Mulally: Ford to simplify lineup

[BlackHorse]

Ford needs to offer customers less options?

 

Wait did he say offer less options?

 

 

Oh brother, this company can't figure out why it's in the shitter as it is and it's answer is to pull the flush handle.

[suv_guy_19]

Ford needs to offer customers less options?

 

Wait did he say offer less options?

Oh brother, this company can't figure out why it's in the shitter as it is and it's answer is to pull the flush handle.

 

 

Why can no one get it. Not less options. The same options in fewer large option packages, just like Toyota.

Edited October 30, 2007 by suv_guy_19

[Biker16]

Ford needs to offer customers less options?

 

Wait did he say offer less options?

Oh brother, this company can't figure out why it's in the shitter as it is and it's answer is to pull the flush handle.

 

no, we don't need cars to have 12 available colors. put it this way peopel don't base C-car buying decisions on colors if they did the Big would dominate, but they don't.

[BlackHorse]

no, we don't need cars to have 12 available colors. put it this way peopel don't base C-car buying decisions on colors if they did the Big would dominate, but they don't.

 

Horseshit. I can't speak for everyone around here but for me the color of the car is a pretty big deal.

[BlackHorse]

Why can no one get it. Not less options. The same options in fewer large option packages, just like Toyota.

 

Translated, prices going up.

[suv_guy_19]

Translated, prices going up.

 

 

Not necessarily, but there will be fewer price points.

[Watchdevil]

I would agree except with the white. Ack!! White interiors look great if you never, ever drive your car. But even after as little as a few hours of seat time, white interiors are a mess. Perhaps a lighter tan/beige than the saddle-type colors they've been offering as of late, but a pure white is a no-no.

 

I didn't suggest all white at all. I was saying that black interior with blue trim should be offered for white, blue and silver cars just like they offer red accents for red, white, black, silver and gray cars.

 

I never have liked all white though I do think black interiors trimmed with white are nice to look at. However I would not want to live with the dirt and grime white shows either.

[Watchdevil]

Its called a spoiler delete option

 

Dealers get cars like that because your typical car buyer thinks Spoiler=fast

Hmm...last time I looked the Mustang GT offered 3 different wheel options two 18inchers and one 17 inch

 

Yeah I am aware of the spoiler delete option but its hard finding a car without one unles you order it. I personally just don't like the flush Pony spoiler.

[Watchdevil]

the T-Bird was brought to market with exactly one powertrain choice. (If you can call that a "choice".)

 

Well the 1989 Tbird started out as a 3.8liter V6 only in both standard and supercharged forms. I think it was 1992 or so when they "figured out" how to stuff the 4.6 liter V8 under the hood. Of course it was offered as an option until the very end of 1997 in the modestly asperated form. I remember frequent sightings of those Super Tbirds with the big raised hoods. Of course it never came into production. Once they figured out there was no longer a much of a market for large coupes they stopped further development and planned updates.

 

It just amazes me how many people I run into at work who have late model four seat Tbirds. They just love them and they always seem to mention that they wish Ford made a modern newer version of one. These are the people that don't nessarily want the Mustang but are rather fond of the bigger Ford coupes they remember from the past like Torinos.

[jpd80]

no, we don't need cars to have 12 available colors. put it this way peopel don't base C-car buying decisions on colors if they did the Big would dominate, but they don't.

Colour choices aren't the problem for Ford, that's what get people in the showrooms.

The options problem is more to do with accessories.

[goingincirclez]

Well the 1989 Tbird started out as a 3.8liter V6 only in both standard and supercharged forms. I think it was 1992 or so when they "figured out" how to stuff the 4.6 liter V8 under the hood. Of course it was offered as an option until the very end of 1997 in the modestly asperated form. I remember frequent sightings of those Super Tbirds with the big raised hoods. Of course it never came into production. Once they figured out there was no longer a much of a market for large coupes they stopped further development and planned updates.

 

You are correct that the MN12 debuted with only the 3.8, either NA or supercharged. This was a serious flaw, and the cars were blasted much like the D3s as being too big and underpowered with the standard 3.8, which was true. At least in the MN12's case, the SC3.8 was an option. But they were not able to fit the 5.0 inside because the car was designed with a low cowl and the engine simply would not fit.

 

The woeful 3.8 was a serious achilles heel however, and forced Ford to figure out just how to cram the 5.0 inside, which they did for 1991. And not just a base model either, but the full-grown HO 5.0 of the day. Sales recovered somewhat although the SC began to slip.

