Bob Rosadini
-
Posts
4,564 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
13
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Gallery
Downloads
Store
Posts posted by Bob Rosadini
-
-
Dug into my car invoice file and found window sticker for my wife's 84 EB Bronco II. Base price $11,741, total $15,354. The EB package was $3400 including FREE air conditioning😎.2.9V6 and five speed.
AND I still have an EB suit bag and travel bag that came with it.
-
1
-
-
5 hours ago, rmc523 said:
Let me rephrase....I know what he said......I don't get the point lol. Doesn't make any sense
Any actual fleet person would know the players out there, and wouldn't see an ad on TV for a F-750 and be like "why didn't I think of that!?!"
OK, Last point I will make-0h yes happy BD AK-Hope you are still going when you are 82😎
I have never said a word about class 8, that ship sailed 28 years ago. And I am NOT talking about fleets that have a "fleet Manager". I'm talking about the thousands of small business owners who have a small number of trucks ..typically in classes 1-7 that are a necessity to support their business...trucks are a tool, not the breadwinner in their business. And some of these guys are diehards when it comes to what they buy while others buy what is available.
And yes, I'm guilty. If Ford Pro is supposed to appeal to "Business" I just suggest they should portray Ford as a company that sells other vehicles besides pick ups and Transits. As I've said the New England dealer group has been running their ads that feature the full product slate. Must be a reason right?
-
1
-
-
7 hours ago, akirby said:
Because a lot of individual tradespeople buy Transits and F150s and F250/350 - plumbers, electricians, delivery services. I think commercial fleet buyers do a lot more research, RFPs, etc. and deal with their fleet sales people. They do a lot more research on capacities and limitations and volume discounts. Totally different buyer. Nobodybuys a fleet of F450s because they saw atv ad.The local dealer is trying to win local fleet sales by showing they have whatever you need.
Well again, my contention is most class 7 and lower sales are to the people you describe-small business trade people/contractors. Do the Verizons, Comcasts, (7M3's employer) of the world place large orders for class 4/5 trucks? Yes but I'm talking about the thousands of businesses in this country that buy these lower classes in support of their business.
I have to say, the only large fleet orders I see for class 6 and 7 Fords are UPS and Enterprise Rentals.
-
15 hours ago, akirby said:
Do you really think commercial fleet buyers are influenced by tv ads? I don't remember seeing tv ads for bobcats, front end loaders or dump trucks.They must..why would Ford Pro advertise Transits?? Why does a regional Ford dealer group run TV ads featuring a full line up?
-
9 hours ago, akirby said:
Oh please Bob. Ford Pro sold roughly 1.5M units last year worldwide. That's far more than just Transits and software. Why do you ignore F150/250/350/450/650/750 just because they don't have a class 8 entry?AK, I wish I could agree with you but every ad I ever see..guess what, I see Transits and MAYBE a 150. As a stockholder of significance, I would be overjoyed to see a 450/550 in a plug for Ford Pro set up with a boom wrecker, roll back whatever...to say nothing of a 750 utility truck with a Pole Cat....but I don't.
I would really like to see the Ford Pro sales stats by vehicle.
Which by the way a question. Does anyone know if a dealer who is NOT a Ford Pro sell say, a 450 chassis, is that included in Ford Pro numbers??
I've mentioned this before but the Ford Dealers of New England organization frequently runs ads that feature a variety of commercial vehicles..including of all things a 650/750 dump pulling a tag trailer with a backhoe on it. Seems to me these guys recognize why they spent money to build new service bays with 14' OH clearance.
-
1
-
-
39 minutes ago, rmc523 said:
Well, in this case, the alternative is to leave a brand new plant empty...
Which leads to the question....Does Ford look ahead with a well thought out plan or jump to conclusions and or respond to the loudest voice that gets the attention of the guy at the top. 🤔
Like Ford Pro...All kinds of praise and its appeal to the "commercial" market while the only thing we see is Transits and software sales. Think the plumber/ electrician/ building contractor with 3 or 4 trucks takes the time to look at that info?
-
1
-
1
-
-
10 hours ago, fordmantpw said:
If you add all that stuff, then how "affordable" is it?
I don't know, we know how (un)successful the GMC thing that had the retractable roof was.
Agree for sure. If affordability is the key, all of those optional features can only be had I would imagine at significant cost. I would think they are working at scavenging a lot of components out of the "parts bin" to come up with a rock bottom utility vehicle that still remains compliant with all of the Federal mandates.
-
55 minutes ago, morgan20 said:
Yea, that's big question. Without a change in Ford's culture, the possibility of the old corporate bad habits creep in is very real.
