Quote:
Originally Posted by Nirvana
What do you all think of FORDs?
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Do numbers for your PT Cruiser. Hemi is a V-8. Yours has how many cylinders? Salesmen use words to promote myths and lies. PT Cruiser used a higher performance engine originally developed for the Neon.
Appreciate what happened in Ford AND a critical number: 70 Hp/liter. William Clay Ford (an executive who actually had a driver's license) took control in 2000. He discovered bean counters (Petersen and Nasser) played money games and even had no products in development - to cut costs. William Clay in 2000 ordered Ford to design an engine that was developed in GM in the early 1970s - which GM still does not offer in all their cars.
In 2007, Ford losses were at record levels. How can that be if William Clay started designing in 2000? Because informed consumers know it takes four to ten years to design new products. Economics 101. Products started in 2000 would not appear until after 2008.
Chrysler and GM needed government money in part due to no new products and due to obsolete technology six and eight cylinder engines. Management was lying about the only reason for massive losses - even blaming unions. Ford knew work done in 2000 would soon appear as profits after 2008. It takes how long for an innovator to create profits? Ford (while suffering record losses) took no government money. Because William Clay had a driver's license. He understood basic Economics (how long it takes to design anything). And knew record profits were coming due to products designed by engineers (not by finance people).
In a meeting, Mulally said that next year, all Ford products would have a four cylinder option. Because engineers in 2000 were finally permitted to design an engine that GM could have been producing 30 years previously. Because best cars use four cylinders; obsolete technology needs more cylinders. Ford's are superior because four cylinder engines doing more than 70 Hp/liter are available in all Ford cars. Because engineers (not bean-counters) designed those products.
Today's standard technology four cylinder engines do as much or more than a 1970s big block V-8. Today's engines will also be anti-American obsolete in 20 years. Well understood to people who appreciate the product. And problematic to anti-innovation finance people.
But again, don't take my word for it. Get Consumer Reports and do the numbers yourself. Those numbers are in every April issue. Any layman can do this arithmetic. And learn what happens when engineers replace business school graduates as designers.