607,568 in 1966

[MLowe05]

Ford is pushing the build-to-order thing. Not their customers. At least not all of them. Many prefer the former model of inventory-on-lots.

That's exactly what I meant by "they want this to be".. Ford. That's why Ford's customers are going to need to get past this instant gratification thing.

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[Decayed]

These are the post that really need to be ignored. Just some one looking for reactions and clicks.

Pretty much. One thing they ignore is that Ford is likely building as many mavs as they figured they could sell this year and planned accordingly. Production isn't like a faucet where you can just turn a knob and have more trucks come out of the end.

 

[Watchman]

There should be some better transparency regarding allocation in regards to customer orders.

I can see allocations being a factor in dealer stock orders, but if Ford wants this "build to order" model to work, there should be a strong bias towards serving the customers in a fair manner.

E X A C T L Y !

We got on line to "Build" our Mavericks and up pops the dealer(s) in your local area. In my case there were Three Ford dealers about the same distance. I went to all three -- first one didn't have much info and no Cactus Grey anything to see the color I was considering. They also didn't honor the A/Z Plan so on to the second dealer.

Dealer two was pretty much the same so on to number Three.

Third dealer was also the same but they did honor the A/Z plan. So rather than travel another 50 miles they got my order.

"IF" I was informed by Ford (or any one) that any of those dealers could/would get my truck delivered faster due to allocations, I may have traveled to a dealer that benefited me, "The Customer"! This is a piss poor process in the auto industry and they are to blame.

I was told it would be "about 90 days" and we all know NOW that ain't happening. So yeah, pandemic and all, I'm okay with that. I'm not okay with FORD not being fair! They should have told us about "allocations" and the "constraints" they were well aware of, for the most part.

 

[DryHeat]

However let's say that you're absolutely right he is nothing more than an ambulance chaser ... So some of the issues and things Steve brings up, are you suggesting that none of such have validity?

I don't think that's the right question. I mean, does a person have to be wrong about absolutely everything in order to be considered a bad source of information?

To me, the question is whether the person is usually (not always) right, not whether they have occasionally been right. If they're wrong much of the time, then I'm probably going to ignore them and look for a better source of information.

My father used to say, "Even a blind hog finds an acorn once in a while." It wasn't a recommendation ... it was a warning not to trust that person's judgment.

 

[CoryDallas8123]

In my case I know of a situation where the person ordered the exact same vehicle I ordered all the way down to the color and options... In October, and they now have their vehicle. There were only two differences between their order and my order, when we ordered and the dealership. I ordered in July, they ordered in October and the dealership, we ordered from, different dealerships. Why he has his Maverick and I don't have mine comes down to allocation. I ordered in July and I'm still awaiting a build date, he ordered in October and they now have their Maverick.

So which is it, exact same order or different?

 

[Red Ryder]

That's exactly what I meant by "they want this to be".. Ford. That's why Ford's customers are going to need to get past this instant gratification thing.

Gotcha. Thanks for the clarification.
That said, there are a lot of situations that don't allow for long-lead procurement.
It may seem everyone has the internet/Amazon instant gratification fever, but often there are other factors that require purchasing a vehicle without the benefit of six-month's planning.
Accidents, change in marital status, floods, job/career changes are just a few situations that come to mind.
When and if these supply chain issues get resolved, if the order process cannot be expedited quickly, a competitor that can deliver will win sales. Availability is always a strong motivator, even for patient planner types.

 

[rlhdweman]

Just because he's alone and just because I tend not to like his articles does not mean there's not some truth in what he's having to say. If you don't think there's people in politics and government who want to control the masses by limiting transportation you might want to rethink that. Lemon has had cameras thousands of cameras for about 20 years now... They want to know everybody who's entering the city. That would never happen in the US right? I just read a story about a city, I believe is in Michigan that wants to put cameras all over so they can read and record every license plate that travels through the city. In fact there's a lawyer that does YouTube spots Steve Leito he also is on Vinwikki who speaks to this. Just because a person is paranoid and thinks everybody is out to get them doesn't mean there aren't people out to get them. The guy who wrote the article I provided the link to, maybe is a clown, I personally think he is, that does not mean there's not truth in the story he wrote.

A city 15 miles from me has had this camera system for 6 months, every vehicle that enters & leaves the city has its license plate read & the city next to it is going to implement this system in 2022. They will know where you are going before you do.

 

[Delzona]

A city 15 miles from me has had this camera system for 6 months, every vehicle that enters & leaves the city has its license plate read & the city next to it is going to implement this system in 2022. They will know where you are going before you do.

I read an article a while that stated that London has more cameras than any city in the world! So yeah camera coverage is certainly happening every where!

 

[mrothe570]

America, where rich Americans take advantage of poor Americans and convince them to blame non-Americans for it.

Oh no dude. I am with you here. But you misinterpreted what I was saying, or I just said one side of the story. Who does it benefit to divvy up the levers of supply chains amongst a few, send labor to cheaper countries, etc. etc.? That's right, the rich financier from America.

 

[TacoHolder]

Oh no dude. I am with you here. But you misinterpreted what I was saying, or I just said one side of the story. Who does it benefit to divvy up the levers of supply chains amongst a few, send labor to cheaper countries, etc. etc.? That's right, the rich financier from America.

The Internet, where I'm right and everyone else is wrong.

 

[Bob The Builder]

Every day I drive by the largest GMC truck dealer in the state of Vermont where GMC sales are the #1 seller. Across US 2 from the dealership is their "overflow" lot that prior to the "end of the world" was chuck full of over 300 GMC trucks of every shape, style and color. Today, the lot is 100% empty and their front line of vehicles next to the highway is all 2018 off lease used pickups. This pain is being felt by all hands and everyone is losing.