Reminds me of a magazine article from 20 years ago about Mark Fields when he was the biggest of the big shots in the Americas division of Ford:
The team’s headquarters was a windowless conference room next to a long row of engineers’ cubicles. The walls of the conference room are papered with charts, goals and timetables. One of Fields’ favorite slogans on the wall: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”
“You can have the best plan in the world, and if the culture isn’t going to let it happen, it’s going to die on the vine,” Fields said.
Regarding the Culture question, maybe what is needed is a return to Mulally's weekly sessions in which all the responsible parties were held to an update on on goals/objectives that were discussed in prior week. Pretty tough to stab someone in back when they are in same room as you🤔
This reminds that I believe a Ford lifer had posted that a career assignment
to commercial trucks was the kiss of death from a career perspective. But now we are in the age of Ford Pro being the new winning entity.
I was in Fast Lane yesterday for an oil change and I stopped into the commercial guys cube. He said his biggest problem is it still takes 6 mos to get a 650/750 built.
This dealership is one of those rare family businesses with 4 locations that seems like thy want to keep the family working. I mentioned to him that one of his competitors that is a mega corporate dealership with many multi flag organizations had just completed a large stand alone shop with 14' overhead doors and they are advertising ..."bring your 650/750's in for service". I said what are they going to do when those 14' doors are no longer needed to service a Transit? Again, no answer. This guy is good and they stole him from another commercial dealer but I get the feeling he gets no communication from Ford on the status of the future.
-
1
-
-
4 minutes ago, twintornados said:
What?!?! But, they deleted the passenger side engine size emblem from the door....now, you have to walk around to the driver side to figure it out.
Like I said -clueless...And speaking of badging, look at the badges on Ram and GM pick ups.. they say..."Look at me"! Ford, my 22 F-150 STX had some chrome and a touch of red paint on the fender vent-not bad. My 23? Black plastic! My youngest son has a loaded V-6 Bronco...Badge? a "Paper/plastic patch. My oldest son, a 24or25? Tremor 150 with all kinds of badging-and I don't think it was that much more than the loaded Bronco.
-
44 minutes ago, 7Mary3 said:
Took a good look at the 2027 650/750 order guide. Basically no changes at all, diesels still not available in California and no air brakes for the gasoline models. I am thinking that whatever the issue is with offering air brakes with the 7.3L the cost of fixing it is just not justified by the expected sales. That's maybe not too much of a surprise seeing how the Cummins Octane gasoline medium duty engine is starting to look like a sales dud. I was thinking there would be considerable interest in it, but it looks as though Kenworth and Peterbilt will be the only ones offering it in a truck. International's IC school bus division will also offer it, but that seems to be it. Freightliner was supposed to have it by now, and rumors were Isuzu and International would have it in their trucks soon as well. Another surprising thing I have noticed is that here in California I am not seeing more new 7.3L Ford 650/750's. Diesel emissions regulations are still up in the air with the conflicting EPA and CARB standards, so one would think there would be some kind of market for gasoline medium duty trucks at least until the regulations get resolved. I passed by a large Ford Pro dealer Friday and he didn't have a single 650 or 750 on his lot. Loads of Transits and 250/350's, along with a fair number of 450/550's, but nothing larger. The only gas engine medium duty trucks I see are the Isuzu/Chevy LCF's.
Also noticed Ford dropped the special CNG/LPG instrument cluster option for the 650/750, but did keep the gaseous fuel prep package option. Makes no sense...
Makes no sense?? 7M that just shows how clueless they are-or they either truly intend to exit 6 and 7 when the next UAW contract comes due (when is that?) or they may have a totally new product that shares components with E-series and full range of class 4 to 7. and they are not willing to spend any funds on keeping the steel cab going in short term.
As for failure for Ca dealers to stock 7.3 650/750 I can't believe the pricing on the 7.3 version of those conventionals is not a huge attraction. The lack of air brakes I'm sure is a factor but here in New England but there are plenty of 650/750 gas trucks on road and in dealer lots and a hire percentage of them are set up with dump bodies- and with light plugs and pintle hooks
As for the Cummins Octane, is the cost savings vs diesel insignificant??
-
7 hours ago, DeluxeStang said:
This is why our brands need to have a long term outlook. Our leaders also need to be more consistent, because this constant on again, off again crap is ridiculous.
Agree, but I would guess the crapshoot is based on trying to guess what the Feds are going to dictate??🤔
-
2
-
-
Seems to me, if they are not doing an electric, and if objective is to build a cost leader, what is the point of adding another ICE truck. I'm all for ICE but from a market objective, what is the point? What market does the present slate NOT address?