 

The 4.6 was introduced with the redesign in 1994. Unfortunately it was a detuned model, because THOU SHALT NOT BE FASTER THAN THE MUSTANG but it did have a good troque grunt for its day. SC sales continued to drop (the issues with the 3.8 becoming more widely known certainly did not help) and it was discontinued after 1995. The MN12 got whacked in the Fordocaust of 1997, and it's been a decline for FoMoCo ever since.

 

Between myself and my in-laws, we have no less than FIVE MN12's. (In addition to the sig cars, there's an additional '94 T-bird and a '91 Cougar 5.0 that are still driveable but past their prime... having a farm means you can stash them for fun and future). Plus I still have my '88 Fox-body.

 

They were great cars. The MN12s got long in the tooth, but the V8 ones were bulletproof. And if you see a well-maintained 87-88 on the road today, they STILL look gorgeous.

[goingincirclez]

Personally, I don't think there are too many options. As has been pointed out: they are there, but since you have to take X and Y to get Z half the time, there may as well only be just a handful. This is very frustrating when trying to price a new car.

 

Fewer package choices is not necessarily a good thing. Once they bump that one "must have" feature into a group with a bunch of other junk you don't want, you start to consider competitors who don't play such games.

 

 

And I know these days are long gone and will never return, but I absolutely love how varied and customizable older cars used to be. As a fan of the lowly unloved 75-78 Ford Granada, it's amazing how many trim and color and interior choices were available on that basic car. 3 different panels, 8 different colors, and various and sundry trim pieces available for just the interior door panels alone! Yeah, it was probably a parts stock and service/repair nightmare, but man... every car was unique and personality all its own. And I merely cite Granadas as an example of a plain-jane car I'm familiar with - mustangs were obviously even more configurable and other manufacturers had the options buffet as well....

 

Now everything is the same. Bah.

Edited October 30, 2007 by goingincirclez

[suv_guy_19]

Personally, I don't think there are too many options. As has been pointed out: they are there, but since you have to take X and Y to get Z half the time, there may as well only be just a handful. This is very frustrating when trying to price a new car.

 

Fewer package choices is not necessarily a good thing. Once they bump that one "must have" feature into a group with a bunch of other junk you don't want, you start to consider competitors who don't play such games.

And I know these days are long gone and will never return, but I absolutely love how varied and customizable older cars used to be. As a fan of the lowly unloved 75-78 Ford Granada, it's amazing how many trim and color and interior choices were available on that basic car. 3 different panels, 8 different colors, and various and sundry trim pieces available for just the interior door panels alone! Yeah, it was probably a parts stock and service/repair nightmare, but man... every car was unique and personality all its own. And I merely cite Granadas as an example of a plain-jane car I'm familiar with - mustangs were obviously even more configurable and other manufacturers had the options buffet as well....

 

Now everything is the same. Bah.

 

 

Everyone else in moving to this system. Look at Nissan, Toyota, Honda, or even Chrysler. The all have a few large option packages.

[Deanh]

If you give me a bare bones car and say "this is our premium model; if you want more go to xxxxxx aftermarket," I would be unhappy to have to hop through another hoop after the dealership experience.

 

Remember, there are a lot of people who don't buy directly from the factory.

premium will never be bare bones, options like nav and Sunroofs may be opackaged together, things like privacy glass, tow packages, remote entry become standard....DVDs etc become dealer installed plug and play at set prices....I like it, about time things went back to basics and simplicity...

[wescoent]

Offering consumers less choice doesn't seem like a good way to go to me. I remember when robotization starting hitting assembly plants big time, the buzz word used to be "mass customization". That was the promise that automation was going to bring us. Infinite and personalized choice. Yeah right - just like the 32 hour work-week and the paperless office.

 

Not to beat a dead horse - or rather a dead bird - but I credit the demise of the T-Bird at least partially to a lack of choice. J Mays and Jac Nasser each had themselves a T-Bird built with a 390hp supercharged Jaguar motor and BMW 6-speed manual transmission. If they had only offered these as options on the T-Bird. It would have attracted some buyers to spring for the extras, while adding luster to the entire lineup, even the base units. Instead - even though they demonstrated that it could be done - the T-Bird was brought to market with exactly one powertrain choice. (If you can call that a "choice".) How many here have wished for a manual transmission with a 6-cyl on the Fusion? Mazda can do it. How many have wished for a Fusion Wagon? Mazda can do it. Fusion Coupe? Ranger Crew Cab?

