Ford Falcon enthusiasts upset at marketing snub

[Sprintey]

Originally Posted by Harrison

I think a globally released, reasonably priced, mid-size, rear wheel drive V6 sedan, coupe, wagon (and possibly ute) platform, with an optional turbo or supercharged sports pack, is the only way to satisfy the majority of automotive enthusiasts and potentially make a profit in this day and age.

Vast, multinational companies like Ford and GM could do it easily and well, if they considered it a worthwhile investment.

That would be the Jag XE or a 3 Series when the dust settles.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye84

Lets look at it this way.
If it was YOUR millions of dollars, would you advertise the falcon? Would you put your house, mortgage, car etc, on the line to advertise the falcon, against all research that says the segment is dying (even the medium car market is slowing down).....

There's a product called Territory, it's sprung off the Falcon platform, it's still selling well - 2nd best to Ranger in the whole Ford range here at present. Why not develop this, after all, big seller in booming market?

Originally Posted by Hawkeye84

Thats the thing, ford isnt being complacent....they are spending heaps on segments other than the large car segment...they are investing in booming segments within the industry.

Apart from Ranger, they are going backwards despite the spending heaps on these other booming segments, while others surge ahead.

Originally Posted by prydey

have a look through any thread on this forum discussing Ford or its products, and the overwhelming vibe is negative toward Ford. you would think a Ford Forum would be full of 'fans' of the brand, but not this one.

i think the majority are 'falcon' fans, rather than 'ford' fans, and since the company started shifting its focus elsewhere about a decade ago, most couldn't care less about ford anymore, and just use every opportunity to have their little say...again and again.

It's more than that - it's about the very possession of a domestic car industry, and what this means to a nation. It's the ability to value-add in a nation. It's about providing genuine employment paths in meaningful, complex work for the next generation - I'm talking domestic based engineering in the majors and also the downstream industry, not just assembly jobs. We have all seen what happens when Western nations offshore their productive capacity and the McJobs and service industry that remain go nowhere near to replacing this complexity and capability. We have seen the bandaid attempts to engineer housing booms to replace this economic activity. It's about the tax take from value adding multiplying in local economies; and about the presence of employers like FOA providing overlap into other higher tech industries, and opportunities domestically. It's more than the Falcon, but the Falcon, Ute and Territory are a big part of it.