How many customers is Ford losing because they're not prepared to wait a year for a Mustang

[csv8]

"Ford is patting itself on the back because it has queues stretching around the block for its new Mustang and the most expensive versions of its new Ranger Wildtrak.

But this newfound popularity is a double-edged sword. How many customers is Ford losing because they're not prepared to wait a year for a Mustang and six months for a ute?

Ford has been telling us breathlessly it is finally listening to the customer. It might also want to look at how it got its forecasts so massively wrong.

Ford thought only 1000 Aussies would take a Mustang in its first year.

At last count, the order bank stretches beyond 6000.

It expected only 4 per cent of Ranger demand to be the $60,000-plus Wildtrak model.

True demand is running at 15-20 per cent.

The lesson for buyers: if you sign for an in-demand car, you should get in writing the likely delivery time.

Then amend the contract or insert a clause — "deal is null and void and deposit is refunded in full if the car is not delivered by (date)" — and get the dealer principal or most senior person on the floor to countersign.

Otherwise you could be left hanging indefinitely.

Here's a case study: my mate, a lifelong, second-generation Ford fan, was prepared to wait six months for a Wildtrak — only to have the delivery date moved back. Ford hadn't ordered the car from the factory until seven weeks after he put down his deposit. So he walked into a Toyota showroom and ordered a HiLux SR5 with the lot. He picks it up this week, six days after signing the deal.

He'll get his deposit back but it'll be a long time before he's in a Ford showroom again.

There could be many other customers like him. The predicament worsens if they're uncertain as to when their car will arrive and whether they're entitled to get their deposit back."
http://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news...-comment-41476

[Franco Cozzo]

Damn right, they made the same mistake when I bought my first new Ford in 2009, WS Fiestas, they imported heaps of base model ones (CL) but no upper model Zetecs that everyone wanted.

Was alright for me because I found a povo spec CL on the yard and snapped it up, drove it out shortly afterwards.

With my Focus, bought it new, had one sitting on the lot, drove it out shortly afterwards.

LIKE HELL I would be waiting 6 months for my new car, its not happening.

I've had a driver side seatbelt pretensioner on order with Ford since November 2015 and they can't even deliver me one of those due to a supplier issue which is still ongoing, let alone a new Ranger or Mustang.

[Tezza]

Perhaps the only thing to consider here (especially in the case of the Mustang) is they are happy to have some form of waiting list. It creates hype and hysteria around the car, and although it may cost them some potential sales, it means no cars are hanging around in paddocks unsold, and in turn, very limited discounting, and in some cases fetching over their RRP.

It's a supply and demand thing. Too many and they need to flog them off cheap, damaging the brand and resale values. Not enough means they keep the buzz alive (hello xy gtho) and people will pay whatever it costs.....

[cycle myth]

pffff....

History repeating.

Same thing happened with with original Mustang - had to triple production to meet demand.

This model is no different - each country under called the expected demand so makes it hard for any of them to get the more that they want.

A good sign in some respects but a double edged sword.

Might make the transition difficult and require a bit of planning...

[b0son]

Originally Posted by Tezza

Perhaps the only thing to consider here (especially in the case of the Mustang) is they are happy to have some form of waiting list. It creates hype and hysteria around the car

A prestige brand might get away with that, but ask the typical punter, and they're just as likely to say 'what? wait a year for a Ford??? as if'. I know, its a Mustang and it is somewhat iconic, but that only goes so far when you have as much choice as we do.

[Tezza]

Originally Posted by b0son

A prestige brand might get away with that, but ask the typical punter, and they're just as likely to say 'what? wait a year for a Ford??? as if'. I know, its a Mustang and it is somewhat iconic, but that only goes so far when you have as much choice as we do.

But what else are you going to buy for $60k that is comparable.....?

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by b0son

A prestige brand might get away with that, but ask the typical punter, and they're just as likely to say 'what? wait a year for a Ford??? as if'. I know, its a Mustang and it is somewhat iconic, but that only goes so far when you have as much choice as we do.

Thing is though, people ARE willing to wait a year for a Ford Mustang.

[Ford17]

Ford have currently got four very good performance cars available in the market; none of which you can readily buy, let alone test drive.

Those being the V8 Mustang, Focus RS and the XR6 & XR8 Sprints.

That's a pretty crazy situation, when you think about it.

[Ben73]

When the PX first came out I heard of someone who took a test drive that there was a 3 month waiting.
When I went to buy mine I was told up to 2 months by the local dealer. Less than a week later I drove to Sydney and bought exactly what I wanted.
I don't get how one dealer can struggle to get one, but another dealer 200kms away has one waiting ready to go with no buyer.

[Franco Cozzo]

They'd be happy to have waiting lists, means you can charge RRP + for your product.

If they're making profit with a massive waiting list I don't think they'd really care to be honest.

