Major Ford announcement

[Bucknaked]

Originally Posted by stevz

They don't seem very 'random' to me. It is the same ad before each video.

It's the inter webs. Stuff just happens. Like that stuff that ends up on ya puter. "Honestly dear, I have no idea how that got on the puter, I was only playing solitaire".

[Resurrection]

Well I am back after my four day 'holiday'. I wasn't and am not surpised/shocked about last Thursday's announcement as I have been expecting it for years. I was more shocked in 2007 when Ford announced that they were planing to close the Geelong engine plant in 2010 and replace the venerable I6 with an imported V6. It was on that day that I knew it was all over for the Falcon and Ford Australia as a manufacturer. Further incidents since 2007 have confirmed my original belief. One example, the company I worked for made a presentation a few years ago of fuel saving technologies which could be add to the Falcon. What happened after our presentaion? Nothing!

[Benjamin Smith]

who killed the Ford Falcon?
http://www.carsales.com.au/news/2013...d-falcon-36772

[Resurrection]

Originally Posted by Benjamin Smith

who killed the Ford Falcon?
http://www.carsales.com.au/news/2013...d-falcon-36772

Dearborn!

[gtxb67]

the falcon was on it's knees long before dearborn killed it off

exorbitant wages
changing tastes in cars
governments not caring about the people who voted them in
are just some of the reasons, the falcon has been killed off

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by barra240t

Coming from a dealers point of view I am a little concerned on how many customers are asking what will happen once Ford Australia closes it's doors in 2016...meaning the whole of Ford is leaving the country!!

People are actually thinking there will be no more Ford in Australia. I really hope Ford make it clear we are here after 2016, don't ask me how but they need to do something.

Yep I had someone come up to me at my god daughters 2nd birthday yesterday saying he was thinking about a ranger till he heard Ford was closing Australia. After I explained the situation he was still not interested and said he would buy a BT-50 instead simply because there was so much uncertainty with Ford.

[Kieron]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

So I was out kayaking Saturday after noon and found myself pondering what it is about this story that upsets me the most.

Is it the death of the iconic Falcon, and its Territory sibling, or is the loss of local manufacturing, the jobs of 1200 workers and countless support positions in the supply chain?

So I thought about it from their point of view, Falcon isn't selling, and yes it's true, some of that is their doing, but lets not forget the Falcon nameplate has been around for a while, I certainly don't need constant reminding to know that Falcon is available in showrooms, and many of these showrooms neighbour Hyundai, Mazda and numerous other brands.

The fact is, no one wants it, so why build it.
Sure, not everyone buys new cars, and that is an individual decision, but those who do frequent the dealerships of Australia aren't spending much time browsing through the Falcon brochures. Sad but true!

Then I started thinking about the workers. Many of them have been there straight from high school and know nothing else, why should they be the innocent victims of a corporate decision in an office thousands of kilometres from the noisy shop floors in Australia.
Why should their literacy skill levels be brought into question, these people have been crafting one of the best vehicles available in this country, these are good people, they deserve better, they deserve job security.
These faces are familiar, Holden's is only 10 minutes from my door and I have many mates who work in and around the fragile existence that has become the Australian Auto manufacturing industry, how would it impact my neighbourhood if that decision was made here.

Ford plan to continue on in Australia, selling foreign built cars at top dollar, in exchange for Australians wages, the same wages they refuse to assist with post 2016.
I say, we as Australians need to stand up and say 'NO', vote with your cheque books, don't give the American giant another cent unless they support our manufacturing brothers and sisters..

Now obviously it would be a waste of time to continue building the Falcon/Terri here alone as it would cost them too much, but what about if their hand was forced to keep local manufacturing open by building something which can move in volumes.

If the new Ford buyers of Australia stand up and say 'NO', I wont buy an imported Ford no matter how good it is. I wonder how much money that would cost them.

Now, I am not a politician, nor do I have access to the media or even make up face book pages.
But those people exist.

Someone need to start a movement and pressure those in power to get behind it and let these American Auto giants know that Australia wont stand for it.
They may have been building cars in Australia for 90 years, but Australians have been buying them for 90 years too, they've made a few quid out of the deal.

The time is now people, a precedence needs to be set before the General starts to feel comfortable with the scenario and jumps too.
We are always being told to stand up against domestic violence, racism, cyber bullying etc. etc, well, why don't we stand up to Corporate bullying.

Or, perhaps all that salty St Kilda air had gone to my head...

Could be looked at another way, Ford came to Australia, designed and built cars here, employing generations of Aussies so have contributed to the Aussie economy on a large, ongoing scale.

Other manufacturers have NEVER designed/built a car here but suck those wages out of our pockets and almost certainly had a higher ROI than Ford Aus had per car.

[Resurrection]

Originally Posted by gtxb67

the falcon was on it's knees long before dearborn killed it off

exorbitant wages
changing tastes in cars
governments not caring about the people who voted them in
are just some of the reasons, the falcon has been killed off

Incorrect. Dearborn has killed the Falcon. Those above issues just made it easier for the septics to make that decision.

