I hope gas keeps going up, because that is the only thing that will compel most Americans to even think about conservation and petrol alternatives, and for car companies to build the (efficient) cars we need, not the ones our teenage emotions favor. Besides, all of these retro designs have terrible outward visibility.
12
I have a '17 GT350 and it is a pleasure to drive. Why would anyone need 526 horsepower? Drive one and see.
7
Not much love in these comments for the efforts from the 1980s efforts. Ford can choose to build a hit, or choose to build a dud.
1
This is a huge gamble for Ford. They are givng up their name recognition in the sedan market, which their non-domestic competitors have all but taken over.
By doing so, many consumers, who are not loyal to any one brand, will be introduced to different nameplates via the rental companies while they're travelling. If they like the sedan version of a nameplate new to them, they may very well look into what that company offers in SUVs and, perhaps worse for Ford, what type of pickup truck that company offers.
It looks like Ford really wants just two divisions: Mustang and F-Series trucks.
It could blow up in their face down the road
6
Ford is making the biggest mistake in its storied history. Ford not making cars? That's like Heinz not making ketchup, Kellogg's not making Corn Flakes, Trump not filing lawsuits and declaring bankruptcies. Well, you get the picture. It's inconceivable ( and yes, I do know the meaning of that word).
Their claims about not making money sounds like so many others who are actually making piles of money hand over fist but it's still not enough for their profit margins. They want to "maximize" profits, and they will cut off their nose to spite their face if it means they will make more money.
After being a Ford and GM customer for more than a half century, cars all, I finally realize what President Reagan said about leaving the Democratic Party. I now feel the same about Ford; I didn't leave them, they left me.
DD
Manhattan
16
I think Ford is doing the wrong thing. They are dropping the "environmentally responsible" models for the "manly fun" models. This is when the world is seeing 410 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere (meaning we are toast if we do not change). We don't need more trucks and SUVs, we need people driving cars that are part of the solution.
17
A Mustang was featured in 1966’s A Man And A Woman, the Academy Award winning best foreign language film in 1967. Newly married, it inspired me in February 1968 to purchase a new 1968 Mustang and drive it to the Air Force Base in Plattsburgh NY, where I was then stationed, driving the beautiful open road, empty at that time of year, going north past the Adirondacks on newly completed I-87. A good car.
8
I was lucky. I had one of the original mustangs. Dark blue, white vinyl top and a white interior. I sure would like to have it back.
2
The culmination of decades of ignoring the competition. The company that created the car industry as we know it has surrendered the field of battle.
7
Hmmm. When I think ‘Mustang’, I don’t think ‘freedom’, rather ‘uncomfortable, over-rated, has-guzzler.’
3
In some cities right now gas is $4 per gal. American car companies will once again be whipsawed when the public seeks more economical transportation.
11
My family has always had 1966-1969 model Mustangs around, including a bunch of convertibles and one limited edition 1969 Mach 4. My first boyfriend's father had a custom 1965 bought in 1964. I have owned 4 early Mustangs and still have one in a barn. Buying a new one is emotionally appealing, but alas, front end safety features and some idea of a taller trunk, profile today's cars as Mavericks, not Mustangs.
4
this may be an accounting problem. how can a single vehicle account for 150% if profits.
did you mean margins?
4
This is my understanding, I could be wrong.
Say Model A earned $15, Model B lost $2, and Model C lost $3. The total earnings would be $10, Model A would have made 150% of the earnings.
Since less-successful products lost money, the F150 could make more than 100% of the earnings.
11
My '67 Dark blue Mustang...Sold it to buy an engagement ring. Wish I still had the car... Think about bringing back the iconic designs?
5
In 1974 I turned 16 and paid $300 of hard earned lawn cutting money to a neighbor for a red 1964 1/2 Mustang that had red leather seats and a 260 V8. The 289 wasn't shipping yet so the 260 was borrowed from the Ford Falcon for the earliest "world's fair" models. The first owner had been a New Canaan Ford dealer. I welded a trailer hitch to it and pulled my lawn equipment until I earned enough for a real pickup truck. And we raced on the new route 7 in Norwalk. At 110 mph with the windows down the roof partially imploded and bumped me in the head. After a couple years hard service I sold it for $100 on bargain news. That car was said to have been 3rd off the manufacturing line. Probably no longer exists but I wonder what that car would be worth today.
7
Folks who got mad at Ford because they're dropping models that don't sell aren't getting the point. You and the new majority of car buyers prefer SUV's and trucks to garden variety passenger cars. Ford is making the cars that most of you want in todays market . The same with Toyota. Last Fall, it was announced that the RAV4(small SUV) was outselling the Camry. Believe me, if enough of you were willing to buy passenger cars, Ford wouldn't have announced the gradual dropping of them. Those of you who live in the sunbelt and don't need an all-wheel-drive SUV, and those of you who work in a cubicle or office setting who nonetheless bought pickup trucks which will very rarely find fully-filled load beds are the people who Ford and others take their manufacturing cues from. Think about that the next time you want to chastise Ford and other manufacturers for not building cars that you largely aren't buying these days.
28
The size and strength of a particular sector of the market is part of the problem but there are additional things at play. Fuel economy standards are in flux. Where once they were steadily increasing and headed into more difficult science to accomplish they are now up for grabs with the current administrations recent actions in this area. Then, there is the issue of profit per vehicle. Buyers are apparently quite willing to pay a premium for what appears to be more content simply based on size.
2
My beloved red Mustang convertible is 20 yrs old, bought from two Ford dealers in Vermont who looked like benevolent grandpas, but who could teach any city slicker about effective merchandising: they had parked that little ruby roadster out front where everyone could see it. There I was, in the midst of a midlife career crisis, and my husband was very happy to see me behind the wheel of that car instead of veering toward another midlife cliche. Every single summer since then, every time we drive by that Ford dealer, there is yet another adorable Mustang (whatever the color) waiting for yet another middle-aged dreamer to take it for the proverbial spin. My New Jersey car is a sensible Nissan, which is also better in the wilds of Vermont winters but, come summer, I'm back in the Mustang, ageless and free, top down, big hat in tow, waving and honking hellos back at my friendly Vermont neighbors who are happy to see I'm back in town.
9
It's a short-sighted strategic to bet an auto company almost entirely trucks and SUV. (Let's be honest, keeping Mustang alive is more nostalgia.) This is on top of the unwillingness to improve on fuel economy and gas mileage. There will come a time when gas price soars again (and it will), and Americans will sour on trucks and SUV, then it'll be too late for Ford to be sorry to have let all its chips go.
16
What do you mean "when gas prices soar again"? It is already $4/gal in some places.
3
It’s already $4 for regular here in LA.
2
Sure, dump cars right when gas is on track to hit $4+ a gallon.
8
I loved the original Mustang, but I was a teenager. Now they make no sense to me. I prefer a 4 door car with enough space to carry cargo and people. The better the gas mileage, the more appealing it becomes.
6
When I recently bought my Mustang my friend Ken drove me to the dealership to pick it up. He looked at the Mustang being prepped and then glanced at the other cars in the place and remarked about the Mustang, "it sure doesn't look like anything else" .
4
We currently own a 2006 Mustang GT that is my wife's daily driver, a Legend Lime convertible with a canvas colored top. I had never been a big Ford fan but she had always wanted one, so we ordered it with all of the then available options. It is a purchase I have never regretted, since it has been and continues to be reliable, reasonably economical (for a V-8), and strikingly beautiful in that somewhat rare color scheme. We get random offers for it all of the time, but we have no inclination to sell. We are both in our sixties and I am handicapped, but I still find it comfortable and fun to drive, especially on a clear, cool night with the top open to the stars.
5
I bought my first Mustang in July of 1966; a four-speed GT Nightmist Blue coupe with fog lamps, disc brakes, twin funnel exhausts, and gleaming 'wire wheel' hubcaps. $2575. I drove it for years; decades; forever. It went through two 'restorations'. As I got busy becoming a dad, raising three sons, and building a home, dependability became important, and I drove the car less and less. Then, one fine day in May of 2008, my wife and I walked into a local Ford dealership for the sole purpose of picking up her old Expedition from a service call. As we passed through the showroom I heard her say to herself, "That's a nice looking car!" I turned, and there sat a gleaming 2008 Bullitt. My wife had never commented on a car before. Ever. I knew the time had come. I sold the '66 to another Vermonter up near Montpelier. He got the car and every piece if paper generated by owning it for 42 years. He was, and still is, delighted. So are my wife and I. Cupholders, Bose stereo, plush leather seats, and dependability are all welcome when we head out on our frequent road-trips. And the truth is, I have never questioned the choice I made...Now we're 10 years into this car; not sure I'll make it to 42...but I'll have fun trying!
12
I'm on my third Mustang, second as a convertible. There's just something of a mystique about them that's appealing. It might be that my father bought a 3-speed, slant six 1965 in about February of 1965 and gifted it to me years later. I've owned other cars but I've never liked another car's style more.
8
I grew up on a 1960's Mustang. Of course, at that time, gas was about 30 cents a gallon. Just as I wish I could go back to my youth and the joy of driving the original Mustang, I couldn't afford one at todays prices, and as someone in their sixties, realize the days of youth are gone, and I can't afford such an expensive toy. It was part of my youth, and a wonderful, reasonably priced joy for that part of my life. I will always remember those days, and that Mustang with affection.
