RE: Ford suspends Focus RS project
Tuesday 14th June 2005
Ford unfocusedRemember the new Focus RS that we headlined on 2 June? Remember the promise of up to 350bhp and 332lb-ft of torque from a high-pressure turbocharged 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder engine, driven through all four wheels -- more than the current BMW M3's 343bhp and 269lb-ft?
Ford suspends Focus RS project
Blue Oval defocused about 320bhp hatch. Shame...
Ford unfocused
According to Autocar, Ford has slammed the brakes on the project. The magazine said it didn't know why but did confirm that the car was due to put out 320bhp.
We also don't know whether the suspension of the project is permanent or not. Sorry to have got your hopes up.
Discussion
Dumb ass Ford.
They managed to make the Ford GT, don't know why it's so hard for them to even use a 2.0 inline 4 and get 300bhp.
Mitsubishi's new Evo IX manages to be a stonking point to point machine with amazing handling for £30,000.
Ford are quite clearly useless, platform sharing, engine sharing, parts sharing retards, who can't even throw a car together with already available components.
Dave
They managed to make the Ford GT, don't know why it's so hard for them to even use a 2.0 inline 4 and get 300bhp.
Mitsubishi's new Evo IX manages to be a stonking point to point machine with amazing handling for £30,000.
Ford are quite clearly useless, platform sharing, engine sharing, parts sharing retards, who can't even throw a car together with already available components.
Dave
g surprise. It'll be here at some ppoint in the next 10 years I would imagine, nice and diluted with 2WD and 100 less ponies, preceded inevitably by a warmer version of an LX 5dr called something frothy.I think a lot of us have done a similar thing before...
friday night, one or two too many, and all of a sudden we have an idea which will take the world by storm..
Luckily for us we dont work for a auto manufacturer, and generally motoring journalists dont take us too seriously at some ungodly hour(or any hour for that matter)
"Ive got a great (hic) idea maaaate...."(phone hangs up)
Luckily we dont have to ring the same journos the next day with a headache.." terribly sorry to lead you on, truth is we haven't got the landing gear to actually give it a go..."
friday night, one or two too many, and all of a sudden we have an idea which will take the world by storm..
Luckily for us we dont work for a auto manufacturer, and generally motoring journalists dont take us too seriously at some ungodly hour(or any hour for that matter)
"Ive got a great (hic) idea maaaate...."(phone hangs up)
Luckily we dont have to ring the same journos the next day with a headache.." terribly sorry to lead you on, truth is we haven't got the landing gear to actually give it a go..."
nelly...my sympathy...I'm stuck at Whitley, dealing with engineers all day! 
...and I know EXACTLY what Ford management are like...
As for the car...it'd only fall apart straight after the warranty period anyway! Get something reliable and well built - Jap if possible, German (non-VAG) if not!
...and I know EXACTLY what Ford management are like...
As for the car...it'd only fall apart straight after the warranty period anyway! Get something reliable and well built - Jap if possible, German (non-VAG) if not!
according to the autoexpress website the a Ford spokeman said :
"At the moment, our priority is a wider range of products with broader appeal, such as the SAV concept and a new Ka. A more performance-oriented car like the proposed Focus RS would be developed only once these were established."
fantastic.. another MPV that seats 20 people and looks like a transit with big alloys..
"At the moment, our priority is a wider range of products with broader appeal, such as the SAV concept and a new Ka. A more performance-oriented car like the proposed Focus RS would be developed only once these were established."
fantastic.. another MPV that seats 20 people and looks like a transit with big alloys..
Why do they keep cancelling the fast Ford?
Honda can sell every CTR in the showroom, Seat every Leon Cupra, Subaru every imprezza (well until now, not for much longer with the new ugly front!) but apparently the iconic Fast Ford can't be made for some new reason...
Remember the Escort Cosworth of the early nineties?
This model wouuld sell.
It would sell at a price high enough to justify making it.
It would be iconic.
It would promote Ford.
But they don't do it.
Seriously. Why?
And PAG (Aston Martin, Lagonda, Jaguar and Volvo) apparently don't make them much cash. Why again?
Honda can sell every CTR in the showroom, Seat every Leon Cupra, Subaru every imprezza (well until now, not for much longer with the new ugly front!) but apparently the iconic Fast Ford can't be made for some new reason...
Remember the Escort Cosworth of the early nineties?