One example: The Australian government gave money to Ford Australia to make a more economically model. Hence the EcoBoost Falcon. So what do Ford do? They spend advertising dollars making TV commercials showing a Mondeo fitted with the same engine, not the locally made product. That clearly shows somebody is telling the locals which product to push and which product not to promote.

I can give many more examples if you like.

[gtxb67]

Originally Posted by Resurrection

One example: The Australian government gave money to Ford Australia to make a more economically model. Hence the EcoBoost Falcon. So what do Ford do? They spend advertising dollars making TV commercials showing a Mondeo fitted with the same engine, not the locally made product. That clearly shows somebody is telling the locals which product to push and which product not to promote

maybe my dates are all wrong, but i thought the australian dollar was already uncomfortably high long before the ecoboost was released in australia

of course dearborn has control over ford australia, but they also have the facts and figures and if they do not believe that ford aus can be profitable as a manufacturer, they will take away that right
if they thought that ford aus would make them money, they would allow manufacturing to continue here

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Benjamin Smith

who killed the Ford Falcon?
http://www.carsales.com.au/news/2013...d-falcon-36772

Read some of the comments beneath by those who wanted a Falcon or Territory but were totally disgusted by the dealers approach. It is such a common story across the country, it has to be a big reason for the decline in sales.

[Bossxr8]

Working today sucked. Its like being at a funeral.

[2011G6E]

Strong...stupidly strong...tariffs breed complacency and lowering quality in local makers. Why wouldn't they? They would know they're selling to a captive audience who has little choice but to buy a Falcon or Commodore because that's all they could reasonably afford because foreign stuff is taxed out of reach.
There's no way we can tell "the opposition" to build worse cars or ones lacking equipment...maybe some people would propose that no foreign car be allowed to come to these shores with any equipment that isn't currently available in a Falcon, to prevent an impressionable public seeing what they're missing out on?


No one seems to want to accept that the public has changed its mind on what a car should realistically be for their family. Times change, and if car makers don't change too, then they will find out all about it with falling sales. The sentiment seems to be that Ford should have ignored the losses and low sales and just kept on making Falcons because of "tradition". Ask yourself what you would do if you were the head of the company looking at low and falling sales and massive financial losses...if you say "Keep on doing what we always have done", then you really don't understand the problem.

[mik]

the fact car manufacturers in australia have already either gone bust or simply given up and left , and the remaining 3 being on life support for years and also on borrowed time as truly points to the fact that tariffs have been so far out of kilter the locals were pushing crap up hill even before the high dollar, carbon tax, etc, etc.

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by Kieron

Could be looked at another way, Ford came to Australia, designed and built cars here, employing generations of Aussies so have contributed to the Aussie economy on a large, ongoing scale.

Fair point, and duly noted, however, it is the future of the current workforce which concerns me, to remove a slice of the local economy in the current economic climate cant be positive.
Ford have seen some good times in Australia, ride out the storm is where I see it.

Originally Posted by Kieron

Other manufacturers have NEVER designed/built a car here but suck those wages out of our pockets and almost certainly had a higher ROI than Ford Aus had per car.

True, but they only sell what the local guy doesn't offer, you cant blame them for that.
People buy what they want, Ford Australia should be in the business of building what people want.

Im not saying my views are right, but this country is going down a dark path and every man and his dog are abandoning it in its time of need.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by Bossxr8

Working today sucked. Its like being at a funeral.

One of my friends in my OH&S night school class is emergency response at Broadmeadows factory, he said its bad as well.

[csv8]

Ford to build cars in Indonesia ??
http://servicingstopford.co.uk/ford-...-in-indonesia/

[FalconXV]

Originally Posted by Bossxr8

Working today sucked. Its like being at a funeral.

That's upsetting to hear. Do you think morale will recover slighty, or has alot of the passion evaporated?
I have noticed on Ford's Facebook page they have been inundated with negativity- this is going to cost them dearly, especially with Graziano's speech lifted from PR 101. Mitsubishi hasn't really recovered since they left, and there are far more people emotionally invest in Ford Australia who took this very personally.
I don't understand how they expect volumes to sustain 3 years, the logic behind the early announcement escapes me. But I remain hopeful because I badly want to buy my first new Falcon in the next 18 months!!

[FalconXV]

Originally Posted by csv8

Ford to build cars in Indonesia ??
http://servicingstopford.co.uk/ford-...-in-indonesia/

Makes sense, since Thailand factories are struggling with demand. I could imagine B-Max, Ecosport, Transit Connect and maybe a B-segment car being built there.

[XD 351 Ute]

Originally Posted by DASH GT

Yep I had someone come up to me at my god daughters 2nd birthday yesterday saying he was thinking about a ranger till he heard Ford was closing Australia. After I explained the situation he was still not interested and said he would buy a BT-50 instead simply because there was so much uncertainty with Ford.

