Ask Alan Mulally

Is saving the American auto industry, in the basis of the USA "being the country that invented the automobile" as stated by President Obama, or at least of being the country that came up with the auto assembly line, reason enough to do so, per se.

Do you feel the media, in general, has been fair in telling the entire story of the problems within your industry?

How do you envision the role of unions changing in the next 25 years?

What wisdom from the aerospace industry were you able to apply to the automobile industry?

How are you going to convince long-time import buyers to take a look at Ford, let alone purchase one?

For years I've heard and read that Ford was going to go global with their designs and engnieering (the Focus for example) and yet they always strayed from this. Why did it take $4/gal gas to build European Fords in North America?

Hi Sir,

In these uncertain times of Global economic/ financial turmoil, environmental crisis, and the likes; I would imagine that growth and maintaining of a steady flow of profits to be a most challenging task.

Would it make sense, to "plan" for a loss? Not just mere plans to buffer the negative effects; but to actually plan to produce less, and acquire less, etc., than the previous period of time?
As losses are quite popular these days; could businesses enduring a purposeful loss use it as a means by which (for instance) to undo an unprofitable venture and start a fresh - so as to come up strong and perform superbly in the long run?

Are there any advantages to "loss-planning" versus the timeless-text book concept of "managing tough times of loss"? What is the degree of relevance (if any) of this thought in today's world?

Thank you for time,

First year BCom student,

Beatrice A.N

I know the new Fusion will have a hybrid version. Does Ford have any plans for an all electric or hydrogen powered vehicle?

1. Average every house hold have 3-4 cars in USA.
I will strogly recommend to make it as a rule for every hold to have atleast ONE AMERICAN MADE CAR

It's safe to assume the customers lost to the foreign transplants are not coming back, what will be your business model to appeal to the future generations of drivers, and keeping them?

Does Ford have any business interest in GM and Chrysler surviving the economic meltdown, or do you secretly wish for them to crash and burn?

Have you ever smoked pot?

How do you feel about the Big 3 getting huge bailouts, while honest people who can barely feed their families, let alone buy a car, are still struggling to survive while fronting the money for the bailout?

Why is it that cars with small 4-cylinder engines manufactured in Europe, often by subsidiaries of Ford and GM, seem to run so smoothly and economically, and are a real pleasure to drive, while 4-cylinder cars made in the US often seem coarse, noisy and poorly engineered?

Has Ford evaluated an approach that stresses the value in fixing and improving a current car to target consumers with limited income as current State and Federal programs would pay for the repairs?

Which cars do you think were Ford's best products ever? And why?
Can it ever be replied?

Why hasn't Ford spent more time working on the Ranger? It seems people want something fuel efficient that can carry four people and a lot of people need to haul stuff. The Sport-Trac doesn't count because it is not affordable and the gas mileage isn't great.

I would like to know why you insisted that Americans were still interested in SUVs when gas prices hit $4.55 per gallon? It seems as though you folks at the top are completely out of touch from the needs of you customers, unless of course you only cater to those who can afford expensive SUVs getting 10mpg at $4.55 per gal. Well, as you can tell by the number of vehicles you are selling that your customer base of select SUV buyers are vanishing under the waves of the economic melt down. They are now in the same shoes I have been for years, working for the company you left. Those shoes are that of one surviving under duress of socioeconomic conditions. Those of us that still have jobs and have to put up with long commutes because we still can not afford to purchase a house in the expensive areas of where work is, require affordable efficient vehicles. How can you improve on listening to the desires of your customers? If the company is able to hear what people really want and you are able to produce a product that fits those needs, then maybe sales will pick up.

I need an alternative vehicle that is affordable (<$6000) and runs on an alternative energy source. If it is electric, has the ability to quickly swap out batteries, has battery swap service nation wide, and can go freeway speeds. Three or Four wheels, seating 2 to 3. Even a one seat commuter would be fine. Can this be done? Others are able to come up with these kinds of designs and I am perplexed as to why the Big 3 can not, or will not attempt this. Is this because your industry is tied to big oil? Moreover, the hybrids that have been produced so far are way too expensive. Your reluctance to compete with low cost alternative vehicles will only steer more of your customers to foreign made vehicles. I would like to know what your plans are to circumvent this, provide the “real” working class American people with an affordable alternative vehicle, and save your company?

In recent years we have seen foreign manufacturers capture increasing market share of American car sales. Do you attribute this to the perceived difference in craftsmanship between foreign and domestic cars? Are American manufacturers taking measures to make their vehicles as reliable as those made by foreign manufacturers?

There is an overwhelming number of people in the United States that believe US cars have a significantly higher rate for needed repairs and lower dependability then foriegn cars. Is this true? If so, why? and how does Ford compare specifically? AND What steps can be taken to close the gap.

Why doesn't Ford spend more time and money on developing existing models? The F-150 has been successful , in my opinion, due to the constant improvements. We don't see that with other models such as the Ranger, Focus or the minivan models. It seems that Ford drops the vehicles on the lot and doesn't improve (significantly) them until the next all new model several years later. A car can go from almost class leading to just average or worse by the time the all new model comes out, which is class leading or close. I think the yo-yo effect really drives away buyers. By the time a car has been out for a year or two and is more affordable, the car is starting to get stale and no one wants to buy it. It seems like all the money to develop the model is almost wasted due to non development.

I believe Ford will have the product side whipped in less than two years. Any plan for having the dealer network have the same kind of amazing transformation?

Have you ever killed a man just to watch him die?

Will Ford ever make a car as good as a Honda and and give a free warranty as good as Hyundai? That is the only way I would buy a Ford. A lot of my friends and family have owned Fords and to be honest something major goes wrong typically around 100k to 120k if your lucky. Lame! I had a Honda with 190k and sold it to my buddy who put another 50k on her before there was any major trouble. Instead of profit taking why no put more money into R&D and then once you get a good reputation then you can pull off Honda's weak 36,000 mile warranty. Oh that's right your judged quarterly. Sir, I really want to buy American but find it hard when I know I'm going to get a lemon. I have heard things are getting better but still shaky. I would love to see Ford as the most reliable automaker in the world someday. Bring back some pride to America!

Oh yeah make a cool wagon.