9
Some of my best childhood memories revolve around cars. My father bought a used '67 GTO in 1980. After bugging him for a week, he let me turn the key and rev the engine. So, on a Saturday, I sat in that drivers seat, turned that key, and that engine fired. The seat shook, the smell of exhaust - it was so loud. Heck, I was six at the time but can still feel it today. He'd love this article. I miss you Dad.
12
Although the article makes a great read about the emotional attachment that a society can form to "things", I am floored by Ford's complete surrender of the sedan market... really? What's the strategy when gas prices spike to $5 / gallon again? What worries me is that once a company stops producing things, it's not that easy to regain that expertise... once they stop selling sedans, designers, engineers, managers will leave. And once that expertise is gone, you can't rehire in a snap. I am seriously afraid that in 5 years, when gas prices go up again, for whatever reason, Ford will simply go out of business.
8
I got to see, up close thanks to my pit pass, the very first Mustang, a hand-buit prototype now known as the Mustang I (see Wikipedia) at the Laguna Seca race track in California. It was unveiled in 1962 and sent on a national tour of racing and other automotive events. It was an amazing little lightweight two-seater: aluminum body, retractable headlights, V-4 mid-engine, and very low. Two years later, when the first production Mustang debuted, I found it a huge disappointment. It was, as this article points out, nothing but a Ford Falcon (one of the most boring cars ever made) with fancy sheet metal. I've never found much to admire in any Mustang ever since. To me, the Mustang was all that was wrong with American cars ... envisioned by its creators as something special, turned into schlock by the mass-production mindset of Detroit executives. Yeah, it became a nice muscle car. But that was when American muscle cars were a dime a dozen. Mustangs caused quite a stir when they came out. But not because they were so good ... mostly because most other American cars were so bad.
1
Well, that settles that, then. My last Ford, a Taurus wagon that lasted about 120,000 miles will remain my last Ford.
3
I had a 1968 red Mustang convertible I bought new when I graduated from law school. A friend told me I'd only have one chance in life to have a convertible and this was it. I couldn't afford an automatic transmission so I "opted" for a stick shift. And I couldn't afford air conditioning so I went without (crossed Nebraska and Kansas in August at 125 degrees). It was the most fun car I've ever owned even though I'm told it was nothing more than a Ford Falcon with a new body and V8 engine. But it was fun with the top down and the wind rushing through the hair I then had. When I got ride of it 10 years later - my wife objected to the heater dripping on her legs and the sight of the road rushing by the hole in the passenger floor - I sold it to a young mother after telling her what was wrong with it and advising against it. But she said when she left her house she said her 10 year old son told her "please mom, not another old Beatle."
10
The '64 Mustang was the last time there was a consensus in USA.
7
I wonder if today there is a red/blue split on Mustangs. Do Democrats tend to avoid them or buy them? What is the cultural factor that caused whatever consensus there was in '64? Was there so much consensus considering that was the year Goldwater ran and Reagan prepared? What is the role of sexuality as opposed to politics in car culture?
I still want a Bullitt Mustang, the old one.
2
…Mustangs Rule! These cars are part of my very being. Growing up in the Detroit suburbs in the 60’s and 70’s, I got my share of Mustangs. My dad was a design engineer at Ford and every six months or so, he’d drive home a new Mustang. (One year, in 1971, he drove home a Pantera and nobody was allowed to get near it. That’s another story.) Anyway, in High School, my dad started collecting Shelby Mustangs. We had a ’69 GT 500 (Forest Green with Black interior), a ’70 GT-350 convertible (Grabber Blue with a White interior), and a ’70 GT 500 (Turquoise Blue or Aquamarine Blue (with a Gold stripe) with Black interior.
Two more points: 1) to me, it’s always been the Mustang vs. Camaro. Mustang drivers were always a bit classier and had the better girl. Camaro owners were the shop class drop-outs and total grease monkeys. The Corvette never entered into the picture because creepy, older men drove those cars; and 2) the fastest I’ve ever driven a car was 137 mph in that ’69 GT 500. Good thing that traffic light stayed green.
Long Live the Ford Mustang.
Oh, incidentally, fact check me on this one, but I do believe the Mustang got its name not from the four-legged creature, but rather, from the highly successful P-51 fighter bomber used in World War II. I could be wrong.
10
The simple-minded Ford Falcon -- a car with only three moving parts that either died right away or ran forever -- was the father of the Mustang. Ford put a new skin on the Falcon chassis. Eventually, the stylish design caught on and Ford punched up the power train and other options.
But I well remember my first Falcon. I bought it used: three on the tree, no radio, no lighter and no trouble for 100,000 miles in the desert southwest.
5
I agree. I punched out parts for the first Mustang in '64 at the Rouge plant and was crazy about the design, as were my friends; but the Falcon was I think as good a car or better and with less wasted metal.
1
Ugh, these cars are all over my neighborhood--many have been modified to have extremely loud engines, oh, and for whatever reason, blacked out windows.
Someone is renting them out to tourists as well, parked on the wrong side of the street, pointed in the wrong direction, in front of red curbs with fire hydrants.
I love seeing them towed away . . .
3
You must live in a great neighborhood, surrounded by all those Mustangs.
7
First car - 1965 Fastback - bought it from a Sailor about
to leave on a 6 month tour - $ 400.
Part owner of a 1967 Shelby 500 Fastback.
Don't forsake the "Stang ! "
6
Mustang is one of the few American cars that sells worldwide. About a quarter of sales are outside the US. Europeans, Middle Easterners and Asians like Mustangs.
1
Glad they are keeping a great auto. However, no more passenger cars? The next time they get in financial trouble-let them go under.
6
The next time they get in financial trouble-let them go under. They weren't bailed out last time.
7
Whenever I see the word "freedom" associated with an automobile or any other fossil fuel vehicle, I think -who's freedom? Not mine or yours. The "freedom" to drive a truck that gets 14 mph, or a car that has extra engine noise built in by the car manufacturers to make the driver feel more powerful is no one's freedom but the drivers. The rest of us suffer the consequences.
6
The 1965 Mustang is about as perfect as a car could look from the outside.
Red leather bucket seats and a chrome dashboard on the inside.
9
Agreed, a very nice interior, particularly if you chose red or saddle, none stitched in leather, other than those built for a handful of top Ford execs like Mr Iacocca. Also, a little chrome surrounding the gauges, but otherwise a painted instrument panel with padding on the top.
2
When I was 15 a representative from Ford was in front of the apartment we lived in with a Mustang before it was on sale to the public. I said. "Wow, what is it?" and he's said a Mustang and held out keys for me to take it for a ride. He did not ask if I had a drivers license and I did not tell him I did not have one and took I it for a 20 minute ride trying to find anyone I knew. I never found anyone to show off the car to but bought four of them over many years which I always thought was a good way to sell cars. Let under age teenagers drive them.
21
Bad move. Although Ford sells lots of vehicles, the concept of stopping to sell regular cars is a bad move. I look at Toyota,Subaru,Nissan, Audi, BMW, and Porsche and what do I see -QUALITY!
I cannot understand why American manufacturers simply cannot buy foreign cars, dismantle them, and learn to make quality cars that are in high demand. I can't tell you how many times I've been at a red light and counted cars. The ratio (up here in Canada) was sometimes 10:1 foreign cars to American cars.
Americans and Canadians are willing to spend big bucks for luxurious cars, and yet Ford is going backwards, not forwards!
3
"I cannot understand why American manufacturers simply cannot buy foreign cars, dismantle them, and learn to make quality cars that are in high demand. "
Building a vehicle, including design, supply chain, financing, quality control, labor relations and marketing are all more than a matter of reversing a vehicle tear-down.
1
The latest model Mustang is recognised by global motor vehicle testing agencies as having a comparatively poor safety rating:
https://www.euroncap.com/en/results/ford/mustang/26063
http://www.ancap.com.au/safety-ratings/ford/mustang/c7fccc
Safety problems.
Lousy fuel economy.
Poor handling.
Built for yesteryear.
An American icon indeed.
8
What is moderately profitable ?
The 1965 model remains my favorite.
MB
5
How about Ford and other US car makers try producing quality machines that don't break down after 100k miles?
2
I owned several trucks (all GM products) that lasted well over 100K miles, one '78 Chevy reaching 270,000 before I sold it. Regular maintenance solves a lot of durability problems.
2
My Fords have regularly run well. I had a T-Bird that ran great at 320,000 miles and only got retired as a result of damage incurred during Hurricane Sandy.
2
The Mustang also has mythical status in Europe. Check out the following clip of the Claude Lelouch movie, A Man and a Woman, where the Mustang convertible symbolizes luxury, freedom and adventure. When I arrived in a Canadian university in 1970 I had a snobbish French colleague who rejected most things American - but he bought a Mustang. http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/493634/Man-And-A-Woman-A-Movie-Clip-I...
2
It would have been nice if the author has asked Mr. Farley what in tarnation he means by "commodity silhouettes", since no one in the history of the English language has ever spoken or written that phrase before.