Regardless of all that went wrong or has been done wrong to kill FOA, if Ford USA don't fix this new public perception that they are closing up shop fully, then Ford USA can forget about selling any more cars here.

I'm hearing the same thing around here already..

Ed

[badoc]

Indeed. Ford USA will make the Ford brand toxic in Australia.

Having said that, tariffs are clearly responsible for the disparity. Australian Governments have been signing some of the most lopsided trade agreements in the world, particularly since 1996. I mean, Aussie cars sold in Thailand have a 50% tariff, Thai cars sold here have 0%? What moron would agree to that?

Manufacturing here must be supported. If it means buying a Holden or a Hybrid Camry post 10/2016, so be it.

Until then, to all the staff at Broadmeadows and Geelong, keep on producing Australia's best and most underrated cars.

[mik]

I still believe that manufacturing has been sacrificed up to a point , re: the UN charter decades ago for australia to kill off 30 % of its manufacturing so poorer countrys could gain wealth, i read some transcripts from a meeting clearly stating this, many polticians on both sides signed an agreement to this, very well known pollies to I might add.

As for ford being toxic, I think it will be forgotten in years to come, I reckon people in the next few years will be pre occupied with events concerning holden and toyota .

[CyberWasp]

Instead of the Government giving Money directly to the Manufacturers of this industry maybe it could be tackled in a different way.

What if they gave a 10k rebate to people who privately bought an Australian made car?

This would give major incentive to the 3 manufacturers to make cars that the buying public wanted, otherwise they would miss out on increased sales.

A base model Falcon would effectively be around 25k making it affordable for average families.

[Kable72]

Originally Posted by Bossxr8

Working today sucked. Its like being at a funeral.

Stick with it buddy! You'll be seeing us on the last day for a very personal thank you. Hopefully you and your work mates can pull some passion and enjoyment out of the next few years.

[barra240t]

Originally Posted by DASH GT

Yep I had someone come up to me at my god daughters 2nd birthday yesterday saying he was thinking about a ranger till he heard Ford was closing Australia. After I explained the situation he was still not interested and said he would buy a BT-50 instead simply because there was so much uncertainty with Ford.

Well done for trying to explain the situation, hopefully a lot of Ford fans who know what is happening can spread the truth and like you have. We are in the process of talking with local media to get the message across.

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by barra240t

Well done for trying to explain the situation, hopefully a lot of Ford fans who know what is happening can spread the truth and like you have. We are in the process of talking with local media to get the message across.

That should not be a dealer initiative.

Curious, has Mullally said boo?

[Kable72]

We've already had people call us up asking about the future on Ford Parts. A lot of these people think Ford is leaving Australia for good. Takes a while to convince them that Ford themselves aren't going anywhere and parts for their Territories and Falcons are going to be around for quite some time.

[GTP534]

Some of the major television news programs should be ashamed of themselves. We watch Channel 7 and they were saying Ford to leave Australia in the news headlines. It was only in the bulletin proper that they mentioned it was manufacturing.

It's not hard to understand the public perception that Ford are leaving Australia for good. I had to explain it to my parents, family, etc, that it was local manufacturing that was to be stopped.

That's been the perception for a while now.

[creative]

Originally Posted by Kable72

We've already had people call us up asking about the future on Ford Parts. A lot of these people think Ford is leaving Australia for good. Takes a while to convince them that Ford themselves aren't going anywhere and parts for their Territories and Falcons are going to be around for quite some time.

yup.

even the receptionist here at work said that she is going to sell her new focus because she wont be able to get parts etc from 2016. Once I explained what was happening she completely understood and the forsale sign was taken down.

I think ford need to clarify a few things publicly.

anyone else get an email from their local dealer? I havent scrolled back any pages to find out.

[Whitey-AMG]

Originally Posted by creative

anyone else get an email from their local dealer? I havent scrolled back any pages to find out.

Yep - I got one
We purchased an FG G6 recently for my folks.
The letter / email was rather ambiguous - probably intentionally so - no mention of cessation of manufacturing - just feel good verbiage on continuing commitment to Australia and no change to buying or servicing............

Hi Jim

Today, you may hear some news about Ford Motor Company. Since you have contacted us in the past about our vehicles, we wanted to inform you directly that there will be no changes to the way our customers buy and service our cars.
Our customers will continue to buy and service their Fords at local dealers across the country, as they always have.
Whilst we are changing our structure, our commitment to Australia remains strong. We will continue to design and develop great vehicles. We will continue to strive for outstanding sales and service. And, we will continue our long history of serving Australian customers with the very best vehicles to deliver cutting edge technology at an affordable price.
For more information on today’s announcement, please visit www.ford.com.au/about/newsroom.
If you have any questions, please contact our Customer Relationship Centre at customers@fordcrc.com.au or via phone at 133 673. Alternatively, please speak to your local Ford Dealer.
Regards

[Whitey-AMG]

^^^^

ooops - EDIT - just realised you asked if anyone received a letter or communication from a "dealer".
I only received the comms from FORD - have received nothing from any dealer.