Mulally sheds more light on Toyota visit
At a private dinner on Wednesday, Ford CEO Alan Mulally told journalists that the recent visit he and Mark Fields made to Toyota's headquarters was born out of a desire to understand more about the Japanese automaker's manufacturing and product development processes, which Mulally holds in very high esteem.He went so far as to refer to Toyota as "the finest machine in the world, the finest production system in the world," adding that "we (Mulally and Fields) went to study with the master." The Toyota visit also satisfies at least part of a personal objective he set for himself when he assumed the top spot at Ford, which was to meet with the other manufacturers in short order.
While he professes great admiration for Toyota, Mulally's loyalties are not at all in question -- when he accepted the Ford position, he canceled an order he'd placed for a new Lexus.
We're impressed with the candor Mulally showed by speaking so openly about his admiration for the Toyota business processes, and the fact that he's made it a point to sit down with the other manufacturers shows that he's dead serious about learning everything he can to help inform his decision-making process as he leads Ford through its turnaround plan. More importantly, by spending time face-to-face with a competitor like Toyota, he places himself in a position to make observations that would otherwise be impossible. Sure, it was a business visit, but you can bet that both Ford and Toyoa relished the opportunity to do some in-person opposition research.
Ford's geared up to have an exciting NAIAS with two stunning new concepts -- the Lincoln MKR and Ford Interceptor -- that are generating plenty of chatter here at Autoblog. They'll be joined by the new Focus and whatever else the Blue Oval has up its sleeve for Detroit. Those cars will form the backdrop for Mulally's biggest public event yet, and we're we're eagerly looking forward to hearing his remarks at the show.
[Source: Jim Irwin/AP via Yahoo! News
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Spalind 9:50AM (1/04/2007)
Finally...someone with actual brains and cajones to stand up and say that PERHAPS Ford could learn a few things from its foreign competitors....Nice job Mullaly...now keep it up!!
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Gardiner Westbound 10:15AM (1/04/2007)
If Mulally had a new Lexus on order when he signed with Ford he already knows what the issues are.
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P to the C 10:16AM (1/04/2007)
I agree, this is a good thing although it would have been nice if prior to taking the job at Ford he showed a little more enthusiasm for domestic products by purchasing one instead of a Lexus. Maybe I'm just being small and picky but I would want someone with a passion for American cars, not just cars in general.
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laserwizard 10:30AM (1/04/2007)
The candor of Mulally and his conduct in the first days as head of Ford are refreshing. Unlike the same-old-same-old staleness that manifests itself at GM despite leadership change some six years ago, Ford appears to get it. And while the changes coming from Ford appear glacial on the product replacement pace, we are talking about cars and their manufacturing processes that have been locked into a mindset that is only now itself changing. As Ford improves its turnaround time on products, it will be able to work toward matching its foreign competitors on product turnover - we do need to keep in mind how mediocre the Camry was in its first several iterations and it wasn't until the current and prior version that the Camry became a serious vehicle and not a cheaply made, tincan with tupperware interior appointments.
I hope that Ford is serious in their new approach and take the Interceptor and MKR and turn those into production cars with few changes. The Interceptor may be a bold move that finally breaks the perception that Ford is stale. Like it or not, you cannot ignore the visual impact of its design - and it makes sense that if Ford trucks are purchased more than any other vehicle, why not play off that strength with regard to cars. If Ford cars are perceived to be wimpy, truckifying the visual impact of the exterior plays off Ford's strength.
Thank God for Mulally at Ford. I'm also thankful that Wagoner and Putz are sinking GM as fast as they can.
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Raj 10:36AM (1/04/2007)
He should have kept his Lexus, drive that on weekends and drive equivalnt Lincoln on weekedays. That way he would be in constant touch with the reality (and that is how Lincoln sucks when compared to Lexus) and compare the two in real life.
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Mike 10:59AM (1/04/2007)
What passion for American cars? Cars that get 9 MPG? or Cars that weight 7 tons? Or super sexy looking designs of Monte Carlo and 500?
Don't you see. The last 30 years era of American junk did not end, it is still going on. Quality is bad, interiors are cheap, slow, heavy..... and on and on and on.
