Ford Motor Company News
Ford comes out on
top of Honda in latest initial quality survey
For the past several years, Ford has been steadily
raising its initial quality rankings, saving tons of money in warranty repairs
along the way. This time around, the company has finally surpassed perennial top
contender Honda in the 2009 Global Quality Research System (GQRS) rankings.
Last year Ford tied Toyota and Honda in JD Power's initial quality rankings, but
this is the first year Ford has beaten Honda in any of the major ranking
systems. Toyota and Ford are still tied this year, but the improvement at Ford
is clear.
“This is truly a significant accomplishment for us,” said Bennie Fowler, Ford
group vice president, Global Quality. “Honda and Toyota have claimed bragging
rights for years, but now we are seeing our hard work pay off. It’s evident in
study after study.”
The measure of initial quality is simple enough - 'things gone wrong' and
customer satisfaction through the first 3 months. This measures how many issues
the car has and how the new owner feels about it. Ford's tally of 'things gone
wrong' was 1,228 per 1,000 vehicles, and improvement of 5% over last year. Honda
was a ways back at 1,422 things gone wrong, while Toyota totaled 1,150, a number
the GQRS results consider 'statistically equal'.
Ford even placed four vehicles at the number one rank in their segments. The
Ford Mustang took top initial quality and customer satisfaction for sports cars,
while the Mercury Milan got the midsize nod and the Ford Ranger won the compact
pickup segment.
And these are just the results of the 2009 model-year cars. Ford expects the new
2010 vehicles just coming onto the market to raise the bar once again. On the
other hand, the industry's rough 2009 and bleak outlook on 2010 mean costs may
have to be cut in ways that impact these ratings.
Though Ford hasn't accepted government funds like General Motors and Chrysler,
the entire industry is feeling the pressure of low sales volumes. Add to that
the potential strain on suppliers caused by Chrysler's bankruptcy and the future
of quality and satisfaction rankings may well be out of Ford's hands, at least
in the near term.
- Motor Authority, Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Ford's MyKey
So you
think junior is a little too lead-footed when he drives the family car? Starting
next year, Ford Motor Co. will give you the power to do something about it.
The company will roll out a new feature on many 2010 models that can limit teen
drivers to 80 mph, using a computer chip in the key.
Parents also have the option of programming the teen's key to limit the audio
system's volume, and to sound continuous alerts if the driver doesn't wear a
seat belt.
"Our message to parents is, hey, we are providing you some conditions to give
your new drivers that may allow you to feel a little more comfortable in giving
them the car more often," said Jim Buczkowski, Ford's director of electronic and
electrical systems engineering.
The feature, called "MyKey," will be standard on an unspecified number of Ford
models when the 2010 cars and trucks come out late next summer. The feature will
spread to the entire Ford, Lincoln and Mercury lineup as models are updated,
spokesman Wes Sherwood said.
Ford arrived at the 80 mph limit even though freeway speed limits are lower in
most states because it wanted to leave a margin in case an unusual situation
arises, Buczkowski said. In some states, freeway speed limits are above 70 mph,
Sherwood said.
"Just lopping it off at exactly 70 mph was felt to be too limiting," Buczkowski
said.
The company already uses computer chips in its keys to prevent thefts. The car
won't start unless it recognizes the chip in the key.
"It's making use of existing technology, and through the magic of software,
we're able to build features on top of the features we already have," Buczkowski
said.
In addition to speed limits, MyKey also will limit the volume of the audio
system, and it will sound a six-second chime every minute if seat belts are not
fastened. The chime sounds for adult drivers, too, but ends after five minutes
to avoid annoying adults who adamantly don't want to wear seat belts, Buczkowski
said.
Parents also have the option of having the car sound a chime if the teen exceeds
45, 55 or 65 mph.
The feature will debut on the 2010 Focus compact car and quickly move to other
company models as a standard feature, the company said.
Ford said its market research shows 75 percent of parents like the speed and
audio limits, but as you might expect, 67 percent of teens don't like them.
Danisha Williams, a 16-year-old senior at Southfield-Lathrup High School in
suburban Detroit, said she's against the idea.