13
"What in tarnation?" Thanks for asking that important question. I read those words myself, wondering how "commodity" and "silhouettes" could possibly go together in one coherent statement. I'm glad I am not the only puzzeded soul in the world. Ps, I laughed out loud at your comment - thanks for the moment of levity
2
Hah. A bit of industry jargon, for sure. Designers often refer to the "silhouette" when we're talking about the overall shape of something. Automotive designers will talk about silhouettes all day, which for a car refers to the side view. By "commodity silhouette" he simply means a type of car and a look that is common and interchangeable with many other cars on the market.
2
"since no one in the history of the English language has ever spoken or written that phrase before."
In Kansas. But guess what? ...
I had a Firebird and a Trans Am both with T tops for a combined 22 years. I loved them. One thing I really liked in both were the T-tops that allowed open air driving and still being able to see out with the tops in place. Convertibles and sunroofs aren't the same. Sunroofs don't open the side and convertibles can't be seen through with the top up.
And then I rented a new Mustang GT convertible in Las Vegas and drove it hundreds of miles to Zion National Park as well as Valley of Fire, and Red Rocks. I found it to have a pretty comfortable ride and its road manners impeccable (up to speeds not mentioned here) where people were travelling 90 - 100 MPH along the highway. I liked it enough I seriously considered getting one. And almost did. But for me the seats weren't comfortable but not enough I couldn't live with it. No, it was the top. If it had T-tops I would have one. In the end I had to go with a convertible with a glass roof I could see through with the top up.
But really, I did like that Mustang a lot and that red car is featured in a lot of pictures I took!
10
Speaking of tops......my favorite car ever was a red Pontiac Fiero. It had a hard-shell top that easily lifted out and stowed neatly in a slot in the back. I was continually in awe of how everything about that car was so cleverly tongue+groove, ergonomic, like a space capsule. Seemed to be modeled on the Porsche 914, but the Fiero was notorious for some......uhm....."flammability" issues. Well, mine never burst into flames, and I loved that car dearly. When it was finally beyond repair and I limped it to a dealer for a trade-in on a Miata, a radio in the mechanics' bay was playing "You Lost That Loving Feeling." I literally wept.
(The Miata turned out to be a pretty cool car too, but by comparison, the interior was like sitting in a tin can.)
3
Too bad they’re getting rid of the Focus - ST and RS ... they actually have some high level engineering ... I have a Subaru STI ... Volkswagon GTI, Golf R, Civic R, etc, all much more refined cars ... for 15 years I had BMW’s M3 (E36) then 540i (E39) with Dinan parts, HORRIBLE reliability and costs ... commenters correct about irrationality of attraction to pickups, SAVs, SUVs ...
1
My son just bought a 2015 Mustang Eco-Boost with many options (for $18k) ... (me loan co-signer) .... very nice car ...
4
Too bad they couldn't have done the same with the Thunderbird.
9
The first car I ever owned was a '68 Fastback. By the time I acquired it ('81), it'd lived a hard life. It was pretty rough inside and out, but it was all mine and I loved it dearly. I've long since outgrown my teenaged muscle car lust, but I still get a smile everytime I see a Mustang on the road. Glad Ford decided to keep it in the lineup!
4
I still think the 1955 T-Bird is Ford's true classic. But then, beginning in 1958, testosterone muscled out its beautiful simplicity, and we lost a true American roadster forever.
7
Well, I respectfully disagree. The 1961-63 T-Birds are my favorites.
3
Dear Ford,
Make a fully electric Mustang, and I'll purchase one TOMORROW.
3
Yes electric Mustang but also add stereo hifi sound vroom-vroom of a real engine. It will be my dream sport car.
3
1965 Barracuda. Now and Forever.
2
MOPAR or no car, eh?
2
I'm the happy owner of a 2011 Mustang GT that I've put just 17,000 miles on since buying new in 2010. I'll never use all 405 horsepower or take it up to the 150 MPH it's capable of, but it's still incredibly fun to drive and so great to look at. The 6-speed manual makes shifting an absolute pleasure and I love hearing the V8 roar. Yes, it seldom achieves better than 15 MPG in the city and it drives poorly on snow, but I bought it for the looks and feel, not practicality. I plan to keep it many more years, and someday, who knows, maybe it'll be a collector's item.
6
Right, if the car isn’t a daily driver what does the price of gas or the mileage rating matter?
I wonder if the ditching of cars is related to recent Trump deregulation efforts because they can do it now where before they couldn't with mileage requirements? My understanding is that car companies have had to use smaller and more economical cars to offset the mileage of the larger cars to meet the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) regulations. Hence Ford and GM selling subcompacts and Mercedes and BMW selling small cars (and somehow not completely diluting their names as a result). If the CAFE regulations continued as planned could they have ditched the cars?
It should be noted that between engineering efficiencies and other means old gas hogs are so hoggy anymore so maybe the don't need the small cars like they once did.
2
That was supposed to be are NOT so hoggy anymore. I am surprised by the mileage of new cars that you would assume to be gad hogs. I get surprisingly good mileage in a car with more power than my old car. And its still a V8.
2
Of course Ford is keeping the Mustang. It's an icon. Too bad the profit margins on my Hermosillo-made Fusion don't warrant continued production. I got it in 2015 for $23.5K and have been completely satisfied since. Maybe I'll buy their final year Fusion and drive it until I die (hopefully in forty or fifty years). I'll never buy a pickup. They make no sense unless you live on a farm or ranch and need the cargo capacity and off-road capability. I see tons of advert brainwashed fools here in Texas driving the biggest, loudest, priciest pickups available with nary a speck of dust on them. Maybe I'll buy some "F" stock as their options don't offer enough premium. It will be nice to make some money off all the pickup driving idiots.
9
I am glad that they're coming out with a hybrid Mustang.
It is sick that they're moving mostly to SUVs instead of actual cars, which are better for the environment.
8
A great article which brings back great memories of my Dad's Mustangs from the mid-sixties and early 70's. I learnt how to drive on one of my Dad's Mustangs. Ford keeping the Mustang is part of making America Great again. For hundreds of millions of Americans, the Mustang is part of the human genome and our DNA and genes.
3
“... accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes, ...”
Um, what?
5
Because they lose money on the sedans.
1
This means they are getting rid of fuel-efficient cars (most of them hybrids in what Ford once touted as visionary) in favor of gas-guzzling SUVs and trucks. It shouldn't be celebrated. Shame on the American consumer, shame on Ford.
35
My friend Curtis just brought a mustang. I have known Curtis since we were 6 years old. We are both in out 60s. He always wanted one and finally brought one. One of the cars that gave mustang a run for the money was the Oldsmobile 442, gone but not forgotten! Thank you Ford!
2
GM should have kept Pontiac and Olds and jettisoned Buick when they had the chance.
2
Freedom from what? Surely not increasing gas prices. I'll stick with my Toyota Prius.
2
The Mustang remains as the ultimate muscle car.
3
At least the Mustang is a real car with distinctive looks, unlike those stupid, needless, gas-guzzling, look-alike little trucks, (SUV's), that seem all the rage.
I have a late model Mustang. It goes as fast as I need it to go. It stops as fast as I need it to stop. And it handles so well it feels like it's glued to the road.
And let us also note that it's rear-wheel drive, the way god intended cars to be. All with decent gas mileage. Camaros and Challengers are nice too.
When I want to tote passengers and save some gas money I use my economy car, a Lincoln MKZ hybrid, which gets over 40 miles per gallon. Now I read that for 2020 Ford will be putting out a hybrid Mustang. I can't wait!
That said, I think that Ford should continue making the Fusion. It looks really good and drives well. Ford still sells between 200,000 and 300,000 Fusions. Isn't that enough to make a car-line profitable?
53
I have my original owner 1969 Mustang,
I drove a Fusion when I rented a car. It is very uncomfortable. Something about the way the inside is configured makes it seem like it's headed 20 degrees off straight ahead.
1
Hear! Hear! I hate those cross-overs or whatever they're called. Someday people will come to their senses.
2
They will come to their senses when gas gets to $4 a gallon or more, which is what it already is in California.
1
Can't imagine people writing like this about the Ford Taurus.
4
. . . or the Ford Topaz.
Great observation wbj!!!
4
I actually have nostalgia for the original Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable. I was a teen when they came out in 1986 and the designs just blew me away. I still think they're two of the most gutsy cars ever introduced by a major car company.
1
No mistaking these pages for Motor Trend or even Jalopnik.
1
My wife and I drove home on our wedding night in 1977 in our 1967 Mustang convertible - its was a very rainy night in a very leaky convertible but I was never happier....the marriage was also OK.
27
If my gal pals knew I was laughing out loud at your comment Randy, I would be shunned. But it's just so dang funny.
7
Thank goodness climate change isn't real.
Oh, wait....
6
I am 55. My father bought a metallic powder blue 1965 Mustang Fastback.
My father could not kill that car despite at least two accidents including one in which we spun 360 degrees by Hempstead Lake State Park on the Southern State Parkway circa 1968. My mother my a picture of me, blonde hair and all, asleep in the back of that car. It was such a shame that my father eventually sold it getting a golden 1970 Camaro.
I am glad that Ford has not killed the Mustang because, among other reasons, creator Lee Iococca, at 93, is still very much alive.
