STUDY: Ford continues to find favor with consumers while GM, Chysler decline
Bankruptcy may have put General Motors and Chrysler in a better financial position, but a report from Rasmussen shows that public opinion may have taken a big hit in the process. The survey, which was completed by 1,000 Americans in late July, shows that only 38% of Americans now have a favorable opinion of GM, down six points from May, and 21% of respondents have a very unfavorable view of the Detroit-based automaker. Chrysler now only has a 34% favorable rating, also down six points, while its very unfavorable rating has dipped to 23%.
The perils of GM and Chrysler are having the opposite affect on Ford, though, as the latest Rasmussen Report shows the public now has a 66% favorable opinion of Ford, with 22% now very favorable. The reason sited in the survey is the fact that the Blue Oval didn't require bailout money, along with avoiding a stint in bankruptcy court. For Ford, 46% of Americans surveyed are more likely to buy a car for avoiding government assistance, while only 17% say they are more likely to go GM now that the company is out of bankruptcy. While the report is good news to Ford, we'd point out that the significant swings in opinion from March to May to July shows that the public mood can shift quickly.
The bankruptcies of GM and Chrysler have certainly weighed down public opinion of the companies, but the attention the industry has received in the past year has helped the surveyed Americans place more value on the auto industry. 88% of those surveyed felt the auto industry is at least somewhat important to the economy, compared to only 49% back in March 2007. Hit the jump to review the complete Rasmussen Report.
[Source: Rasmussen Reports]
PRESS RELEASE:
Most Americans still have a much higher opinion of the one Big Three automaker who didn't ask for a government bailout, while views of the two companies that did get bailed out continue to go down.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 66% of Americans now have at a somewhat favorable opinion of Ford, including 22% whose view is very favorable. Ford is seen unfavorably by 26%, with six percent (6%) very unfavorable. These numbers are largely unchanged from May.
By contrast, General Motors is viewed favorably by 38%, down six points from May, and unfavorably by 56%, up eight points from the previous survey. The "nays" feel more strongly now, too: Twenty-one percent (21%) have a very unfavorable opinion of GM, compared to nine percent (9%) whose view is very favorable.
For Chrysler, the news is similar. Thirty-four percent (34%) have a somewhat favorable view, down six from May, while 55% see the company unfavorably, up three points. Those with a strongly unfavorable view outnumber those who are strongly favorable by more than three-to-one – 23% to seven percent (7%).
These views may be translating into consumer buying habits, too, with 46% of Americans now saying they are more likely to buy a car from Ford because it did not seek a government bailout. Only 17% say they are more likely to buy a GM car now that the company has emerged from bankruptcy with government help, but 22% say they are less likely to do so.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter.
The May survey actually marked a rebound of sorts for GM and Chrysler. The new favorables and unfavorables are more in line with the findings in March and reflect the downward trend evident since the two automakers first began seeking bailout help.
But Americans also now consider the automobile industry more important to the overall U.S. economy than they have in recent surveys.
Eighty-two percent (82%) say the domestic auto industry is at least somewhat important to the economy. For 40%, it's very important, up eight points from late March and the highest finding this year.
Of course, in March 2007, 49% said the auto industry was very important to the overall economy.
Just 12% now say the automobile industry is not important to the economy, with three percent (3%) who view it as not at all important.
Generally speaking, Democrats have been more supportive of the auto bailouts than Republicans or adults not affiliated with either political party. So it's not surprising that the same partisan divide is evident in the favorables. While all three groups like Ford more, Democrats have a higher opinion of GM and Chrysler than Republicans and unaffiliateds.
Men are more enthusiastic about Ford than women, while both feel largely the same about the other two automakers.
Investors by more than a two-to-one margin have a more favorable opinion of Ford than of GM and Chrysler.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
PhattyDre16 8:09AM (7/30/2009)
Ford must have people in the media on a payroll.
Well, either that or they are doing well.
Either way, thanks Ford for putting me in a good mood everytime I read something about you.
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Cody 8:35AM (7/30/2009)
"while only 17% say they are more likely to go GM now that the company is out of bankruptcy. "
16% of which happens to be Matt.
Hamud 8:52AM (7/30/2009)
Guess the second is more the case. They are doing really well lately and they deserve it for the well done job.