 

Lastly, and back to this "mass customization" notion, I have always hated packaged options: "You want the high end audio system, you have to get the lighting group and the alloy wheels." etc. Just give me a freaking menu please, and let me pick what I want. And I do not mind waiting 2 weeks - or 2 months - for what I want. I waited 2 years and 4 months from the time I put the deposit on my T-Bird to the time I took delivery. The only body helped by packaged options and no choice is the guy in the plaid sportcoat saying "What would it take for me to get you into this car today?" trying to shove something he happens to have on the lot down your throat. [/rant]

 

I am of the exact same mindset as you, my friend. I want to sit down with the big sheet, and cherry-pick each option I want. I want to wait a few months while MY CAR gets built and shipped. Building a Porsche 911 is just ecstacy to me... there must be literally hundreds of thousands of possible combinations, especially when we start getting into custom leather and colors. I was very pleased to see you can get the THX Sound without navigation on the Lincoln MKZ, so I get the touch screen and uplevel audio, but not the stupid navigation.

 

I could go on for hours about how much I hate car salesmen. The last time I ordered a Ford car years and years ago, I literally had to come in with my car written down, picked the first sales guy I saw, and told him to order my car, period. I hate haggling and all the stupid crap they try to foist on you. I want a car. Give me the price, and I'll write you a check... why does it have to be harder than that?

Edited October 30, 2007 by wescoent

[xr7g428]

If you were to ask customers, you know, the folks that make the payments, if they wanted fewer choices, the answer would be loud and clear: More is better. Customers do have choices. Instead of buying the 3rd red Mustang on the block, they will buy a different car. Fewer choices equals fewer sales.

 

Mulally, rather than attacking a competitors weakness, has decided to adopt it as his own. The biggest advantage domestic manufactures have over their competitors is that they are closer to the customer. Ford should be able to accept and build a customer order in less time than it takes the boat to get across the water. Imagine being able to special order your car today and be driving it three weeks later.

 

Imagine this vehicle from Ford: Three different versions, a well equipped standard version, a performance oriented version, and a luxury oriented version, and if that wasn't enough, add two specialty low production versions one the ultimate in performance, and the other the ultimate in luxury. Of course the performance versions would come standard with high HP engines, but the rest of the line would still offer six different engines, along with six different transmission options. You could get the car painted in 16 different colors, Interiors would be available in 8 different colors, in three different trim levels. Top this off with over 20 additional options from sunroof to your choice of tires. Now imagine ordering one of these Dearborn Michigan built cars on May 25th, and drove it home from your California Dealer on June 27th. All you have to do is Imagine that it is 1968 and you have just bought a new Mercury Cougar.

 

(Supporting facts for the doubters: Three versions: Standard, GT, XR7, plus GTE with 427 or 428, and XR7-G. Engines: 289 2V, 302 2V, 302 4V, 390 2V, 390 4V, 427 4V, 428CJ 4V. Transmissions: 3 speed manual (std and HD), 4 speed manual close ratio, wide ratio, C4 Automatic, C6 Automatic, additional facts at: www.theclassiccougarnetwork.com )

 

The current ordering system is at best a disaster. You need look no further than the innumerable posts of customers begging employees on this site to trace the progress of their cars through the system. It is at best an embarrassment.

 

Since SEMA is in full swing right now, it seems timely to point out the opportunity missed: The average new truck buyer will spend more than $1800 personalizing their vehicle in the first 6 weeks of ownership. This is money left on the table. What would an additional $1800 in revenue per vehicle mean to Ford right now? What more compelling signal can you provide that consumers want more choice? They are voting with their pocketbooks.

 

UAW members, are you listening? Who do you think is bolting those accessories on, union brothers or not? We already know that the UAW worker is one of the most productive people on the planet. I mean after all, who else can install 50 dash panels in an hour, ever hour, all day long. Isn't it a reasonable business case to expect that they might be more efficient installing those options than the guys in the service bay down at Tony's Tint and Sound?

 

Okay, So Mullaly got confused with the option list on a commercial vehicle. Seems that the menu was just too complicated for him to decipher. His solution is to take all of the choices off the menu, except the ones that he likes. The end result is that some buyers just won't be happy with what is left on the menu and will chose to go some place else. Rather than pointing the finger at the kitchen saying they know how to fix too many dishes, might it be a better choice to work on improving the menu? Oh why bother, Henry had it right all along: any color so long as it's black... Oh wait, that was when Ford was going out of business the first time.

