Ford Division hits grand slam plus one!
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Ford Division President James O’Connor brought back pride once again to the Ford “blue oval” when he accepted five first place awards for owner loyalty from Polk Automotive Intelligence at the 2001 North American International Auto Show, on Sunday.
The owner loyalty award winners were the Ford Focus, Ranger, F-150 and Windstar. However, the crown jewel is the brand loyalty award, of which, this is the fifth straight year that Ford Division has been honored as being unmatched in owner brand loyalty.
In an exclusive interview with Steve Blake of BlueOvalNews, O’Connor explains just what these awards mean to Ford Division.
| BlueOvalNews: Now that Ford Division has proved itself once again in the marketplace, what do you interpret these awards as meaning for the dealers of Ford Division products? |
O’Connor: What I really liked about receiving these awards are a couple of things…. First of all, product is king in this market. So, it is absolutely important that you have great products every year. It also says as Mr. Polk was announcing the winners, some of the criteria for these awards was the sales and service experience at our dealerships and that is as important as the products we offer and something I’m very proud to say, because, when you win five of these and you are the number one brand, it says that your retailers are doing a great job for you and quite frankly our dealers are the face of Ford Division in the market and that’s what it’s all about.
| BlueOvalNews: The year 2000 was a tough year for Ford Division with the enormous amount of negative press coverage concerning the Firestone tire recall and the many vehicle recalls. What do these awards say about your consumers that continue to be loyal even in the face of adversity? |
O’Connor: I think that it really does say that consumers trust our products and as I said previously, these awards are all about the great experience our consumers receive when they purchase our products. I was also very pleased accepting the owner loyalty award for the Ford Focus. We had five of the top ten sellers in the hottest market in automotive history and the Ford Focus knocked out the established tenth place holder for many years and I think that is a great accomplishment. Also, the Ford F-Series, Ranger and Windstar, as well as the Focus are all great competitors. But, the icing on the cake is the brand loyalty award.
| BlueOvalNews: Will winning these five owner loyalty awards give you a push towards sustainable momentum starting off this year? |
O’Connor: I think that when you are in an industry that is going to come down a little bit, when you have the strongest owner loyalty base and having both a retention and conquest strategy, our owner loyalty base is second to none and we will try to capitalize on that, but at the same time, we will focus more of our efforts towards our conquest strategy.
| BlueOvalNews: Ford Division will be rolling out the Thunderbird shortly as well as the redesigned 2002 Explorer and you will have a full year of production for the Escape. Will these new products aid you in maintaining your share of the automotive market? |
O’Connor: Last year we were essentially flat and when you consider all of the new players in the market, we think that is great news. Looking forward for 2001 we are looking for an increase in market share and our new products including the new Bullitt Mustang GT and Crown Victoria Sport model will help us going forward.
January 8, 2001
By: Steve Blake
Jeep Liberty – in a market by itself
Jeep’s new Liberty model is scheduled to appear in the summer of 2001 as a 2002 model replacing the original segment busting Cherokee. The Liberty’s styling cues are a blend of two concept vehicles released at the North American International Auto show several years ago – the Dakar and the Jeepster.
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Jeep Dakar concept |
While the Cherokee and Liberty both appeal to the entry level SUV market , the all new Liberty will compete in a class slightly different than that of the outgoing Cherokee by being a “tougher” entry level model.
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Jeep Jeepster concept |
What Jeep has done is preserved the purpose of the SUV and instead of chasing the “novelty” market like other auto makers are doing, the Liberty is designed to be a true rough and tuff SUV – the very essence of what an SUV’s supposed to be about.
Jeep started off by designing the Liberty’s frame and chassis from scratch. The chassis is a coil sprung independent front suspension offering an eight inch travel for optimum off road performance. The upper control arms are forged steel while the lowers are cast iron and are mated to a cast iron steering knuckle. The rear suspension is a coil type which provides a roll center closer to the Liberty’s center of gravity thus reducing body roll/lean during cornering. The chassis will be a uniframe/unibody platform which is stiffer than frame on chassis configurations; however, looked upon as a lessor of equals by most off roader enthusiasts. Jeep will offer an off road package that will include trac-lock differentials, all terrain tires, skid plates and water fording capabilities. All Liberty’s will also have larger and thicker than normal full cast brake rotors with greater heat capacity and larger, stiffer calipers. A new ABS system will include an electronic brake distribution system as well.
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You can’t mistake it for anything but a Jeep |
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No-nonsense large gauges that offer all the vitals |
The Liberty will be powered by an all new optional 90 o3.7L PowerTech V6 (basically a shortened 4.7L V8) that will feature a cast iron block will aluminum heads. Output is rated at 210hp@5200rpm and 255ft-lbs@4000rpm. Unique to the 3.7L V6 is a balance shaft for the overhead cams and a tuned composite intake manifold. The 3.7L can pull 5,000lbs. when equipped with the multi speed automatic transmission. A five speed manual is also available.
Most people own SUV’s because they are novelty vehicles – not because they need them or even use them. The Liberty is probably stronger and more stout than the Explorer, Escape and other competitor’s offerings, but will the average consumer buy a Liberty over an SUV that sells on appeal rather than all out performance? That remains to be seen.
Published: January 07, 2001
By: Robert Lane
Ford Forty-Nine concept steals show
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At the vehicle introduction show |
As far as putting on a vehicle introduction show is concerned, no other automaker does it better than Ford Motor Company, and that was more than evident when Ford introduced the new Ford Forty-Nine concept vehicle to thousands of automotive journalists representing nearly every part of the globe imaginable.
Ford Motor Company President and CEO Jacques Nasser and Vice President of Design J. Mays hosted the event (pictured below) and the excitement that was generated kept the media buzzing well after the show was finished.
The message Ford Motor Company is sending out is to simply “have fun” and the Forty-Nine Ford will provide a consumer with all the fun they can handle, even when they stop to fill up their gas tanks and the attention of everyone suddenly is focused on them and their new Ford Forty-Nine.
The styling is world class and customized paint jobs as well as the fuzzy dice and dashboard shag carpeting will be only a few of the modifications Ford Motor Company believes consumers of the Forty-Nine will use to differentiate themselves from the rest of the motoring Ford Forty-Nine public.
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The Ford Forty-Nine |
At this point judging by the overwhelming positive reaction of the media, of which Ford Motor Company measures as a first step to decide as to whether or not it will bring a concept vehicle to production, announcing a launch date for the Forty-Nine is just a formality waiting to be fulfilled.
Published: January 8, 2001
By: Steve Blake