Chris, I'm not an english expert but I guess the word "sited" in the sentence "The reason sited in the survey is the fact..." at the second paragraph should be with "c" as in "citation".
dumblikeyou2 10:49AM (7/30/2009)
And yet, amongst all the bad press, and all the bad talk about the bailouts, you would think there would have been a mass rejection of GM. Yet as of June 09' YTD sales figures, GM sold 942,132 cars, the most out of all car companies.
Ford sold 743,496; less than Toyota 770,449.
Go figure. You would think with such new found love for Ford that their percentage would be positive not negative like the rest of the industry.
http://online.wsj.com/mdc/public/page/2_3022-autosales.html
merlot066 11:55AM (7/30/2009)
GM had a significant boost by all the dealers that they canned. All those dealers gave major discounts so they could clear their inventory in the few weeks they had left. My uncle got a brand new Cobalt from one of the dealers and he worked them down 3,000 more dollars.
UCJR 8:13AM (7/30/2009)
Good for Ford, but GM and Chrysler will recover in time.
Luckily we have the media fixating on the 'auto crisis' and the MJ death conspiracy to pacify the general public away from more pressing issues.
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C.W. 9:26AM (7/30/2009)
while GM and Chrysler will recover some of that in time... it will take a lot of time. these kinds of shifts generally take years and years and years with spending MASSIVE amounts of $$ on PR/advertising. It's very incremental. Ford is being launched so far ahead and they arent having to spend a dime! Money cannot buy this kind of PR. Keep in mind, if Ford keeps up with these quality trends and new product like they are doing they will continue to be a harder target to catch. Ford is moving into a whole new league seperate from GM and Chrysler.
Joe Btfsplk 9:40AM (7/30/2009)
Damn good thing, too! I'm soooo bored.
Mr.Oak 10:04AM (7/30/2009)
C.W. : GM is going to be fine. Remember, we are a fickle lot. Most americans won't even care in six months. That is, as soon as the media stops telling them what to do.
Kind of feel bad for the idiots on the 24 hour news cycles, when there is no "News" to report. CNN, Fox et al, are now in the business of creating News.
I would like to lock Wolf Blitzer in a windowless room, and force him to what the crap he broadcasts on loop, for an entire week.
GM will be fine though.
C.W. 10:21AM (7/30/2009)
of course GM will be fine... that isnt the point i'm trying to make. I'm saying that although GM and Chrysler will be fine, and will recover some of the negative PR in time, it wont be the same as it once was. The gains in market share, positive outlook, favorable ratings, etc. wont happen with the speed they could have at one time. Ford is reaping these massive month over month gains because of something that has NEVER happened before with it's competitors (and hopefully never again). I am saying it will cost GM and Chrysler a TON of money to even 'creep' back into it while it is costing Ford nothing to get where they are (albeit product development, safety engineering and other typical business related costs). Historically it took companies years to make this kind of progress and a ton of $$$, even in the world of the 'fickle' consumer. So yes, GM will be fine... they have no debt and Obama is the CEO... they just have their work cutout for them with their target market. thats my point.
Willem B 11:33AM (7/30/2009)
@C.W.
Ford may have made some PR strides and gained a bit of market share, but in the end, GM still outsold them by 27% so far this year. I don't think that the whole thing will end up costing GM that much, they are a much stronger company without their debt load now, and I expect great things from them in future.
sk 8:16AM (7/30/2009)
Good for GM and Chrysler that the U.S. customer has a short term memory when it comes to favor a brand. 4-5 years ago Ford was one of the most unwanted brands and it was very close at filing for bankruptcy.
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MeiSooHaityu 9:41AM (7/30/2009)
Very true. Ford had to take out massive loans a few years back to stay in business.
However there is one key difference, Ford did not ask for Federal handouts and that is what the public reacts negatively too.
Really it comes down to timing. Since Ford ran out of money years ago, it happened in an enviroment when loans were easy to get. When GM and Chrysler ran out of money, the financial crisis prevented banks from loaning money out.
When it comes down to it, if the banking enviroment was different, GM and Chrysler could have gotten loans and wouldn't have had to get hand-outs and go bankrupt. Ford is taking advantage of bum luck timing.