Overall though, I believe that Ford is making a mistake getting rid of cars altogether. They will be ill-prepared when gas prices rise again which they eventually (and permanently) will.
21
A friend of mine had to part with his restored '67 fastback a few years back; but before selling it to a new owner, we filmed the car roaring through the rural highways of the Ouachita Mountains: https://vimeo.com/160393130
I guess they have to follow the profits to stay in business. It is a bit worrisome to me, though, because I don't think these low gasoline prices are going to last forever. Gas prices in the west are already running $3.25 to over $4.00, up substantially from the $2.50 range we had last year. Full size trucks are going to be a bit less desirable when gas hits $5.00 per gallon again, which it is sure to do. It seems that in real life president Trump is much more of a friend to Big Oil than he is to American manufacturing.
12
The bigger vehicles already get gas mileage that would have been impossible not that long ago and limited cylinder use, stop and start technology and turbo fours will be game changers.
A friend of mine bought a Mustang in 1960s and I was hoping that someday I will be able to afford to own a Mustang but I never fulfilled my dream. In 1968 I was able to purchase a 2-door sporty Cougar, dark green color. It was a great car and I drove that car from DC to Toronto to see the World Fair. I also drove my Cougar to Quebec and coming back to Bar Harbor, Maine. The most beautiful ocean resort in my memory. We ate lobsters at roadside lobster pounds. That was 50 years ago and I still remember this most beautiful vacation. I plan to drive to Maine this summer with my good old Hummer and see the beautiful Maine for the last time in my life. That was the good old America and now we have a divided America. I wonder what America will look like 50 years from now.
1
As a Canadian who attended the first World's Fair ever - to my knowledge - held in Canada, just a small correction. It was held in 1967 in Montreal, Quebec, and I took time off work and traveled cross country from Alberta by train to attend it. Vancouver held the World's Fair in 1986, and as far as I know, those are the only two times Canada had the privilege of hosting the world at this annual event. The US pavilion by Buckminster Fuller was amazing!
My eldest son was into Mustangs when he was young, and my husband and I bought it from him and kept it for a year or so, so I have a tenuous connection to them as well! When we sold it, it was the easiest vehicle ever to sell.
In 50 years, thanks to Hummer and SUV drivers in particular, much of the coast will be under water. You should make your next car an Amphicar.
2
When the investors call the shots, the company goes under.
6
Nothing more satisfying than singing "Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day (...)" when you drive a Mustang in any part of America the Beautiful. We had that wonderful experience a gorgeous Sunday at about 10 AM, just a few years ago,when we were going to a wedding ceremony. Good!
2
If Ford came out with a Mustang with the original silhouette, I’d be sorely tempted to stand in line for one. I remember seeing it at the World’s Fair — in those pre-homogenized days when you could tell cars apart — and it was instant attraction. The Mustang managed to be cool and cute at the same time, a tough act. I wonder, though, whether the iconic status will fade along with aging memories of first girlfriends and The Zombies. Ah well, time of the season.
12
The notion promoted here that consumers "don't want" passenger cars is just self-serving industry hype. Cars aren't just bought, they're sold -- and the industry devotes all its marketing muscle to push them into low-tech, high-profit pickups and SUVs. Think marketing can't sell cars? Don't tell your advertising department...
12
Perhaps it is just a work around passenger vehicle fuel economy standards.
Ding ding ding. We have a winner.
1
I had a ‘66 Mustang in college. Great party car until the drive shaft fell out.
2
Minor repair and hardly a reason to give up any car much less a Mustang.
1
Perhaps Ford should have taken the bailout in 2008 - then they could continue to do what they've always done and make cars. Now they can just pay interest off their overpriced pickups and also lay most of their employees off.
Why do so many companies (Ford, GE, GM, ...) want to either turn into a bank (consumer credit) or optimize themselves out of existence so they no longer do what they started doing? Italy has a good system - when a corporation goes broke the company is given to the employees. That's what bankruptcy court should do here.
4
I don't think Ford was offered a bailout to "take".
"... a relatively small number of products, including the hugely popular F-150 pickup truck series, accounted for 150 percent of its earning ..."
Am I missing some obvious economic parallel reality, or does that percentage call for some kind of an explanation?
1
Jus for fun - try asking someone to explain the difference between 1 million and 1 billion.
I got a brand new Mustang when I went away to college, and want to see the car survive and thrive, but don't keep it in the lineup if it's only for nostalgia sake. I wish Ford would put in the resources necessary to bring this iconic car into the modern era. That means safety, fuel consumption, and design all need to be re-engineered for the masses. It should not be a specialty car that appeals to a narrow group (a la the Corvette). A sports car, or a sporty car, can appeal to both mom and the kids if done well. Just look at the recent iteration of the Honda Civic. The design of the Mustang hasn't turned my head in what seems like forever and that's sad.
Safety? Fuel economy? That's not what the Mustang is about. If you want that, buy a Prius. Some cars are for fun and that's the way it should be.
1
When was the last time anyone saw a TV add for a Ford sedan. Or a Mustang, for that matter. Judging by Ford’s TV exposure, you would think the only vehicle they make is the F150. Meanwhile, sedan advertising from Mercedes, BMW and Audi are ubiquitous. And you see their sedans everywhere. Ford has suffered from poor management and anemic product development for many years. The Mustang may mean something to my over the hill generation, but It is hardly a bridge to the future. For Ford to survive, it will have to demonstrate a vision of what it wants to be and how to get there which has been missing, coincidentally, since the early days of the Mustang, over 50 years ago.
5
Spot on!
1
While the other American auto makers were going on welfare just a decade ago Ford was able to stand on its own. One of the reasons is that it had a product line that was able to survive the economic downturn. While the other manufacturers put all of their eggs in the SUV and truck baskets and were devastated due to their poor planning. Ford had all of the same regulations and labor costs of GM and Chrysler but was able to make it on their own.
Now Ford is being lauded by investors for doing what the others do. Make a quick buck and let the taxpayers bear the brunt. Well, oil prices are already on the rise so let’s see what the future brings. When Americans start buying cars they can actually afford from foreign manufacturers they’ll be back, hat in hand saying they just can’t compete.
6
I love that the Mustang is being continued, but wish Ford would stay in the car making business. As much as I like the Mustang, I have a family, and the Mustang makes little sense for a family. Guess I'll have to look elsewhere, at least until the kids move out.
4
I bought mine when my kids were 10 and 7. It's a second car for me. That said, not everyone has the money to do that, but if you do, it's great. The kids used to fit fine in the back seat of my 2011 GT, but they've grown a lot in 8 years.
2
My first car ever was a '65 Mustang, It was deep forest green, black rag top, and an all white interior. It rode like a buckboard on my retread tires, and it shook, rattled and rolled at speed. The 3-speed stick shift used to stick a lot and I had to crawl under the car to unjam it. I did indeed feel the thrill of freedom with my Mustang. It's the only car I have ever owned that I am nostalgic for. It kills me to admit this, but I sold it for $550 and bought a Buick Skylark for $1,600. Oh well, so much for my far too short rebellious youth phase.
6
@Thomas Freemport, ME
You bought a Buick Skylark? Oh man, for a second I thought I was reading a letter from my dad. He TOO bought one of those - the most putrid putty color for a car I ever saw. And UGLY? Oh geez - us kids were embarrassed to be seen in it. You really fell off the pedestal when you sold that Mustang and purchased a Skylark. You have my sympathies Thomas. Thanks for sharing a familiar memory.
4
When I was 24, my grandmother gave me her old Skylark. It would start to shake at 75mph. When I was 27, I bought a new Corolla. It felt like an Audi compared that old Skylark.
1
I think it was Churchill who said,"The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you can see." US auto manufs essentially resigned the passenger car to the Japanese and Geman manuf in the early 70's by making a series of new junk cars. They focused on vans, trucks and SUV's. Unfortunately for them the Japanese and German's were quite adept at entering that market as well off the profits of the smaller economical and reliable small cars. Oh well, I can still see the USA in my Chevrolet...!
1
American car makers were ill-prepared for the early 1970s oil crisis, and the dearth of American-made economy cars paved the way for the European and Japanese car makers, who had been manufacturing economical cars for years, to come in and fill the gap. People discovered that these cars were often more reliable as well.
If gas were not subsidized by the government and Americans had to pay the real price of petroleum products (like financing oil wars), gas would be $8 a gallon or more, the public would think differently about SUVs.
Comparing the Mustand to either the Corvette or (are you kidding!?) the 911 is ridiculous. I have never owned either a Mustang or a 'Vette, but they really are not cut from the same cloth in terms of performance or mechanical sophistication.
1
Yeah, I'd like to see those road tests. I've owned both a '67 Mustang conv and an '87 911. Not even close. I suspect we're talking late model Mustangs and 911's but still not even close. Must have citations for this bit of fake news.
Well, the Mustang today gets 0-60 in around 4.5 seconds. The base 911 probably in 3.5, though some might be faster. Used to be the 911 did 4.9 seconds (in the 80's) and that was considered incredible. Times and technology change.
1
Had a brand new one burble past me today. It seemed a bit overweight and bloated. Time to give it back some style.
2
The 1964 1/2 Mustang STILL looks good (and better than almost any new car on the market today). It's up there with the Coca-Cola bottle in terms of being a classic.