[mik]

They Probably do lose x amount of customers via the waiting period , its a nice limo to be sure , but if it was me looking for new wheels , id be hoping to be driving away in the next week or fortnight ..... stretching it maybe a month , but not bloody 6 months , i would be making other arrangements.

[jmack]

ordered a stang on christmas eve last year and havnt heard a thing from ford since.you would think they would send a letter out saying thanks for being patient etc .but its the usual ford customer relations give us your money and we will give you the car when we are ready.hope the wait is worth while and they have addressed a few of the issues by the time we get it.the wait has tested the patience especially with the price of previous gen shelbys and rouschs at the moment

[Bushbasher]

............and there's a red demonstrator on display, sitting in the terminal at the local airport that you can have right now for $53k.



It doesn't have a GT badge so I'm assuming it's the 4 not the V8.

[TUF_302]

If i could afford a new stang id happily wait for it, its a Mustang for crying out loud, from the ones i've seen they are worth the wait!

[M&Ms]

I personally can't (and won't) wait for a new car. I had to wait 4-days for my new XR8 and that was long enough! I don't blame people who look for alternatives.

[XWGT]

I took the article an entirely different way
For years Dowling has written how crap Fords are
Now they are about to leads the sales table in various categories the only thing he can write is how crap Ford are at production
Seriously........

[Pedro]

Yet another Ford denigration story from Dowling. As soon as I saw that the article was written by that ******, I didn't bother go to the link, but I noticed in the OP copy that he states " Here's a case study: my mate..."
That statement shows how this richard cranium waffles on with so much BS. As if anyone of his ilk would have any "mates". Probably thinks his reflection in a mirror (just before it cracks) is his mate.

[2011G6E]

Me. That's who.
Lined up at the dealer to ask about one when I heard they were definitely going to be available "later in the year" (last year), then he said "Better put down a deposit now and you might be able to get one by the middle of next year".
Walked out.
Australians DO have a problem with buying a car they have never seen, sat in, or test driven. At least normal people do. It's not like an FPV where you can drive a "normal" Falcon and get a pretty good idea of the layout of the thing.

This bullcrap of keeping numbers limited to "create a hype" around them is just ridiculous...it's just a goddamn Mustang, not some specialty limited-run exclusive prestige car. They're meant to be sold in volume to keep prices down and get as many people as possible into them. Oh, sorry...that's how the Yanks do it, not us.
There seems to be a philosophy among car enthusiasts here of wanting it to be seen as something special and "limited"...whereas in the USA the Mustang is definitely not anything all that special until you get up in the range a fair way...they're "just a car".

I have spoken to plenty of people in my line of work who have the cash to stump up for a Mustang, but the wait time makes them look elsewhere.


Guess the snobbish guys who want the numbers being brought in kept deliberately low and supply choked off have had their way...anything so they can cruise smugly in their Mustang and aren't faced with the abject horror of seeing Mustangs commonly driving around everywhere and being used just as...shock!...an everyday car!!!!

[Sabantien]

If you really want a Mustang, what else are you going to buy?

A Challenger? Camaro? Corvette? Not an option.
I suppose if you want a sports car you'd buy... what? Spend up for a euro, or a turbo hot hatch.

For those people who REALLY want a Mustang, they have the sale already.

If i'm going to buy a new car tomorrow, sure, i'd love to buy a Mustang so it's not an option, so I guess they lose that sale. But while I'm at the Ford lot do I hop into an FGX or a Titanium Mondeo and decide to buy that?

[madmatty]

Originally Posted by Sabantien

If you really want a Mustang, what else are you going to buy?

A Challenger? Camaro? Corvette? Not an option.
I suppose if you want a sports car you'd buy... what? Spend up for a euro, or a turbo hot hatch.

For those people who REALLY want a Mustang, they have the sale already.

If i'm going to buy a new car tomorrow, sure, i'd love to buy a Mustang so it's not an option, so I guess they lose that sale. But while I'm at the Ford lot do I hop into an FGX or a Titanium Mondeo and decide to buy that?

will you wait 6 months for a mondeo i wonder?

[Sabantien]

Originally Posted by madmatty

will you wait 6 months for a mondeo i wonder?

Probably not, I'm impatient. But then I've seen plenty of them in the car yards, so I'm not convinced i'd have to wait.

[R12RT]

Originally Posted by Sabantien

Probably not, I'm impatient. But then I've seen plenty of them in the car yards, so I'm not convinced i'd have to wait.

That would depend how fussy you are.

I've been waiting seven months for a red Titanium diesel hatch...

None in stock in WA.

There is only about 12 diesel titanium hatches Australia wide.

[GO FURTHER]

Personally I think a short term solution to the huge backlog of Australian Mustang orders and 12 month plus waiting lists would be the following;

Instead of closing down the Australian Broadmeadows factory in October this year, keep it open, for at least another couple of years... Import the left hand drive USA Mustangs and use the Broadmeadows factory (or part of it with a scaled back production crew), to convert them to right hand drive for both the Australian and New Zealand markets.