"I wouldn't want my parents to have that much control over how I'm driving," she
said. "If your parents are holding your hand, you're never going to learn."
Brittany Hawthorne, 17, another Southfield-Lathrup senior, said there may be
emergency situations where she'd have to drive more than 80, possibly to
accelerate to avoid a crash.
Ford's research shows that parents would be more likely to let teens use their
vehicles with the system, Sherwood said, and if it gets them the car more often,
the number of teens objecting drops by nearly half.
A top official from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a research group
funded by the auto insurance industry that is pushing to raise the minimum
driving age to 17 or 18, found the key intriguing and said she was not aware of
any other manufacturer offering such a feature. IIHS says car crashes are the
leading cause of death among teenagers.
"Research we've done has shown that speeding is a major factor in teen crashes,
especially novice teen drivers," said Anne McCartt, the institute's senior vice
president for research. "So I think a system that tries to correct the speeding
behavior has the potential to improve safety."
More than 5,000 U.S. teens die each year in car crashes. The rate of crashes,
fatal and nonfatal, per mile driven for 16-year-old drivers is almost 10 times
the rate for drivers ages 30 to 59, according to the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration.
Several U.S. auto insurers have begun offering in-car cameras or global
positioning equipment to help parents monitor their teens' driving behavior, in
the hope of reducing the number of crashes.
- Tom Krisher, The Associated Press, Monday, October 6, 2008
Ford Syncs Cell Phones and
Media Players
Just when you thought you
and your car couldn't take any more connectivity, Microsoft has developed a
software platform that takes in-car communications and entertainment to a new
level.
Ford has an exclusive with the Microsoft program. Ford says Sync is a
hands-free, cutting-edge way to use cell phones and media players in the car.
Ford also boasts that Sync offers unprecedented levels of connection, control,
simplicity and personalization for electronic devices.
The Microsoft/Ford alliance calls Sync fully integrated, meaning this system is
built into the electronic systems of the car and is factory installed. Whereas
an aftermarket system, or one that is not fully integrated, would not know to
lower the volume of the radio when you get a phone call, the Sync system does
that automatically. When the call comes through, you listen through the speakers
in the vehicle. Your music can be played off a memory stick or through your
music device. These are features that have not been widely available or as
comprehensive.
Usually, new advanced technologies go in luxury cars first. But Ford put the
system in lower-priced cars, beginning with the 2008 Focus, because the big
users of music devices are younger people, and they buy those cars. The Sync
option is $395, and there are no monthly fees.
Mark Fields, president of the Americas for Ford, says you never have to download
your address book again, and Sync is fully updatable and compatible with leading
digital music devices and phones. If there ever were two more important ideas
than updatable and compatible for the iPodders and other personal device
addicts, I don't know what they are.
Sync connects wireless phones or phones that also play music through Bluetooth,
which is basically a short-range wireless system that interconnects your phone
to the vehicle. Personal devices are connected through a USB 2.0 port. Then you
are ready to transfer names and numbers from your mobile phone wirelessly into
the vehicle and connect nearly any digital media player, including the Apple
iPod, Microsoft Zune, PlaysForSure players and most USB storage devices.
Press the "Push to Talk" button on your steering wheel and say the name of the
person you wish to call or tell Sync which genre, album, artist or song title
you're after, and Sync connects through your voice commands. Sync also converts
text messages including standard texting expressions like "LOL" and :) and reads
them aloud to you. You reply using any of 20 predefined responses. The system
also uses your ringtones, including ones that you use to identify a caller.
Here's where I get off the bus. Sync includes caller ID, call waiting,
conference calling, a caller log, a list of contacts, a signal strength icon and
a phone battery charge icon, all of which are displayed on the radio's screen,
along with the name of album, artist, song title, etc. Add this to the already
overwhelming amount of information at the ready in today's cars, including maps
and voice-activated directions and you have distractions with a capital D, with
Microsoft promising even more convenient features to be added to Sync in the
future.
Do I want to be driving on a road where other drivers - especially very young
drivers who are completely committed to connectivity - are checking caller ID or
setting up a conference call veering over the center line and into me?