9
Well, I have owned nothing but Fords for 30 years, but will not be buying any new ones I suppose. I have less than zero desire to drive some behemoth road monster. I am not 22 any more so a Mustang just holds no appeal. I am not a farmer or in building trades so a truck would just be silly.
So a Chevy Volt, a Fiat, or something reasonable for the next set of wheels. Pity. My Fiesta, Focuses, Tauruses were all great cars. The Ford SUVs, or any SUVs or minivans I have ever driven are not.
14
Econ 101 : Profits and import taxes, US automotive industry
"Ford’s decision to drop most of its passenger cars" Import tax on cars 2.5%
"the hugely popular F-150 pickup truck series, accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes, with profit margins in the midteens.
Import tax on pick up is 25%
3
This is an interesting move, yet the next steps Ford will take remain unclear. Ford's move will of course have grim consequences for some American manufacturers in the supply chains that are being shut down, but that was going to happen at some point. My guess is that Ford is trying to get away from as many gasoline-powered models as it can in preparation for the shift to electric vehicles, and has decided the trucks and SUVs have a decade or so of life left, but the gasoline-fueled passenger cars won't last so long.
Exactly how a car company makes the shift from gas to electric is clearly incredibly fraught with pitfalls in part because the companies will need for a time to maintain two very different supply chains for the parts that make up their gasoline and electric vehicles. That bridging period is going to be incredibly costly. By shutting down assembly lines that are producing non-profitable passenger cars as soon as possible, Ford can arguably raise its profits while at the same time begin shifting its production from gasoline to electric-powered vehicles. Lastly, the last thing Ford wants is to be competing with itself when it introduces the first big tranche of electric sedans in the near future.
I always preferred the Thunderbird of that bygone era. That nameplate has also been retired, but it is the perfected name to be revived as an EV.
Here's an idea. Make the Mustang attractive again and make money on it.
8
This. The two times I have driven a mustang in recent years they were no fun, especially on curvy mountain roads. I did not like it at all.
1
Thought experiment; imagine Chevy considering discontinuing production of the vette? Compare to Ford announcing the continuation of the Mustang.
2
As a Mustang owner I can only applaud Ford's thinking as regards this icon. Hope that the future dependence on imports for everything except big trucks and SUVs is the right decision.
1
I still have my 67, the only new car in my life. My dad bought it to replace our dowdy Falcon, partly because it was just a re-skinned Falcon, simple and economical. As frail as it was, I drove it full time for more than 20 years without a mechanical problem, and still can get every part on the car for peanuts - brand new! Falcon: dowdy. Mustang: sexy. I bought and restored a 64 1/2 (yes), convertible with a V-8, because a noted scientist I worked with pretty much insisted, but I never drive it, and it is remarkably unappealing for reasons only car guys might appreciate. In my opinion, the fastback was the best looking of the early ones; bloat overtook Mustangs in the ‘70s, then misuse of the name on some forgettable ones. The current, more or less retro styled ones are successful, IMHO, but that may just be the opinion of someone still appreciating his sexy Falcon.
5
I loved my friend's Falcon and delighted in driving it. Must be because it was a secret Mustang.
Loved my first car, right out of college - a 1966 British racing green Mustang. I sold it a few years later, but when I think about it today, I still love it.
3
Me too, NK! Mine was also British Racing Green, but it was a convertible, just the coolest care ever. I loved it dearly and enjoyed it so much that when it developed a tiny problem [I do mean tiny — a $22 fix-it] my then-husband, who hated to see me having fun, used that as his excuse for taking it away one day, ostensibly to the garage to be fixed, and coming back with my new car, a very sedate gun-metal gray Ford Fairlane. Is it any wonder that he not too much later became my ex?
4
Thank God Ford is keeping the Mustang. I’m retired from GM and would never buy Ford, out of loyalty to my company (and to my pension!) but I’ve always loved Mustangs. They wrought the Camaro, which is what I’d buy, but the Mustang was first, and credit to Ford for that.
4
Bring back the 1967 Mustang convertible and I will BUY. Loved that car. Learned to drive on that car.
7
I hate SUVs . Drive Japanese? Gas prices are going up... and google car is not quite here yet.
2
I fondly recall my 1966 blue mustang that I had in college and sold when I married my first wife. Two bad decisions I made in the same year.
80
I was fortunate to own a new Mustang that I purchased at the end of 1964 and delivered in May 1965. The cost was $2,500.00 purchased at Gotham Ford in Manhattan. Nice car - nice people at Gotham.
4
Some brands live , Mustang will live too, the concept ford cretaed in 2005 models onward was a instant hit.
I like the all mustangs models except 1074-1979 period.
But for me Mustang last two model 2015 onward has become iconic.
Mustang is legend , it should live. Not for profit for namesake.
What GM did to Chevy caprice , literally eliminated checy from car market. Today Chevrolet is practically a eastern asian style cars or let say a bad imitation of honda, nissan, hyundai.
2
Btw, CR has given the Impala it’s top rating the last couple of years, so, if you were looking to insult Chevy, you failed.
2
“...accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes...” ? Aaaand that’s the end of wondering why Ford has struggled financially.
2
The Mustang says FORD like the Corvette says Chevy. Two of the most iconic, recognizable and coolest automobiles are still around and somewhat affordable compared to other “speed machines”.
I grew up tagging along my older brothers who had nothing but various Mustangs in our garage over the years. They wanted to emulate Steve McQueen in “Bullitt” in the worst way. Those cars looked so flashy and fast, even while they were parked or merely idling.
My only complaint then and still now is the Mustang is an uncomfortable ride if there ever was one. Great look but low to the ground, feel every bump kind of ride. I guess the older one gets (like me in my late 60s) my backside craves comfort over being cool.
26
Cars can be made to "stick the road" and have "road feel" or be cushy. The Mustang is a "stick the road" kind of car.
4
@Q Seattle:
Absolutely. I think either a person enjoys that "stick the road" kind of feeling or cushy. Since my vintage years, cushy is the only way to go for me. But I truly understand the allure of "road feel". Thanks so much for clarifying and sharpening the point of cushy vs. real feel.
2
" .. My only complaint then and still now is the Mustang is an uncomfortable ride if there ever was one .."
Ford Motor was never much on suspensions, but has changed recently. Try one, might like it.
1
Save the sedan!! I drive the finest model of 1999 -- the Acura TL. I'll be holding a 20th birthday party for it next year.
5
Ford has done a remarkable job with the current generation of Mustangs. Hats off!!
1
Just got an AWD Ford Fusion. Terrific car. Couldn't be more delighted. Hadn't owned a Ford in 20 years but I guess this will be my first amd last one. What an awful, short sighted decision. Has Ford management done anything right in the past 10 years?
15
They've done a lot right. Only U.S. car company that didn't require a bailout after the financial crisis. No small feat.
American Car makers can't compete ... and I as a consumer I don't care!
Never bought an American made car ... appears now I never will. Anyway I'm far too satisfied purchasing cars from Japan or Germany.
4
So... that Japanese or German car. Which model? It easily could have been built in America. And you don’t know much about the “Detroit” cars which are on par with anything built anywhere.
3
Teslas, with their superior handling, rapid acceleration, and advanced electronics, will run circles around anything from Europe of Japan. The free "Supercharging" stations mean that one could pay zero fuel costs for the life of the car. If you spend $50.00 on gas for a weekly fill up, in 5 years the Tesla will save $13,000.
If someone is going to spend $60-100K on a car, I don't know why they would consider anything else, really. And they're made here in California, thank you!
1
@robert B: unfortunately that Teslas costs $75,000 so even if it saves you $13,000 over 5 years....you STILL lost a boatload of cash vs. buying a basic sedan or pickup.
1
That confirms the trend folks. Ford exists the small car, low margin, fuel efficient line-up for gas guzzlers. The trend confirmed is higher (or much higher) oil prices are on there way.
To ride this trend folks, buy a hybrid vehicle now before demand skyrockets and buy oil stocks for the pop you are going to get.
4
The base 2018 Mustang gets 25MPG combined (EPA). Not a Pious, but hardly a gas guzzler.
2
161
The implication was trucks and large SUV's, not Mustang.
Ford won't sell many Mustangs, as it is at best a novelty car purchased by folks over 60 taking a stroll down nostalgia street.
1
Farley: "Mustang means freedom." Freedom to drive our clogged, ageing highways and waste fossil fuel?
Marketing was always a big part of selling these things, trying to convince people they can be somebody because they bought a certain car. Nothing has changed I guess. "Route 66" is history; good riddance.
1
Let's bring back the Model T! It got 21 MPG back in 1908. We haven't made much MPG progress in 110 years.
3
Better than that; up to about 1912, electric cars dominated, and with pretty good range too. The self-starter brought us what we have today, an oil-fueled planet.
What??? ... in the same category as the vette? No, no, no way, no how! The Mustang and it's legacy is classic. It was beautifully designed in 1964, gone through its less than attractive iterations through today. Credit to Ford for keeping it in production. It does not belong in the same sentence with the Corvette. Sign up Mr. Minoff for a week of reeducation at camp Corvette.
