Overall Attitudes toward the process

[Rkbrumbelow]

Generally, people have been positive, and that’s good to see. I think the general rollout, in light of the pressure of component constraint is actually going pretty well.

Has the Maverick production slipped? Depending on what reports you follow certainly, or it has advanced.

huh?

The Maverick was designed in about 22 months. For a US auto manufacturer, that is warp speed. It helps that in some ways it is an adaptation of existent design, even so I hate to use the overused word Unprecedented, but it is closer than most people use that word today.

Ironically, the pandemic has made us an even more on demand society. We have become used to ordering groceries and having them packaged for pickup same day. Order something via prime, 1-2 day delivery. Streaming entertainment, instant gratification.

I would like to remind folks the release date for Mavericks is about a month away still. It is a new product, utilizing components in global constraint desuply to coin a word. The spray in bed liner, tonneau covers etc are manufactured or applied using an organic solvent that is in constraint. Global chip supplies are, well in allocation. That means there will be priority shifts.

There is a theory that the Maverick had to have a certain % hybrid to meet EPA regulations. It is likely true. EPA regulations are often Byzantine at best and each model year vehicle must meet certain standards or be hit with a fee. If the theory is true, the total number of Mavericks built will be supported by the number of hybrids which are sold, lest Ford be hit with a major fine. Further, depending on what the EPA says the Maverick’s MPG numbers are, it may further limit production of the ecoboost. Ford needs hybrid sales, so they are not deliberately slowing them or de-prioritizing them. When the numbers shake out they will have to produce at least 1 hybrid for every x ecoboost (and even that’s a simplification it is really the entire production run will have to meet an mpg standard)

All of this leads me to my subject: while certainly the overall attitude has been good, and some Ford groups have really stepped up and granted us insight into a normally cloudy process. There are some members with some catastrophic attitudes. Sit down and chill.

It does not help when some people, considered knowledgeable post contrary information. Nor does it help when the contradictory source is Ford itself vs a dealer, but if a measurement is that important for your application, then you need to either wait and measure it yourself, or go with the guys who have actually designed the vehicle.

There are doom and gloom people as well, conspiracy theorists, and just plain obstinate gruffy old dwarves (oh wait that last one is a description of me) take it with a grain of (or kilo whichever) salt.

I blocked 4 accounts and the number of negative posts dropped precipitously.

Just calm down, let Ford their job, and relax. If you have to have a vehicle now, there are offers to lease them to you. If you can sell a used vehicle now and wait on delivery of a new one, I suspect that is a smart idea. If not, wait to sell.

Complaining and calling into question the motives of dealers and a company trying to sell you exactly what you want is counter productive. You will only add stress to your life, and things are stressful enough right now.

/end rant

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[balucipher]

Well said. The people with childish "I want my Maverick now" whining posts are hilarious. Just because you ordered first doesn't mean your exact build gets picked up first.

Ford will produce far more hybrids than Ecoboost trucks, but the hybrid production ramp up started later than Ecoboost production which has been ongoing for a while. There were threads warning about hybrid delays early on and just because your hybrid didn't get picked up in the first three rounds of retail scheduling, it doesn't mean Ford has a catastrophic failure or something if wrong. I think November build dates will see the big change over to hybrid majority, as that gives Ford enough time to get the hybrid drivetrain assembly lines up to full speed and those parts down to Hermosillo.

 

[Red Ryder]

As someone who has been closely following and excited about Ford's new products, I will say my frustration has grown after a long, failed attempt to procure a Bronco Sport. The process was botched at the Ford level and this time I decided to get in early on the game regarding the Maverick.
While I understand that Ford is a for-profit company and its main responsibility is to the stockholders, Ford has over-extended itself with so many new-product launches during the pandemic and resultant supply-chain crisis.
Would it have been better to pace the product launches to ensure better customer satisfaction or rush them to market to bolster the stock prices in the near term? Ultimately, it will all depend on maintaining the customer base's interest.
If the product quality and delivery issues weigh heavily on the customer base, then the stock price will eventually reveal that.

