JM

It was a firm-wide release from my employer, I think I posted vague enough so it's not insider info, just speculation

While searching the internet: BusinessWeek: How to Fix Ford Charles Hughes, former president of Mazda North America and Land Rover North America:

I got a suspicious email today that implied something was going down with Mazda & Ford. Anyone got more details? Basically, Mazda is becoming "increasingly significant" to Ford. I thought it was weird because I didn't think Mazda contributed that much to Ford's bottom line and I wouldn't think an email like this would be released just because platforms are being shared. Plus this isn't a typical move because Ford is only a majority stakeholder in Mazda. Editted because Intrepidatious got me scared...

Exactly, the new geezer they got in there won't last too much longer and then Ford will be back

I'm curious who is buying the car? IMO this is why it's a success, they got a good looking, professional woman as the spokesperson who directly appeals to the demographic they're targeting. This car is the perfect chick mobile, looks better than a Jetta, and is completely unoffending. If I remember correctly, the ads clearly panned over the cars while information was delivered to the customer, not just a bunch of flashing lights giving people seizures and a brief shot of the cars front fascia.

I don't think it looks that bad either, especially in person. Just keep in mind that the majority of of people do not post on auto forum websites, do not subscribe to car rags, and don't really know much about cars besides how they look. Even if the auto enthusiasts hate the car, thats only about .00000001 % of the population.

This is the only way I'd like to see Aston, standing on it's own 2 feet. But would they be able to survive in the long run without some type of alliance with a company with deeper pockets?

Is my alma mater collecting royalties from Ford then?? Wikipedia: Southern Methodist University So technically, SMU should also get a piece of the pie.

HR is always horrible, nothing but a bunch of lazy people collecting pay checks, and they're more concerned about their own lazy a** than they are about their work

At least it won't get confused for the Lexus LS anymore (maybe the one good thing it had going for it) Around my parts, the people that I would expect to drive a LS are driving the 500. Business men with families. The new front end might scare this group away since it isn't as conservative.

Survey says: Exteriors no, interiors yes WSJ Online:

From WSJ Online: 8/25 This is the best, Toyota recalled more vehicles than they sold in the US during 2005. And my favorite, blame it on Delphi:

+ / = VW IROC Concept

No takers? Alright, I gave it quickie....

I don't know if going private would be a good thing. Right now Ford listens to the shareholders first then management then possibly its customers. The only reason we are getting "bold" designs is becauseFord shareholders have been crying for the past 3 years to give us something bold (Ford customers have been yelling for much longer than that). Ford management gave us the 500...shareholders, analysts, customers all complained & now it seems like Ford is listening. If Ford goes private all it means is more years of boring traditional conservative Ford designs, because Ford will be listening to boring traditional conservative Fords. Also, think about what Ford's message would be if they went private. Sure it would say shove it to the analysts, but it would tell Ford employees and customers that Ford doesn't value them or care about their input. Ford workers would lose stake in the company, why should they care if Ford does well, they have no vested interest.

I think the Rd6 would look good as an suv similar to the FX, anyone want to give it a shot chopping the two, some pics: FX rear angle RD6 rear angle RD6 front Many RD6 pics Many FX pics

I thought this was a pretty good story: The poster, who goes by the alias "Gherkins31," tells the the story of his friend, Mark, who is afflicted with Lou Gherig's Disease. Sadly, his condition has reached a point where he is unable to walk and has limited arm strength. He couldn't work on his Mazda RX-7 project car anymore, and any hopes he had of seeing it transform into his dream ride seemed to be dashed. It still needed a great deal of work, as shown in the "before" shots at NASIOC. Then, his friends stepped in. They stole the car Overhaulin'-style and pooled their time, effort and wallets to make the once-unlikely dream a reality. Three weeks and $13,000 later, they surprised Mark with the car you see above. Its name, spelled out in a windshield graphic, is "Mark's 7." Autoblog NASIOC Forum - the thread

I was thinking the same thing, great post RJ

In today's WSJ... So does that mean the rumors of the Expedition and F150 aren't true? Did I miss something? Is Ford licensing this technology? All of these links date after 2004: 60 mpg F150 thread

$8.17 it's still going :happy feet:

Low: 7.55 High: 7.83 Change: .46 Percent: + 6.242% 52 Week Low: 6.06 52 Week High: 10.30 Awww, yeah! Let's keep this thread alive...and maybe we'll be doing a little bit of this :party2: :beerchug:

Photoshop is the premiere photo editting software created by Adobe. But because it is so good, the name has gone the way of Kleenex and Coke, e.g. people refer to all tissues & soda pops by Kleenex & Coke. So yes to both, it is a brand as well as a general term. Photochop is the act of using Photoshop to manipulate a picture.

The Camaro concept is gorgeous! My generation didn't grow up with the muscle cars of the past 1968 Camaro and if our parents weren't into restoration the only camaro's we've had a chance to ride in were the fugly flat wide pointy '90 year models 95 Camaro I personally see a lot of the current Corvette in the Camaro, and both seem to be influenced by Cadillac's edgy styling.

My thoughts: Land Rover is currently profitable, and the last news brief I read stated that Land Rover sells weren't being hit by the increase in fuel prices. But the question for LR is when will fuel prices begin affecting them since they only make SUVs, and if fuel prices do become outrageous how can LR respond? Aston Martin is currently profitable and with the release of their new Porsche fighter it seems like AM should be able to increase market share. Jaguar has the new XK and coming S-Type but good money has been chasing bad for quite some time now. I think if Jaguar could develop an SUV similar to Infiniti's FX but with the typical Jag front end, it might reinvigorate the Jag name, especially if a R version is released that can hang with the new ML63 AMG Volvo has their safety features and a hardtop convertible, but you can barely tell a new vehicle from a prior model. Mazda has its platforms, record sales, and ability to give the consumer what they want. Lincoln's got some good products in the pipeline. IMO the MKS, MKX, and new Navigator will redefine the publics opinion on Lincoln, moving them more upstream. Mercury has, has...a females alternative to a Ford??? I think Ford should do away with Mercury, they bring nothing to the table. I doubt Mercury has any Goodwill or intangible assets, something I think Jaguar has quite a bit of.

BMW will never join with the likes of Ford, just look at their recent marketing campaign: Some stats from todays WSJ: