Americans will buy SUVs even if gas hits four dollars a gallon: Ford

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/04/12/060412200622.3j2d0yzp.html

A core group of US consumers will continue to buy large sports utility vehicles (SUVs) even if gasoline prices rise to four dollars a gallon and stay that way, a senior executive at the Ford Motor Company said.

"There is a certain portion of the marketplace and customers who want that flexibility that is provided with a traditional SUV," Mark Fields, president of the automaker's Americas division, said during a conference with analysts.

"So I don't think our strategy would change too much."

High gasoline (petrol) prices, which currently top three dollars a gallon in some critical US retail markets, have already cut into sales of Ford's gas-guzzling large SUVs.

Fields said the company had forecast prices to be in the 2.50 to three dollar range this year and as a result has focused on expanding sales of cars and smaller more fuel-efficient crossover sports utility vehicles.

[kaygore]

1. Hmmm...no wonder Ford is going bankrupt

Sure, pander to the arrogant pigs in our society. To hell with the environment or the rest of the world.

Guess they deserve to go out of business.

[K-W]

19. Such bankruptcies are just financial maneuvuering.

They arent going out of business anytime soon unfortunately.

[leesa]

38. Yes, during which time things like pensions, health coverage and jobs

disappear.

[Zynx]

48. Correct. Chapter 11 is just a drastic restructuring move.

Chapter 7 is a different matter.

[stevekatz]

24. actually...

Ford isn't going bankrupt, they've been making a profit every quarter..

Only the American division is not turning a profit.

[B3Nut]

51. Well, look at what Ford Europe gets!

The new Focus (not our warmed-over nosejobbed old one in the States) based on the Mazda3 platform. The Fiesta, a very sharp small hatchback that would do quite well here, given the interest in the new Honda Fit, Nissan Versa, Scion xA, and redesigned Kia Rio5 puppyhatches (I have a new Rio5 and love it.) They also have the Ford Ka, a really cute minicar. What do we get here? A competent, exciting-as-a-bar-of-deodorant sedan (500), a decent but merely average midsize sedan with a nose that looks like they stole it from a Gillette razor(Fusion), an aging (though still fun-to-drive) small car with mediocre-for-the-class fuel economy with a new nose to make its face as ugly as the rest of the line (Focus) and a bunch of guzzling SUV's. The only really bright spots are the Escape Hybrid, and the workhorse F-series pickups (for people actually using vehicles to actually get real work done).

If anything keeps Ford afloat here, it's going to be the F-150. Still a good work truck (though some buy those as phallic substitutes as well instead of using them to do real work.)

Todd in Beerbratistan

[bunkerbuster1]

57. Glad you mentioned the Focus

That's been a pet peeve of mine, and I think it speaks volumes about just how clueless Ford is about the American marketplace.

Some bean counters convince top management that their projections show X dollars saved by regurgitating the same old subcompact another year or two, and top management says--"Bring it on! Screw the bottom end of our demographic."

Why they can't understand how penny wise/pound foolish this attitude has been to the company's bottom line over the years, I'll never know.

Meanwhile, if I'm in the market for a new car somewhere in the mid-teens, it sure as hell ain't gonna be the Focus. It'll be the Mazda 3, Carolla, or (if the dealer is willing to talk price) the new Civic.

You know, a modern car, engineered in THIS millenium.

[trogdor]

60. You have to cut prices when you do that.

Chrysler in the late 1980's had the "America" series of the Omni and Horizon hatchbacks. These cars were well past their prime, but people bought them because the sticker prices were reduced to reflect the fact that the R&D and tooling had been paid for years earlier, and Chrysler was building these cars really, really cheap. A Focus that listed for twelve grand with choice of transmission, A/C, and a CD player would sell like hotcakes, even if it was a Ford product.

[B3Nut]

67. Ford has cut prices in a roundabout way on them

by dint of incentives, taking $3K off the sticker. I looked at a Focus SE 5-door, had auto/AC/cruise on it. Stickered at 17,4, would have been 14,4. But the EPA rating was only 26 city/32 highway with the auto, and the switchgear felt cheap (and it had the same poorly-placed cupholders as my old Escort ZX2, I often hit my coffee cup with my shin, at times knocking it over). I went for the Kia Rio5 hatch, which lacks cruise but has all the other power amenities, 29 city/38 hwy EPA rating (real-world average is edging close to 30 for me right now, better than many Focus users are reporting, still breaking in) and has a full guage cluster with a tach (Focus SE lacks a tach unless you get the Sport Package). Even the base strippo Rio and its twin the Hyundai Accent come with a tach (which I still even with a slushbox find useful, I like to know what my powerplant is up to.) Sticker on the RIo5 with auto and power package is 15,560, a very fair price for what you get. All the controls are smooth....Hyundai Motor has taken their Hyundai and Kia brands to new levels of quality, they're on a roll. Detroit better watch 'em, Toyota has stated publicly that they're taking notice. The Focus doors feel tinny when you close them, the Kia's doors have a smooth muted 'thwack', they're double-sealed too. The dome lights dim gently when closing the doors instead of just going off, and the window buttons are illuminated at night, even the passenger and rear door ones. And the cupholders are in the middle behind the park brake lever where I can't knock my coffee over. :D

I love the car. C'mon Detroit, you can make something like this! Dammit Ford, bring that Fiesta over here! (but nix the chintzy German switchgear, go to Tokai Rika in Battle Creek MI for your switchgear...)

Todd in Beerbratistan

[bunkerbuster1]

95. aw, man--they're still stiffing people on the tachometer?

That kind of nickle-and-diming stuff really pisses me off.

[B3Nut]

112. Yup.

Stupid, isn't it? Not like the cluster with a tach would add that much to the cost. Detroit better watch out, South Korea is going to do to them what Japan did, and they're going to keep their head up their arse like they did the last time. They're still laughing off Hyundais and Kias as disposable cars, which they once were but are far from now. That's going to bite 'em in the butt yet again. The base S Focus is decontented to the point of absurdity...cars suited only for an airport rental lot.

Todd in Beerbratistan

[bunkerbuster1]

116. They'd better stop laughing at Hyundais and Kias

If I were in the market for a minivan I'd buy the Kia in a heartbeat--it's clearly the best value out there. And Hyundai has produced an excellent quality product for a decade+. It was only the first batch of mid-80s Excels that were buzzy and unpleasant to drive.

[B3Nut]

117. I'd get the Kia Sedona too...

...lots of room, with the seats out I could shove my Hammond B-3 organ into that back end and have plenty of room for the Leslie speaker cabinet and my synth rig as well, and probably another musician's stuff (and the other musician!) There are NO SUV's that can do that. Good fit and finish, and solid Hyundai engine. IMHO the Hyundai buyout was the best thing to happen to Kia...

Todd in Beerbratistan

[anitar1]

94. I quit buying Fords in 1989, when my 9 month old Taurus

started shedding small parts. What a POS it was. Sold it the next year and bought a Honda Accord. Best car I have ever owned.

[kaygore]

86. I am very interested in that Honda Fit and have been tracking it waiting

for it to come to the US.

The Ford Escape hybrid is really a Honda! So much for American ingenuity!

[EOTE]

91. What?

Just what exactly about the Escape Hybrid is from Honda? The engine is a Ford built 4 cylinder, the AWD system is all Ford, interior Ford. It's stablemate is the Mazda Tribute, but that's just a rebranding of a Ford product, just as the Ford Explorer was rebadged as the Mazda Navajo. I think some of the Hybrid system uses technology patented by Toyota, but it's still made by Ford. What do you mean that it's really a Honda?

[kaygore]

92. Good catch for clarification

From the articles I have read, it is my understanding that the technology for the Ford Escape is Hondas. I'll double check that, though, and get back to you.

[susanna]

103. You are mistaken about the Ford Escape hybrid.

First, it was not Honda that was involved, but Toyota.

Second, Ford licensed certain parts of their hybrid technology from Toyota. They did not buy wholesale hybrid technology from anyone, but some of the technology was under patent by Toyota and required licensing. That's all.

[susanna]

102. Keep in mind that Ford will likely not file bankruptcy...

...for a somewhat unusual reason in the world of large corporations. The Ford family still owns the controlling share of the company. The entire family's wealth could be decimated by such a move. They will downsize ("rightsize" in happy speak) and become one of the bottom tier automakers before they will file, IMHO.

Plus, Ford has decent cash reserves and still owns a relatively profitable finance arm, Ford Credit. I would bet on a GM bankruptcy first, especially in light of their sale of their GMAC credit arm. That said, the possibility of GM filing and dragging Ford down with them should not be discounted. Guilt by association and all...

[Tight_rope]

114. No shit!.....Mark Fields is smoking something very strong!

Got him seeing things that can not be seen. I'm getting a new car this weekend...Even though SUV's are cheaper in price here in Houston (Believe it or not). I won't be buying one. Looking for something that saves me money in gas. Acura 3.2, great car...price killed though. Looks like a Honda Accord fully loaded is the way to go for me.

[ConcernedCanuk]

2. Of course they will - they re-elected Bush didn't they?

.
.
.

:shrug:

[stevekatz]

23. delete

.

[Joe Chi Minh]

3. They'd be very pleased; feel more elite.

[benburch]

4. Idiots.

Sell your Ford stock!

[kaygore]

5. My nephew whose dad is an Exxon-Mobile exec got an Explorer for graduation

His gas was free as long as he was in college, but now he pays for it and wishes he had asked for a new hybrid!

Only the most obscene and arrogant will continue to drive the large SUVs. There is no reason that anyone one needs a Humvee or Expedition.

My friend who lives in the sticks of rural Northern California down a muddy or snow-covered dirt road (depends on the season) and has a bunch of kids and big dogs is even downsizing from her Expedition.

[Thtwudbeme]

31. What is she buying?

we are pleased with our subaru

[kaygore]

35. I didn't ask

Good question. I think that she is still looking.

[midnight armadillo]

36. tell her to try the toyota fj cruiser

New offroading-capable suv from toyota. 17/21 mpg w/ 4wd. $21k.

[Robb]

56. They're cool, but still hard to get

Sorta like the Prius rollout. Lots of folks have them spoken for, at over sticker price.

[Xithras]

78. I may actually replace my old Toyota J 40 with one of those.

When my wife and I decided to trade her Durango for something a bit more economical several years ago, I had to buy something that would allow me to continue my occasional offroad treks and pull the occasional trailer. I picked up a 1975 BJ40...with more than 400,000 miles on the odo...for about $2500 bucks, and have since come to realize that it may have been the greatest offroad vehicle in history. I have yet to find anywhere that it couldn't take me.

The new one gets better mileage than my old one, looks more comfortable, is priced reasonably, AND has air conditioning :)

[kaygore]

85. Thanks for the tip, I'll pass it on

I love Toyotas and Hondas. I wish that US manufacturers would build cars as well! I have a 1987 Toyota Camry. I need to get a more fuel efficient car, but I try to walk or bike my errands as much as possible so I only put about 5 miles on a week these days. But when I can afford another car, I am going to go for a Honda or Toyota hybrid. I had a 1986 Honda Civic when I was living in California (my Camry was in Virginia). I gave the Honda to a friend six years ago when I was spending most of my time in Virginia due to family illnesses, and the car has not given her one bit of trouble! It has over 200,000 miles on it and was used when I got it. I wish I had as much faith in American cars!

[Flabbergasted]

6. Well this core group is only about 10% of the richest and that is not

going to keep ford going. Try again Ford....You should have thought about this 6 years ago!

[uncle ray]

29. no they're not.

rich people don't buy big ford SUV's, people that THINK they are rich do.

[joefree1]

30. Ding ding ding

You nailed it. I love seeing the pinched faces at the gas pump.

[Iris]

47. yes - a couple of years back there was an article in either the New Yorker

or the Atlantic that talked about the type of personality that would buy an SUV - in a nutshell - mostly people who felt inadequate in some way.

[uncle ray]

64. sometimes i almost feel sorry for thse people.

almost.

poor morons, clinging to the notion that you can fool your neighbors and yourself into thinking you succeeded in life because you have a 5000sf McMansion on a interest only mortgage, and two huge SUVs in the driveway, one leased, one on $200 monthly payments for the rest of your life. they think they have it all but they have nothing, when the hard times hit, they'll be kicked out of their homes, and lose their living room sized SUVs because they owe on it all.

[Iris]

93. I do actually feel sorry for them.

My brother and his wife are part of that scene. They were friends with a couple in wich the wife was pretty much nuts, but they had all the things you mentioned. Sadly, the husband was killed in a motorcycle accident and it made me realize that even the fortress they built with their material possessions wasn't enough to protect them from what they were really afraid off.

[mitchum]

99. No, they are credit maxed idiots keeping up with the idiot Joneses

[movonne]

7. I think when things get worse with the price of gas, these people

who buy these hummers,large suv's,large trucks will be shunned..

[Selatius]

11. Because they help drive up the price of gas further.

It's supply and demand. The more gas-guzzling SUVs there are, the faster the US consumes gas in general. That leads to decreased gas supply relative to demand. There are cars that get 30 or more miles per gallon. There are SUVs that can barely pass 15 miles per gallon. That's like them dumping half the gas they buy never to be used by anyone else again.

[Selatius]

8. They should've fired the senior execs first, not the 30,000 workers.

Ford will never succeed with incompetent management.

[DBoon]

17. you mean hold them accountable for their decisions

perish the thought

[SOS]

62. Speaking of incompetent management

I'll never forget this exchange from circa 1979.
No link, just something I remember from back then.
A reporter asked the CEO of Ford at the time why the American car makers were still building huge cars despite the oil crises of the 1970s.
The reporter mentioned that small Japanese imports were gaining. Why was Ford so unprepared for the shifting market?
It's the Ford CEO's response I'll never forget:

"We're not clairvoyant".

