To say that Ford’s introduction of its revised Power Stroke diesel engine in 2003 didn’t go well would
be an understatement. Buyers of such engines demand reliability, and the new 6.0L had some rather significant fuel
system and induction problems, leading to a large number of service bulletins and even some buy-backs of defective
vehicles. The problem has been made worse by the importance of this market to Ford, as it is currently the leader in
diesel pickup sales.
In order to convince customers to come back to the Blue Oval instead of straying across the street to the land of
Duramax and Cummins, the company is offering a $2,500 “loyalty bonus” to prospective shoppers who own 2003
and 2004 Super Duty pickups equipped with the Power Stroke. The company is backing this with a promotional push by its
dealer network, and it’s likely that most dealers don’t need to be reminded why they should want to retain their buyers
of $40K (and up) trucks. We believe that buyers ultimately must be convinced that the engine’s problems have been
addressed– and that assurance isn’t likely to come from incentives, especially not in a sale environment already
polluted with cash-back offers of all varieties. It’s our guess that word-of-mouth and the level of attention (and
satisfaction) paid to previous problems will determine whether customers come back to Ford, or find their
oil-burning fix elsewhere.
[Source: Automotive News]