Fordboldmoves.com DAY 2 (Part 2)

The delay in screening comments noted below has abated somewhat.

The comments that made it through the screen do seem to balance praise and criticism of Ford.

For example, in response to a Peter Frey article rejecting the continued viability of the "American Car," one reader posted the following:

Peter Frey you are exactly 100% bang on with this. American car ideals are dead.
"World market" cars that can be sold anywhere are the present and future.
Whether or not the US auto-manufacturing sector survives depends on their
ability to lose this old outmoded thinking and over-focus on American
consumers, and get in-step with the rest of the worlds [sic] manufacturers. Stop
listening to US baby boomers who still say they want Mustangs
and Camaros. Nobody anywhere in the world wants one. Don't waste
the time, the brainpower, the money. Build world cars, export them, and sell
them here too. We'll buy. Just make them interesting, worth owning for a few
years, and good.
By:Thomas - 6/28/2006 1:27:14 PM

Such analysis is, of course, terminally shortsighted.

First, huge regulatory barriers make true "world cars" impractical. Vehicles which comply with US regs aren't also fully compliant with EU or Japanese requirements. And as GM learned with the Pontiac GTO, it can be expensive to convert a "world car" to US specifications.

Second, unique market tastes and conditions demand "localized" products. Virtually all manufacturers tailor designs for specific markets. For example, the major Japanese manufacturers have indigenous design and engineering operations in virtually all of their major markets. Why? Unique demands from local market conditions. Moreover, Toyota's, Mazda's and Mitsubishi's Japan-only model line-ups dwarf their respective US offerings. Why? Local market conditions.

Third, American market conditions still favor certain "traditional" American cars. While it's true that American pony cars have not been huge export success stories, it's also true that the American car culture will support and sustain larger, more powerful performance cars and sedans. Fuel prices, road conditions and urbanization have not foreclosed the attractiveness among many for uniquely American forms, such as larger sedans, V8 sports coupes and even SUVs. While fuel prices may affect the sales mix, vehicles sized and adapted to unique American lifestyles will remain a viable niche for the foreseeable future.

Fourth, the West wasn't won with a "world car." Attend virtually any car show or celebration, other than some import "tuner" events that virtually prohibit "American cars," and you will see the celebration and veneration of RWD, mostly V8-powered American cars. High performance and high style models are the "milestone" models which survive scrappage and which capture our imaginations. After all, how many rap videos or popular movies feature some tiny "world" hybrid as "star cars?' For Ford to turn its back on RWD and V8 power to "get in step" with foreign markets would be turning its back on the very characteristics motivating a vast army of loyal customers and enthusiasts. Both Plymouth and Oldsmobile abandoned RWD and traditional performance in favor of more "worldly" designs and look where it got them . . .

And Ford spent over FIVE BILLION DOLLARS on the Mondeo as a "World Car." How many of those have you seen in the USA lately? Simplistic "world car" mantras are no substitute for identifying viable market niches and developing exciting, best-in-class products to meet them.

That being said, Ford ought to benchmark the best possible performance sedans and sports coupes in developing "world class quality" in distinctly American forms. German cars tend to dominate among enthusiast drivers because they were engineered for the stresses of sustained, unlimited speeds on the Autobahn. Cadillac reinvigorated its reputation when it began infusing its flabby line with German-tested designs. Building flabby boulevard cruisers, such as the last generation Thunderbird, won't spark a comeback. Instead, Ford must satisfy American expectations for performance, style, size, utility, driving dynamics, quality and economy while advancing the art and science of the automobile through applying the best lessons the world's automakers have to offer.

That's a tall order. But it's not filled by abandoning uniquely "American-DNA" cars for "world cars."

When Ford kills or neuters Mustang, the end will truly be near indeed.