[AbsoluteArmorer]

9. Ignorance is.....

A nation full of Bushbrainiacs that has gone to total hell. With weenies like these telling BIG CORP to keep stickin' it to us, we'll simply economically implode from within!

[Sgent]

10. I'm not entirely sure

my dad just got rid of his SUV, and purchased a large sedan and a pickup.

He needs a large vehicle -- although it doesn't have to be an SUV. I don't think he was all that unique except in his ability to afford, insure, and maintain two vehicles.

[Warpy]

12. Ford's swan song?

I've been looking around here, and most of the new cars on the road are smaller cars and light trucks. I've seen fewer and fewer behemoths inlcuding momvans. I've seen one big ugly Ford Explorer and one H3(and me without a potato), but the rest have been the mini SUVs from Korea and Japan, small sedans, and compact station wagons.

I'm sure SOME drivers will insist on driving oversized vehicles for a lot of reasons. The majority, however, seem to be voting with their pocketbooks and the monster truck is losing the race.

[theHandpuppet]

44. I drive a '97 Ford Escort wagon

4 cyl and gets really good mileage. I have to drive over the WV mountains on a regular basis and tote four dogs with me and my partner, plus stuff for us and them. Plenty of room and I've never had a problem! I was also able to load up the wagon with supplies when I drove across country to join the crew at Camp Casey last summer.

I don't know why folks think they have to drive some big-ass SUV to haul passengers and cargo. Small wagons can do the trick and with better gas mileage and safety records to boot. My old wagon, bought used several years ago, has 150,000 miles on her and is still going strong.

BTW, ALL folks -- no matter what they drive -- could significantly reduce gas consumption in this country if they just SLOWED DOWN. Shaving even five or ten MPH could make such a difference!

[kath]

70. whoa - a Ford with 150K miles?!?! How the heck did THAT happen?

Hubby's first car was a Ford Tempo - head gasket blew at only 80K. We've been buying Hondas and Toyotas ever since.

[theHandpuppet]

80. Luck, I guess??

I see plenty of those Escort wagons around so they must have done something right! I have to confess, if it wasn't for the atrocious gas mileage, I'd rather be driving a Dodge Ram PU. I drove two of them for almost thirty years and never a problem! Oh, I love a Dodge pickup. (sigh)

[BiggJawn]

87. I got 148,000 out of my Tempo.

Of course, that's NOTHING compared to the 260,000 I got out of my Kombi, even with the 3 engine rebuilds...

[susanna]

104. My husband has a Ranger with 195,000 miles, and still going great.

No major troubles at all. Sound vehicle from start to finish.

[B3Nut]

113. The 90's Escorts were Mazda-based

The chassis and drivetrain is more Mazda 323/Protege than Ford, they were 323-based. I had a 2000 Escort ZX2, which got me to 160,000 and if I would have been able to replace the clutch and tune it up properly would go for many more, it didn't use any oil. The Mazda/Cosworth Zetec engine was a great little 4-banger. But my wife wanted it gone and replaced with a vehicle she could drive (my ZX2 was a stick, had to get a slushbox) so I got my new Kia, which I love (and got hailed on last night. :( )

Todd in Beerbratistan

[kath]

71. deleted - double post

[tandot]

13. I refuse to buy a car from any company who refuses to build fuel-efficient

cars. No wonder they are all going down.

I have a 98 Toyota Corolla and I get about 37 mpg. As soon as I can afford another car, I'll get another Toyota or a Honda ... any Hybrid with a great gas mileage.

[FiveGoodMen]

14. "That's the way it is. It's true because we say so, and when it's proven

that we were wrong, we'll insist on a government bail-out."

[hatrack]

50. "True because we say so" - that sounds vaguely familiar . . .

Could it reflect an attitude common in, say, the White House?

:hi:

[Book Lover]

15. Yes, a "certain segment" which happens to be getting smaller and smaller

every quarter! Yes, I agree that there are people who will always want (or need, in the case of folks away from paved roads and the electric grid) off-road capabilities in their motor vehicle. which is fine and great and I hope they are able to locate and purchase the vehicles they need. But if Ford would bring some of their petrol-sipping Euro models here to the States, they would find that the "certain segment" of that market here would respond!

[mwooldri]

16. Exactly. Like there is someone that will always vote Repuglican.

[Extend a Hand]

18. as long as the the 25% tax credit is

available to business owners (including doctors, dentists, lawyers)for vehicles built on a truck chassis...then he's correct they will.

[pdurod1]

26. Yeah, like a group of doctors need a fricken suburban or expedition...

to go to starbucks drivethru for some latte's

[ozymandius]

20. That marketshare is taken already.

You'll find the people who do not care if gas rises to $4/gallon and stays that way are already driving Maseratis, Ferraris, Bentleys and Rolls Royces.