 

[vap0rtranz]

I will say my frustration has grown after a long, failed attempt to procure a Bronco Sport.

What happened with your BSport order?

There was someone recently whose still waiting on their Bronco (not Sport) build and already got scheduled for their Maverick, which makes me think Ford has ironed out the process since the Bronco & BSport ....

 

[Tennisbum]

Do we know the capacity of Ford to produce Mavericks per month yet..?

 

[Rkbrumbelow]

Do we know the capacity of Ford to produce Mavericks per month yet..?

Estimates are 800 per day, if each month contains 12 Maverick days that’s 9600 a month. But that assumes 0 constraint on common items.

we will have a solid idea by the 3rd month of production what the general number per day is. The first cycle reveals issues to be fixed, the second cycle fixes those and reveals more, generally the 3rd cycle is close to standard, again barring constraints.

we just previewed and got cycle 2 scheduled (maybe cycle 1.5) next month will be a solid production run and should be very revealing.

 

[Red Ryder]

What happened with your BSport order?

There was someone recently whose still waiting on their Bronco (not Sport) build and already got scheduled for their Maverick, which makes me think Ford has ironed out the process since the Bronco & BSport ....

I received schedule week earlier in the summer and silence after. The week came and went and never an update. Turns out mine was one of those that sat waiting for chips while newer orders passed it by. Anyhow, hopefully the hybrid will work out.
It would be good to have better transparency from Ford, but I know that is counter to maintaining market confidence. They finally had to do something publically regarding the Bronco hard tops however.

 

[ColoradoShooter]

800 cars/day is mind boggling in my mind. I’d love to see the process.

 

[vap0rtranz]

Anyhow, hopefully the hybrid will work out.

If the BSport can be held up by chips, so can either EB or Hybrid Mav.

There's all sorts of mixed news on chips now. The Administration says they're working it, Ford had said things were turning around, but then Ford said last week that Mach-E production will be delayed because of chips. Let's hope

 

[Tjman]

Not sure why you need to suppress people? Guess it’s the new way . All of this on the board is mostly conjecture anyway. Ford has the definitive say. Everyone has a choice to buy or walk away. We aren’t owed a Maverick nor is Ford entitled to our business. Just let it be! (Guess I’ll be blocked now).

 

[Art_Vandelay]

When you see a project developed at this kind of speed it’s usually an indicator that the manufacturer set up a skunkworks-esque design program. Disconnect the team from the typical hierarchy of top heavy management which slows down the entire process and adds cost. It’s interesting on a business level to see the cost saving measure being employed by ford throughout the entire process of design and development so they wouldn’t have to cut costs on materials and even fit a hybrid system into the target budget. This might even be an internal test by ford to explore ways to reduce development costs across the board for future projects. Vehicle costs and materials continue to rise in price while incomes are not increasing to arch so manufacturers are going to have to focus on reducing development costs over the next decade to keep their cars affordable.

 

[Platinum2]

Generally, people have been positive, and that’s good to see. I think the general rollout, in light of the pressure of component constraint is actually going pretty well.

Has the Maverick production slipped? Depending on what reports you follow certainly, or it has advanced.

huh?

The Maverick was designed in about 22 months. For a US auto manufacturer, that is warp speed. It helps that in some ways it is an adaptation of existent design, even so I hate to use the overused word Unprecedented, but it is closer than most people use that word today.

Ironically, the pandemic has made us an even more on demand society. We have become used to ordering groceries and having them packaged for pickup same day. Order something via prime, 1-2 day delivery. Streaming entertainment, instant gratification.

I would like to remind folks the release date for Mavericks is about a month away still. It is a new product, utilizing components in global constraint desuply to coin a word. The spray in bed liner, tonneau covers etc are manufactured or applied using an organic solvent that is in constraint. Global chip supplies are, well in allocation. That means there will be priority shifts.