[Deanh]

If you were to ask customers, you know, the folks that make the payments, if they wanted fewer choices, the answer would be loud and clear: More is better. Customers do have choices. Instead of buying the 3rd red Mustang on the block, they will buy a different car. Fewer choices equals fewer sales.

 

Mulally, rather than attacking a competitors weakness, has decided to adopt it as his own. The biggest advantage domestic manufactures have over their competitors is that they are closer to the customer. Ford should be able to accept and build a customer order in less time than it takes the boat to get across the water. Imagine being able to special order your car today and be driving it three weeks later.

 

Imagine this vehicle from Ford: Three different versions, a well equipped standard version, a performance oriented version, and a luxury oriented version, and if that wasn't enough, add two specialty low production versions one the ultimate in performance, and the other the ultimate in luxury. Of course the performance versions would come standard with high HP engines, but the rest of the line would still offer six different engines, along with six different transmission options. You could get the car painted in 16 different colors, Interiors would be available in 8 different colors, in three different trim levels. Top this off with over 20 additional options from sunroof to your choice of tires. Now imagine ordering one of these Dearborn Michigan built cars on May 25th, and drove it home from your California Dealer on June 27th. All you have to do is Imagine that it is 1968 and you have just bought a new Mercury Cougar.

 

(Supporting facts for the doubters: Three versions: Standard, GT, XR7, plus GTE with 427 or 428, and XR7-G. Engines: 289 2V, 302 2V, 302 4V, 390 2V, 390 4V, 427 4V, 428CJ 4V. Transmissions: 3 speed manual (std and HD), 4 speed manual close ratio, wide ratio, C4 Automatic, C6 Automatic, additional facts at: www.theclassiccougarnetwork.com )

 

The current ordering system is at best a disaster. You need look no further than the innumerable posts of customers begging employees on this site to trace the progress of their cars through the system. It is at best an embarrassment.

 

Since SEMA is in full swing right now, it seems timely to point out the opportunity missed: The average new truck buyer will spend more than $1800 personalizing their vehicle in the first 6 weeks of ownership. This is money left on the table. What would an additional $1800 in revenue per vehicle mean to Ford right now? What more compelling signal can you provide that consumers want more choice? They are voting with their pocketbooks.

 

UAW members, are you listening? Who do you think is bolting those accessories on, union brothers or not? We already know that the UAW worker is one of the most productive people on the planet. I mean after all, who else can install 50 dash panels in an hour, ever hour, all day long. Isn't it a reasonable business case to expect that they might be more efficient installing those options than the guys in the service bay down at Tony's Tint and Sound?

 

Okay, So Mullaly got confused with the option list on a commercial vehicle. Seems that the menu was just too complicated for him to decipher. His solution is to take all of the choices off the menu, except the ones that he likes. The end result is that some buyers just won't be happy with what is left on the menu and will chose to go some place else. Rather than pointing the finger at the kitchen saying they know how to fix too many dishes, might it be a better choice to work on improving the menu? Oh why bother, Henry had it right all along: any color so long as it's black... Oh wait, that was when Ford was going out of business the first time.

I see your point...FROM THE CUSTOMERS STANDPOINT we all want our cake and eat it too....now look at the other side of the coin....from the dealers standpoint.....if a car is made 200 different ways there are 199 different ways to say "I like everything but....." which leads to a dealer trade or a 8 week wait for a factory orde. Also, if cars are made less ways quality should take a HUGE jump which benefits the customer...also if they are manufactured one way then ultimately it becomes cheaper. i have always said certain options should be STANDARD on vehicles NOT options...tinted glass, A/c, rear defrosters, power mirrors....small stuff, don't even get me started on the Superdutys....tell me why limited slip isn't standard with a tow package?????, why a spare tire is an OPTION on a chassis?????? Privacy glass an OPTION on XLT"S????????

[Deanh]

I am of the exact same mindset as you, my friend. I want to sit down with the big sheet, and cherry-pick each option I want. I want to wait a few months while MY CAR gets built and shipped. Building a Porsche 911 is just ecstacy to me... there must be literally hundreds of thousands of possible combinations, especially when we start getting into custom leather and colors. I was very pleased to see you can get the THX Sound without navigation on the Lincoln MKZ, so I get the touch screen and uplevel audio, but not the stupid navigation.

