Posted on 10/02/2007 9:58:30 AM PDT by decimon
DETROIT - Ford Motor Co.'s U.S. sales plummeted 21 percent in September as the automaker saw a steep drop-off in car sales, according to results released Tuesday.
Ford's car sales dropped 39 percent compared with last September, while its truck sales were down 5 percent. The automaker said a 62 percent reduction in sales to rental car fleets partly was to blame. Ford has been trying to cut back on rental sales, which can hurt brand image and profits.
Other automakers also were expected to report lackluster sales for the month, as jittery consumers put off big-ticket purchases in reaction to the credit crunch, high gas prices and the troubled housing market. Wall Street analysts predicted overall sales would be down 4 percent for the month.
The Associated Press reports unadjusted figures, calculating the percentage change in the total number of vehicles sold in one month compared with the same month a year earlier. Some automakers report percentages adjusted for sales days. There were 25 sales days last month and 26 in September 2006.
Yes, it is sad ... If it was a decent car I might have bought one. All the on-line reviews (edmunds, autobytel ...) I read were lukewarm at best, and to actually see one was disappointing. Fit & finish were bad, and the thing just felt ‘cheesy’.
Some foreign automaker will probably follow China's Chery lead (they obtained Chrysler access through Cerebus) to likewise buy Ford for their name and dealer access.
Perhaps an Indian car company.
The imported cars will carry the Ford brand and be sold at Ford dealerships (really, the only valuable things left at Ford).
How about "... as wizened consumers rejected buying over-priced pieces of junk intended to fund pay and benefits packages for union members that far exceed the purchasers' own income and benefits ..."
Okay. How much you got on ya?
I hope their losses are attributable to the boycott some of us are honoring against Ford for all of the company support for some of the gay and lesbian filth-—hope their sales drop to o% in the USA unless they wiseup and stop supporting this bunch of animals
However, it is a valid impression of how well (or poorly) the vehicle will hold up over time, as rentals often experience “accelerated aging.”
Detroit’s problems often show up quite quickly in rental fleets and similar situations. Anyone else remember GM’s Autoshow In Motion? And why they decided to kill it?
That’s what happens when your competition is making a better product. It’s called a free market economy. The US car makers created a monopoly for years, but those years are long gone.
Chery got access through DCX well before Cerberus got interested or even made a bid.
Nevertheless, if there is any company that needs to withdraw from the tyranny of the 10-Q, it is Ford.
“They make good trucks. They need to make better cars.”
I hear they make better cars now. Much of their line is a meld between them and Mazda. I believe the Fusion is a Mazda 6 and the Edge is a CX-7 or a CX-9?
Problem is, Ford is reaping what they have sown. They made some real crap, and now people like me don’t want any part of their garbage.
I had a Windstar with 22k on the clock and the dealer couldn’t fix the tranny. Last Ford I owned.
Rental car agencies buy in quantity at discounts. Then after a year, they dump all these cars on the market. If people like Ford, they will be tempted to buy the almost new rental car instead of a new Ford. Of course the almost new rental car has been driven into the ground and the buyer become unhappy with the Ford brand name.
There was a guy here on FR who said he was on the design team of your Windstar’s transmission. You may be happy to hear that I thoroughly flogged him verbally when he claimed that it should never have had any problems.
Ford panders to homosexuals and the homosexual agenda. For this I won’t purchase a ford. They can financially contribute to whatever abnormal behavior they care to just as I can use my purchasing power any way I care to.
Ford can kiss my ass.
“Only 10,000 miles on this new Taurus!” Yeah, but it looks like it was put on a quarter-mile at a time.... (Drag racing is done in quarter mile full throttle sessions.)
I, like many others on this post - am supporting the AFA Boycot!
You reap what you sow!
No, no! Can’t be that right-wing boycott that’s doing it!
Heck, those people don’t even wear shoes most of the time, how much impact could they have on car sales.
< heh, heh >
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