Think about it this way....

There is no shortage or waiting lists for a left hand drive Mustang in the US.
The USA mustang GT sells for around US$35,000 or AUD$48,000.
Ford Australia could probably land (at cost) the Mustang GT in left hand drive for around AUD$30,000.
Spend $10K tops using Australian labour converting them by hand (not production line) and still have dealers sell them for $65K. The right hand drive Components and dash would also be imported by container lots.

While Ford Australia's profit by doing this would not be as great as simply importing the right hand drive cars, it would provide jobs for our car workers, and clear the back log, till the USA factory can catch up.

I'm also sure Ford could secure some government funding for the project, if at least to keep car workers employed a little longer.

[neptune blue]

Originally Posted by BAXRSIX

Personally I think a short term solution to the huge backlog of Australian Mustang orders and 12 month plus waiting lists would be the following;

Instead of closing down the Australian Broadmeadows factory in October this year, keep it open, for at least another couple of years... Import the left hand drive USA Mustangs and use the Broadmeadows factory (or part of it with a scaled back production crew), to convert them to right hand drive for both the Australian and New Zealand markets.

Think about it this way....

There is no shortage or waiting lists for a left hand drive Mustang in the US.
The USA mustang GT sells for around US$35,000 or AUD$48,000.
Ford Australia could probably land (at cost) the Mustang GT in left hand drive for around AUD$30,000.
Spend $10K tops using Australian labour converting them by hand (not production line) and still have dealers sell them for $65K. The right hand drive Components and dash would also be imported by container lots.

While Ford Australia's profit by doing this would not be as great as simply importing the right hand drive cars, it would provide jobs for our car workers, and clear the back log, till the USA factory can catch up.

I'm also sure Ford could secure some government funding for the project, if at least to keep car workers employed a little longer.

I don't agree with your figures. The cost to land would be much higher and the cost to convert and for it to be compliant would be huge . How big is the waiting list. It would have to be thousands waiting for a business case to remotely stack up

[FoxtrotGolfXray 5.0]

Maybe I'm just a "glass half full" rather than a "glass half empty" kind of person, but I prefer to think about the Mustang situation as "How many customers is Ford gaining because they are prepared to sell factory made right hand drive Mustangs in Australia" as opposed to the headline on this article.

[nstg8a]

Originally Posted by BAXRSIX

Spend $10K tops using Australian labour converting them by hand (not production line) and still have dealers sell them for $65K. The right hand drive Components and dash would also be imported by container lots.

It costs $30000-40000 to convert a modern car to right hand drive... No way is there any way ford could do it for 10k.

[SYZ]

Originally Posted by nstg8a

It costs $30000-40000 to convert a modern car to right hand drive... No way is there any way ford could do it for 10k.

Agreed. The RHD conversion costs would be totally out of proportion because of the relatively small numbers of Australian ADR-compliant vehicles involved. Why would US Ford bother when they've got potential Aussie buyers queuing up already. And who'd buy a "butchered" version anyway?

[Fordman1]

Originally Posted by BAXRSIX

Personally I think a short term solution to the huge backlog of Australian Mustang orders and 12 month plus waiting lists would be the following;

Instead of closing down the Australian Broadmeadows factory in October this year, keep it open, for at least another couple of years... Import the left hand drive USA Mustangs and use the Broadmeadows factory (or part of it with a scaled back production crew), to convert them to right hand drive for both the Australian and New Zealand markets.

Think about it this way....

There is no shortage or waiting lists for a left hand drive Mustang in the US.
The USA mustang GT sells for around US$35,000 or AUD$48,000.
Ford Australia could probably land (at cost) the Mustang GT in left hand drive for around AUD$30,000.
Spend $10K tops using Australian labour converting them by hand (not production line) and still have dealers sell them for $65K. The right hand drive Components and dash would also be imported by container lots.

While Ford Australia's profit by doing this would not be as great as simply importing the right hand drive cars, it would provide jobs for our car workers, and clear the back log, till the USA factory can catch up.

I'm also sure Ford could secure some government funding for the project, if at least to keep car workers employed a little longer.

PP GT sells for about US $ 40,000

Add our GST 10%

Add transport rego etc

That makes it about US $45,000 or A$ 63,000

We get a pretty good deal.

The current pent up demand will be resolved in a couple or years.

The idea of conversion won't work. ADR's testing etc will cost millions as will keeping the Assembly plant open with its associated overheads.

That $63,000 Mustang would then be $95,000 +

[DFB FGXR6]

/\ Just like the Tickford Mustangs from 2001

[Fordman1]

Originally Posted by DFB FGXR6

/\ Just like the Tickford Mustangs from 2001

And the quality would be deplorable.

They'd be cutting holes in the firewall and doing all sorts of disposal of parts (eg steering columns, removing engines, etc etc).

What a nightmare !!!

Not only that it'd take 3 years to engineer a solution if they started full bore with funding now !