There really isn't any turning back on this connectivity business. "Ford and
Microsoft share a vision for a future where drivers are safely connected to the
people, information and entertainment they care about while they are on the
road," says Microsoft's Bill Gates. If only we could get them to care as much
about paying attention to the task at hand - driving the car - while they are on
the road.
Ford says they put all of that information on the screen because customers
demand it. Could Ford remove Sync's visual information cues? Probably. But then
they'd have unhappy customers. And it would take a different generation to say,
"No, you cannot do that while you are driving." In my mother's generation, for
example, they knew how to say no.
- Kate
McLeod,
Motor Matters, Newsday, Sunday, November 4, 2007
Ford's Capless Fuel System
When the Lincoln MKS debuts in 2008, it will
become the second vehicle in Ford Motor Company's product line to use a capless
fuel filler.
Ford was first to the market with the technology, installing it on the Ford GT
supercar.
"The capless system is a tangible example of how Ford is developing innovative
product solutions to satisfy the unmet needs of consumers," said Mark Fields,
executive vice president, Ford Motor Company, and president of the Americas for
Ford.
The capless fuel system provides a much better seal than a cap, as it isn't
opened until the fuel pump nozzle is inserted. When capless fueling is
completed, the nozzle is removed and the system seals shut automatically.
When the gas pump nozzle is put into the fuel filler point, it pushes open a
spring-loaded metal flap.
Capless fuel filler technology serves several purposes. It not only eliminates
the inconvenience of forgetting to put the gas cap back on after fueling, but it
also saves time during refueling by doing away with unscrewing and replacing a
fuel filler cap.
The system could prove to benefit the environment as well. Inappropriately
installed, broken or missing gas caps can allow emissions to escape. These
vapors combine for a prime cause of smog.
The new system will be simple and seamless to the customer and practically
invisible, hiding behind the same fuel door found on today's vehicles. It is
also easily integrated into other Ford and Lincoln Mercury vehicles.
- Ford Motor Company, Monday, August 21, 2006
Ford Faces Its Future With
Fairlane And Syn
Ford
has a pair of concept vehicles on the auto show circuit that provide a glimpse
into the future. The Fairlane and Syn embarked on the auto-show circuit at the
recent Detroit auto show.
Fairlane is named for the former estate of company founder Henry Ford as well as
a moniker last used in 1970 on a Ford midsize coupe, sedan and wagon. It's a
crossover people-mover built off the same platform as the 2006 Ford Fusion
midsize sedan - just as the Freestyle is a crossover derived from the Five
Hundred midsize sedan.
Fairlane, like Fusion, is built on the same platform as the Mazda6 sedan and can
be offered in front- or all-wheel-drive and seat six or seven.
The fact that Fairlane is in keeping with Ford's commitment to name new Ford
cars and crossovers with the letter F is another clue to its production
potential.
The four-door Fairlane comes with second- and third-row seats that fold flat
into the floor. The concept also has a few novelty features you probably won't
get on a production version, such as "suicide," or rear-hinged, doors. Then
there's the dual hinged tailgate that opens right or left and comes with a
refrigerator housed in the tailgate wall.
Phil Martens, vice president of product creation, said the auto shows will help
Ford answer questions about Fairlane's appeal and potential features.
"It has suicide doors, yet we could do slide-open side doors like on a minivan,"
he said. "But if we do, people will see it as a minivan and not a crossover.
We're very interested in consumer feedback and will watch consumer reaction to
learn what vehicle they perceive it to be - crossover or van."
The other notable concept is the Syn (for synthesis), which is more far out and
on display to see whether consumers want a vehicle smaller than the Focus to
compete against the likes - and the looks - of the Scion xB wagon.
To most who view Syn, the word "weird" comes to mind. Martens doesn't take
offense. "Weird isn't a bad word. The Scion xB legitimized weird." This tiny,
Mini-sized two-door is powered by a 2-liter turbocharged diesel. It could offer
a gas or diesel/electric hybrid, however.