Mike 10:06AM (7/30/2009)
Actually MeiSooHaityu,
Ford started taking money from their loan guarantees this year. Mullaly realized 3 years ago when he started that they were going to need loans if things didn't get better for them in the mid-term. He then went out and got the loan guarantees, hoping they didn't need them but being prepared for the worst, which obviously happened.
GM and Chrysler ran out of money in December and had no loan guarantees, thus the reason they needed federal aid and bankruptcy. They didn't plan for the future and it bit them.
Mr.Oak 10:15AM (7/30/2009)
You're both kinda right. 4 years ago, Ford's problem was that they had no product.
Trucks, Crown Vics, and Town Cars kept them in business. I guess most car companies go through this from time to time. Remember Nissan a few years back? and Mazda before them.
It wasn't until the Fusion, then Edge, and the dorky Focus along with Sync. Do not downplay the role of the Microsoft Sync in Ford's ability to move the characterless Focus.
Mustang sells well for a Pony car, but not enough to keep the company in business.
Mr.Oak 10:37AM (7/30/2009)
Mike: This wasn't about planning. I admire Mr. Mullaly. I think he did excellent work at Boeing, and is doing excellent work with Ford.
However, FORD did not plan for this recession, and if it were not for the recession, they would have quietly slogged their way through their transition. Like the tree that fell in the forest. Nobody is around to hear it, did it make a sound? This recession hits 12 months earlier, Ford would have been just as screwed.
In a year or two, GM will be fine, Ford will be fine and Chrysler will still need a flashlight to find their way out of the woods.
Selling off AM, and cash sucking Jaguar/Land Rover was a BIG help. Even with the loans that Ford took, if they still owned LR and Jag during this recession, they would have been so screwed.
Yaroukh 11:11AM (7/30/2009)
@Mr.Oak: "if they still owned LR and Jag..."
You say it like they sold these by an accident. But it was a decision. Remember how many people screamed "why are they selling them when LR is profitable and Jag has awesome product coming out soon"?
I see a parallel with the loans. Many criticised Mullally for taking the loans. Now they act like it was something that has been done either by an accident or the only choice left then.
Bobcat 1:20PM (7/30/2009)
Ford F-Series sets new modern monthly industry sales record for a single nameplate by any manufacturer, selling 126,905 trucks in July 2005 – more than any vehicle since the Model T in the 1920s.
Mr.Oak 2:07PM (7/30/2009)
Yaroukh: You missed my point. Ford had planned to sell Jag & LR. Had the recession hit before they sold them, they would have been screwed. Ford was not in control of the recession.
Sometimes you get caught holding cards you don't need, and sometimes you get rid of your "bad cards" just in the nick of time. Exactly Ford's situation.
Mike 2:39AM (7/31/2009)
Mr Oak,
I never said Ford planned for the recession, but they did plan for a continuation of declining sales until they could get the product and the reputation to start clawing back to a sustainable number. Obviously the plan also included the ability to access cash for the worst case scenario, as that is what happened and they are temporarily ok. They also took swift action to dump unnecessary holdings to get what they could for them, perhaps if the economy hadn't collapsed and a bit more had been invested in LR/Jag/AM they would have been able to get more money for them, instead they took the loss and focused on their core brand, Ford.
GM didn't burn through 20 billion dollars from July to December, recession or no, they had inadequate plans to survive a sustained downturn in their own sales, much less a collapse of the economy and auto sector in particular. They got into the same troubles Ford did and a bit earlier, if you look back to the middle of the decade, both companies started downsizing due to dropping market share, GM actually started first, about a year ahead of Ford. But GM did next to nothing to get the house in order and Ford quickly surpased GM in getting quallity back to top levels and getting desirable product to market, along with changing top management and communicating that things would not be business as usual, it changed the way the whole company worked from the top down. If GM did any such things, they didn't communicate it very well.
So you have several years of Ford climbing quality studies, telling how they've changed, proving it with better product, and planning for a tough road ahead. GM did make inroads to quality and their products are improving but they did not plan for rough roads, they figured it would go as it always did, a cyclical downturn that they would have years to recover from and endless supplies of money- they were dead wrong.