This model wouuld sell.
It would sell at a price high enough to justify making it.
It would be iconic.
It would promote Ford.
But they don't do it.
Seriously. Why?
And PAG (Aston Martin, Lagonda, Jaguar and Volvo) apparently don't make them much cash. Why again?
Up until last July I had worked for Ford for 9 years, 8 yrs for the finance arm based in St Albans where we dealt with all brands under the Ford umbrella and the last year out in the main dealer network.
There isn't one specific problem but many and this may be a long post, First is money, the company is in deep do-do the motor company continues to lose money year on year and relies on the income made by Ford Credit to help it out.
Let me give you a very quick example, biscuits are no longer supplied at meetings and forms must be completed to get new pens or post-it notes, THIS IS NOT A JOKE.
The Bridgestone tyre issue hurt hard and resulted in Ford's credit rating in the states falling from AAA to C+ and when I left back to a B. This meant that money was more expensive to borrow, therefore more expensive to lend and the APR's to buy a Ford using Ford own Credit schemes, i.e. Options, conditional sale could not compete with direct lenders (banks etc) So vital income reduced.
The company shares almost hit junk bond status and the share price fell from $65 to a low of $6.5 which was fun.
They have recently loaned money against future earnings to help them out now but in the long run.........
I have spent many days in main dealers during sales events when not one person entered the doors, people don’t want Fords anymore. The amount of development money wasted on the Focus C-Max was massive and would have easily paid for a proper Ford flagship model.
How many C-Max's have you seen out in the roads? after being out for 5-6 months less that 500 had been sold in the whole country and believe me the panic and reality set in. But why come to the market with a product 3-4 years to late, try and compete with established products i.e. Citroen Mpvs and then price it so high to cover its costs. No one in there right mind would pay £18k for a bloody fat Focus, no matter how good a product it is (and it is).
Next up, PAG group Jag in particular is a mess and the losses are unreal and honestly cant continue, as someone correctly stated Vovlo is still "removed" from the Ford umbrella and that’s does help but the rest are in the S*@&
Now another reason for the RS being dropped is that the great and the good do not want to been seen as "going in that direction". By this I mean they are desperate to compete with VW/BMW and attract a different customer base, making a proper car is not
on anyone’s wish list and of course the cost scares them off. They are convinced that the quality of the product will sell the cars regardless of price and badge. People would rather have a BMW on their drive than a Ford.
After attending a number of major marketing meetings this focus to just conform and make rows of rep cars (another area where sales/profit are massively down) and euro box's is very evident.
They are so concerned with changing the KA and cocking it up (which they should be) that a great sum of time and money will be put into that rather than a car that will enhance their image.
Waste at an executive level would shame an African politician, did you know that Ford has its own airline and terminal at Stanstead, there are many stories of interesting flights taking place which I don’t wish to go into but you catch my drift. Numerous houses on the Florida coast sit empty when they could be let to staff to re-coup some cash.
I could go on but you get the point
To sum up mis-management at very senior levels, a product that is competent but dull and overpriced and, stuck with loss making brands that they paid well over the odds for. They have rested on their laurels after the success and praise of the Mondeo, Focus and Puma but the competition caught up and overtook them, now they dont have the money or grapefruits to fight back.
The days of RS500 touring cars and Street heroes like the cossie are long gone and to be brutally honest dead and buried. I hope to be proved wrong
There isn't one specific problem but many and this may be a long post, First is money, the company is in deep do-do the motor company continues to lose money year on year and relies on the income made by Ford Credit to help it out.
Let me give you a very quick example, biscuits are no longer supplied at meetings and forms must be completed to get new pens or post-it notes, THIS IS NOT A JOKE.
The Bridgestone tyre issue hurt hard and resulted in Ford's credit rating in the states falling from AAA to C+ and when I left back to a B. This meant that money was more expensive to borrow, therefore more expensive to lend and the APR's to buy a Ford using Ford own Credit schemes, i.e. Options, conditional sale could not compete with direct lenders (banks etc) So vital income reduced.
The company shares almost hit junk bond status and the share price fell from $65 to a low of $6.5 which was fun.
They have recently loaned money against future earnings to help them out now but in the long run.........
I have spent many days in main dealers during sales events when not one person entered the doors, people don’t want Fords anymore. The amount of development money wasted on the Focus C-Max was massive and would have easily paid for a proper Ford flagship model.
