7Mary3

Funny, a few years ago I was discussing autonomous vehicles with a neighbor who happens to be a retired insurance industry executive. His opinion was that autonomous cars presented so many liability challenges he didn't think they would ever be widely adopted unless they only operated in very tightly controlled environments.

That's is something of a slippery slope for all auto manufacturers right now. Those losses could rise substantially in coming months.

Good point but we really don't know what percentage of debt is attributable to auto financing for either firm. GM sells more vehicles than Ford does, and it's a safe assumption they finance a similar percentage of sold vehicles, dealer flooring, ect.. Niether company is in immediate danger and with rebounding auto sales should be able to ride the current crisis out. I would like to see Toyota's numbers, but Japanese accounting practices differ from those of the U.S., so a direct comparison is difficult. VW's are another story entirely, and I suspect they are probably in worse shape than any major auto manufacturer.

Comparing Ford to GM, Ford currently has around $36B in cash to GM's $20B, but Ford is carrying $186B debt to GM's $104B debt.

It's a box with an engine in it, the fleet buyers could care less if it gets the job done. Just means the tooling has been amortized for longer and the margins are higher.

Yes. These are big fleet sales and Ram had a lower bid than Ford. I figure the Promaster probably costs FCA quite a bit less to build because it's built in Mexico, a Fiat design, and is front wheel drive.

Well, they say the 7.3L's 'profit center' is the 250-550 Super Duty, so anything specific to the 650 and 750 probably is something of an afterthought. Given there is probably a lot of room under the hood of a 7.3L powered F-650, Ford probably stuck the air compressor in the most efficient (cheapest) location possible that requires the least number of modifications and unique parts. Hope that left engine mount is sturdy........

If you look at this slide-show, there is a picture of a 7.3L with a compressor on it. It could not have taken too much effort to attach an air brake compressor like that! https://www.ford-trucks.com/how-tos/slideshows/ford-updates-its-best-selling-commercial-truck-lineup-609367

Funny how they put this reorganization report out Thursday afternoon and announced a $2B surprise loss today (Friday). As they say, timing is everything! It will be interesting to see what the stock does on Monday.

But then again, should a Navistar deal not happen...... And, there has been deafening silence since Traton made an offer for NAV a few months ago.

Don't think it would be MAN or Scania, they are Traton now and are being spun off of VW. Their eyes are on Navistar. That is unless they have given up on Navistar and are looking for someone else. But I doubt that.

This lead to a little edit of my previous post: https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2020/04/16/ford-announces-changes-to-automotive-operations.html In the paragraph on Ted Cannis's new duties, there is this: "This new business aligns functional areas to deliver holistic customer solutions and optimizes operations to improve ALIGNMENT WITH POTENTIAL PARTNERS". Wonder what that means!

That was in reference to SteelyD's post on 12/30/2019. His exact phrase was "Med Duty as you know it has a short life". He never elaborated and since I believe he may be a Ford employee, he may not be able to.

Seriously doubt Ford would put a blower on that thing.

I thought air brakes were going to be offered with the 7.3L gas later this year. No matter to me, I wouldn't need them.