pentagon have created a microchip that once inserted under the skin..... stop... never mind this shit is going way beyond believe able. Form a line over here comrade and drop your GI boxers and bend over....

100% correct ! It was Ford of Europe that opened the door for Bosch in the US ! The 3.5L EcoBoost never achieved the number Bosch projected. Power was acceptable, but they were way short of the projected fuel economy. To me, the real tragedy was allowing Bosch to dictate software delivery schedule. This was negotiated by Ford Purchasing with no input from Engineering. The schedule did not "dovetail" into the typical testing/calibration cycle. If the software did not perform according to the specification or additional features/functionality were required, it would take 6 months or Ford would have to pay a large sum (in Euros, no less) to get an "interim" delivery.

While Ford stock has been down the last few days, analysts have of late been turning bullish on the stock. Wells Fargo just recently initiated coverage of F at an "overweight" rating with a price target of $15. See: https://pulse2.com/ford-stock-price-nyse-f-15-target-by-wells-fargo/amp/

Production cuts due to the microchip shortage aside, it might not be that long until you see $15/share. The Bronco Sport is ramping up and doing well, the Mach-E for Dealer stock orders is shipping in volume now, the Michigan Assembly Plant (MAP) is already producing Dealer Stock orders of the all-new Bronco ahead of the Job #1 Date and the all-new F-150 is selling at a fast rate and at higher prices due to the low available inventory.

FYI... Ford stock has been trading above $10/share since mid-January with a 52-week high of $13.62/share!

$12.16 right now. https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/F?p=F&.tsrc=fin-srch

Great, creative series way back when for those of us old enough to remember watching it. It's back now on one of the streaming services.

Especially if they're stopping every 10 minutes to pay a toll... at least prior to the all the electronic toll technology!

I came across this photo yesterday in one of the articles in the automotive press. Ironically, this Mustang "Family" photo isn't available at Ford's Toolbox advertising site.

Hmmmm......... I think there is plenty of challenging stuff for even the "baddest" new bronco to try on, and this is all "built up, nowhere to wheel" dirty Jersey................ You got traditional mud (private property) Deep water Engine blocks Cars Trees. Snow Cars in the snow......... Concrete walls..... (buddies rig I was driving) Hole left after digging out inground pool....... Vid http://luxjo.supermotors.net/POOL/WHEELIN/MOV02447.MPG And for a quick fix, someone always has a deck over or a tree stump kicking around. And finally, want to test your new bronco's extraction capabilities. Drive your crappy old car, in your crappy old empty pool (auto starters and man tran's don't mix). Call your bronco buddies up and spent 2-3 hours getting it out. So I disagree, you can find "hardcore offroading" without driving 100's of miles..............

I think the biggest impact Farley can have is on improving quality because that has to come from the top. He has to make quality more important than getting new products out the door sooner and cheaper and it has to impact compensation of executives and everyone down the line. Which is tricky because bad decisions made today may not show up for 2-3 years or longer. One way to do that is with performance stock shares that only vest if certain performance criteria are met. e.g. You get 5000 shares today that are set to vest in 3 years but only if the defect rate and/or warranty costs of vehicles and features launched this year is below a preset threshold. The Explorer/Aviator launch and continuing problems would have wiped that out in year 1.

Even mainstream media is fawning over Farley as if he's some kind of savior. They’re giving him all the credit for everything coming out now that was started under Hackett. Don't get me wrong, Farley has impressed me so far and he's saying the right things. Let's give it until this time next year before we start heaping universal praise on the guy. Let his initiatives start coming to fruition.

Stop labeling things you don’t agree with as “irrational”.

First, if it’s a “fad” then it’s been going on for 50+ years. Second, it’s more about appearance and capability and soft roading than serious off roading and rock crawling.

Not blaming anyone for anything. And this is not a gm truck thankfully as I would never own a gm product. And out here we do not drive at normal speeds. I am only musing about such a small fuel tank on a flagship road trip cruiser. Different people have different needs. I don't just crawl around town or drive on congested 55 mph freeways. My Gator will be driven on a lot of remote dirt roads and be in 4WD in a lot of areas. Ya ever been out west? Across the back roads of Nevada, Wyoming, the Dakotas, Idaho, or Montana, ? The Navigator is only 1 foot shorter than an F-150. which has a 36 gallon tank. They could have easily fit a 28 or 30 gallon tank under there. It would just be helpful in some remote areas. Might be able to correct it, might not. If not, I will happily live with what I got. We love our new Gator.!

They forgot the most important one. Chevy trucks are ugly.

Well it would be if this machine got 20 miles to the gallon. Mine does not. When I fill up it usually says 320 miles to empty. Out here the speed limit is 80 on the freeway. Which means we are all doing 90 to 95. Back country dirt roads that go on for miles also make me nervous about no gas available. I do not check my mileage because I don't care what it gets,,, just so it runs like I want it to. Headed to the Tetons and Yellowstone again next week. I will be in areas where 4 x 4 will be needed. Even worse mileage then. I think a 28 to 30 gallon tank would be nice. I am glad to hear from a Ford moderator on this! Do you know if a larger tank will fit under there.? I cannot tell by climbing under it. One thing my wife pointed out that as we get older, we have to make more frequent bathroom stops anyway. Maybe just need to get used to filling the Navigator tank when I stop to empty my own tank! lol

It helps with reception in remote areas where more folks drive pickups.