What the heck are ford doing with the Mustang?
Discussion
So, I went along to my local ford dealership in Manchester today to enquire about the Mustang. I saw the car last year at Goodwood (FOS) and liked what I saw. I gave them my details and heard nothing. I like my V8s and the Mustang fitted the bill. Its cheap, powerful and a good looker. What's not to like.
My plan was to make a few enquiries and order a car for the start of next year. That was until I got to the dealership where I was told that they might get their first cars in the new year and if I ordered one today I would have one in 12 months time. 12 MONTHS TIME!
Its not as if they are a small scale producer hand crafting £100,000 cars, in fact the car sells by the bucket full in US so they can't be in short supply.
So the question arises, why is it so behind its launch, and why so few cars. Given that the price is around the same as a mid range BMW 3 series or Audi A4 you would think that they could be selling mustangs in similar numbers to that old favourite the Capri.
Instead the salesman made a misjudged attempt to sell me a new RS Focus which is a bit apples and oranges.
I know that I can get a new GM Camaro in around 12 weeks direct from the states so I imagine I could do the same with a Mustang.
Come on Ford get your backsides in gear!
My plan was to make a few enquiries and order a car for the start of next year. That was until I got to the dealership where I was told that they might get their first cars in the new year and if I ordered one today I would have one in 12 months time. 12 MONTHS TIME!
Its not as if they are a small scale producer hand crafting £100,000 cars, in fact the car sells by the bucket full in US so they can't be in short supply.
So the question arises, why is it so behind its launch, and why so few cars. Given that the price is around the same as a mid range BMW 3 series or Audi A4 you would think that they could be selling mustangs in similar numbers to that old favourite the Capri.
Instead the salesman made a misjudged attempt to sell me a new RS Focus which is a bit apples and oranges.
I know that I can get a new GM Camaro in around 12 weeks direct from the states so I imagine I could do the same with a Mustang.
Come on Ford get your backsides in gear!
Blue383 said:
Instead the salesman made a misjudged attempt to sell me a new RS Focus which is a bit apples and oranges.
Not the best salesman by the sounds of it 
Apart from the fact the 2 cars are different, i'm fairly certain that the estimated delivery date for an FRS, that's ordered now, is at least 12 months minimum anyway. Some estimates were even saying 1st quarter 2017, which would be even longer than what he quoted for the Mustang.Edited by AlexRS2782 on Saturday 21st November 02:06
I went to a launch event back in August and put my name down for a test drive - they had a US model there to sit in and admire.
They said at the time they expected to get one in mid October that I could have a drive of. Nearly the end of November now and I'm still waiting. I believe the dealers are getting the first few deliveries now (there's a thread in the American Cars section on here). I was also advised that if I did order then there would be a 12 month waiting list.
They said at the time they expected to get one in mid October that I could have a drive of. Nearly the end of November now and I'm still waiting. I believe the dealers are getting the first few deliveries now (there's a thread in the American Cars section on here). I was also advised that if I did order then there would be a 12 month waiting list.
hmm...still doesn't get to the bottom of my question. why a 12 month wait for a mass production, cheap car? does anyone know what the waiting time is for a Mustang in the US?
I'm catching a whiff of something which is either ineptitude or marketing bo**ocks from the offices of Ford UK.
I'm catching a whiff of something which is either ineptitude or marketing bo**ocks from the offices of Ford UK.
Blue383 said:
hmm...still doesn't get to the bottom of my question. why a 12 month wait for a mass production, cheap car? does anyone know what the waiting time is for a Mustang in the US?
I'm catching a whiff of something which is either ineptitude or marketing bo**ocks from the offices of Ford UK.
Did you want left hand drive, which is a cheap, mass produced car, except not sold here, or RHD, which is a small, quite costly for Ford, fork in the production run of a cheap, mass produced car (in another continent)?I'm catching a whiff of something which is either ineptitude or marketing bo**ocks from the offices of Ford UK.
There's a thread for those who put money on the table a LONG time ago somewhere.
True the cars will need to be rejigged for RHD but I assume the Mustang is also headed for the Australian market for the Falcon fans and to a much lesser degree the Japanese market (I know that might jar a bit but I have seen old 4.6 cars coming in as Jap imports).
Either Ford has
1. Cocked up its market research on demand.
2. Can't plan to save their lives.
3. Is messing around with demand to keep resale values artificially high (Which raises the question of build quality)
4. Is having a panic about the tree huggers reaction to having lots of 5 litre V8s appearing on our roads.
On the upside at least Ford aren't taking the mick on price in the same way Vauxhall are with there HSV offerings. Someone needs to explain to VX how currency exchange rates work.
Either Ford has
1. Cocked up its market research on demand.
2. Can't plan to save their lives.
3. Is messing around with demand to keep resale values artificially high (Which raises the question of build quality)
4. Is having a panic about the tree huggers reaction to having lots of 5 litre V8s appearing on our roads.
On the upside at least Ford aren't taking the mick on price in the same way Vauxhall are with there HSV offerings. Someone needs to explain to VX how currency exchange rates work.
As has been discussed at length in the various threads; Ford don't need to piss about with producing RHD models when they're selling upwards of 8K PER MONTH in the US alone. Those 8K will also have a much bigger profit in them for Ford since they don't need to be shipped halfway around the world. Until they sell 8K RHD units a month we're going to have to put up with long lead times.
It's not rocket science.
They have, however, woefully underestimated overseas demand for these cars, both LHD and RHD.
It's not rocket science.
They have, however, woefully underestimated overseas demand for these cars, both LHD and RHD.
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