I feel your pain OP. Tried buying building supplies lately, trying to explain to customer why everytime you buy lumber it costs more than the last time. If you have, you will fell my pain. LOL.

BTW, Ford did pretty darn good back in the day producing over 400K Rangers a year just from the one Twin Cities Plant. Those were the days my friend.

 

[AzCactusGray]

So which is it, exact same order or different?

Myself and a acquaintance ordered the exact same truck 3 months apart. I ordered mine in July (7.4.21) he ordered his in October. We ordered them from two different dealers. Other than we ordered on different dates and from two different dealers the trucks are identical. He has his truck as of a week ago, I'm yet to get a build date. Now the typical holier than thou curmudgeons that love to post their mostly unhelpful opinions seem to think it's my fault for not researching better. Somehow I should have known all about allocations. I do not believe I should need to learn the minutiae dealership bureaucracy to order and buy a vehicle. If such knowledge of said minutiae is required, then that should be posted at the dealership and on the Ford website and made clear. Here's the point that all the pontificators and curmudgeons seem to miss... When I spoke to customer service yesterday, their first response was the pandemic and shortage of parts, blah blah blah blah... And I do understand that somewhat.... However, when I point out to them somebody that lives in the same city as I do, who ordered the exact same vehicle I ordered 3 months after I ordered mine and has received their vehicle already and I yet to have it build date....that's when the CSR owned up to allocation. My ordering a truck that is not going to be floored (put on the lot) should have nothing to do with how many vehicles that dealers is entitled to (allocated) from what they normally get to sell off the lot. The two should not be connected. It's BS that it is. I should have been provided information about allocation and how that may affect my order and the delivery of said order so I could have made an informed choice, I was not. Although I think it's a bit underhanded, I understand why the dealer in particular one that doesn't have a larger allocation might not be very forthcoming with the allocation information. However, that does not excuse Ford corporate. My complaint has nothing to do with me being needy, has nothing to do with being impatient, because of my employment I'm very aware of what it takes to ramp up production. My purchasing the Maverick is a strictly business decision. I was told to expect the vehicle within 60 days once production started. I made business decisions based upon what I was told. Again, I will point out I don't even have a build date yet and customer service is telling me I should not expect to have the vehicle until April 2022 at the soonest.
And again, I will bring up the 7 P's. Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. I think Ford has missed the mark in how they ramped up. I think their communication has been horrid. And, since I own more Ford stock (10,000 shares) than probably 99.9% of people that are on this form, I think I have a right to call Ford to task (here and directly) because I have actually put my money where my mouth is regarding Ford.
Did that answer your question?

 

[AzCactusGray]

Every day I drive by the largest GMC truck dealer in the state of Vermont where GMC sales are the #1 seller. Across US 2 from the dealership is their "overflow" lot that prior to the "end of the world" was chuck full of over 300 GMC trucks of every shape, style and color. Today, the lot is 100% empty and their front line of vehicles next to the highway is all 2018 off lease used pickups. This pain is being felt by all hands and everyone is losing.

I feel your pain OP. Tried buying building supplies lately, trying to explain to customer why everytime you buy lumber it costs more than the last time. If you have, you will fell my pain. LOL.

BTW, Ford did pretty darn good back in the day producing over 400K Rangers a year just from the one Twin Cities Plant. Those were the days my friend.

I actually am somewhat understanding of the supply shortages.... Except when int comes to chips. I also think Ford and the other car companies have mostly done it to themselves regarding chips. Now, had the car companies invested in upgrading to newer more modern chips built in new more modern wafer fabs vs the straight out of 1990 chip technology, they still may be an issue but nothing like it currently is. When the pandemic hit, Ford GM and a selection of others canceled their orders for chips. The companies that own the Wafer Fabs said hey we don't need this crap, these antique obsolete wafer fabs are not really profitable and our only customer just screwed us. The pandemic is well the pandemic and people need to live life, Pent-up demand is released people want cars the companies no longer have access to chips because the people that make the chips now say go take a hike... The chip company say hey we have all these modern chips why don't you use those in your cars.. the car companies go sorry we can't, we're not prepared to use modern chips, we haven't done the upgrades and investmentswe can only use chips from technology used 30 years ago. Can you imagine if the big lumber producers did what the car companies have done and not plant new trees?

 

[Bob The Builder]

Yes, I can easily imagine the car companies being their own worst enemy in this regard. Just imagine if just one of them had the foresight to stockpile their chips and take advantage of reducing pricing due to decreased demand. They would be in the driver's seat, no pun intended.

Well, I read somewhere, maybe here I dunno, that Ford has or is planning on signing an agreement with Global Foundries to produce their chips for them. GF is a cutting edge company so i cannot imagine them making anything but good stuff.

 

[AzCactusGray]

Yes, I can easily imagine the car companies being their own worst enemy in this regard. Just imagine if just one of them had the foresight to stockpile their chips and take advantage of reducing pricing due to decreased demand. They would be in the driver's seat, no pun intended.

Well, I read somewhere, maybe here I dunno, that Ford has or is planning on signing an agreement with Global Foundries to produce their chips for them. GF is a cutting edge company so i cannot imagine them making anything but good stuff.

I read that as well, and I think that's a good move. Unfortunately in this go around the horses have already left the barn. And I do think there will be a next time because even if this was not bioterism this go around, in the future we will have to deal with that I suspect.

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