[Ediacara]

21. This is crazy

Attention Ford, this does not give you an excuse to:

1) Continue making so many SUVs. There may be a "core" of people that want SUVs, but it's nowhere near as many people as you make SUVs. I think it's much closer to 5% of people that actually need an SUV, as opposed to the ~50% you produce.

2) This is also not an excuse to do nothing about fuel efficency.

[AndyTiedye]

22. Odd Thing is That Ford Actually Does Make The Most Fuel-Efficient SUV

The Ford Escape Hybrid is the most fuel-efficient SUV on the market.

Yet the article doesn't even mention it.

It is the only hybrid made in the USA.

[stevekatz]

25. they even

offer 0% financing for it

[hatrack]

97. Actually, they make two - there's also a hybrid Mercury Mariner

Not a huge production run by any stretch, but I'll give Ford credit for at least trying. Plus, the 0% financing - interesting.

[AndyTiedye]

100. Essentially the Same Car, With Slightly Different Trim

They're built on the same line in Kansas City, MO.
So is the Mazda Tribute.

Could be the only hybrid being built anywhere with union labor.

It is odd that Toyota's hybrid SUV's get so much more attention,
when the Ford beats them on fuel economy and is built in the USA.

[AndyTiedye]

101. I'd Think They'd Have Sold A Bunch of Those in the Southeast…

…after so many people ran out of gas trying to get away from Katrina and Rita.
Inching along in a traffic jam you'd be on electric power most of the time,
with no worries about running out of gas until you'd gone about 500 miles.
It's even rather well-named for that purpose :-)

[Scooter24]

27. Yeah, there are some that would buy a SUV

with these gas prices. But not a SUV from Ford. My neighbor just recently bought himself a Lexus SUV and doesn't seemed bothered by the gas costs, which now are about $3.00/gal. here.

The wealthy people like their SUV's, and I'm willing to bet about 90% of those people will buy it from places like Mercedes, Lexus, or Hummer.

[Mr.Green93]

28. More proof that Americans are under taxed.

Time to tax wealth and income.

[Lorien]

32. Just another case of "never underestimate the stupidity of the populace"

or the greed of American auto manufacturers. :eyes:

[primavera]

33. The best revenge...

... is filling up my 120 mpg scooter beside some asshole in an SUV and lamenting the high cost of fuel: "Damn, these prices are getting so high! Why, I think I must have spent a whole $2 on gas this month, can you believe that?" :evilgrin:

[MountainLaurel]

110. I'll have to remember that

Now that I can drive the scooter too.

[NastyRiffraff]

34. Ford is going down

My job is related to the auto industry (I'm not employed by any auto manufacturer) and we've been watching Ford and GM for years. There's a reason why Toyota is succeeded adn Ford & GM are not.

The auto industry as a whole just doesn't get it. The manufacturers have fought every single safety and emissions standars (seat belts, airbags, emissions, etc). They've also played to the urban cowboys with the SUVs and expected this to last forever. This latest from Ford is nothing new....$4+ a gallon is finally going to sink them.

BTW, I don't dare say this to my bosses, who blindly support the auto industry and go along with the idiocity of Ford and GM (and peripherally, Dahlmer/Chrys and wonder why the auto business is going down the tubes.

American people as a whole may not be the brightest crayons in the box, but they do know when their wallets are hit. And they're gonna be hit REAL hard, very soon.

Watch for corporate welfare, to keep these failing companies with their clueless managements, afloat. Guess who will pay for it.

[susanna]

37. I'm in the same boat...

I work in the industry and just smack my head with the boneheaded decisions that have been made over the past 20 years. I was griping about the over-reliance on SUV profits from the domestic manufacturers back in the 90s when they were the sacred cows. Everyone mocked me that the reign would never end...yeah, whatever. My motto: what goes up, must come down. The trick is to understand that little nugget of wisdom and innovate the next generation while you're still making money from the previous one. Unfortunately, no one cares what I think. :-)

Also - from the original article: IMHO, Mr. Field's comment rightfully points out that at this time there are folks who WILL continue to buy SUVs, no matter what. Hopefully he is also aware that these particular consumers will become a smaller and smaller segment of the overall market as gas prices rise. If not, well, he should think again.

[physioex]

40. Ohhh yea......

I was at the pump, and three people were talking complaining about the prices. It's time to pay the Pied Piper......

[lastliberalintexas]

79. No, they're not

This is all legalesque maneuvering on their and GM's parts. They might take quite a few American workers out on their way to bankruptcy court, but that will just mean a reorganization of the company, of course sans the pension and healthcare obligations that drove it to seek bankruptcy protection in the first place. *wink wink

Ford and GM are still making money even if their US divisions are (intentionally?) in the red. Neither is going anywhere anytime soon.

