sonoffordman

I REALLY, REALLY hope that Ford gets it right with the 2007 Expedition. Before I get flamed by members of the board, please note that I have owned a series of 20 (new) Fords over the last 35 years, but for the last 6 years, I have owned two BMW's, a Lexus and my wife's Acura MDX. In those six years, the Lexus and Acura have been in the dealership a total of zero times, and the BMW's were in for scheduled (and complimentary) maintenance only. Last fall, I bought a 2004 Expedition from Village Ford in Dearborn. It was a lease turn in from a Ford employee at WHQ, with all maintenance done and documented by the dealership. In 12 months and 13,000 miles of driving, I have had to replace the heater/ac blower motor as well as significant components in the supplemental safety restraint system. Over the years, I have had similarly poor reliability from my Fords, so I switched to the foreign competition. Living in metro Detroit, it bothered me greatly, but frankly, it's my money and my company doesn't do business with Ford. Over the last few months, I have seen far too many of my neighbors and friends affected by the hard times at Ford. Some of it is well earned and deserved (no real car strategy, betting the farm on trucks, UAW with the "jobs bank" (only in Detroit to you get paid to do nothing)), but much of it requires retail customers like myself to give Ford "another chance." I have sold my 2005 Lexus LS430, and will sell my 2004 Expedition when my new Expedition is delivered. I hope I did the right thing, and I hope that things turn around for the many, many good people of Ford. This issue with the vehicles being put on hold is either very good (quality is Job 1), or it is something that scares the crap out of me (It is a bad Job 1 launch) Given Ford's announcement of future cutbacks, I really worry about the number of good, talented, hard working people that will be leaving. From a selfish perspective, I hope mine is built right, and doesn't become a "warranty is Job 1" vehicle. To all of the Ford people on the board, I'm voting with my money, and buying your product. Please do your best to make this model Expedition the best one ever.