jpd80

Those Mustang buyers pretty much know what they want and apart for the new Ecoboost models, I don’t think Thers much that could be done with Mustang. Now if Ford was to consider building another car at Flat Rock, maybe the C2 Zephyr? Just a thought that links back with a recent discussion - you may/may not agree with above as it may not add enough volume to justify inclusion which is another issue…

I have no proof but something tells me that no amount of change would pump prime Mustang sales. If Ford wants to keep it around, they really need a second vehicle at Flat Rock to keep enough volume for at least one shift.

The Mach E is considered a utility/truck and in past years Ford needed to build efficient cars to offset less efficient cars. Maybe the rules have changed now so that Mach E as a BEV be used, maybe they don’t differentiate across the manufacturer’s corporate fleet now…

It’s good that Ford is at least trying to cultivate more Ecoboost sales, they hit a brick wall in export markets as most foreign buyers prefer V8, mostly because of the elevated prices charged. The people interested in an EB drift oriented audience are completely different customers. In any regard, the more EBs sold, the better it is for meeting CAFE.

True and as Akirby said, it’s a no brainer considering Ford h already had the EB performance packs. Dedicated models would make forward ordering of parts easier.

The answer to closing the price gap between ICE and BEVs would seem to be making ICE more expensive, the complete opposite to what were told about lowered EV costs… Sadly, the deck is loaded against buyers

I’m imagining an Ecoboost Mustang with Dark Horse parts and power upgrades but built on the assembly line and just using the tuner’s name.. If the above is true, it probably makes this performance version of the Ecoboost Mustang fairly easy for Ford to do.

Whoever replaces Bill Ford will have the Family’s wishes to keep their heritage going. Also, Bill Ford had the final say on the naming of Mach E, if he disagreed with it being a Mustang, then Farley would have had to find another name

Two things can be true at the same time. It is clear that Ford wants to leverage the Mustang brand for new vehicles, probably BEVs but also it has a commitment to keep the ICE Mustang coupe going for as long as those buyers keep supporting it.

See the issue with Transit is that Ford Europe normally resists changes to its designs. I’m hopeful that changes to Euro management now means Ford North America gets more say in regionalisation to include important local changes.

Let me unpack that. S650 is an evolved version of S550, meaning it’s not all new. The reason that was done is because the cost of an all new Mustang could not be justified. Ford is happy to keep the Iconic Mustang coupe around as long as enough people keep buying it. Once $11 billion in funding was redirected away from Ford Blue ICE platforms, it was pretty clear that no new ICE platforms were planned (especially for cars like Mustang). Regarding CAFE, sorry of this is tiresome… As you decrease the footprint (track X wheelbase) of a car, the CAFE fuel economy targets number rise quickly, this is why Ford chose not to keep Fiesta and Focus around in the US, the costs to keep them ahead of CAFE were not seen as justifiable. So making a V8 Mustang on a smaller lighter platform is counter intuitive, as is making it only 375 hp EV Car? I suggested that as being a more practicable use of funding rather than an all new Mustang and as a car, a BEV would help offset any of Mustang’s future CAFE shortcomings. Guys, I would love to think that Ford is in a position of some golden age where it will revert to building select iconic vehicles that are offset by new era BEVs but the reality is that Ford is not thinking that way, no matter what CGI sketches were floated to dealerships, I think that was all Farley circling the airport while he works out what on earth Ford’s plans are going to be negotiating the current sales issues. Ford still needs to keep those profits coming to fund it future plans.

Unfortunately, there is no money and no desire to make an all new Mustang Coupe. The cost of an all new Mustang Coupe is prohibitive especially with sales continuing their downward trend.. If Ford put the coupe on a smaller vehicle size, the CAFE requirements for a V8 vehicle become intolerable….that’s why they made the cars footprint bigger. A better use of funds would be a BEV car to offset Mustang’s CAFE numbers, that way it makes profits on both vehicles. I would love to see the vehicle you envision but realistically, I know that Ford has set S650 to the Mustang’s conclusion, whenever that is.

It’s basically four door coupe vs a sedan with more useable rear seating. Priorities are important here, Honda should know who will buy this car and why….

This is the reverse problem that Ford Australia had when it was proposing a global RWD platform based on the Falcon and its derivatives. The changes required to make a true Mustang had to be more than just a two door Falcon. Think about that for a moment, once a new vehicle is more differentiated than a derivative (>50% parts share) the costs start to skyrocket. Once that happens, a dedicated project is probably better suited and then, the business case better be justified or it won’t past muster. Holden found that one out when developing the Zeta Camaro, the amount of changes required to make that Camaro and set it apart for the Commodore, meant it cost a fortune. Holden engineers estimated that savings from using Zeta vs dedicated platform was roughly 12%, so still worthwhile. The other big issue here is that Ford would be railing up against tougher CAFE requirements for a car vs Truck/Utility. The bean counter come back with show us why we should invest in a sedan whe we can be better returns for that funding elsewhere (opportunity cost). I understand what you’re trying to do here and honestly, I feel the same but if this was ever going to happen, it would have done so ten years ago with the ending of Aussie Falcon & Territory.

LOL, $8,750 Ford rebate on Mach E…..and people wonder why Mustang Coupe struggled last month.