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RIP: Ford Flex


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2 hours ago, Oacjay98 said:

I find that interesting seeing as how based on the latest figures Edge and Nautilus are up. They have wanted to eliminate C shift in Paint and Body for some time now. They already killed it in paint and now body will be soon. 

 

They'll just work you 5x8 but scheduled 10. We've been doing that at MAP for 2 years. The overtime is nice but it's exhausting after a while. 

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25 minutes ago, fuzzymoomoo said:

 

They'll just work you 5x8 but scheduled 10. We've been doing that at MAP for 2 years. The overtime is nice but it's exhausting after a while. 

Body and paint over here never can keep up with the main plant even when main plant is on 8 hours. Ever since the Windstar days they’ve always asked for OT  in body and paint to keep up when there wasn’t 3 shifts. It’s gonna be interesting here, even when they reduce the line speed. Do you guys have manpower issues at MAP?? I feel like some of these p ppl they want to lay-off will be recalled because there will be no TPTs while ppl are laid off. Absenteeism is a big problem here 

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8 hours ago, Oacjay98 said:

Body and paint over here never can keep up with the main plant even when main plant is on 8 hours. Ever since the Windstar days they’ve always asked for OT  in body and paint to keep up when there wasn’t 3 shifts. It’s gonna be interesting here, even when they reduce the line speed. Do you guys have manpower issues at MAP?? I feel like some of these p ppl they want to lay-off will be recalled because there will be no TPTs while ppl are laid off. Absenteeism is a big problem here 

 

Can't speak for Final and Paint but in Body we have a lot of extras. There's a rolling voluntary TLO going on every 3 months or so. They're waiting for either retirement buyouts with the new contract or for the Bronco so all these extra people have somewhere to go, then that will stop. We have the same problem with body and paint (paint specifically) being unable to keep up with final which is why paint and body are on 2 shifts and Final is on 1. That is also supposed to be addressed when the tooling for Bronco starts. 

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Well, I hope Ford does offer buyouts so that some lower seniority people can have work. I guess at most plants body and paint can’t keep up due to the complexity and all the robots. Our plant is still doing 10s in main and paint 3 shifts til January in body. I guess that will go down in the new year with no flex or mkt but body And paint will still require OT to keep up with the 2 shifts in the main plant.  I agree with you though that they will schedule 10 and if required we will work the full ten. 

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They may also be anticipating depressed volume for Edge and Nautilus with Explorer/Aviator and Escape/Corsair, not to mention the rise of competition in this segment and the plateaued market.  When the 2015 Edge debuted, Ford spokespeople said they expected sales had plateaued for the Edge and they didn't expect to grow sales.  Edge is also aging fairly quickly next to their competitors, I'm not sure how they are going to keep sales stable.   

Edited by Assimilator
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I would have to agree with you that they must  be anticipating sales going down. The edge and nautilus just got a mid cycle refresh so if they’re aging that fast then sales will decline I guess. Also galvanizing from other ford products so we shall see. Hopefully after the contract up here in 2020 there will be more clarity on the situation and future of Oakville Assembly Complex. I would like to believe ford will invest again but who the hell knows

Edited by Oacjay98
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2 hours ago, Oacjay98 said:

I would have to agree with you that they must  be anticipating sales going down. The edge and nautilus just got a mid cycle refresh so if they’re aging that fast then sales will decline I guess. Also galvanizing from other ford products so we shall see. Hopefully after the contract up here in 2020 there will be more clarity on the situation and future of Oakville Assembly Complex. I would like to believe ford will invest again but who the hell knows

 

I don't believe you have to worry about your plant closing any time soon. With all the new stuff working on they’re going to need capacity somewhere and you guys have some available. Keep your chin up, I've been dealing with the same kind of uncertainty since 2015 and there's finally light at the end of the tunnel. Have faith. 

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I agree with what you’re saying. MAP has gone through major changes since Focus production stopped. Bronco will boost your numbers up again and hopefully Ranger will continue to increase in sales. Ford closed so many factories in North America that I don’t think they have tons of excess capacity so I do have hope. I know there are codes for new Edge Nautilus in the future but beyond that who knows here.

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10 hours ago, Assimilator said:

They may also be anticipating depressed volume for Edge and Nautilus with Explorer/Aviator and Escape/Corsair, not to mention the rise of competition in this segment and the plateaued market.  When the 2015 Edge debuted, Ford spokespeople said they expected sales had plateaued for the Edge and they didn't expect to grow sales.  Edge is also aging fairly quickly next to their competitors, I'm not sure how they are going to keep sales stable.   

If the new platform for Edge/Nautilus will still be FWD, mabe they could do a three-row version of the Edge, and price it lower than the Explorer. I have heard quite a few people express that the new Explorer is no longer on their list due to styling, interior oddities, and value. On the other hand, the Aviator is well praised for styling, interior, and value.

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  • 5 weeks later...

The last Flexes are rollin through bodybuild department now. Last one will probably roll out of the main plant by Monday Tuesday next week. They lastedlonger in production than I thought they would. 11 year production run.  Great vehicle, sorry to see them go. No more D platform at OAC now. Edge Nautilus only era begins! 

Edited by Oacjay98
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4 hours ago, Oacjay98 said:

The last Flexes are rollin through bodybuild department now. Last one will probably roll out of the main plant by Monday Tuesday next week. They lastedlonger in production than I thought they would. 11 year production run.  Great vehicle, sorry to see them go. No more D platform at OAC now. Edge Nautilus only era begins! 

 

I love mine. Best fit and finish of any Ford I've ever owned. Sad to see it go but I get why. 

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Yep, the Flex is quiet great fit and finish and unique love it or hate it styling. I bet most of the last ones are going to California. On another note, seen an article today saying they want to remove the Nautilus from OAC in 2022 and build them in China. I knew they wanted to build some in China but now this crap??? Seems Ford really wants to put their foot on our necks up here in Canada!! Contract year next year so I’m not surprised 

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54 minutes ago, Oacjay98 said:

Yep, the Flex is quiet great fit and finish and unique love it or hate it styling. I bet most of the last ones are going to California. On another note, seen an article today saying they want to remove the Nautilus from OAC in 2022 and build them in China. I knew they wanted to build some in China but now this crap??? Seems Ford really wants to put their foot on our necks up here in Canada!! Contract year next year so I’m not surprised 

Anything built in China is for China as it pertains to Lincoln. 

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9 hours ago, fuzzymoomoo said:

Anything built in China is for China as it pertains to Lincoln. 

That’s what I read earlier in the year, that they would be building them in China for the Chinese market.  I think it would be stupid for ford to ship them all the way from China over here. Article seems stupid, all these so called analysts like to give crap inaccurate information 

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3 hours ago, BuckeyeGoose said:

Always though it stood out when it first came out but now it just looks dated

Agreed, the Flex ran its course. Ford only refreshed it once. Lasted longer than I thought it would with no true redesign and minimal advertising.

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I wonder what an updated flex would look like? 

 

You'd want to keep the signature styling, biggest thing you'd need is a modern and upscale interior, nice features. Maybe a more fuel efficient engine.  Electric model would be a dope, I'd rock an electric flex a million times over  boring ass model 3 or what ever telsa calls it. 

 

Maybe a Lincoln go-fast version? Actually, a Lincoln electric flex would be amazing. 

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