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akirby

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Everything posted by akirby

  1. How is Ford supposed to fix something it can't control (by law)? Dealers are independent businesses protected by franchise laws.
  2. MFT has been out for 2.5 years. The first version was 1.8. They're now on 3.5. They've released a new version about once every 3 months for the last 2.5 years. There is no reason to think they won't continue to update it.
  3. Until they change state franchise laws, Ford is prohibited by law from selling vehicles directly to consumers. You buy from the dealer and the dealer buys from Ford. If the dealer isn't giving you good information go find one that will.
  4. The EPA rules dictate acceleration rates and speeds and it must be followed exactly. So even though the mfrs do most of the testing (the EPA actually tests about 15% of the cars themselves) there isn't any wiggle room in how it's driven.
  5. I'm not sure about the current rules but a few years ago Ford only allowed "select" dealers to lock in rebates at time of order. That seemed to change a couple of years ago and they opened it up to all or most dealers. Canadians have had this capability for many years.
  6. They already know how to do it. It's not rocket science.
  7. Agreed. Golden Parachutes that reward executives for being fired are ridiculous. But the market sets the compensation level for each job whether it's a janitor or a CEO.
  8. It's not a technical issue. It's just not a priority because very few people need or want this level of tracking (as a percentage of the 2M+ vehicles that Ford sells annually). Some dealers do not want you to have this information especially if they don't have allocation or they're playing games with order priorities. Ford would have to first take all of their internal statuses in the various systems and translate them to something the customer would understand (and decide what they want the customer to see or not see). Then you have to figure out whether you track a customer or you just let anyone enter any vin. Then you build a web based front end that communicates with the existing systems. This is what I would do. I would build an interface to the back end systems using standard APIs and which includes all of the translations. Then i would build a simple web front end that takes a VIN and returns the current status. This would be the Ford system. I would then build a more sophisticated system for Lincoln as part of lincolnowner.com. It would provide real time updates on request but also allow automated status updates via email or text whenever the status changes. This system could also be done for Fords but I would do Lincoln first. For Lincoln I would also assign each special order to a CSR who would follow your order and provide individual assistance. These people would have access to factory info not currently available to CSRs and access to individuals at each plant when more info is needed. This fits the Lincoln concierge model. I would also do Retail Order Verification for all orders so that allocation is not a factor for any special order.
  9. Modern turbos are nothing like previous ones and shouldn't have any problem lasting 10 years or longer. Ford tests all their engines under duress for at least 150K miles. There is a little bit of torque steer from the 2.0L EB but only when you get on the throttle really hard. Otherwise it's super smooth. I would probably opt for the 2.5L over the 1.6L EB since it's proving difficult to get the EPA ratings in the 1.6L EB - you have to drive it very very carefully. Drive all 3 and pick the one you like best - you don't need to worry about longevity.
  10. Of course it fit if you installed it from the top. But on the assembly line it has to be installed from the bottom and there wasn't enough suspension clearance. Ford entered a supercharged Roush 4.6L powered LS in the 2004 One Lap of America race.
  11. I drove a V8 LS sport for 6 years. The suspension was great. The engine was super smooth but underpowered (252 hp) by comparison even back then. The seats were great. The rest of the interior was not quite up to luxury standards. I still liked it a lot. But as a luxury vehicle it was not quite up to Lexus or MB standards. It was too expensive and sales forecasts were severely inflated. The expensive platform and engine made it impossible to justify and that was why it was killed. It never had a chance. Had it been able to use the cheaper more powerful 4.6L that might have made a difference.
  12. Everytime I see a Camaro I think cartoon. Especially the smiling grille. Reminds me of Lightning McQueen.
  13. I've read all of the Fusion and MKZ threads. I know the issues. I'm not defending anything Ford has done with either of these launches. The launches are abysmal failures no matter how you look at it. The only positive is that they seem to be committed to fixing the problems before they ship the MKZ so at least by the time the cars show up they should be ok (if not then that will also be a failure). Communication from Ford has also been terrible. Nobody here is arguing differently. HOWEVER...........I've been through these types of things many times in my 26 year IT career. These vehicles were simply pushed out too quickly before they were ready. The plant wasn't ready. The engineering wasn't ready. The suppliers weren't ready. The transportation wasn't ready. The processes were not ready. It's not because Ford suddenly forgot how to build cars. They just got way too aggressive with the schedule. Once they pulled the plug on the old model and started building the new ones they were totally committed and there was no going back. Then they started having problems - one after the other. It's like whack-a-mole - you fix one problem and another one crops up. You think you have everything fixed and you're all ready to go and something else breaks. Now you're stuck between a rock and a hard place. Dealers are losing money because they don't have cars to sell. Customers are upset because they're waiting and waiting. Ford is working as hard as possible to get the cars out. That's all I'm saying.
  14. Congratulations. You've managed to out Eeyore FordBuyer.
  15. Ford builds and ships over 2 million vehicles every year and has been doing it for over a hundred years. I'm pretty sure they know what they're doing and if there was an easy way to get them out faster they would be doing it. There is nothing easy about assembling a modern automobile.
  16. You said they must do it if they want to increase sales which implies that everyone else shares your opinion.
  17. You should get paint protection but do NOT get it from the dealer. Their prices are total ripoffs. You can get the same or better paint protection from a detailer for $100 or less.
  18. It's worth about $20. Any more than that is a ripoff.
  19. My salesman said he once sold a Shelby GT500 when they were hard to get. Some rich guy in New York wanted one but dealers in New York had none available. So they ordered him a GT500 over the phone and had it shipped directly to New York - they never saw the vehicle. But they did get a $20K ADM. Salesman said he only got a $300 commission on the sale!
  20. My son moved out of state and I signed over his 2005 Focus zx3. $16K brand new in 2005. He got bumped by someone else and in the process discovered that he only had liability, not collision. This was my fault - I thought he knew the difference. He didn't need it because it was the other guy's fault but that prompted him to go change to full coverage. I had the discussion with him about when he should drop collision based on how much it was costing him and how much the car was worth. At that point I figured a 7 yr old Focus that cost $16K new would be worth about $4K or less. 3 months later he totals it on a slick road (no injuries). Geico cut him a check for $8K !!!! No questions asked. I was shocked. That was the best 3 months worth of premiums he ever paid. Now he rides the bus and his bike and doesn't even have a car.
  21. Just because some people get preferential treatment in some areas does not mean you are prevented from getting a job or being accepted to a university. Stop blaming other people.
  22. To me this confirms that Flex and MKT are dead and D3 will become the new Panther. Taurus, Explorer and MKS retail versions move to CD4 derivatives.
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