There is a theory that the Maverick had to have a certain % hybrid to meet EPA regulations. It is likely true. EPA regulations are often Byzantine at best and each model year vehicle must meet certain standards or be hit with a fee. If the theory is true, the total number of Mavericks built will be supported by the number of hybrids which are sold, lest Ford be hit with a major fine. Further, depending on what the EPA says the Maverick’s MPG numbers are, it may further limit production of the ecoboost. Ford needs hybrid sales, so they are not deliberately slowing them or de-prioritizing them. When the numbers shake out they will have to produce at least 1 hybrid for every x ecoboost (and even that’s a simplification it is really the entire production run will have to meet an mpg standard)

All of this leads me to my subject: while certainly the overall attitude has been good, and some Ford groups have really stepped up and granted us insight into a normally cloudy process. There are some members with some catastrophic attitudes. Sit down and chill.

It does not help when some people, considered knowledgeable post contrary information. Nor does it help when the contradictory source is Ford itself vs a dealer, but if a measurement is that important for your application, then you need to either wait and measure it yourself, or go with the guys who have actually designed the vehicle.

There are doom and gloom people as well, conspiracy theorists, and just plain obstinate gruffy old dwarves (oh wait that last one is a description of me) take it with a grain of (or kilo whichever) salt.

I blocked 4 accounts and the number of negative posts dropped precipitously.

Just calm down, let Ford their job, and relax. If you have to have a vehicle now, there are offers to lease them to you. If you can sell a used vehicle now and wait on delivery of a new one, I suspect that is a smart idea. If not, wait to sell.

Complaining and calling into question the motives of dealers and a company trying to sell you exactly what you want is counter productive. You will only add stress to your life, and things are stressful enough right now.

/end rant

I think this is a great post that is mostly factually accurate and blended with reasonable opinion.

Looking forward to reading more from you.

 

[Rkbrumbelow]

800 cars/day is mind boggling in my mind. I’d love to see the process.

Here is how Ford builds an F series at over 1 per minute in Dearborn:



Unfortunately, I have never seen the Maverick in production at speed. But if Hermosillo can produce a truck every 53 seconds, a 16 hour double accounting for shift swaps etc, they could do 960 a day so 800 a day sounds reasonable (again free of constraint)

 

[pxpaulx]

As someone who has been closely following and excited about Ford's new products, I will say my frustration has grown after a long, failed attempt to procure a Bronco Sport. The process was botched at the Ford level and this time I decided to get in early on the game regarding the Maverick.
While I understand that Ford is a for-profit company and its main responsibility is to the stockholders, Ford has over-extended itself with so many new-product launches during the pandemic and resultant supply-chain crisis.
Would it have been better to pace the product launches to ensure better customer satisfaction or rush them to market to bolster the stock prices in the near term? Ultimately, it will all depend on maintaining the customer base's interest.
If the product quality and delivery issues weigh heavily on the customer base, then the stock price will eventually reveal that.

I definitely understand the frustration, but I'm not sure exactly how a business can truly plan product rollouts that take multiple years of planning, to anticipate a global pandemic. Given Ford has brought multiple products to market that are seeing significant appeal, they are being about as transparent and accommodating of their customers as I think an average consumer can realistically expect.

They could easily manage their distribution like Hyundai and guide 'reservations' to dealers for random allotments of vehicles to pick and choose from. How would we all be feeling then?

 

[Didj]

I know nothing about assembly lines, shortages, skunkworks, etc. I just wish the Maverick and the discussions that led my family to realize that another car was needed for our family would have happened in late-May instead of mid-July. I know I will receive my Velocity Blue XLT hybrid, but right now, it’s just a waiting game. Could I go elsewhere? Probably! However, as with many of you, the Maverick checks A LOT of boxes for us.

Truck… Check.
Passenger space… Check.
Customizable payload space… Check.
Light towing… Check.
Fun/cool design… Check.
Good gas mileage*… Check.

So…I sit…I wait.

*Reported gas mileage estimates.

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