[Hand]

39. They should be bringing these back...

My infamous 1994 Ford Escort. Cheap, good on gas, tough, doesn't do anything exciting other than last for years... no wonder they stopped making them.



ON EDIT: Although you can still buy one--it's called a Mazda Protege...

[mikeytherat]

42. Yeah, baby - mid-90s Ford Escort!

35 city, 42+ highway, all Mazda drivetrain, and all it does it sip gas and require fluid changes - I paid $500 for mine!


mikey_the_rat

[theHandpuppet]

45. '97 Ford Escort wagon here

Good gas mileage, 150,000 miles and still going strong! It's four cylinder and I can still drive through these WV mountains. I see more SUVS at the mall than I do in the mountains.

[Jersey Ginny]

55. That's my car. 94 Escort Just gave it to my nephew. Still going!

I gave it to him with 144K on it. Great car. On highways I actually got 48 mpg! I now have a Focus, which is basically the same car, but it gets much worse gas mileage. I was surprised that Ford went backwards over the decade! I guess I shouldn't have been surprised.

[JNelson6563]

41. Reminds me of the buggy-whip companies

hanging in there as long as they did, certain these "horseless carriages" are a passing fad. Talk about slow off the mark....

[ozymandius]

43. Please don't laugh at the buggy whip companies.

With gas at $4/gallon, they may make a resurgence. :silly:

[JNelson6563]

59. True. Anything is possible.

Personally I'm investing in vinyl record companies. I know these "CDs" and "MP3s" are passing fads.

:toast:

Always good to see you Oz, looks like a hoppin' day on the Street and in the Stock thread.

Julie

[Roland99]

46. Because people see commercials with SUVs climbing ice mountains

and think, "Wow! I can do that with my car? Cool!"

And then they drive to soccer practice and get pissed when a bit of mud/dirt gets on their Ford Exhibition.

[Zynx]

49. We may find out if they are right or not....

We may see what sustained $3 gas does and if we have a crisis we may see $4.

[Township75]

52. This is why I am happy gas prices are rising again!

it will put some idiot-run businesses like Ford out for good which will serve as a good example, and it will also punish the losers who need to live through their SUV because they are nothing impressive.

[BiggJawn]

88. Won't bother the people it needs to bother, but us po' folk....

...will feel it, and feel it SHARPLY.

That's like those "I wish Oil would hit $100" threads we see here once a while.

So Oil hits $100 a barrel. That would raise the pump price to what, $7-8 a gallon?

Take your average Biff and Muffy with their matching His-n'-Hers Anchovys and their $180,000 household income.

Then take me with my '02 Ranger truck and $40,000 income.

Who's going to feel the effect of $8 a gallon gasoline MORE?

It sure as shit ain't going to be Biff and Muffy. Hell, to *THEM*, $8 a gallon would be like me finding gas for $1.77, which would make me weep for joy now that's hit $2.90 here.

[Township75]

109. I agree that...

the "po'folk" will feel it more, and I will be one of them as I make your salary and drive a 98 CRV, but how else are we going to get off, or less dependent, on oil?

Biff and Muffy will change their ways when SUVs aren't so sexy and hybrids are...and that will take high gas prices.

[BiggJawn]

111. When it totally runs out.

The Upper Class will just continue to adjust their income to make up for rising prices, just like they always have.

What we are seeing now is a re-definition of what "Middle Class" is. People who still consider themselves to be part of the middle class actually have only as much buying power as the Poor did 35 years ago.

My dad worked a good skilled-trades factory job. He drove Cadillacs (now leases a Jaguar) owned his own home, had a camping trailer, we took 2-week vacations every summer, moved up to where he owned property (40 acres)had time, energy, and MONEY to pursue a wood-working hobby, sold it all for an obscene buttload of money after he retired (thus the Jaguar)and I guess is livin' large.

Me, on the other hand, scrape by paycheck-to-paycheck, lost my first (and last) home to forclosure, and if I even GET to retire, it'll be in section-8 housing and I'll probably be supplementing my cat-food caseroles with stray cats and rats, and fixing bicycles in trade for Insulin in the post-pocky-lips-Mad-Max world I think is coming.

They still pull stupid shit like introduce "new" SUV's that get 50% "better" gas mileage.
OK, so Biff and Muffy may be buying it, but sorry, Jack, IMHO, 50% more shitty mileage is STILL shitty mileage.

I can't wait for the Murkan auto industry to come crashing down around their ears. it'll suck to be my auto-worker brother, with his 7 cars and 6 motorcycles, but hey, them's the breaks, I guess...

