AlRozzi Posted March 2, 2008 Author Share Posted March 2, 2008 So what if Alan reviewed the company when he took over and thought Ford would be better off with only 3 brands and 1 dealer group? Step one is to sell of the Euro brands. Step two is to drop Mercury Step three is to get rid of as many dealers as possible and dual Ford/Lincoln Step four is to establish a youth brand (Mazda) Step five (according to my calculations) Mazda has a market cap of $6B at current exchange rates and Ford owns 33.6% leaving just $4B, so...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlhm5 Posted March 2, 2008 Share Posted March 2, 2008 (edited) So what if Alan reviewed the company when he took over and thought Ford would be better off with only 3 brands and 1 dealer group? Step one is to sell of the Euro brands. Step two is to drop Mercury Step three is to get rid of as many dealers as possible and dual Ford/Lincoln Step four is to establish a youth brand (Mazda) Step five (according to my calculations) Mazda has a market cap of $6B at current exchange rates and Ford owns 33.6% leaving just $4B, so...? That certainly looks like the path Ford is on and while it won't do anything for the top line, it will make Ford a much smaller, but profitable company, however the profitability gains from these sales and cuts are non repetitive. A smaller profitable Ford will still be basically uncompetitive with Honda, Toyota among others, in the passenger car market, the fuel efficient passenger car market, the diesel passenger car market, or the minivan/crossover market. In the light truck market, Toyota, GM and Chrysler are going neck and neck to be the #1 choice and any gains there will be IMO, non existent. So, even as a smaller profitable company, hard to see how Ford will increase revenue and grow against what looks to be a more highly competitive market. Edited March 2, 2008 by mlhm5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted March 2, 2008 Share Posted March 2, 2008 greencobra99 is back! Every Mercury is 99% redundant to a Ford. It is unnnecessary! This situation is no different than Dodge/Plymouth was or Buick/Oldsmobile was. This is just plain smart consolidation. Dealers will just have to deal with it! And besides being 99% redundant...Mercury does not have the sales to justify it's existence. Last year...Mercury sold 168,422 vehicles. If you remove the GM from that (leaving mostly all new vehicles), you only have 117,758 vehicles sold in one year. How ANYONE can justify keeping the brand on such a pitiful performance is beyond me. These are new, or refresh vehicles that people ARE NOT buying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted March 2, 2008 Share Posted March 2, 2008 or the minivan/crossover market. Ummm...Ford sells a higher number of crossovers than Toyota. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted March 2, 2008 Share Posted March 2, 2008 Ummm...Ford sells a higher number of crossovers than Toyota. And just look at how well they're doing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted March 2, 2008 Share Posted March 2, 2008 (edited) And just look at how well they're doing! That wasn't the issue. Edited March 2, 2008 by suv_guy_19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 If Ford does reduce itself to just Ford, a global brand and Lincoln/ Mercury US only brands. Then I think that's depressing. Look at how Porsche can run all of the following: - VW - Audi - Seat - Skoda - Bentley - Lamborgini - Bugatti & Truck divisions Then ask yourselves why US car makers are struggling to run or maintain anything they have bought. E.g GM and Saab. Chrysler and Rootes. Finally Ford and Land Rover, Jag, Aston Martin..... I think Mullaly will strip Ford back to just Ford and Lincoln within a few years. Maybe at which point VW will add them to their collection. Lincoln could then become VW's US only brand..... Actually if Ford finally manges to balance the books then I think VW, with it's Toyota sized ambitions may well try and make the Ford family an offer they couldn't refuse..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlRozzi Posted March 3, 2008 Author Share Posted March 3, 2008 IActually if Ford finally manges to balance the books then I think VW, with it's Toyota sized ambitions may well try and make the Ford family an offer they couldn't refuse..... I didn't want to be the first to say it, but I implied that earlier in the posts. It really seems to me they are preparing and selling off the company, piece by piece and the family may want out. The goal probably is to sell it orderly, and have Ford/Lincoln as the last piece. But you can't blame US workers or citizens, or even individual management or business teams. This is a well-planned neo-con scheme to strip down US ownership of industry and has been in the plan for over a quarter century. Seriously, a lot of guys here get on Ford, or US automakers, but look what's happened to every industry and everything American. It's all gone. You think there's a future middle-class? No way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 Maybe at which point VW will add them to their collection. Lincoln could then become VW's US only brand..... :hysterical: :hysterical: :hysterical: Oh my, that's funny . . . hooo-weee! Oh that's funny! From the gang that brought you the Phaeton and the Toe Rag? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 I didn't want to be the first to say it, but I implied that earlier in the posts. It really seems to me they are preparing and selling off the company, piece by piece and the family may want out. The goal probably is to sell it orderly, and have Ford/Lincoln as the last piece. You sure are a pessimist. You also don't understand just how extensive Ford is around the world. England, Germany, Belgium, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Thailand, Russia, India, China, Romania and Australia (and there might be others) all have Ford factories and Ford companies. For the first time in decades, Ford has a unified senior management team that is early years into its tenure. You want to believe Ford is quietly organizing the company for disposal? Go for it. But you can't blame US workers or citizens, or even individual management or business teams. This is a well-planned neo-con scheme to strip down US ownership of industry and has been in the plan for over a quarter century. They're greedy, but they're not that smart. The smarts came from the spin-doctors who made the lower-income American voter vote for the GOP. Seriously, a lot of guys here get on Ford, or US automakers, but look what's happened to every industry and everything American. It's all gone. You think there's a future middle-class? No way. Sure there's a future middle-class. But how big it will be is up to you and other concerned Americans. It's impossible only if you believe