I'm thinking, who needs a bare bones single cab truck? Parts houses? Advance Auto, Auto Zone, and a big regional parts house next to my town each have 2 or 3 parts "runners". Canyons, Transit Connects etc. Why not offer a rear seat delete option on Maverick? Done deal.
Appears to me idea of another truck is a knee jerk reaction to utilize another plant that is perhaps too far along to cancel or just delay.
-
4
-
-
9 hours ago, Captainp4 said:
Pretty sure Brian Wolfe designed the godzilla, or at least was a big part of it, before retiring from Ford. He does have some cool aftermarket stuff for them now.
I do believe he did. And in retirement he has been getting all kinds of wild numbers out of it. If you google him on You Tube there is a lot of info on him
-
1
-
-
7 hours ago, 7Mary3 said:
When you follow this, again the language doesn't always track with the graphics....why can't these guys just tell the story without all the misleading images..all kinds of OHC shots, even a picture of an inline engine🤔
And what I come away with, a 7.0 pushrod? When they have a clean sheet of paper 7.3/6.8? For sure if the 7.0 is a reality it must have significant benefits over the Godzilla which I still think of as a new engine.
And the story is supported about significant design improvements focused on durability over any of the current offerings to say nothing of power gains including more low end grunt- so again justification for what might mean a replacement for the 6.8/7.3
This then leads to the discussion of the benefits over current diesel technology, and the discussion shifts to where could it be used...and we hear.." on Super Duty 250, 350, 450." No mention of 550-750🤔
IMO so much for this guys credibility? Or all of his claims about the 7.0's design improvements and HP and Torque figures that match/surpass Godzilla-what is the point??.
What did I miss?
-
1
-
-
5 hours ago, twintornados said:
I did not know - always thought it was a type of under-hood air exhaust ventilation system....did not realize it was an intake vent - but it does bring up an interesting point...could something like this be used to ventilate under the hood to address the heat issue? Again, it sounds too simplistic but I wonder if that would be the fix if as others had said, the juice being worth the squeeze for air-brakes on a gasser. Wonder what the take rate is for air-brakes on the diesel models. And speaking of that, if air-brakes are available on the diesel versions, it would not seem like much of a leap to get air-brakes on a gasser. Again...just spit-balling here.
Broken record again😎...think of a monster 6.7 Power Stroke under the hood of a 650/750....and to swallow the story we are being fed, they can't solve the under heat issue when a Godzilla takes the place of a 6.7. Educate me please...Higher compression issues in the 6.7 ..Better yet, 6.7 in a 350/450/550/600. in an under hood space that has to be significantly less than the space in a 650/750 tilt hood.
Meantime, over on the 7.0 thread........
-
2 hours ago, twintornados said:
Since the answer was always "it is a heat issue" as to why gas does not get air brakes - wasn't the vent on the side of the F900 hood a way to address that? I am curious as I do not know for sure...
Close up..
.png.c8cb5a8c14c1b5279f00ad62188e0105.png)
Air filter behind that.
-
2
-
-
6 hours ago, Joe771476 said:
Talking about oil cos., I read that Citgo -- and apparently only Citgo -- is Venezuela owned.
It is..PDVSA.
-
On 1/8/2026 at 7:25 PM, Sherminator98 said:
Not surprising that Ford is no. 1. Surprised that the International oils are not high on the list. Like ExxonMobil is listed as a founded date of 1999. That was the merger date for Exxon and Mobil. Of course Exxon was Esso which had its birth as Standard Oil and Mobil's roots sprang from the same place..as Socony..or Standard Oil Of NY.
-
1
-
-
On 1/7/2026 at 1:09 PM, 7Mary3 said:
The 'thing' is... The Ford 650 and 750 compete on price. Using an 'in house' powertrain gives the Ford trucks a price advantage, particularly with the 7.3L gasoline engine. If Ford were to offer a Cummins/Allison drive train their trucks would likely be very close in price to Freightliner, International, Mack, and the various PACCAR class 6 and 7 trucks. Those trucks offer significant advantages over the Fords like wider option availability, better cabs, better dealer networks for medium duty sales and service, and better resale. Ford would likely be under pressure to keep the 650/750 price lower than the competition, which would eat into whatever profits those models generate. So, offering 'in house' powertrains exclusively in the 650 and 750 is the best thing Ford can do, I think.
The Ecotorq is a non-starter. The costs of emissions certification would have to be spread out over a likely very small sales volume of a Ford class 7/8 truck, not to mention whatever tariffs would be slapped on it. I think Ford-Otosan will increasingly align with Iveco and focus on eastern European and Asian markets.
Which is what I keep saying. Absolute BS that they can't overcome the Heat issue to give 7.3 powered 650/750 an air brake option. Truck would have no competition.