[MissMillie]

53. Toyota makes a hybrid SUV.... but that would be the only one I would buy

I hope they go under

And yes, I know that's not good for the job market, but a lot of these "American" car manufacturers don't make their cars in America w/ American workers anyway.

[0007]

54. Many here in Midland will keep the SUV's after gas hits ten dollars

a gallon.

[jakefrep]

96. They're right - people WILL still buy them...

The people who really do NEED them for "Utility" purposes will continue to buy them. They'll lose the "SUV as penile compensator" crowd.

[susanna]

105. Thank goodness, because those folks...

...do not know how to drive SUVs, and should never have been in them in the first place. I am willing to be that they are 95% the rollover crowd...

[Wcross]

58. Kodak thought digital photography.......

...would have little impact on its film and photography paper. Go to Rochester New York to see how wrong they were.

[w4rma]

61. And this is why overseas automobile companies are increasing their market

share at Ford's expense.

[kestrel91316]

63. I'm all in favor of old-fashiled SHUNNING of folks who insist on

wasting a limited resource (gas) for purposes of self-aggrandisement. If you get an SUV to inflate your ego, don't expect to be my friend. And don't assume I will want to continue to do business with you, or even speak to you.

SUVs don't make very close friends. Maybe people will get the message.

[leesa]

65. Wouldn't surprise me...Americans aren't the brightest bulbs. They'll do

whatever their teevees tell them to do.

[tabasco]

98. You got that right.

I've encountered people lately who are concerned about the "Iran threat."

These people couldn't find Iran on a map.

They simply mouth what the teevee says.

[Javaman]

66. I wrote an editorial about just this topic last october...

The car as a status symbol is taking a new turn. No longer will having a nice car be the appeal, it will be having a car at all.

As gas prices go up to the stratosphere, only the haves and the have-mores will be able to afford to have cars.

So in a nut shell, while the rest of us working poor struggle to get to work when there aren't any bus lines or mass transit available, the rich will be the ones burning up the last of the oil.

However, another insight on this issue: as the prices go ultra high, the rest of us will be figuring out ways to survive and get by, thus developing our "new" skill set to a new world, while the rich will be continuing on their very expensive trend based upon outdated thinking. When the price of gas gets to the point that it becomes high even to them, they will not have the new skill set to survive and will fall by the waste side.

In this future situation, being poor now actually is an advantage, because, it gives you a mind set that allows you to survive.

survival of the fittest has a whole new meaning now.

[flashdebadge]

68. too many people feel they have to "keep up with the Jones's"

[xxqqqzme]

69. what the hell is a 'traditional'

suv? There is a tradition of suvs in the US? Is that the same as 'traditional values'? or are those 2 different traditions?

[Xithras]

73. SUV's have been around since the 1940's.

Most urbanites just weren't aware of them because they were primarily marketed to farmers and others who lived in areas where cars didn't work well. It wasn't until the car companies began marketing them to urban-dwellers in the late 80's that SUV's became an issue.

[lastliberalintexas]

81. Yes, I think Chevrolet had a "suburban" type model as early as the 30s

The difference being that people who bought them even 30 years ago needed them and the behemoth trucks for actual work, rather than driving the kiddos to t ball.

[Xithras]

82. Yes and no.

People did use them for work, but even back then most SUV owners used them for personal reasons (if you needed a strictly work vehicle, a truck was usually a better choice). The difference was that the people who owned them generally lived in the boonies where they were (and still are) simply the most practical vehicles available. A good friend of mine lives in the Sierras, and reaching his home requires a mile-long drive down a narrow and rutted dirt road. He has an SUV (Chevy Suburban) that he uses to take his kids to the bus stop every morning, not to mention soccer games, baseball games, and WORK every day. For him, it's a practical vehicle.

For a bottomlander like me, where the biggest obstacle I deal with are speedbumps in the parking lot of the local supermarket, it would be an incredible waste.

The difference is that 30 years ago SUV's were pretty much only marketed to people like my mountain loving friend. In the late 1980's, the car companies decided to start marketing his cars to ME. That's a problem.

[Xithras]

72. He's right, but that portion is very small.

Think back to the days of the old Ford Bronco, the Jeep Wagoneer, or the old school Suburban. There has always been a market for high ground clearance passenger vehicles, but that market has traditionally been limited to people who live in rural areas or people who regularly travel off of paved roadways. Neither of these markets is particularly large, and neither would sustain the kind of profitability that these companies need.

SUV's only became problematic when the car companies started marketing them towards urbanites and commuters to increase their market share. It's those buyers who maintain the profitability of Fords SUV market, and those buyers who will flee in droves when gas hits $4 a gallon. People MAY keep them around to pull boats and trailers for weekend getaways, but they will certainly cease to be the primary mode of transportation for most people. If people don't drive them regularly, the SUV's will last a lot longer and owners will be far less inclined to replace them every few years. That's doom for SUV dependent auto manufacturers.

