Ford Ceo Cancels Order For Lexus

[texagun]

Ford CEO Cancels Order for Lexus

By JIM IRWIN (Associated Press Writer)

From Associated Press

January 04, 2007 1:25 AM EST

DEARBORN, Mich. - Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he respects Toyota and its luxury brand, but that he canceled his order for a Lexus after taking the top job at the U.S. automaker. He said traveled to Japan last month to meet with Toyota executives just to show his appreciation, and not in an effort to bring the companies any closer.

Mulally, who took over at the nation's No. 2 automaker last year, said Wednesday he deeply admires the Japanese automaker for its manufacturing processes and product development strategy.

Mulally called Toyota "the finest machine in the world, the finest production system in the world. So we went to study with the master. I really wanted to connect with each of the manufacturers in the industry and to do it quickly," said Mulally, who was hired away from aircraft maker Boeing Co. by Ford Motor Co.

Reports that Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Fujio Cho met in Tokyo with Mulally at the latter's request had sparked investor hopes about a potential alliance.

Mulally squelched that speculation again Wednesday, saying manufacturing methods - along with safety engineering, fuel economy and environmental issues - are topics that all automakers discuss with each other.

"We have so many things in common as an industry that we can work on together," he said.

Ford on Wednesday reported an 8 percent drop in U.S. sales last year compared with 2005. But it was able to hold off Toyota after Toyota's sales surpassed Ford's for the first time in July and again in November.

Ford lost $7 billion during the first three quarters of 2006 and is in the midst of a major restructuring plan to shrink its factory capacity to match lower consumer demand. Mulally said the automaker still expects to return to profitability by 2009, aided not only by shedding jobs and closing factories but also by bringing new products to showrooms more quickly.

Dearborn-based Ford is on track to meet its goal of having 100 percent of its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury lineup represented by all-new or substantially reworked vehicles by 2010, Mulally said.

"Our recovery here in North America is going to be product-led," he said.

Another goal for 2010 or shortly afterward is for Ford to match the efficiency levels of Mazda Motor Corp., said Derrick Kuzak, named last month as head of global product development. Ford owns one-third of Mazda.

Mulally, Kuzak and Mark Fields, Ford's president of the Americas, said Ford's painful recovery will be driven by new products brought to market more quickly. They spoke to reporters at a private dinner that featured a briefing and question-and-answer period.

"Despite the numbers, it (2006) was a year of incremental progress for us," Fields said. "It's like building a house. We built the foundation last year. But you don't see the house. You see a hole."

Ford's top management also is making slow progress toward changing attitudes, the executives said.

"The culture at Ford Motor Company is, `God forbid you ask for help - it means you're weak," Fields said.

Mulally, a Kansas native who spent 37 years at Boeing, said the Detroit automakers' signature event - this month's North American International Auto Show at Cobo Hall downtown - will be the first one he has ever attended.

"I'm really looking forward to it," he said. "I don't know whether I'm showy enough for the show, but I'm going to try to do my best to represent Ford."

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[RX in NC]

Exactly as would be expected. The CEO of Ford should drive a high-end Ford product, just as the CEOs of all automobile manufacturers should drive high-end models from their own lines. Anything else would create the biggest public relations gaffe they could muster.

Ford's long-term survival as an independent entity remains seriously in question. GM is slowly climbing their way back from near-oblivion. Chrysler appears to be in the best financial shape of the three at this point in time. But none of the Big Three will ever again enjoy anything close to the profitability or status that they were essentially guaranteed before the 1970s oil crisis paved the way for the Asian automakers to gain a foothold here in the U.S.

[cardona6569]

I had 3 Fords/Mercury products, two of them very good one of them very sad to say the least. I learned that what the CEO's do not say it is usually they loudest message. If the Ford CEO had a choice, he'd drive a Lexus. That is the biggest/loudest message in the whole article. He should have created an alliance with Toyota and help his company and Toyota at the same time. Ford has some of the finest luxury brand vehicles in America and much of the early Lexus LS it is of the likes of Lincoln's. The sometimes bad thing about Ford is durability, they just do not last without something breaking at least once a month even if that something it extremely minute.

