Bill Ford says turnaround is beating expectations

I would really invest in Ford. I think they have nowhere to go now but up. And the new product line looks very promising.

— w209w114 (View Profile)

Posted on 5/8/2008 11:30:19 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 0   

i bought this stock when it bottomed out. now i am finally seeing some return. while i am still concerned that ford might drop the ball on their clime out of the doldrums of the industry their new design seems functional and inspired (by ford europe).

however that being said the only reason i am rooting for them to much is because of my stock holdings in the company.

— DROOPYSAKK (View Profile)

Posted on 5/8/2008 12:03:03 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 0   

With Ford’s new 4.4L baby Diesel coming, and the new 6-speed transmissions, Ford will soon lead the way on efficiency and performance at a price people can afford.

Government and Corporate fleets tend to prefer domestics, as Parts are more readily available, and maintenance teams tend to prefer them.

Ford has been researching the Flex Fuel with government fleets for nearly a decade now, offering huge incentives and vehicle discounts on flex-fuel vehicles.

— mercuryguy (View Profile)

Posted on 5/8/2008 5:19:20 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 0   

I love people who say short Ford. Ford is an American staple.
These are probably the same people that are pro-war, but no one in their family would ever think of serving in war.

Let’s just make money by selling jobs to the lowest bidder and 3rd world nations so we can also become a 3rd world nation with little or no tax base. Same reason American inner-cities are crumbling, no jobs, no tax-base.

Short a company like Altrea aka Phillip Morris, not Ford, a company that moves America.

— mercuryguy (View Profile)

Posted on 5/8/2008 5:26:16 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

The surest way to beat expectations is to set your expectations extremely low.

Mulally has done a decent job given the mess he inherited. HOWEVER, it is Ford of Europe keeping the US operations afloat. In the last 20 years Ford, even more than GM, overbuilt their utility vehicle line production CAPACITY rather than continuing to invest in a production EFFICIENCY across the model range. Now Ford car profit margins are so slim, it CAN'T compete against imports on cost alone. Truck margins are fatter, but sales are flat.

So what is Ford going to do about it? Some might suggest investing in innovative designs.

How old is the Mustang chassis again? The Crown Vic?

Why is the Fusion -- that is, a Mazda 6 with a hangover -- considered one of Ford's better cars?

Why is the US Focus selling so poorly, and what are they going to do about it?

Is there really any reason that anyone would buy a Mercury?

There are lot of answers that Ford needs to answer before I'd put any money behind them. They have a LOT of expensive product development work to do, and I don't see them doing it quickly enough.

— moto (View Profile)

Posted on 5/9/2008 10:17:08 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1