ZanatWork

Its styling got rave reviews, but it was also knocked for being kinda heavy, for limited rear-seat headroom, and for the typical complaints about underwhelming Ecoboost fuel economy.

While the other "drivers" let computer nannies do most of the work...?

Given that sedans-not just Ford sedans-had been on the decline for some time and the auto news sites have spent the last few years with "Crossovers hot, sedans falling" headlines...I'm admittedly not sure that the panic over the car situation is all that sensible. Yes, I think that the steps taken are extreme and also that Ford's PR department is pathetic at their job(s)...but it's hard to defend the Fusion too vigorously. It's very attractive, but the only way it leads any segment is the horsepower of the Sport model...and even that car got very milquetoast reviews. It's a bunch of motor wrapped in a car whose chassis dynamics are mid-pack. In a shrinking sedan market, how can many resources be justified for its continuation? I hope that Ford has allowed itself the resilience to respond if the car market bounces back, but I'm also reminding myself that the "plan" is largely revealing itself over the next year or so...and that my information is limited.

The lower lift-in height on the Flex made it preferable to my old Expy when it came to loading amplifiers/guitars/etc on a regular basis. As it has typical car ride height, I imagine that advantage would continue vs. the Explorer and/or other CUVs. It's fairly unique in a very conformist market.

See: Mercury.

The way I see it: the "flappy paddle" transmission makes the best lap times, and thus the best numbers for ads and what-not. That said, if Porsche can re-introduce manuals into their 911 GT3 monsters to attract certain customers, Ford can add it as an alternative relatively quickly.

Simply by transferring the name to one of the "White Space" vehicles as a bait-and-switch.

Congrats on joining the club, cookies and punch on the back table! I have to say that my Flex has been the best, most usable, most overall-satisfying vehicle that I've ever owned. Yes, I'll always have some performance-oriented Ford product getting my attention (and money), but my Flex hauls my musical gear, hauls fellow musicians/family members, is very nearly as commodious as my Expedition while returning far better MPG, and has been a joy to own. Given how distinctive it is while surrounded by the modern "melted soap bar" CUVs everywhere, I'd be overjoyed if Ford found the capacity for a new Flex to be one of the "white space" models coming in the future. The West Coast really does seem to love the Flex, I see them constantly.

The coverage went after the big headline, which anyone over the age of 10 would likely expect. The actual news was clumsy and ill-considered; it stands as a lesson regarding caving to Wall Street babble. Ford's PR has been truly unfortunate for some time, now.

Yep, because nothing props up a position like speaking for huge numbers of complete strangers! Oh, wait... ...actually, practically anything is better for that. Silly me.

The Ecosport is a belated trigger-pull into a quickly growing market. In Ford's defense, it's hard to believe that anyone foresaw something as visually repugnant as the Nissan Juke being some kind of trend-setter. Why would people want tiny "faux-by-four" CUVs that were basically subcompacts with additional weight and lower mpg? Yeah, well, I still have no concept of the desire for SUVs redone as "coupes", basically trading away some of their utility for a swoopier roofline. Obviously, I'm not getting the trendy memos.

What he said. A company has to start its relationship with a buyer at some point, and scoring points early with young buyers is a great way to keep their business for years.

I guess the undercurrent concern is: what will Ford do for entry-level offerings? It's all well and good to prioritize the higher-profit CUVs and trucks, but what gets the young, first-new-vehicle customers in the door and begins the relationship going forward? For this purpose, the Focus Active and Ecosport have to deliver...with a potential nod to the Ranger as well.

One thing that resonated from both PDL and articles I've seen since Mulally's departure: the long-despised fiefdoms apparently jumped right back into their annoying existences when Fields took over, and are still at it today. That's been a curse for Ford forever, and I don't know that Hackett will have the moxie to unite the company the way Alan did. Similarly, if Farley is as polarizing as he seems to be, he'll be part of the problem, not the solution. That's what concerns me more than the sedan cancellations and the like. If the Focus Active has enough options/versatility to "pull a Subaru" and be many things to many people, everybody wins. If it can start low enough with fwd and the Ecoboost 1.5 to attract entry-level buyers while still offering something sub-models at the top end with AWD and 250+ hp...it could be huge for the Focus line. That said, these appear to be interesting times for the Ford faithful.

Tesla just put up a factory as collateral, so it'll stay open a bit longer...but then what?

If the article is accurate-and I find his stuff to be, more often than not-then I hope Bill read it, and combined its content with information of his own en route to making his next BIG POSITIVE DECISION. I was very much in his corner when he punted Nasser, and seemed determined to shore up quality while looking for a good CEO. He got that in Mulally, though Alan supposedly wanted Lincoln to die off...something I wouldn't agree with. In any case, I hope that Bill can find someone worthy of the job (again), because Hackett has done nothing to build my confidence and it sounds like Farley is a complete nightmare.

Heh...if Ford's product planners have a sense of humor, the "4-door Mustang" would use the "Maverick" moniker, as they shared platforms in the early 70s. All that's old is new again! Hopefully, they'd spare us the Granada and Mustang II flashbacks this time around.

If that's true, then I can only imagine it's a request for tidier packaging vs. the much larger space requirements of OHC heads.

Up here in the Northwest, there's a a ton of various Subaru wagon/CUV vehicles...and similar types by other makes are almost as common. I see a pretty constant collection of Flexes (I have one myself), as well as Freestyles and Taurus Xes. The various "toaster" compacts are also everywhere; my girlfriend drives a Kia Soul that's one of a half-dozen in our apartment building's lot. While typing this, I'm watching traffic in front of my employer's building...and I can see a half-dozen CUVs parked while trucks and CUVs/SUVs are about 80% of the traffic outside. Granted, we have slimy roads a lot of the time, so it's really not all that surprising...but it's hard to deny that Subaru were ahead of their time, and stuck to their beliefs in coming trends.

Sorta, in Taurus X form with the newer powertrain, it could have been pretty important if really marketed. However, it was a stop-gap for both the Explorer and the Flex. The stupid truth in all of this is that Subaru ends up looking like complete geniuses in some regards.

Even with the surge in V6/Ecoboost sales, certain segments still believe that 'there's no replacement for displacement'. Given some big V8s available from the competition, this motor will need to be quite a beast.

I think the real burning question becomes: is Ford giving itself enough resilience to make other changes if this move proves costly? I don't claim to know the answer...but I am having flashbacks of the many years where Ford had so many intriguing vehicles in Europe and Australia while keeping things dumb/obsolete over here....

I have to assume that Ford/Lincoln will end up with something similar to the circa 4.0TT V8 formula that is getting increasingly common across many makes. I'll always admit a lifelong love of Mustangs and other Fords with a "5.0" involved, but for eventual top-shelf Lincolns and other applications, I have to believe that there will be some "Ecobeast"-ish smaller V8.

Considering that electric vehicles aren't yet being built profitably, I'd bet that the iconic V8 still has some life left in it; the Mustang's most popular configuration worldwide is the GT with the 5.0.

The Mustang is also the official NASCAR Cup-level car as of next year, which was maybe the worst-kept secret in motorsports.