I had a 1987 Cougar XR7 Loaded to the max and that was a great car! Had instant fuel econmy/avrg, distance to empty, Oil pressure gauge, voltmeter, water temp and number of gallons of gas or litters in the tank. Most of these my Lex has, but not all. The ride in my Lex is about the same as the 1987 XR7, but like I said the reliability of the Lexus is far superior. The P/S systems of both are prone to problems and the tranny of the Cougar gave out after 135,000 miles, two alternators, one brake pump, on water pump, some hoses, one rack, the rest were routine maintenance items, plus little parts breaking here and there. I had the car for 11 years of faithful service two accidents. It needed a traction control system, one of the accidents was caused because of the lack of it. Lexus took care of the problem in my car with the ABS, Trac systems.

C.PR

Ford CEO Cancels Order for Lexus

By JIM IRWIN (Associated Press Writer)

From Associated Press

January 04, 2007 1:25 AM EST

DEARBORN, Mich. - Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he respects Toyota and its luxury brand, but that he canceled his order for a Lexus after taking the top job at the U.S. automaker. He said traveled to Japan last month to meet with Toyota executives just to show his appreciation, and not in an effort to bring the companies any closer.

Mulally, who took over at the nation's No. 2 automaker last year, said Wednesday he deeply admires the Japanese automaker for its manufacturing processes and product development strategy.

Mulally called Toyota "the finest machine in the world, the finest production system in the world. So we went to study with the master. I really wanted to connect with each of the manufacturers in the industry and to do it quickly," said Mulally, who was hired away from aircraft maker Boeing Co. by Ford Motor Co.

Reports that Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Fujio Cho met in Tokyo with Mulally at the latter's request had sparked investor hopes about a potential alliance.

Mulally squelched that speculation again Wednesday, saying manufacturing methods - along with safety engineering, fuel economy and environmental issues - are topics that all automakers discuss with each other.

"We have so many things in common as an industry that we can work on together," he said.

Ford on Wednesday reported an 8 percent drop in U.S. sales last year compared with 2005. But it was able to hold off Toyota after Toyota's sales surpassed Ford's for the first time in July and again in November.

Ford lost $7 billion during the first three quarters of 2006 and is in the midst of a major restructuring plan to shrink its factory capacity to match lower consumer demand. Mulally said the automaker still expects to return to profitability by 2009, aided not only by shedding jobs and closing factories but also by bringing new products to showrooms more quickly.

Dearborn-based Ford is on track to meet its goal of having 100 percent of its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury lineup represented by all-new or substantially reworked vehicles by 2010, Mulally said.

"Our recovery here in North America is going to be product-led," he said.

Another goal for 2010 or shortly afterward is for Ford to match the efficiency levels of Mazda Motor Corp., said Derrick Kuzak, named last month as head of global product development. Ford owns one-third of Mazda.

Mulally, Kuzak and Mark Fields, Ford's president of the Americas, said Ford's painful recovery will be driven by new products brought to market more quickly. They spoke to reporters at a private dinner that featured a briefing and question-and-answer period.

"Despite the numbers, it (2006) was a year of incremental progress for us," Fields said. "It's like building a house. We built the foundation last year. But you don't see the house. You see a hole."

Ford's top management also is making slow progress toward changing attitudes, the executives said.

"The culture at Ford Motor Company is, `God forbid you ask for help - it means you're weak," Fields said.

Mulally, a Kansas native who spent 37 years at Boeing, said the Detroit automakers' signature event - this month's North American International Auto Show at Cobo Hall downtown - will be the first one he has ever attended.

"I'm really looking forward to it," he said. "I don't know whether I'm showy enough for the show, but I'm going to try to do my best to represent Ford."

---

[nc211]

He probably placed an order for an Aston Martin instead, since Ford owns them as well "for now anyway". I seriously doubt he'll be cruising around in the Escape, or Exploder.

[blake918]

It wouldn't be normal for Mullay to have a daily driver that is anything other than a Ford/Lincoln/Mercury. What kind of message does it send out when the CEO of a company like the FMC is driving around in the competiton's car? If he doesn't believe in the FMC products, he should go work at Toyota. I'm not saying that he should only drive a Ford, but when you are the CEO of a massive, public corp like Ford, you should at least have a few of them. What's next is Bill Gates going to come out and say that he has an iMac in his office because it doesn't lock up as much as his PC does?? LOL

[SW03ES]

Well, actually when you're CEO of Ford you should only drive a Ford LOL. Its just part of the business as RX said.

My dad went through that for years. He used to do business with a lot of unions and it was a big nono to drive foreign, especially Japanese, cars. He finally did bite the bullet and buy the Lexus but for years he drove the Explorer on golf outings with the labor people etc so they wouldn't see it.

Business is like that.