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Kyle Rohde 10:41AM (1/04/2007)
Ironic that roughly 50 years after Toyota visited Ford to learn about the assembly/manufacturing process, the tables have been turned like this. I just hope it helps Mulally turn Ford around. Its hard to imagine this country without GM and Ford.
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Tool 10:54AM (1/04/2007)
Mulally earns points for being open, respectful and visionary.
Bill Ford wouldn't even return calls to Toyota, so the fact that Alan Mulally goes right into the lions den says a lot about his leadership style.
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Be Oh Be 11:18AM (1/04/2007)
I agree #6 - it's funny that Ford taught Toyota how to play the game, and now Ford is going back asking "how did you guys get so damn big?"
Speaking of Ford and their quest to get some good products back on the road:
I test drove 2 cars back to back yesterday. (yes, it's nice having days off in the middle of the week from work to screw around). Car #1 - A 2007 Acura TL (I know, not a Toyota, but still relevant to my take on the 2 cars), and then a 2007 Lincoln MKZ. I'll just comment right up front that I liked the Acura better I think. But, I must say, the Lincoln pleasantly surprised me. The Lincoln actually drove just as nice (if not a little nicer), and felt about as nice (steering, brakes, engine and transmissions, etc.) and even the dealer experience was very similar (both salesmen were actually quite knowledgeable, well, sort of, I could tell neither one were true car enthusiasts), but I just couldn't get over the strange Lincoln dashboard. Perhaps the target car for the Lincoln is the Lexus ES, but still, I thought (from the pictures) that I'd dig the "retro" look in the Lincoln - I just couldn't find myself getting into it. Both cars were almost identical in price - and I can see most men and women in my age group (32) looking for a $35,000 ride would choose the Acura just because of this extremely odd dash layout.
And this is the problem. Ford I think is taking a pretty wild chance with products like the new MKZ - and I think that bringing back a traditional dash on a car could really work well. But something is off in the execution. The Acura felt a little roomier, and the materials actually did look a little better.
Ford needs to really do a better job of figuring out their target audiences as well as getting their manufacturing processes and engineering processes down. The old style dashboards work great on the Navigator, but not a car like the MKZ.
I must say though - the Mustang GT is sweet - definitely one of the coolest cars around for $27,000. But the Lincolns - they need some help if they're ever going to get the 30-something crowd to start taking them seriously.
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Edsel 12:08PM (1/04/2007)
I am absolutely, positively, unequivocally convinced that Mulally can turn Ford around. I feel so strongly about Ford's survival and Mulally's leadership that I'm shopping for a Ford product for the first time in twenty-two years.
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ROB B 12:06PM (1/04/2007)
To post #9. I sat in a Lincoln MKZ too a couple weeks ago. I like the dash and interior layout bout I do agree that it works better in large SUV's or Crossovers like the Lincoln MKX. I wish the interior of the MKX would go into the MKZ and the MKZ interior would go into the MKX. I'm not saying that the MKZ'z interior is ugly, in fact I think it is nicer than the Lexus ES Series but mayber the MKX's interior would suit the car better with its less retro design.
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Be Oh Be 12:33PM (1/04/2007)
#10
The MKX does have a nicer dashboard layout - definitely. I think the odd overhangs that form a quasi square over the tops on both the driver and passenger side don't really work very well on the MKZ. I've always wondered why Ford insists on giving Lincoln small gauges too - they're somewhat more difficult to read than the Honda/Acura gauges.
The THX sound system in the MKZ rocked though - very nice sound and I actually liked how the nav screen flips away to reveal the slots for the DVD and CD players.
Incidentally, I did look at a Saturn Aura too yesterday (all the dealerships were in a nice long row). For the money, it's definitely a car to consider - even for those in the market for a TL. (the Aura XR version of course w/the DOHC 3.6)
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Pete Angilly 1:16PM (1/04/2007)
Once again Alan Mulally walks the walk. This guy is the best thing to happen to Ford since the Taurus.
Take some time and read "Well made in America" it chronicles Harley Davidson's turnaround. During Harley's early restructuring they visited Honda in Japan. They actually studied how they designed and built motorcycles. Every aspect of Honda's manufacturing process was examined. We all know how that story ends. Harley is better than ever. Mulally is doing EXACTLY what they did. With the new cars they have in their pipeline and the apparent desire to bring more Ford Europe product to the States this could be the comeback story of the decade.
