Ford has no clue who their customers our

[9secondko]

From what you know now and what you have seen you make your own judgment call. Doesn’t seem much different than sneaker boy to me.

Just curious. who’s sneaker boy?

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[Q6543]

I’ve been in meetings all week, I can tell you with 100% certainty that Fords current focus is on reducing scrap costs… everything else be damned.

Total focus on reducing scrap per vehicle and getting 90% plus first time through off the line.

Nothing is changing but pinching pennies anywhere they can find one.
Pinch pennies on scrap to have bigger budget for E.V. And innovation.

Nothing to do with V8s, I expect no changes for the foreseeable future, also evidenced by the lazy auto show attempt this year.

 

[Gregs24]

wrong again.

electric motors are legacy.
ICE engines are the more modern invention snd in wider use.

they aren’t going anywhere for a very long time.

until there is a way to properly recycle batteries or return them to minerals in the earth, electric motors are a problem. Until solar panels are included on every home and business (also need to be recyclable or returned as minerals), ev tech is legacy tech and causes more problems than it solves.

could ICE engines be deprecated? Not responsibly. So they are not legacy items. Not obsolete, and not past their usefulness. In msny ways, they are MORE useful than electric motors.

ICE is not legacy. It’s nearly 100 years more modern than electric motors.

is there a fad going on with electric motors? Sure. But we all know these come and go.

when it all washes out, we will see both options, each applying where it’s pros shine, with some overlap due to consumer choice snd enthusiasm.

as an enthusiast car, The Mustang, with the more modern v8 technology would be better off investing in maximizing its assets snd differentiators in an increasing environment of boring legacy sameness - and it will do do with modern tech.

It seems you don't understand the point I am making.

Legacy means a product that is end of line and no longer being developed. Electric motors and EV's are NOT legacy full stop. Many car makers are no longer spending any money on ICE development or ICE platforms because they see no future return on that investment. they can keep selling those cars but they will not be replaced by more ICE cars. Remember CD players? They are legacy products when it comes to in car entertainment, the S550 had a CD player but it has now been dropped.

EV cars and platforms ARE being developed and more and more EV's are being sold (now 20% of ALL cars sold globally and increasing, which is 17 million or so vehicles last year) Outside of the US V8 engines are an infinitesimally small number of sales in comparison.

EV batteries can and are being recycled (up to 98% recovery of the minerals) but actually the batteries are lasting so long the numbers available for recycling are still quite small.

Now just because the US is lagging behind many other countries doesn't mean that as a global company if you want to survive you need to spend R&D money on products that meet the trend of development. Ford are global, they sell less than half of their cars in the US.

Tesla are a fabulous example of a ground up car maker that has been a huge success for the US and it's economy (even if you do hate the owner or the vehicles themselves). Tesla will overtake Ford in terms of sales in the next couple of years globally - does that not make you realise the direction of travel here!

 

[Gregs24]

Now here’s a legacy!

Yes, electric cars have been around for only about 10 years less than ICE cars. The main issue was battery technology which only made them a realistic product about 20 years ago.

 

[Bikeman315]

grab a drink (orange juice, or white cranberry mixed with sprite), head to the garage, admire the mustang, start it, admire the burble of thst sweet high tech modern American v8, go for a slightly irresponsible drive, return, admire the mustang s’more, and look forward to the next gen (actually new platform) being even better looking, notably faster, handling better, and bringing even more joy in due time.

And then you wake up. But was a great dream.

 

[drive_55_not]

That's fine to a point but there's so many customers and so much you can charge. The "only pleasing the shareholder" mentality is a great way to extinct a business when you're forgetting about your customer and your product. I get it too if you have things wrapped up in investments and thinking your piece of paper is worth more than labor. It's disgusting, but sure.

The reality is that Ford's customers are truck buyers, Like 2+Million of them a year,

And the reality is Ford can offer a revised S650 with a higher price to cover the R&D cost's for the IPad interior and still make a profit off of the <50K Mustangs it's selling without offering $3500 rebates like in the old daze.