The Syn comes laden with items that would never appear on a production model,
such as a 45-inch flat-screen TV mounted on the inside of the tailgate to
entertain the kids while traveling and a removable steering wheel coupled with a
swiveling driver's seat so he or she can sit face to face to chat with the folks
in back.
Martens said Syn "is a response to the fact that by 2010 half the population
will live in the city, space will be at a premium and motorists will need a
smaller, 'rough and tumble' vehicle to get around."
Syn, Ford says, was inspired by bank vaults and armored cars. When parked and
put in "secure" mode, metal shutters cover the windshield and side glass
(there's no glass in the rear hatch). Doors are 6 inches thick like those on a
safe.
To get in, you use a combination dial lock on the driver's door, and to open the
hatch you turn a vault style four-spoke metal spinner.
- Jim Mateja,
Chicago Tribune, Newsday, Sunday, January 30, 2005
What's In A Car Name?
"It's the hardest job I've
ever had," Amy Marentic says of naming her offspring - the Ford Five Hundred and
Freestyle, new for the 2005 model year.
"It's easier to name a baby because you don't have to get so many people to
agree," says Marentic, marketing manager for Five Hundred/Freestyle.
"Coming up with a name is so subjective. It's difficult trying to get everyone
on board and creating a consensus. It goes up through all levels of management,
where they have to agree and approve and then, in the case of Five Hundred and
Freestyle, it was up to Nick Scheele to sign off on it," she said.
Scheele, at the time, was chief operating officer and chairman of Ford's
automotive operations. Jim Padilla now holds that title and, with it, the job of
signing off on names. The name could be sent to chairman Bill Ford to approve,
but it rarely goes beyond the head of auto operations.
Letter perfect
For Five Hundred and Freestyle, the process began in 2002.
"You need that lead time to cut the tools to make the name badges. Something as
simple as a name badge has to be tested - from how to apply it, to how durable
it will be," she said.
And to make the job a little tougher, each new Ford car must start with the
letter F, which ruled out 500; any new Ford sport utility must start with the
letter E, and any new Mercury with an M. The only exceptions are the "icons" -
Mustang and Thunderbird, she said.
"And management insists we use real words and real names that people can connect
with emotionally, like Explorer, which people say makes them feel adventurous. A
made-up name like Camry could never be used on one of our cars."
In coming up with monikers, Ford sometimes uses a company that specializes in
names to do the legwork, but Marentic said she wanted team members to be
involved.
"I e-mailed the 300 members of the team developing the vehicles, asking them for
names to put on a long list," she said.
The team came up with 100. Marentic refuses to say what didn't make the cut
because some are being considered for future vehicles and because Ford doesn't
want rivals to learn even the castoff names.
The list was pared down by the legal staff through a trademark search to learn
whether any other company held rights to the name and whether any were
offensive, in this country or abroad.
Ford then took the list to invitation-only consumer clinics to research likes
and dislikes.
"Initially we don't tell consumers the company or the product, just ask them
what they think of the name. Then we tell them it's for an auto, and what do
they think. Then we tell them it's for a Ford, and what do they think. Sometimes
they like the name until we tell them it's for a car or for a Ford," she said.
The list was whittled down to four or five names and researched again at another
consumer clinic, bringing consumers to a hotel meeting room or survey previous
attendees via the Internet.
Clinics are held until Ford feels comfortable with the choice. Five Hundred was
ready to present to management after three clinics, Freestyle two.
Though Marentic said she wouldn't divulge other finalists for Five Hundred, she
admitted it was the top choice among management but not consumers. "Management
felt the name was a good fit and a name they felt comfortable with," she said.
And Freestyle wasn't the first choice, either, but the name picked after a
second series of clinics.
"Originally it was to be Crosstrainer," she said of the name given the vehicle
at a Chicago Auto Show press conference two years ago when Ford announced it
planned to build a crossover for '05.
"Crosstrainer hadn't researched well. Among eight choices it ranked sixth, just
ahead of Extrainer, which was seventh," she said.
Is it a car or a bra?