-
2
-
-
On 1/7/2026 at 11:34 AM, Sherminator98 said:
Ford's New 'High-Performance Sports Car' Debuts On January 15
nebulous enough maybe to get a 4 door Mustang finally? 😛
I say that is a good bet. Or how about a notch back to accommodate a useful rear seat. like the Fox. I know doesn't foot with "High-Performance Sports Car" but......
-
8 hours ago, fordmantpw said:
Ford is currently the ONLY automaker to have offerings in class 1-7, so they are the only ones serving that entire market.
So, let's say it's a mistake to not prioritize classes 6 & 7. Let's make an assumption that they could invest $100M into those classes and get a return of $150M. Or, they could pick option 2 and invest $100M into classes 2-5 and get a return of $250M. Which is the better option? What would you choose?
Huh? I'll do you one better. Invest in option 3 and invest in cheaper options in classes2-5 that get a return of 300M....yeah I would go for that hypothetical🤪
Again, I'm not talking about building an F1 program... or getting back in class 8..I'm talking about minor changes -like an Allison for the non believers in the toughness of the in-house trans, or getting a Cummins option and price it accordingly..let the buyer decide if its worth it. Look at the 650/750 guides for the last two years and what do they show??? Additions to options?..No deletions!..Sooner or later they will have built a case..." yep or sales are a fraction of what they were..time to get out.
Oh and as the great success GM is having with their rebadged Isuzus?... I guess Isuzu can make a buck on the sale to GM and GM can make a buck on their sale to the end user??? And Ford can't make a buck with no middleman?
By the way, Same with Navistar building the same truck that is sold as a Chevy or an International? Yeah, I know a real winner... "economy of scale'. Surprised they didn't broaden that appeal by Including.."The Truck People from GMC" as they used to say. Talk about dumb move IMO.
By the way, the bi weekly truck rag that covers New England lists plenty of new Chevy and International class 6's...most them '24's.
Fire away... have my helmet and flak jacket on😎
-
On 12/24/2025 at 6:58 PM, akirby said:
Always the same reason. Continued investment wasn't worth the potential profit.With all due respect, if that was the soul corporate objective, the only thing Ford would build would be F-150/250-for sure Lincoln would be gone. As I look at it from the Ford Pro segment, we are led to believe that Ford Pro is a "winner". And assuming "Pro" is defined as the commercial segment..be it a self employed handy man or a big corporate entity, a full slate of vehicles that support that business is critical. This is opposed to the class 8 market, where the bulk of that market is for hire transportation, where moving commodities is the business.
Granted many "commercial" entities also have class 8 vehicles in support of their business -"Private Carriage"-a term you often don't hear used today. The bulk of their needs however are in class 1-7. Accordingly I think Ford has to recognize that failing to serve all of that market, will in the long run prove to be a mistake.
And to those who say it would take huge sums to expand the offerings in class 6/7 I say that is BS. IMO, it is just a matter of some selective changes.
-
6 hours ago, GearheadGrrrl said:
No racing over the holidays to watch, so I've succumbed to watching videos of truck plants. First one was of Ford's Ohio Assembly, and I was really impressed by how clean and technically advanced the plant is. Then Daimler's assembly plant in the Carolinas, workers wearing masks dated it to the 20202s but the crudeness of the plant made it look like not much had changed in decades.
Left me convinced that Ohio Assembly is an underrated plant and Ford needs to give them something from the 21st century to build!
Agree,
I know I'm a broken record but I don't see how they proudly proclaim the contribution Ford Pro makes but they do little to capitalize on a market that Ford was always a big player in.
-
1
-
-
10 hours ago, SoonerLS said:
Listening to how “he” pronounced “Louisville…Kentucky” at the start, I’m thinking this is AI slop. That would certainly explain the mismatched imagery and iffy “facts” mentioned in this thread.
For sure, and agree with Joe's comment on similar "voice" showing up on other posted articles.
That blue "LTL" is by the way an LN with an aftermarket hood that has the LTL grill work. I believe someone had posted a picture of a white LN with that hood so it apparently is being produced by someone.
The AI world lends new importance to the old saying..."take it with a grain of salt".
-
2
-
New Light & Medium Duty News
in Ford Motor Company Discussion Forum
Posted
Well so much for Ford's BS about under hood heat preventing them from installing air brakes on 650/750 when equipped with a 7.3. Blue Bird has done a good job giving a driver good forward visibility with that steeply slanted hood. Amazing they figured out how to control heat associated with a compressor and Ford can't figure it out with a hood that has to provide considerably more frontal area and I would assume a large under hood cavity than the Blue Bird.