Autoblog

If history serves them right, taking Alan Mulally's advice to "follow me" should be looked at as an opportunity by Ford brass, even when it involves a walk out of the boardroom and down a flight of steps in to his secret "war room".

Insiders are talking about the room, buried deep within the confines of Ford's world headquarters in Dearborn, that has walls covered with charts, graphs and lists of Ford products and markets that define the road to turn the troubled automaker around.

The recently-appointed CEO also points out that he feels some really good people will leave the company during these gut-wrenching times, but for those who stay the ride back up will be infinitely more exhilarating.

Mullaly may begin to lay out his plans as early as the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next month. Let's hope Ford is ready to battle its way back.

[Source: Automotive News; sub req'd]

Bill Ford recently sat down for a four-hour marathon interview with Sarah Webster of the Detroit Free Press. In the heart-to-heart Ford reveals a couple of things about the company's turnaround plans that we found interesting.

First off, no decisions have been about where a new flexible manufacturing plant announced during the kick off of the Way Forward plan will be located, nor what product will be assembled there. Insiders point to the recent revelation of a renewed investment in its Mexico operations as a clue indicating the new Ford plant will be located below the border. Ford, however, is emphatic that no decision has been made.

Second, Ford says that a "war room" has been set up to defend the F-150 against the upcoming new pickups from Chevrolet and Toyota (sorry, Dodge). Despite the Blue Oval's renewed focus on cars and crossovers, the F-150 still pays the bills, so it seems that no expense will be spared keeping it the King of the Hill.

If you were in the F-150's "War Room" with Bill Ford, what ideas would you offer to keep the truck on top? Post your ideas in the comments, and maybe we can get Mr. Ford himself to respond.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]