My first job as a non-supplier was launching the GMT800 in Silao, Mexico for GM. I'm not sure what they make there now, but I don't see it on the list of repatriated products, and the article says its cycle plan will remain intact.
Good people there, and I'm a little nostalgic.
We can't really do anything, though. There's no internal channel for me to say that a single customer is complaining about some corrosion on a door, and as much as we'd like to help, we can't help everyone, and so it's actually best to use the official channels.
However, when an issue becomes official through official channels, then we absolutely go to forums and social media to get real-world reports and evidence and a feel for "the voice of the customer." I'm not going to go into proprietary details, but I'll hint that there was a door corrosion issue that I was involved in that referenced a lot of forums to help us understand scope/attitudes/prevalence/etc.
I know you probably want to hear that there's a dedicated person cruising forums and social media looking for problems, but when you sell three quarters of a million F-150's in a single year, it's much more effective to monitor warranty claims at the dealer level than it is to look at self-selected social media.
Yes, it’s troubling especially since they have a number of foreign models that could be released here that, IMO, would do quite well. There has been little to be excited about for quite some time. Most of the announcements have been either cutting or delaying products. It’s not a good look.
I actually firmly believe Ford is gonna develop a next gen Ford gt to align with the timeline of them going back to le mans in 2027 for the overall win. Now whatever road car they make won't be as close to the road car, seeing as GT3 style race cars are basically modified road cars, and prototype hypercars are far more radical and harder to translate to a road car.
But I could totally see Ford taking the powertrain from their le mans hypercar, which we now know is gonna be a hybrid V8, and tweaking that to make it work well in a road car, and then maybe taking some styling cues from the prototype racer as well.
So I don't believe Ford is giving up on the idea of doing a next gt, or investing in the mustang, they're just doing it where it makes the most sense. If Ford goes back to le mans, and especially if they take the overall win, it would be insane not to make a new gt to cash in on that.
Ford kills the GT and gives us warmed over Mustangs, the accountants are happy while the fantasies of a Mustang win at LeMans are best forgotten. Meanwhile, GM bets big with world class "Vettes starting with a base model selling for not much more than a Mustang V8 up to million dollar fast for a fifth the price. The Mustang's selling points are down to a thousand pound tow rating, a tiny back seat, and the Ecoboost Mustang's economy that you can't even get a manual with...
I dunno-all I can see is dealerships adding a 100% ADM on them (being completely unaware of how they are being sold to customers).
I see no reason why GM shouldn't be selling this car for $250-300K. Ford sold every single GTD and GT they made.
The Mahindra-based SUV would have looked outdated too compared to other 2021+ Fords.
The current Territory which was launched in late 2021 as the 2022 Equator Sport in China looks much newer.
I still think Ford needs the next EcoSport.