 

I could go on for hours about how much I hate car salesmen. The last time I ordered a Ford car years and years ago, I literally had to come in with my car written down, picked the first sales guy I saw, and told him to order my car, period. I hate haggling and all the stupid crap they try to foist on you. I want a car. Give me the price, and I'll write you a check... why does it have to be harder than that?

question....you order an Orange 911 with a custom green ostrich interior, 18 inch wheels on one side 19 on the other....then something happens and you can't take the car...who shoulders the burden of YOUR custom creation that has the potential to sit on a lot for an extended period?........ and PLEASE don't mention non-refundable deposits...there is NO SUCH THING.......

[wescoent]

question....you order an Orange 911 with a custom green ostrich interior, 18 inch wheels on one side 19 on the other....then something happens and you can't take the car...who shoulders the burden of YOUR custom creation that has the potential to sit on a lot for an extended period?........ and PLEASE don't mention non-refundable deposits...there is NO SUCH THING.......

 

Funny you should mention that. About a year ago at my local Porsche store, a fellow ordered a 911 Targa (a rare body style as it is), with a one of a kind orange paint job, black painted rims, with tan leather with orange suede inserts. Decided he didn't want it when it got delivered... got sold the next day to some guy.

[Deanh]

Funny you should mention that. About a year ago at my local Porsche store, a fellow ordered a 911 Targa (a rare body style as it is), with a one of a kind orange paint job, black painted rims, with tan leather with orange suede inserts. Decided he didn't want it when it got delivered... got sold the next day to some guy.

Libarache was buried in it.........ahem! We had a similar situ with 6.0's people wanted to order...with MANUAL transmissions...........one truck had TWO,,,I said TWO birthdays......after 2 years of payin flooring we eventually took an ADDITIONAl HUGE loss to be rid of the beast...all this because we were trying to appease a fussy customer........

[xr7g428]

I see your point...FROM THE CUSTOMERS STANDPOINT we all want our cake and eat it too....now look at the other side of the coin....from the dealers standpoint.....if a car is made 200 different ways there are 199 different ways to say "I like everything but....." which leads to a dealer trade or a 8 week wait for a factory order. Also, if cars are made less ways quality should take a HUGE jump which benefits the customer...also if they are manufactured one way then ultimately it becomes cheaper. i have always said certain options should be STANDARD on vehicles NOT options...tinted glass, A/c, rear defrosters, power mirrors....small stuff, don't even get me started on the Superdutys....tell me why limited slip isn't standard with a tow package?????, why a spare tire is an OPTION on a chassis?????? Privacy glass an OPTION on XLT"S????????

 

Hello DeanH! As always, good to hear from you! Deja Vu all over again LOL!

 

I honestly doubt that I will ever change your opinion, or you mine, but hey, what the heck...

 

I don't mean to twist your words, but I would like to note out that you just proved my point. When a customer says no when 199 things out of 200 are right, then they have told you in no uncertain terms that they will not buy unless they get exactly what they want.

 

A few simple questions: Would your life be better if there were more customers coming through the door? You may know why customers that do walk through your dealership chose not to buy, but you will never know about all of the ones that self qualified and determined that you didn't offer what they wanted to buy. I have a friend in Houston that wants Mustang GT, but he won't buy one because the "package" that he has to buy to get other option he wants requires that he also buy leather seats, which actually means a vinyl back seat. He wants cloth, or at least real leather. So now he going to buy a G35. The Ford dealer will never know about this missed sale.

 

A good way to test an assumption is to look at the extremes. So to test your assumption that fewer options would equate to better quality, we would expect to see a relationship between less complex cars and higher quality. As it turns out, this isn't the case. Very highly complex cars, from Lexus to Porsche often have the best quality. If practice makes perfect, you would expect that the highest running vehicles would have the best quality, but again, there isn't a perfect correlation here either. As it turns out, quality is more about the engineering (design and production) than anything else. The best way to improve quality is not to build poor designs, badly!

 

As to what should be standard, and what should be optional, and what dealers should stock, I continue to suggest that there should be packages that make sense, that combine the most popular options, in simple identifiable steps. And dealers should stock these vehicles only. This needs to be backed up with the ability to let the customer design the vehicle the way they want it, and to get it delivered promptly. Given the current nightmare which is special order, I can understand your reluctance to even consider this, (after ordering two Fords in the past couple of years, I would have to completely agree!). The special order system must be fixed first!