Mulally's a winner, he proved it at Boeing and the team he's building at Ford is going to turn it around. Watch!
In a side note: When Harley went to Japan they learned that Honda's lean manufacturing process was developed by two College professor's from the U.S. Apparently, the professor's approached American companies at the end of WWII with their new theories on lean manufacturing. No one wanted to hear it. Finally the U.S. Army invites them to Japan to help rebuild industry. The Japanese assume that these guy's are responsible for the secrets of American manufacturing domination so they gladly accepted their advice. Kind of ironic?
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Hamud 12:59PM (1/04/2007)
Since the beginning I thought that Mullaly was the right one to seat at the top on Ford, when he said that he would turn all Ford units around the world into a Worldwide Ford I had sure he was the right man. Now that he openly showed his admiration for Toyota's Production Process I'm convinced that I was right believing him.
You have to recognize what is good even if it comes from your adversaries, from that point you are ready to learn from them and make it better, just as Toyota did 50 years ago.
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Be Oh Be 3:48PM (1/04/2007)
A lot of innovation comes from the United States. For some reason, the Big 3 didn't want to truly embrace it until recently. (although it seems they used to be very good at it a long time ago). Methinks it has something to do with being cheap when it came to building the products, and then charging through the nose to make insane amounts of profit. Apparently it backfired on them and now they're scrambling to correct it. I hope they succeed. I really like a lot of the newer cars coming out of Detroit.
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J Finz 2:19PM (1/04/2007)
#8 wow you're pretty uninformed, or stubborn, i don't know which. What are you talking about getting 9 mpg or weighing 7 tons, the new tundra? And why the bashing on the monte carlo, I've seen a black ss and actually I think it IS really muscular/sporty looking imo (a real coupe line), and it has that v8 sound and TORQUE at any rpm. (as opposed to the bubble-shaped camry solora)
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Andy 3:48PM (1/04/2007)
The irony of it all is that Toyota and Honda modeled their manufacturing philosophies on those of Ford Motor. It shows you how far Ford has come...
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whofan 6:39PM (1/04/2007)
Profit sharing should cease. Any profits should go back into the company to shore up loose ends. The cat mouse ideoligy between the UAW and management should change. Alan`s biggest job is to get the union on board with management to share a common vision of how Ford should operate in good times and bad. Ford needs good times soon, undoubtly will also have its bad times in the wake of success. Above all screw the share holders, every thing acted opon should be for the company`s best intrest and not the individual.
Then Alan needs to work close with engineers and designers to build the greatest vehicles possible.
Ford then needs to stick to its guns on brand and model image. Dropping the Taurus was crazy. Why not use the Fusion as the new and improved Taurus?
Why succumb to defeat in reguards to the minivan?
A country Squier wagon, (minivan) in a excellent design would help Ford fall back on a heritage being a supplier of great family vehicles. (Town and country anyone?) Chrysler gets it!
Our government needs to get health care off the employers back. (But we have the Cadillac of healh care) We can`t afford the Cadillac of health care anymore. Someones making loads of money somewere, or the system is flawed because cost beyond comprehension isn`t sustainable.
The United States should at least be able to have two prosperious automotive manufactures. Japan has four or more.
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CoolBeans 9:46AM (1/05/2007)
I'm not a big fan of Wagoner but I think Lutz knows cars. GM is doing tremendously well with their restructuring. The GMT 900 lines of trucks and SUVs are the best in the business. Toyota does not have that crown and doesn't come close. Don't be surprised if you see the new Malibu sales come up to those of the Accord and Camry. It is a nice car. Saturn will do very well with their new Opel line up paired with their reputation for customer service. Cadillac is kicking a**. The interior in their and Ford's products are up to par in many products and should improve in the rest.
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Collion 5:26PM (1/05/2007)
@#19 Hey men, if GM is doing so dam well and their products are kicking a** like u implied, how come they posted a 9% sales decline for the year. Wake up my friend, only a strong political move from the Government can stop Toyota and Honda. ...talking about the Malibu remember the redesigned corolla will be out in 12 months. Good luck and keep on day dreaming.
Peace!
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