How many C-Max's have you seen out in the roads? after being out for 5-6 months less that 500 had been sold in the whole country and believe me the panic and reality set in. But why come to the market with a product 3-4 years to late, try and compete with established products i.e. Citroen Mpvs and then price it so high to cover its costs. No one in there right mind would pay £18k for a bloody fat Focus, no matter how good a product it is (and it is).
Next up, PAG group Jag in particular is a mess and the losses are unreal and honestly cant continue, as someone correctly stated Vovlo is still "removed" from the Ford umbrella and that’s does help but the rest are in the S*@&
Now another reason for the RS being dropped is that the great and the good do not want to been seen as "going in that direction". By this I mean they are desperate to compete with VW/BMW and attract a different customer base, making a proper car is not
on anyone’s wish list and of course the cost scares them off. They are convinced that the quality of the product will sell the cars regardless of price and badge. People would rather have a BMW on their drive than a Ford.
After attending a number of major marketing meetings this focus to just conform and make rows of rep cars (another area where sales/profit are massively down) and euro box's is very evident.
They are so concerned with changing the KA and cocking it up (which they should be) that a great sum of time and money will be put into that rather than a car that will enhance their image.
Waste at an executive level would shame an African politician, did you know that Ford has its own airline and terminal at Stanstead, there are many stories of interesting flights taking place which I don’t wish to go into but you catch my drift. Numerous houses on the Florida coast sit empty when they could be let to staff to re-coup some cash.
I could go on but you get the point
To sum up mis-management at very senior levels, a product that is competent but dull and overpriced and, stuck with loss making brands that they paid well over the odds for. They have rested on their laurels after the success and praise of the Mondeo, Focus and Puma but the competition caught up and overtook them, now they dont have the money or grapefruits to fight back.
The days of RS500 touring cars and Street heroes like the cossie are long gone and to be brutally honest dead and buried. I hope to be proved wrong
How true.
i feel so sorry for Ford. The RS would have been the ideal product to kick start the new generation RS fan club. 350bhp RS AWD with Active diffs would have put some excitment back into the Ford brand.
The shorty to be lunched Focus ST just doesn't look good. it may have a tuned and re mapped volvo T5 unit, but the actually styling makes the already boring and heavy focus (no matter how good to drive) look very frumpy. having just come back from Motorexpo i am far more impressed with the VXR brand than the attempt by Ford with the 'ST' brand. the Astra VXR looks superb. that in turn actually got me to sit in the Astra 5dr SRI (which also looks nice). going over to the Ford stand made me realise that FOrd doesn't have anything interesting to offer the UK buyer. apart from the GT (not available in RHD anyway) Ford has a Fiesta ST (half hearted effort imho), and the street Ka.. the Focus 1.6 TiVCT Titanium isn't going to get people interested in the Ford brand..
people were very much more interested in the vauxhall brand than the Ford brand.. hardly any people intersted in the Ford products.
looking in the future the focus convertible is pants. who really is interested in a rep car with a folding roof? i haven't seen many Pug or renault coupe convertibles..
i'm not suprised people are leaving ford for the german marques.
i feel so sorry for Ford. The RS would have been the ideal product to kick start the new generation RS fan club. 350bhp RS AWD with Active diffs would have put some excitment back into the Ford brand.
The shorty to be lunched Focus ST just doesn't look good. it may have a tuned and re mapped volvo T5 unit, but the actually styling makes the already boring and heavy focus (no matter how good to drive) look very frumpy. having just come back from Motorexpo i am far more impressed with the VXR brand than the attempt by Ford with the 'ST' brand. the Astra VXR looks superb. that in turn actually got me to sit in the Astra 5dr SRI (which also looks nice). going over to the Ford stand made me realise that FOrd doesn't have anything interesting to offer the UK buyer. apart from the GT (not available in RHD anyway) Ford has a Fiesta ST (half hearted effort imho), and the street Ka.. the Focus 1.6 TiVCT Titanium isn't going to get people interested in the Ford brand..
people were very much more interested in the vauxhall brand than the Ford brand.. hardly any people intersted in the Ford products.
looking in the future the focus convertible is pants. who really is interested in a rep car with a folding roof? i haven't seen many Pug or renault coupe convertibles..
i'm not suprised people are leaving ford for the german marques.
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