it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SVT_MAN Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 Well you've given me a bit of optimism. I hope you know this from an insider point of view, but either way, it's better than what I see happening, at least from Ford's auto show format. I know the trolls will nail me on this statement, but I love Ford. I've been a Ford guy since I was 7 and I have no children so I want to leave whatever money I have to Ford when I die. It won't be much, but why not put it to good use. I appreciate your enthusiasm for Ford, but aren't there better causes than a car company to leave money to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 You sure are a pessimist. You also don't understand just how extensive Ford is around the world. England, Germany, Belgium, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Thailand, Russia, India, China, Romania and Australia (and there might be others) all have Ford factories and Ford companies. For the first time in decades, Ford has a unified senior management team that is early years into its tenure. You want to believe Ford is quietly organizing the company for disposal? Go for it. They're greedy, but they're not that smart. The smarts came from the spin-doctors who made the lower-income American voter vote for the GOP. Sure there's a future middle-class. But how big it will be is up to you and other concerned Americans. It's impossible only if you believe it is. So VW, Fiat, Toyota and numerous others don't have "a unified senior management team" capable of running several divisions? Funny I thought with the exception of Buggati all of VW's sub divisions are profitable..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford Jellymoulds Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 If Ford does reduce itself to just Ford, a global brand and Lincoln/ Mercury US only brands. Then I think that's depressing. Look at how Porsche can run all of the following: - VW - Audi - Seat - Skoda - Bentley - Lamborgini - Bugatti & Truck divisions Then ask yourselves why US car makers are struggling to run or maintain anything they have bought. E.g GM and Saab. Chrysler and Rootes. Finally Ford and Land Rover, Jag, Aston Martin..... I think Mullaly will strip Ford back to just Ford and Lincoln within a few years. Maybe at which point VW will add them to their collection. Lincoln could then become VW's US only brand..... Actually if Ford finally manges to balance the books then I think VW, with it's Toyota sized ambitions may well try and make the Ford family an offer they couldn't refuse..... It's good to see the Germans are loading themselves up with a lot of dead wood like PAG have, they will pay for it in the future. It's win win for Ford all the way from now on. I noticed Toyota have been holding back on an offer for Jaguar/Land Rover how do they restrain themselves T-Sag? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlRozzi Posted March 3, 2008 Author Share Posted March 3, 2008 You sure are a pessimist. You also don't understand just how extensive Ford is around the world. England, Germany, Belgium, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Thailand, Russia, India, China, Romania and Australia (and there might be others) all have Ford factories and Ford companies. You want to believe Ford is quietly organizing the company for disposal? Go for it. They're greedy, but they're not that smart. The smarts came from the spin-doctors who made the lower-income American voter vote for the GOP. Sure there's a future middle-class. But how big it will be is up to you and other concerned Americans. It's impossible only if you believe it is. It's not easy being an optimist after reading all the negative posts I see here (myself included!). I do realize Ford's global size too. I'm only mentioning possible scenarios and as I'm sure you understand, anything in life is possible. Companies sell and I know of many case studies I've done in business college where a family decides to get out of one business and into another, or retire. Also, I don't want to believe FMC is looking to dipose of the operation, but I've had a few doubts- but I would hope not because I'm a diehard fan. I believe pessimism is a strenghth, too, as it makes a person or a company stronger because it causes one to remain aware of threats. It's helped me immensly in life. However on the positive side of things, I believe in Alan's leadership. His decisions make more sense than anything I've seen in business leadership in a long time. I am aware of research studies that point to three-brand auto companies as being the most efficient and profitable. In Ford's case, consider that one of its most successful periods was from 1985-1999. They did not own Volvo (except for '99) or LR during the period; Aston sold almost nothing in the 90s, Jag always lost money and Mazda did so poorly in the 90s that Ford had to take over its management. So that means the success Ford had from '85-99 was due all to Ford/Lincoln/Mercury- and mostly to Ford and the Lincoln Town Car. They CAN do it again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlRozzi Posted March 3, 2008 Author Share Posted March 3, 2008 I appreciate your enthusiasm for Ford, but aren't there better causes than a car company to leave money to? I agree with you that there are better causes, absolutely. But I'm talking about helping an organization which has inspired me for a lifetime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlRozzi Posted March 4, 2008 Author Share Posted March 4, 2008 It appears I was wrong I just found this in an article about the Tata/J/LR affair; "Booth also reiterated that Volvo isn’t for sale and that the company is focusing on returning the unit to profitability. He said Ford is studying whether to build some Volvos in the United States because of the relative weakness of the dollar to the euro, but he said the cost of moving business to the U.S. could be prohibitive. He also said it makes sense for Ford to keep Volvo, since the brand shares so many parts and underpinnings with Ford cars." :happy feet: I like to be wrong at times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 4, 2008 Share Posted March 4, 2008 Do you really think that Lincoln will even be around 10 years from now? People who buy luxury cars are buying Jap or German....not American. The LS was a good try but....no. Too much of a shitbox-never came close to the feel of a Mercedes or BMW. The geriatrics who buy only Town Cars are just about all gone. Ford has turned their back on a lot of market segments....Lincoln will be RIP in less than 10 years. Hmmm...Lincoln sales up last year. Outselling Acura and Infiniti. Yup. Americans are flocking to those Japanese luxury brands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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