It also didn't start with F. "We decided to re-evaluate it. Then the column came
out and we said, 'Let's really rethink this name,'" she said of a Tribune column
suggesting Crosstrainer was more apropos for a bra than a vehicle. "That's when
we decided to research it again, and Freestyle was chosen because it had
positive, carefree, athletic, sporty, youthful, no- boundaries imagery."
Second choice behind Freestyle was Fusion, the name given the 2006 Ford sedan
that will be a smaller, entry-level- priced companion to the Five Hundred.
Fusion became the name for the '06 sedan after Ford had to scrap Futura, a name
it had used years ago, but neglected to maintain legal rights to. Ford found it
had to give up on Futura after the Pep Boys chain of automotive stores pointed
out that was the name used on its brand of tires.
Mercury has chosen the name Milan for its version of the Ford Fusion that also
comes out for 2006.
John Fitzpatrick, general marketing manager for Lincoln-Mercury, said the Milan
naming process also started two years ago, yet was an easy choice, not just
because it was a real word that started with M. "Of the 40 or 50 names we
originally came up with, the team working on the car, our ad agency and our
company research department each came up with Milan as a suggested name,"
Fitzpatrick said.
"Rarely does one name make sense to everybody before we even validate the choice
at consumer clinics, but we went ahead and did a consumer clinic," he said.
"Milan popped out so strongly as modern, sophisticated and cool that we went
back and did another clinic to learn whether it might be a fluke, and the name
was even stronger."
- Jim Mateja,
Chicago Tribune, Newsday, Sunday, December 5, 2004
Ford Is Seeking
Nine New Lives
Ford Motor Co. is in the midst of launching nine new or revamped vehicles in 90
days, its biggest product offensive and an effort the company says should give a
lift to what have been disappointing sales this year.
Ford recently reported second-quarter earnings of $1.7billion, nearly tripling
year-ago results, but the company's financial services arm accounted for
three-quarters of the income.
In the critical U.S. market, sales of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles were
off 4.3 percent through June, while industrywide sales were up 1.8 percent,
according to Autodata Corp. Its U.S. market share was 18.8 percent for the first
six months of this year, down from 19.9 percent a year ago, Autodata said.
In July, Ford rolled out its new vehicles for automotive journalists at its
Michigan proving grounds about 45 miles north of Detroit.
It also announced that a midsize sedan planned for next year, initially called
the Ford Futura, will be renamed the Fusion, and that more than 50 percent of
its 2005 model year cars and trucks will meet the federal government's strict
new emission standards.
The percentage exceeds what's required by law, the company said.
On the sales side, Ford sorely needs a boost from the beefed- up lineup, which
includes new nameplates such as the Ford Five Hundred, the company's new
flagship sedan, and the Freestyle crossover vehicle, as well as a redesigned
Mustang.
The Mustang, Five Hundred and Freestyle, which has features of a sedan and a
sport utility vehicle, are scheduled to go on sale in September.
Burnham Securities analyst David Healy said the new vehicles, particularly the
cars, will help Ford increase its lagging market share. Ford's U.S. car sales
were off 12.1 percent through June, roughly the same amount they were down all
of last year.
Besides the Five Hundred and Mustang, Ford's new cars include the Mercury
Montego upscale sedan and Ford GT supercar, with a top speed that's been
certified at 205 mph. Ford has dubbed 2005 the "year of the car."
"They've been beaten about the head and shoulders in the passenger car business
for the past couple of years, so they better help," Healy said. "It's really up
to the marketplace. In an ideal world, they should have had those new cars about
three years ago."
Ford continues the car offensive next year, with the Fusion and a new Lincoln
sedan called the Zephyr scheduled for production for the 2006 model year.
Ford had to change the name of the Futura to the Fusion after a federal court
ruled that Pep Boys owns the rights to the Futura name. The automaker sued the
Philadelphia-based auto parts retail chain last summer after Pep Boys sent a
letter to Ford telling them that use of the name violated a trademark agreement.
Pep Boys has used "Futura" on some of its tires since 1989.
Ford is scheduled to unveil the Fusion at the North American International Auto
Show in Detroit in January.
- John Porretto,
The Associated Press, Newsday, Sunday, August 1, 2004
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06/30/10
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