Ford Bold Moves: Episode 2 - Commitment to Design
Half Real World, half late-night SPEED channel documentary, Ford's Bold Moves campaign is onto its second episode, Commitment to Design. Ford design gurus J Mays, Peter Horbury and Hau Thai-Tang chime in to accept responsibility for bringing Ford back from the abyss via design. The episode hones in on vehicles such as the Ford Iosis, Superchief truck and Shelby GR-1 to show how Ford is going after bold flavors of design and not vanilla to get its "design mojo back," as Mark Fields says in the episode.
As a bonus, check out an article on the site by our very own John Neff, "The Inside Story: Why A Car's Interior Design Matters More Than Ever" -- you can even vote for our fearless leader's contribution by logging into the Bold Moves site.
[Source: FordBoldMoves.com]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
LOL 5:10PM (7/09/2006)
Where does the CrownVic, Ranger, Focus and Econoline fit into this whole commitment thing? How about a commitment to not let old designs languish for 20 years or more. How about a commitment to respond to market changes and introduce new techonology before the next ice age rolls around.
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Automatica 5:37PM (7/09/2006)
I've never rooted so hard against someone like I have Mark Fields. He seems like the type of guy who introduces himself by saying, "Google my name."
I also hold him completely responsible for "Zoom Zoom Zoom" which is quite possibly the most played out, awful campaign this side of "Break on Through".
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naggs 5:55PM (7/09/2006)
i couldnt agree more, ford moves like the most bloated company on earth. how do you not have a wave of small cars, how do you get blindsided by gas prices? how is it that ford is still retiring its rwd cars to make the move to fwd WHEN RWD IS ALREADY BACK! look at the world, look at what the consumer wants TOMORROW, not what we would consider acceptable last year. the bar was raised and ford didnt even notice.
it really is change or die and i hope that isnt just a saying over there
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Yaroukh 6:12PM (7/09/2006)
naggs: RWD is back & look atthe world? Which world exactly do you mean? I bet definetely not Europe and not for everyday-use vehicles.
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Infinihertz 7:36PM (7/09/2006)
#1 - It's true that the Ranger and Focus need redesigns, but considering the video just came out, expecting vehicles on the roads yesterday is a little unrealistic. I doubt the CrownVic and Econoline need as much changing (since their markets are already mature and not likely to grow much even if they were redesigned), but a freshening would be nice.
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Dennis B. 8:02PM (7/09/2006)
The problem is that the car makers are all sleeping and the people who buy new cars are blind in the last two decades the automanufactures have built several 50 plus mpg non hybrid cars some where very drivable sure they could have been built better almost all the cars built then sufered that but they proved better is possible lets get back to the basics and get a good basic comuter car that gives 50 mpg agian.
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Billy C. 8:17PM (7/09/2006)
I would love to see ford make some Bold Moves and demonstrate some committment to design. Most consumers have never heard of those three cars you mentioned and even more could care less. If you can't commit to bring a bold new design to the mass market, you don't have bragging rights. Not if you are a mass market company.
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Babu 8:39PM (7/09/2006)
#7 I agree. These are just concepts. Big deal. A bold move would be to commit to production in a short time frame like GM did with the Solstice/Sky. Until that happens, its just foolish talk.
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naggs 9:44PM (7/09/2006)
" naggs: RWD is back & look atthe world? Which world exactly do you mean? I bet definetely not Europe and not for everyday-use vehicles."
ford is just now comming out with the lincoln towncar/crown vic replacement, the showcar was a fwd/awd that maybe in production in a couple of years. the large luxery segment has gone from rwd to fwd and back to rear wheel drive and ford didnt even notice. yes rwd is on the rise, i dont know where you live, all i can go on is where i live.
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Michael Karesh 10:05PM (7/09/2006)
Ford has a new big plan every two to three years. Time to actually fully put one into action before moving on to the next one.
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dubious one 11:46PM (7/09/2006)
Design, eh? Is this the same company that refuses to bring its modern focus (or mondeo or mini minivans) over from Europe. New theme every two weeks, none of which are followed through on. Nice job they did on the design of the 500. Sad. Just plain sad.
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JZeke 8:15AM (7/10/2006)
Nice to see yet another company turn design into a dirty word.
As art students we mulled over the more esoteric points of design, and all reached unique and interesting solutions.
Working in the corporate machine however, design is just another word that means nothing until "market research shows" that it sells. Companies and their less bright employees will say they design everything, from cup holders and tire pressure monitors to "the end user experience."
F-it. A good design still starts with a sketch, gets built by either a talented machine or human and ends up selling to a happy customer. Happy because its easy to use, happy because it didnt break their budget, and happy because its sweet to look at. These concepts are hardly anything new.
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Arthur 9:32AM (7/10/2006)
I love FORD but FORD needs to fix things like the new Five Hundred great car but design wise it never made it also engine wise it never made it. Not to take away that the car rides like no Ford I ever drove, I have one and have put 18,000 miles on it since October, I love that it sits higher then most sedans and it handles and rides better then most American cars.
Also the 6.0 diesel engine built by International has been a thorn in the butt since its introduction. Ford has always been know for truck building, this engine could be the worse thing since the Edsel! Ford is asleep while Nero is fiddling it seems. They spend money to build a GT but can’t build or find a diesel engine to work for them. They say there is a 6.2 diesel coming out but it might be to late for there loyal following. Ford has been a leader in the Truck segment but there lead is dwindling and the 6.0 could just break there back!
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gbh 1:19PM (7/10/2006)
After watching the second of this series of PR blurbs, I am almost cheering for Ford's death. After the first vid I wasn't sure whether to laugh or hurl. I've decided to just laugh.
It's always the same. You the consumer have told us we suck. (for the umpteenth time in 30+ years) We hear you. This time we do. Really. Honest. We're gonna get our act together. This time we're gonna put a slick self-critical video together. Then we're put it up on the internet. Please come buy the same old behind-the-curve-crap we've been doing for 30+ years.
Show me a Ford engineer going through 30 different switches to find the one that has the correct feel. Show me a bean-counter approving an extra $1.00 per unit for interior plastic that doesn't appear to be made of recyled Big Wheels. Show me a car in the pipeline that is as nice as current Euro Ford product. Show me a car that is desirable and gets more than 10MPG.
Show me something that *matters*, that I don't already know. (or, know to be total BS)
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Aki 3:03PM (7/10/2006)
It's all hot air until Ford actually implements nice cars and not just brag about some pretty concepts. Problem is, even if concepts get implemented, they'd be thoroughly watered down.
The thing is, it's not like they don't have nice cars. Focus sales languish stateside while Europe gets a nice, modern, zippy Focus. What the heck?
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Borkov 1:50AM (7/13/2006)
Just about 95% of idiots talked down to Ford thinking that they are dispensable! But think, (And I doubt half of you dolts can even do that) if Ford goes down we do to. The keystone to our economy is Ford and if you pull them out we're all SOL. But what am I saying? All of you are a bunch of bias fucks, I doubt I can change your psydo-intellectual mantalities, so all of you can choke on it.
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