[0rganism]

74. 5% of people are crazy, and another 5% will buy anything

There's Ford's "core group" target demographic for SUV sales, in a nutshell. Hey -- 10% ain't too shabby.

[maxsolomon]

75. fallacious logic

1. you will only need a 'traditional SUV' if you must haul a recreational vehicle.
2. fuel for these recreational vehicles: dirt bikes, jet skis, ski boats, etc., will cost $4/gallon too.

if they make Excessives run on moonbeams and cow farts, sign me up. but i can barely justify filling up my 23 mpg 1991 saab at this point.

do they know something we don't know?

[lastliberalintexas]

76. This is one area in which the US consumer bears much blame

for the choices they make. The Ford exec is probably right, there will still be a fairly significant group of people who will continue to view vehicles as status symbols and who will refuse to buy what they need, rather than what they think impresses others.

First of all, let me say that Ford and GM have done a great deal to put their American divisions in the red, so that the possibility of bankruptcy protection maybe keeps the unions in line. FORD AND GM ARE NOT- I REPEAT, NOT- LOSING MONEY. Those corporations have reported profits every quarter when you consider the entire corp, rather than just the American subsidiary. They are following the plan created by the airlines, in which they file for bankruptcy if things get too bad, and in the process get a judge to let them weasel out of pension/retirement and healthcare obligations. The corporations are to blame for quite a bit, so please don't take the rest of this post as a defense of them.

At the same time, however, the US consumer has continued to make some of the most assinine decisions that could be made, particularly when it comes to their purchase of vehicles. Some of my family members are in the car business, and I've also spoken with people in the business in other parts of the country who tell me the same things my family does. They can't get people to buy things like the Focus or what was the Contour, even though they are very good cars. 25 year old kids are no different than middle aged men trying to prove they're still sexy or middle aged women wanting to keep up with the Joneses- they all tend to think that you are what you drive. They will cut back on other things, I guess, if it means keeping up appearances. :shrug:

I am a professional who makes quite a bit of money (my husband and I are fortunate to pay in federal income taxes what many people try to live on in a year), and I drive a Ford Taurus. Absolutely wonderful vehicle, well over a 100K miles now and still gets 27-28 mpg most of the time (if I drive like we all should!). And best of all, it's paid for! And yet, people are always telling me that they are surprised that "someone like me" would drive one, that they would expect me to be in a BMW or Lexus. I always ask them if they really think that I am that stupid, and I get many blank stares in response. Personally, I think it's extremely stupid to spend that kind of money on a car to either try to impress others or meet others' expectations- esp when I got my slightly used little thing for $12K.

That kind of thinking is rampant in US auto sales, though. Until the US consumer stops trying to use vehicles to compensate for a lack of self worth, then this Ford exec is right. They'll always have sucke- er, i mean buyers for the overpriced things that people don't need.

[susanna]

106. lastliberalintexas, I completely relate.

My husband and I work in the auto industry, but also have acquired several rental properties on the side, mostly because we figured out years ago that our pensions would not be worth the contract they are written on.

In a nutshell, our net worth is quite high; we do not buy on credit, we save as much as we can, and we drive really, really old cars. Our biggest fear is a health crisis that taps us out. Our families think we're nuts, but like you said - there is a sucker born every minute that thinks they need to drive the coolest new thing. And that's sad. :-(

[fshrink]

77. Yup. Size matters that much. And more.

[sakabatou]

83. Ford has lost its mind...

[wordpix]

84. my RW colleague can't get rid of her huge GM SUV Envoy. She

bought it for the snowy winters but realizes it costs too much to fill now. Duh! She says if she sells it she won't get anything for it and "nobody wants it."

She bought it the same year I bought my Honda Civic and she's had it in for 3 recalls so far. My Civic's had no problems, just change the oil and go.

Eventually the US public will "get it" when it hits them hard enough in the purse, just as this colleague gets it now.

[Raine]

89. Where is the vision and

foresight that American business used to have. It's very depressing to see that that these businesses that have so much control don't have some imagination and forwarding thinking. :-(

[tilsammans]

90. Yup.

I've been car shopping recently, and I've been amazed at the number of people I've seen looking at and taking delivery on the biggest SUVs. One family was even complaining that the Toyota Sequoia (which, IMO, is the size of a small aircraft carrier) was too small.

[daringthedevil]

107. Well, we may have the opportunity to test that theory

in the near future.

[One_Life_To_Give]

108. Well they havn't been buying 50MPG+ Cars

Although they are cheap and have been available for over 20 years.

[spanone]

115. Good Riddance Ford Motor Company....take your 'customers' with you.