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Ford's incoming CEO wants the U.S. automaker to run like a Deere


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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ford-motor-commercial-vehicles-insigh/fords-incoming-ceo-wants-the-u-s-automaker-to-run-like-a-deere-idUSKBN25Z2JH

 

IMO crappy choice for a headline-Deere is pissing off its customers by locking down maintenance and other after the sale services for its products. I hope Ford isn't that foolish to follow that part...but the data collection aspect is a good thing.  

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I mentioned this strategy back during the autonomous vehicle discussion where Ford was creating AV related cloud services.

 

A customer buys a vehicle once every few years.   A service pays you every month until it's cancelled.  Services can be more easily differentiated than vehicles. 

 

Remember when you could get a brand new $800 smartphone for $200?  They were making up the other $600 on the monthly service charge.

 

Imagine being able to buy any off the lot Ford or Lincoln for your fleet business and being able to track it immediately - location, mileage, fuel level, tire pressure, etc. etc. - pretty much anything the PCM knows.    They already have the hardware to do it.

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1 hour ago, akirby said:

I mentioned this strategy back during the autonomous vehicle discussion where Ford was creating AV related cloud services.

 

A customer buys a vehicle once every few years.   A service pays you every month until it's cancelled.  Services can be more easily differentiated than vehicles. 

 

Remember when you could get a brand new $800 smartphone for $200?  They were making up the other $600 on the monthly service charge.

 

Imagine being able to buy any off the lot Ford or Lincoln for your fleet business and being able to track it immediately - location, mileage, fuel level, tire pressure, etc. etc. - pretty much anything the PCM knows.    They already have the hardware to do it.

 

I feel like they've been talking about it for a long time, though, and haven't seen the fruits of it yet.

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20 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

 

I feel like they've been talking about it for a long time, though, and haven't seen the fruits of it yet.

 

I think the AV stuff got put on hold or at least delayed (apparently they haven't talked to rperez and don't know that AVs will take over the world in 5 years).

 

I think this is a new opportunity made possible by sync connect in the new vehicles.

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33 minutes ago, akirby said:

 

I think the AV stuff got put on hold or at least delayed (apparently they haven't talked to rperez and don't know that AVs will take over the world in 5 years).

 

I think this is a new opportunity made possible by sync connect in the new vehicles.

 

I meant the connected vehicle stuff - more specifically the vehicle telematics stuff.

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Just now, rmc523 said:

 

I meant the connected vehicle stuff - more specifically the vehicle telematics stuff.

 

I don't think you'll see a lot from a consumer standpoint until 5G gets widely deployed in another year or two.  But I'm sure they're busy selling data (anonymized of course) as we speak and figuring out how to sell more of it later.

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Yep, not so great for the consumer. Not only do you have a monthly payment to cover the loan or lease, but you pay monthly for other "services" . I can see monthly or per use charges coming for things we cannot forsee now. And while the Deere model may seem good to the execs, talk to their users (used to be called owners) about service issues, continuing costs to keep things going, and out of service costs waiting for factory authorized service to get a simple problem resolved. When you buy a John Deere now, you just buy a lump of iron, everything that makes it run is just licensed to you, and you are "married" to Deere as long as you have it.

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14 hours ago, akirby said:

 

I don't think you'll see a lot from a consumer standpoint until 5G gets widely deployed in another year or two.  But I'm sure they're busy selling data (anonymized of course) as we speak and figuring out how to sell more of it later.

 

Agreed... especially about 5G cellular not being widely available for at least another year.

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2 hours ago, lfeg said:

Yep, not so great for the consumer. Not only do you have a monthly payment to cover the loan or lease, but you pay monthly for other "services" . I can see monthly or per use charges coming for things we cannot forsee now. And while the Deere model may seem good to the execs, talk to their users (used to be called owners) about service issues, continuing costs to keep things going, and out of service costs waiting for factory authorized service to get a simple problem resolved. When you buy a John Deere now, you just buy a lump of iron, everything that makes it run is just licensed to you, and you are "married" to Deere as long as you have it.