3
They're both American automotive icons. And let's be honest, "beautifully designed in 1964, gone through its less than attractive iterations through today" applies in full measure to the Vette as well.
4
My first car was a 1969 Mustang hatchback, a ridiculously cramped car but made for fun. Yet fun is not worth the hefty price tag Ford is sticking on these models. Three years ago I bought a new Subaru, a much more reliable car, for a far lower price. I'm not sure about Ford's thinking here; is nostalgia supposed to outweigh price and durability as purchase factors? Car buyers are rational creatures.
1
Oh please... a Mustang versus a Subaru? You’re not an enthusiast. Just a driver.
3
Phasing out all sedans but a muscle car with horrible handling and gas mileage. When the rest of the industry is going electric, this is really bright thinking. How about a new F-150 model that runs on coal? Sad thing is there a plenty of Americans who would buy that.
8
Not everyone wants a hulky SUV. Detroit might want to remember that when gas prices hit 4.50 a gallon. This goes in cycles. 2008 - everyone wanted an SUV -- til the bottom fell out. Then Prius' took off. And the dawn (once again) of the electric car, too. Now, it's all about SUV's again. Detroit is making a mistake. European and Japanese companies get it. Even Sweden. BMW, Audi, even Volvo -- are keeping sedans -- and brining out newly revamped ones. Shameful Detroit is only gonna give us trucks and SUV's. And I am an SUV Driver -- Swedish one. Love it. But I used to drive a BMW, Lexus, BMW and BMW. so. Yeh, might go back.
10
I wholeheartedly support this at least until I own one of my own.
thank you, Mustang Sally
1
My father had: 1962 Mercury Monterey; 1968 Mercury Monterey (first car we had with AC); 1974 Montego Brougham (too bad it had low-power 2V carburetor), 1980 Mercury Zephyr. I had a Taurus SEL 24V and two Fusions. . So Ford ending car production literally makes me sick.
2
As an elementary school kid in the 1960's I remember the awe when a classmate's father got a deep green Mustang. She immediately had status as a kid with a very cool dad! Since then the Mustang is as American as apple pie - while I am not a fan of American cars, I make an exception for the Mustang. It is just so cool looking and timeless. It had its heyday when the Thunderbird also ruled the streets and we know what happened to that car. Car designs were so innovative and America was at its best - now it is all about function and big and clunky. It still rules as a very cool car!
7
Buying a car is an emotional purchase for a lot of folks. We want a car that's iconic and stands out, but also maybe one that reminds us of old memories. The Mustang fills all these categories in a way that the current crop of cars, SUVs and pickups simply does not. That's why it is the only Ford vehicle I'd currently consider purchasing. Somehow, I can't imagine looking back 30 years from now and feeling nostalgic about, say, a Ford Edge.
3
Someday in the not too distant future owning a car will not be necessary or desirable. You'll subscribe to a driver-less car service. Our grand kids will wonder what all the fuss was about.
1
"That’s because in its last earnings report, Ford revealed for the first time that a relatively small number of products, including the hugely popular F-150 pickup truck series, accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes, with profit margins in the midteens. Another group was barely profitable. By contrast, Ford said its “low performing” products lost money, with negative margins of more than 10 percent."
"One hundred fifty per cent?"
Very interesting.
8
Trump Hotels do their accounting the same way. They have the very greatest profits.
It's sad that Ford has to drop cars because the vast majority of Americans have become so fat or obese that they can only fit in gigantic trucks.
67
Actually that's kind of a non sequitur. "Fat or obese" people by & large wouldn't be able to make the jump necessary to get *into* one of those trucks. Want proof? Look at a '67 F-150. Now look at a '15.
I rest my case. It's the trucks that are the obese, not their drivers. And I think that's disgusting too. }:(
2
Ford is phasing out their other cars? I guess we're really "winning" now, aren't we?
12
As long as we are not compelled to stand at attention with hands on our hearts every time a Mustang passes by ---
6
German, Japanese, Korean, ... manufacturers can sell cars... Seems to me the problem is the CEO.
7
Selling my stock in ford
1
Now that gas prices are going up almost daily, Ford is cutting out the smaller cars and sticking with gas guzzlers. Does this make any sense with the way gas prices are zooming up?
21
It does if the gas companies own the car companies.
1
The day I got my driver's license in 1967 I drove two cars - a mustang and an Austin Healy 3000. The Mustang handled about as poorly as my parent's 1957 chevy. The Austin Healy was an entirely different matter. I never had the urge to drive a Mustang again. It's designed for the interstate. But give me any true sports car - American (precious few of those), Japanese or European. For 19 years I owned an Eagle Talon Tsi AWD (a joint Chrysler and Mitsubishi production). It out handled any car I've ever driven except for an all wheel drive Porsche 911 and when I bought it in 1990 it cost $20,020. The steal of the century. It performed reliably for 19 years, 118,000 miles and 7 cross country road trips. It was still running strong when it died in a building fire 10 years ago. I still miss it. It could beat a Mustang handily on any road course.
8
In an old mustang the handling greatly improved if you ran a full tank of gas and threw a few bags of sand in the trunk. Poor weight distribution.
6
Greg,
I have a 2009 Mustang GT (still a solid rear axle at that time) and a bag of sand in the trunk still improves road holding when the surfaces are not smooth - which is most of the time where I live.
1
Yup. Axle hop's a bear. And you DEFINITELY don't want it in the winter.
It might be "pretty," but is it reliable? In my 30 years of owning Toyotas I have never needed a repair other than regular maintenance.
10
My dad was a sports car enthusiast and autocross champ during the golden age of sports cars. I suspect he loved his '54 Corvette more than us kids. On Sundays he'd take us to the local European auto dealership to drool over Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Lotuses, Porsches, Alpha Romeos, etc. This was back when auto design was an art, featuring distinctive designs that were inarguably sexy. Now all the cars on the road look the same.......ugly and boring. Can fuel efficient sedans be sexy again, or do today's wide American derrieres rule out anything smaller than SUVs and pickup trucks?
7
"Alpha Romeos"....Your Dad may have been a car guy, but you apparently you never got the bug!
3
What, you don't want a stove-bolt 6 in your Alfa? :)
My sister's first car was an Alpha Romeo. She learned to work on it with my dad. It was a beauty, but persnickety. My first car was a '68 V-8 Camaro. I racked up so many speeding tickets in a short time I had to go to driving school. No teenager should be given a V-8. I've joked that maybe my parents wanted to get rid of me, but I'm sure my dad just always sort of coveted a muscle car. We were taught Chevies-good, Fords-bad. With exception of the Mustang. Everybody loved Mustangs.
1
80 to 100K for a Shelby? Who picked that ridiculously low range ? Call Tom Volk and update the article!
6
Yeah, that sounds low to me, too. Double it, at least.
Yes, we can find out how many rolls of toilet paper fit in the trunk
I grew up in the south. We had a baby blue 1967 Mustang when I was in high school and it was the car I was given to take with me away to college. I miss it terribly, but -- sigh -- not having to drive or own a car is one of the big plusses of living in New York City.
1
There will no coastal roads to drive Ford SUVs on. They will be flooded.
4
God willing.
Q. "What are 100 million coastal big blue urban lefty libs at the bottom of either the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans?"
A. "A very good start on the road back to national sanity."
1
It seems that the Ford Fusion is the #4 selling family car in the US. http://www.nydailynews.com/autos/street-smarts/best-selling-family-cars-....
Why in the world would Ford phase it out?
44
The margins are greater for SUVs and Pickups plus low gas costs drove the market. Now that gas prices are on the rise, expect a drop in the popularity of SUVs and Pickups.
4
I leased a 2014 Fusion Titanium 2.0 turbo. Loved it. Fast, AWD great in winter, mayb eback seat could have used more room. However, the way they set up the financing, it made no sense to buy it. Real dopey, in my opinion.
I think the article makes it rather clear. They don't make money on it. Being #4 in a category dominated by the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry means heavy discounting. It's a shame because the vehicle is quite good. But this is the long-term result of years of mediocre product and unimaginative marketing.
1
I'm looking at 2018 Focus RS. It's not as iconic looking as a Mustang, but it has equal to better performance.
6
I learn how to drive in a Mustang and passed my driving test at the DMV with the Mustang. I had to pass the parallel parking test in San Francisco. Great memories.
4
Ford is dropping its passenger car lineup at least partly because their variable-clutch transmission is a farce. I looked through all the comments, but no one has mentioned how may 2013-2015 Fiestas and Focus cars have been back in the shop multiple times for transmission replacements. Ford dropped the ball and is stalling a settlement to those in the class-action lawsuit regarding this huge defect. The only new car I have ever bought was a 2014 Focus. I was shocked by its problems, had the transmission replaced 5 times and decided to trade it in for way below what value it would have had if it was a safe car. Ford made a huge mistake with that transmission and are getting as far away from it as they can.
That said, the standard transmission is fine, and Ford is developing excellent electric cars. Still, they have shown me why corporations are hated. I do love a pretty Mustang, though.
3
Variable clutch transmission? You know something Ford doesn't apparently!
Put a new Tesla motor in the old body style that meets current safety standards (including headrests) and you’ll sell a billion of them.
51
I believe you mean put a Mustang body on a Tesla.
Vice versa , it would still be just another Ford.