With all the laughing at Stellantis/Dodge not updating the Charger for 20yrs, it sold very well ... And that appears to be the direction Ford is going with the S550/S650, The chassis R&D is already paid for so keep it going for 15yrs with a few facelifts, and price adjustments.

And as/if Mustang sales continue to fall over the next 4yrs, I'd hazard a guess those future buyers can expect more price adjustments.





./

 

[Bikeman315]

With all the laughing at Stellantis/Dodge not updating the Charger for 20yrs, it sold very well ... And that appears to be the direction Ford is going with the S550/S650, The chassis R&D is already paid for so keep it going for 15yrs with a few facelifts, and price adjustments.

I, for one, never laughed at Dodge for what they did with the Charger and Challenger. Quite the opposite, I was glad they did everything they could to keep V8 hot rods on the market. Will Ford go that way, especially with a V8, who knows. I doubt it because the main customer base is aging out.

 

[drive_55_not]

I, for one, never laughed at Dodge for what they did with the Charger and Challenger. Quite the opposite, I was glad they did everything they could to keep V8 hot rods on the market. Will Ford go that way, especially with a V8, who knows. I doubt it because the main customer base is aging out.

I like my Hellcat, but man those V8 Chargers/Challengers were getting Expensive.

But the base models had more options like heated steering wheels and seats where Ford has stayed cheap with base 300A Mustang and isn't putting a manual lumber support in the S650 driver seat.

Seriously , What would an airbag and a pump cost Ford, $5 . ???

.

 

[Sharkman]

Does it make any sense that the 2019 Bullitt is so much better setup than my 24 Dark Horse?
It has the Magna-Ride suspension, great brakes and a better sound system than the Dark Horse.
While I do like the Dark Horse, if I had to choose between the two, the Bullitt wins. The Dark Horse was purchased to keep the miles low on the Bullitt. And the Bronco to keep miles low on both.

 

[Bikeman315]

Does it make any sense that the 2019 Bullitt is so much better setup than my 24 Dark Horse?
It has the Magna-Ride suspension, great brakes and a better sound system than the Dark Horse.
While I do like the Dark Horse, if I had to choose between the two, the Bullitt wins. The Dark Horse was purchased to keep the miles low on the Bullitt. And the Bronco to keep miles low on both.

Could it just be that your used to the Bullitt and the Dark Horse is just new to you? If anything the suspension/handling should be on par with a Mach 1 which was a big step ahead of the Bullitt. You rarely hear anyone complaining about the six pot Brembo's in the Mustang but that’s your personal preference. The stereo, well if both have the B&O system they too should be very similar. Speakers do have a break-in time, so maybe there’s that. Also the speakers could have changed.

Regardless you have two awesome cars. Enjoy them both!

 

[Sharkman]

Could it just be that your used to the Bullitt and the Dark Horse is just new to you? If anything the suspension/handling should be on par with a Mach 1 which was a big step ahead of the Bullitt. You rarely hear anyone complaining about the six pot Brembo's in the Mustang but that’s your personal preference. The stereo, well if both have the B&O system they too should be very similar. Speakers do have a break-in time, so maybe there’s that. Also the speakers could have changed.

Regardless you have two awesome cars. Enjoy them both!

 

[Sharkman]

Oh I will enjoy them. But I can not wait for late spring to bring out the 66 convertible. It is the only car that does not have AC.

 

[Germansheperd]

Just curious. who’s sneaker boy?

Jochen Zeitz the CEO that is destroying Harley Davidson. He came from Puma.

 

[Gregs24]

Does it make any sense that the 2019 Bullitt is so much better setup than my 24 Dark Horse?
It has the Magna-Ride suspension, great brakes and a better sound system than the Dark Horse.
While I do like the Dark Horse, if I had to choose between the two, the Bullitt wins. The Dark Horse was purchased to keep the miles low on the Bullitt. And the Bronco to keep miles low on both.

Doesn't the Dark Horse have Magneride as standard, slightly better brakes (bigger front disks / callipers, 4 pot rear callipers) and the same B&O 12 speaker sound system as the Bullitt?

 

[Sharkman]

Yes it does but the car geometry is different. The Bullitt has Recaro seats, and I find those more comfortable than the standard seats.

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