Well this is clearly aimed at commercial customers and it’s a value added service and something they are probably already doing to some extent with a 3rd party solution.  I don’t see this as something required that would lock you into Ford.

 

Think of it as an app sitting in the cloud that knows about all your fleet vehicles (like ford pass but with a lot more data) in real time and allows you to monitor and alert on maintenance, performance, location, etc.  it could determine the most efficient/closest vehicle to send to a new dispatch.  It could send the destination to the vehicle GPS.   Lots of added functionality using the built in modem connectivity and integration.

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Well not sure there is a "connection" here but in Mass big ballot question in November.  The ongoing question of the independents ability to get the software to diagnose issues.  Independents of course taking the position that the manufacturer is getting the data and will "steal" your proprietary info such as your garage door codes-which they already  have.

 

Appears to be a double edge sword.

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2 hours ago, Bob Rosadini said:

Well not sure there is a "connection" here but in Mass big ballot question in November.  The ongoing question of the independents ability to get the software to diagnose issues.  Independents of course taking the position that the manufacturer is getting the data and will "steal" your proprietary info such as your garage door codes-which they already  have.

 

Appears to be a double edge sword.

 

Completely different issue.

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The Deere debacle is a right to repair issue that is being pursued by consumers through their legislatures.  I think Ford is looking at more of a what could we monetize from a data and connected services standpoint.  I don't think you will see much on the consumer side other than not having to pay for the Ford Pass / Lincoln Way access, but your driving habits, maintenance data, GPS data could all end up in some big anonymous data set that they sell to 3rd parties for marketing purposes.  Commercial/fleet services is the big revenue stream to go after.  

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5 hours ago, Bob Rosadini said:

Well not sure there is a "connection" here but in Mass big ballot question in November.  The ongoing question of the independents ability to get the software to diagnose issues.  Independents of course taking the position that the manufacturer is getting the data and will "steal" your proprietary info such as your garage door codes-which they already  have.

 

Appears to be a double edge sword.


Like akirby said, completely different issue. I for one would never buy a new Ford ever again if they tried to take my ability to repair it myself away. 

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1 hour ago, fuzzymoomoo said:


Like akirby said, completely different issue. I for one would never buy a new Ford ever again if they tried to take my ability to repair it myself away. 

 

It seems to me that Ford stated that the 2021 F-150 will come with interactive electronics a la Tesla so that Ford too can do over the air software fixes instead of having to visit a dealer. Maybe Ford plans on monetizing some of that, especially commercial users. Saving time equals saving money for commercial users. 

 

Hopefully Ford has hired the people who know how to do this and get this stock moving. John Deere is a $200 stock while Ford stock is mired in the mud. Leverage Ford's dominance in the truck/van commercial business and maximize this success into significant profit margins. Forget the frickin scooter business and leverage your strength.

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On 9/9/2020 at 3:41 PM, akirby said:

 

I think the AV stuff got put on hold or at least delayed (apparently they haven't talked to rperez and don't know that AVs will take over the world in 5 years).

 

Jim Farley doesn't need to talk to me. ? He led Ford's New Businesses, Technology and Strategy for several years and understands that Ford's AV related work (including through Argo AI) is essential to the company's future existence. It's unlikely Farley would put something that important "on hold".

 

Also good to read that Farley is using Deere & Company as a model for transitioning from a product manufacturer to a mobility services provider. 

Edited by rperez817
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14 minutes ago, FordBuyer said:

Hopefully Ford has hired the people who know how to do this and get this stock moving. John Deere is a $200 stock while Ford stock is mired in the mud.

 

Yes sir FordBuyer. Fortunately, one such man has joined Ford, Alex Purdy. And Jim Farley himself is both a good businessman and a good technology expert.

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I'm old enough to remember when Ford built tractors at the intersection of I96 and Southfield Freeway back in the early 60's. When they were building the Southfield Xway in Detroit, I used to ride my bike on the new pavement near the tractor plant. Ford made some good tractors that last forever. An old girlfriend had one back in the 90's that ran great. The good old days.

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