1
Or make a hybrid Mustang, they already have the technology. Or use their own technology for an all electric Mustang. Or offer a four wheel drive Mustang. There are a lot of innovations that they can make if they want to. But I'm betting that the bean counters that now run the company just don't get cars.
2
I'm a Chevy man, but the Stang is one great car. It is truly an icon and sits right up there with the Vette,
33
I also learned to drive and took my driver's test in a 1965 Mustang stick shift. Bullitt and McQueen's other car-based action movie, Vanishing Point, were favorites of me and my friends at age 15, a time without today's electronic entertainment and distractions. So for us aging Boomers, turning in the LTD truck, SUV or Bimmer for a Bullitt may prove mighty alluring.
The Mustang's legacy may be that cars can be pretty sexy relative to even the most luxurious truck or SUV. And as noted by previous commenters, while purchasing a Bullitt may be a poor choice from an environmental stewardship of view, Ford's vector towards all trucks is more worrisome. Does dropping its line of cars mean it will be ratcheting down the CAFE fuel economy on its trucks, building more hybrids and electrics or hydrogen SUVs and pickups? Seems unlikely under Pruitt's EPA which has vowed to put the brakes on CAFE.
3
Steve McQueen wasn't involved in Vanishing Point, which starred Barry Newman.
3
Who mentioned "Vanishing Point"?
Have you sat in the back of a modern Mustang? It might well be a pickup without the extended cab. Really a car for two people. My friend's drives nice, sounds good, one of the few cars still available with a stick shift.
3
ThanK God they'll keep the Mustang. Otherwize how all the 30-40 y.o. bros get to Gold's and Planet Fitness.
9
I lived through the 1960s. My friends were motorheads, one of whose father won the Winston Cup points championship in the early 1950s. I became somewhat of an enthusiast myself. The 1960s were probably the last era in which the U.S. produced the finest, reliable, and interesting cars in the world. The Ford Mustang was one of those cars. In the 1970s, it seems U.S. manufacturers stopped doing the research and refinement of their to make them competitive, reliable, and desirable. I've owned or driven (for a couple weeks) American cars a couple times since the 1990s. I found both cars to be unrefined, and of generally poor quality. Buy a Mustang for nostalgia. Otherwise, buy a German, Japanese, or Korean car.
16
the Corvette Grand Sport and Dodge Viper (most recent iteration) are supposed to be as good as anything other than a Porsche or a Ferrari.
" including the hugely popular F-150 pickup truck series, accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes,"
How can the f-150 account for 150% of Ford's earnings? Isn't the maximum percent of earnings Ford can have 100%???
4
Ford loses money on many of its other models and FORD would have a net loss without the F150 profits.
Therefore, it is entirely possible that the F150 profits do indeed account for 150% of its earnings before interest and taxes.
F150 profits minus non-F150 losses = Ford Profits
F150 Profits = Ford Profits * 150%
The math works fine, mpless.
9
Good catch. I think the author is referring to announcements that in a brand breakup analysis, the F-150 truck line's value may be greater than 150% of Ford's enterprise value.
1
I think it means they took a loss on other vehicle lines.
The old mustangs were beautiful. The new ones are abominations. There is no logic to driving either, for environmental reasons, but I have to admit that if I had an old one (though I'd rather a '71 340 Swinger) - I'd take it out for the occasional (guilty) Sunday drive.
It is a sad testimony to the American psyche that Ford is going exclusively with SUV's and Trucks, because we the consumers are so elated by the temporarily low gas prices. So we will drive gas-guzzlers with high clearance and high wind resistance, with AWD and rear beds that 95% of the owners don't need. How dumb are we?
37
I agree, Clayton, esp. about what it indicates about the American psyche. I think the desire to own unnecessarily humongous pick-up trucks is fueled by the same white male insecurity that drives the desire for guns these days. 90% of the time I don't see anything carried in the backs of these pickups. It's just image. You can tell a lot from the psychology used in commercials......white guys want to identify with cowboys, ranchers, manly men who work the land.
Similar thing with 4-door Jeeps. You come to an intersection here and at least one vehicle will be a 4-door Jeep with all kinds of tricked out custom features. But you never see a speck of mud on them. And I bet most are automatic transmissions.....a contradiction in Jeep terms, if you ask me. I doubt most will ever see anything as rugged as a suburban gravel driveway. Who would risk their paint job?
2
it also has to do with vision. i drive a very low sports car. when I am surrounded by SUV's, I can't see. I think some people just want the high seating position of an SUV or truck.
4
I agree, richguy. I always drove sports car convertibles.....a Fiat, a Fiero and then a Miata. But my current car is a 2-door Jeep. I wouldn't go back to sports cars because they're too low, small and risky on highways where SUVs and pick-ups are driven so aggressively you'd think you were in a Mad Max movie. I take solace in that 2-door Jeeps are kind of the sports car of Jeeps. And I go hiking places I wouldn't want to take a car with low clearance anyway. But if I could have 2 cars, one would be a vintage convertible sports car. I miss the exhileration of hugging curves on a winding country road---the true art and joy of driving.
2
The '68 GT 350 owned by Shelby is projected to auction for $80-$100k. I'm guessing it'll go for substantially more than that.
5
Ironically Ford fired the very guy who made it. " ... on July 13, 1978, despite the fact that the company posted a $2 billion profit for the year." Tells you how poor the judgement was even back then at Ford.
4
Due to fuel and speed limit restrictions it didn't look like they'd be able to make a car like that again for years, and they didn't until 1985.
2
"As Iacocca later wrote in his bestselling autobiography, Ford called Iacocca into his office shortly before 3 pm on July 13, 1978 and let him go, telling him “Sometimes you just don’t like somebody.”"
"Hank the Deuce" wasn't known for his acumen, whether it was with executives or wives. But his name was on the building and Iacocca's wasn't.
2
Iaccoca's firing was due more to personality conflicts between him & HFII. And as in the military, "when a senior officer & a junior officer have a personality conflict, the senior officer has the personality & the junior officer has the conflict." There was tension between them for years. Lee was brash, cocky, entirely taken with his own success, & felt he deserved to be chairman of Ford. HFII thought otherwise, & it was his company. End of story.
1
I drove a 1967 mustang in high school during the 1980s. My dad and I spiced up the 289 a bit. Sure do wish I had that car now! :)
11
My parents could not have been any more conventional, modest or "square." But in 1969-70 even they had a Mustang (stock, of course), and they absolutely loved it. Proof that a Mustang could make pretty much anyone cool.
22
Recent decades have brought us milquetoast, overweight and underpowered Mustangs more suited as "premium convertible!" category rental cars in sunny climes. What reassurance Ford will change that?
1
We need nostalgia - based on 21st century tech. I loved my '68 4 on the floor 8 cylinder Mustang convertible - bright red with white seats. Remembering and smiling.
12
I do a lot of pro bono work with young people who have gotten themselves into debt or other financial difficulties. About 20% of the time, the conversation includes the words "Camaro" or "Mustang". One young man (they're always male) told me he didn't mind ruining his credit for a Mustang, as long as it was the 8 cylinder version.
To the young people reading this: focus on a sexy bank account, not a sexy ride.
Robert Bradley
Author, Investing In Four Hours
49
Male Derangement Syndrome.
Sad.
6
Precisely, my first car was a used 68 Chevelle, then a new 76 Camaro. That Camaro was a big payment for an 19 year old. That was a lot of debt for me, even if I was living at home. It really is a big weight to carry around when starting out.
2
And what do you tell your elderly clients trying to relive their youth with one? All those old cars smell like is ilawnmowers now, pushing one of those is enough memory of my youth for me.
Great piece. I cannot overstate how absolutely pleasurable it is to read about something frivolous and maybe even bad for us, but important and deeply loved because it’s fun. Remember fun?
117
A 1968 GT 350 owned by Caroll Shelby,in an auction,i wouldn't be suprise that it reaches a couple of hundred thousands.
3
I bought a brand new 1988 GT Convertible. What a piece of junk. It sure was fun to drive and I loved it. Had to give it once I got married and had children. Now that I'm an "Empty Nester" I find myself looking at them more and more.
3
In the long run, I think Ford probably need to come up with a hybrid or plug in version of it, considering global warming and its effects.
18
What you're saying makes all the sense in the world, but that would turn off so many potential buyers because of what the pony car represents.
1
Makes no sense that they would keep the Lincoln sedans. Those sedans are just modified versions of the Ford Fusion and Taurus....the very same cars being phased out. Seems like a bad investment to keep those platforms going just to build the Lincoln versions.....which last time I checked rarely sell in numbers that would return a decent profit. All the money on the Lincoln side is made from the Navigator. They would do well to just remake Lincoln as a one vehicle brand. The new Aviator concept shows promise but at the end of the day is nothing more than a shameful rip-off of the Range Rover Velar. Kudos though for keeping the Mustang.
2
It's really absurd to me how short people's memories are of high gas prices and how quick Ford is to drop the most economical vehicles (for consumers). So you all will buy pickups and SUVs, and when gas goes back up over $4 or $5 a gallon, you're gonna dump them and go back to wanting a Focus. Ridiculous.
196
With the Ford Focus RS having been built in Germany. And the Focus being built in Mexico or China.