[Deanh]

Hello DeanH! As always, good to hear from you! Deja Vu all over again LOL!

 

I honestly doubt that I will ever change your opinion, or you mine, but hey, what the heck...

 

I don't mean to twist your words, but I would like to note out that you just proved my point. When a customer says no when 199 things out of 200 are right, then they have told you in no uncertain terms that they will not buy unless they get exactly what they want.

 

A few simple questions: Would your life be better if there were more customers coming through the door? You may know why customers that do walk through your dealership chose not to buy, but you will never know about all of the ones that self qualified and determined that you didn't offer what they wanted to buy. I have a friend in Houston that wants Mustang GT, but he won't buy one because the "package" that he has to buy to get other option he wants requires that he also buy leather seats, which actually means a vinyl back seat. He wants cloth, or at least real leather. So now he going to buy a G35. The Ford dealer will never know about this missed sale.

 

A good way to test an assumption is to look at the extremes. So to test your assumption that fewer options would equate to better quality, we would expect to see a relationship between less complex cars and higher quality. As it turns out, this isn't the case. Very highly complex cars, from Lexus to Porsche often have the best quality. If practice makes perfect, you would expect that the highest running vehicles would have the best quality, but again, there isn't a perfect correlation here either. As it turns out, quality is more about the engineering (design and production) than anything else. The best way to improve quality is not to build poor designs, badly!

 

As to what should be standard, and what should be optional, and what dealers should stock, I continue to suggest that there should be packages that make sense, that combine the most popular options, in simple identifiable steps. And dealers should stock these vehicles only. This needs to be backed up with the ability to let the customer design the vehicle the way they want it, and to get it delivered promptly. Given the current nightmare which is special order, I can understand your reluctance to even consider this, (after ordering two Fords in the past couple of years, I would have to completely agree!). The special order system must be fixed first!

in a nutshell...give less choices but more content...better for both sides...and lexus has the system down...PACKAGES......if you want this particular option the ONLY way to get it is in this package with these additional...if all options were ordered sperately ( which is now no longer the case ) they would cost 3400 dollars, however the "package " price is $2295.........makes sense really doesn't it...and for every person that takes offence to being unable to order their Mocha Crappachino with soy milk and non-bleached sugar, there are 15 that will order straight from the menu as it is easier and less confusing.....porshe doesn't even enter into this fray as they are somewhat custom and low volume to begin with....

[Deanh]

QUOTE.........I don't mean to twist your words, but I would like to note out that you just proved my point. When a customer says no when 199 things out of 200 are right, then they have told you in no uncertain terms that they will not buy unless they get exactly what they want.........then let em go, these are the people that will NEVER be happy about anything, they can stand in a corner and hold their breath and throw tantrums, but they are an EXCEEDINGLY small part of the market....people here need to learn how to spell the word COMPROMISE....some definitely can't..........

[xr7g428]

Libarache was buried in it.........ahem! We had a similar situ with 6.0's people wanted to order...with MANUAL transmissions...........one truck had TWO,,,I said TWO birthdays......after 2 years of payin flooring we eventually took an ADDITIONAl HUGE loss to be rid of the beast...all this because we were trying to appease a fussy customer........

 

The problem is that this should not be a dealer burden only. The benefits of offering special orders benefit both the dealer and Ford. But the risk is solely on the dealer. The risks and rewards need to be shared. If Ford had kicked back a few points on this, or provided free flooring, then it would have been a speed bump instead of a wreck. And I think that customers should bear some cost of the deal gone wrong, but you are right that it never happens... What I do know is that you have to pass the cost of dealing with idiots on to the rest of your customers.

 

Deanh, Mullaly is suggesting a change that is going to have a negative impact on the customer and the dealer. When was the last time you heard some one say "WOW, I really like that store, their selection is really limited, they really don't have many choices to offer"? the scary part is that they have you believing that this is all in your best interest. Your automatic reaction is that anything that might improve the customer experience is going to come at the expense to the dealer. (There is probably a whole chapter to be written on just how that reaction developed...)

[wescoent]

How about having my cake and eating it too?

 

Have two parallel systems. One is the "package" style system, where you can get 4 or 5 options packages on top of a base car, and that's it. The next is a custom system, where you need to special-order your car from the factory, but every option is stand-alone (including powertrains), and you pay a $100 fee to use this system. That way, 98% of customers use the package system, but you also can sell cars to the other 2% without screwing everyone else over.