3
According to the EPA, driving a new Mustang 15000 miles/year with a powerful turbo engine will cost $1700 in gas. At $2.87/gallon. The EPA’s figure for the Focus with its much less gutsy 4 cylinder is $1550. That’s $150/year to drive a car that’s infinitely cooler and more fun. Even if the price of gas doubled to $5.75, and even if you’re that rare Mustang driver who logs as many as 15000/year in your sports car, the Mustang would still only use an extra $300/year in gas. What’s ridiculous is thinking that anyone will want to dump their Mustang for a Focus to save $12-25/month.
5
This is exactly how GM, Ford and Chrysler lost the US market. When I was coming up they had close to 95% of the market. They refused to evolve running from market demands ceding more and more of the market to foreign car companies
I've owned my Toyota Tacoma for 20 years. Never had to do anything but regular maintenance. Over 250,000 miles still going strong; still meeting smog requirements in CA and getting 22 miles per gallon in the city. My Prius? 225,000+.
Ford, GM -- still not figuring it out.
2
Might as well go out of business, I'll never buy a Ford truck or mustang...
9
A uniquely American and debased definition and understanding of the word "freedom". These days, that word is applied to everything from guns to french fries.
27
Like to know where a Mustang beats a 911?
4
it is silly to compare a porsche 911 to the mustang. one is a thoroughbread, the other a mere clydesdale.
13
You're absolutely right. I love both, and have a soft spot for American pony cars, but they're a completely different category.
I suggest driving a new GT where 100 MPH feels like nothing, perfectly fine, before overly dissing the Mustang. And, there is no such thing as a 'mere' Clydesdale.
1
You want to bet your pink slip on that?
1
I had one in the late '90's.... sliver with black interior. I loved it. Expensive as heck to insure though...
4
For my first car, my dad and I restored a 1965 Mustang convertible. It took about three years and we did most of the work ourselves. Since then I've met so many guys who will stop to look and tell me they used to own one just like it. They always say they wish they had never sold it. I hope to hang on to mine and pass it along to my kids someday. Truly an iconic car.
34
The 2019 Mustang looks truly awful. People aren't wowed by a name, it's the car itself.
My advice is to replicate the '68 model to the T, only changing the design for safety and environmental concerns. I have owned two and each were amazing cars. They also weighed a ton.
3
The '68 was indeed in a class by itself .... bravo on your idea.
2
I think that 2019 Bullit edition is a sexy beast. Beauty in is in the eye of the beholder. As far as mid last century American sports cars, while the mustang is up there, my personal favorite (at least as far as looks go) is the '57 corvette roadster convertible. Now that was a thing of beauty.
5
they kinda did that for the 2005-2009 models; that is why I am reluctant to replace my 2009 love the lines
2
if you talk to people about the mustang, they harken back to the days of the mid to late 60s. those guys are old and dying. the brand itself is living off of those images 40 years ago to sell a car that purports to be a sports car (at least the affordable versions).
2
What the article doesn't say is that SUV's have become the preferred vehicle of American drivers. It's astonishing that 4-door sedans are going the way of the dinosaur. Count me among the SUV converts.
Ford is phasing out of the passenger car business. Speaking as someone who made a living driving trucks and cars for more than 20 years, Ford is an acronym that can mean either: Fix Or Repair Daily or Found On Road Dead.
And does the world, choking on auto emissions, need internal combustion engines? No.
I guess I think this sentimentality is not just silly, but actually harmful.
28
LOL. But it couldn't be worse than FIAT -- Fix It Again Tony, or Fix It All the Time.
Puts me in mind of the Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce I owned back in the day -- not for long though as it was so often in FIAT mode and I was a broke kid (it helped keep me broke).
1
Well, the world doesn't need electric guitars, fireworks or beer, but I'm glad to be alive in a world that has all these and Mustangs too.
4
Joe, that is the best comment here. It should be on a t-shirt!
2
"The Mustang is like Rocky: It survived the 1970s fuel crisis, the glam 1980s, the move to S.U.V.s. It’s made it through every round of cuts."
High praise for a car Ford wanted to replace with the Probe.
6
The Ford Probe was based on a Mazda MX-6. Not a bad car at all.
2
Seriously, MX-6, a substitute for excitement if ever there was one! The last time there was a meeting of the "MX-6 Owner's Club" was......never!
1
I remember waiting every morning on North Avenue in Elizabeth N.J. for the #8 Public Service bus to take me and my friend Lenny to Springfield, N.J. where we jumped on the #70 bus from Newark to take us to high school in Summit. Every so often this guy in a white 1965 2-plus-2 Mustang would have to stop at the light at North and Morris Avenues where we were standing. If he was in the lane next to us, Lenny would always yell at the guy to "stomp on it" when the light changed. He always obliged and when he lit up that high performance Ford 289 V-8, that car would take off in a curtain of smoking rubber for like 50 yards. It was the coolest thing we'd ever seen! Never forgot it to this day.
103
Also, a great way to ruin tires and kill an engine's gears!
2
" .. Ford doesn’t break out financial results by model, but Mr. Jonas believes the Mustang is modestly profitable .."
In dealer-speak, the 'Stang is the car that brings "lookers" into the dealership. Ditto, Corvette and Hemi units.
I mean, really .. how dull SUVs are.
4
I absolutely love the sound of my father's Mustang as it starts. The growl of the engine is unmistakable.
11
how can you not mention the chicken tax in this article, that insulates u.s. pickup truck manufacturers from the myriad of outstanding foreign made pickups that aren’t manufactured here? without the protection of this tariff, which was only recently renewed to the glee of our auto executives, ford’s forward looking profits would be negative.
10
The Mustang has great emotional and sentimental power for me. My brother and I both bought Mustangs from a guy who had to get rid of his toys or face eviction. I worked all summer to pay for that 1967 Mustang , which cost me 800.00 in 1986. My brother bought the 1970 Mustang Mach 1. We loved those cars. We drove the Mach 1 until that transmission died. I went on my first date with my husband in mine. I gave my brother mine when we were older and married. He had been sick and said that was all he wanted for his birthday. When he died, my sister in law gave it to her brother, who was going to bring her back to her former glory in candy apple red. My husband bought a car two years ago. He said it reminded him of us and our twenty five years together. What was it? A 2006 Mustang Deluxe Convertable in Tungsten.
3
what a great story. Love it when one car or one model of car can bridge so much time. I, too, have one of those "sentimental" cars and I still feel 25 when I slip behind the wheel.
2
I love the fact that Ford has saved the Mustang. It's a brand that is truly timeless - a link between young people today and their parents or even, by now, their grandparents. But I think it's a shame that Ford just stopped even putting in any effort into their passenger cars. That's the reason most people stopped buying them. Not to mention about 5-cents worth of marketing effort. The Mustang, much like the Corvette, pretty much sells itself. Ford has just conceded the passenger car market to everyone else. A shame. Perhaps they should have stuck with the Crown Victoria - police departments still lament their demise. Or perhaps it's time for Ford to consider merging with Tesla - Tesla knows technology and Ford can still build cars. Just none with the Ford nameplate, I guess.
7
I've owned 3 Mustangs in my life. My first car was a 67 Teal Fastback which I wished I never sold to purchase my 76 Cobra II 5 speed (which is still on the road, restored by the kid I sold it to!). Also had an 85 convertible which was so much fun to drive. I'm thinking there's room for one more into my retirement years!!
16
Go for it! Lots of sunsets left.
2
That Black Chrysler Charger with a 440 6 Pack, that carried the bad guys, was no slouch, in that epic Bullitt chase scene, with McQueen behind the wheel of the Mustang!
6
By all accounts, the Charger ran circles around the Mustang. They actually had to "handicap" the Charger by putting skinnier tires on it. No offense meant to the Mustang...
2
The Charger also somehow lost eight hubcaps during the chase.
4
No doubt about it! The Charger of that vintage was not only a muscle car, but had great design and posture! But, it was a movie.
1
Interesting that mustang the car means "freedom" in America, but the real mustangs these days...not so much.
9
I'm glad Ford didn't just listen to the bean counters and ditch all their passenger cars. GM made that mistake in the '70s and '80s and ended up with four-doors with rear windows that didn't roll down, severe fastbacks that weren't hatchbacks, and cookie-cutter cars that were nearly identical, Chevrolet through Cadillac. Keeping the Mustang is a good sign.
That said, Ford would have been competitive in sedans if they had just tried harder. Sadly, when the SUV/CUV market gets saturated or decimated by expensive gasoline, Ford will simply import the sedans it still sells in Europe, China, and elsewhere. So much for U.S. factory jobs.
28
You nailed it. We have seen this before. Relatively low gas prices lead to adoption of SUV/CUV at the expense of more fuel efficient models. Then something happens that raises prices and the market crashes. If that happens, Ford, which survived earlier crisis, may crash with it.
3
Yes, George Santayana would be pleased with the way history repeats itself. Major recession? Introduce the Edsel. Energy crisis? Build more full-sized cars. Second energy crisis? Push body-on-frame vans as family cars. And if Ford sells its European and Asian divisions (at least GM is still buying Opels/Vauxhalls badged as Buicks from Peugeot-Citroen), goodbye to their option to import Fiestas and Focuses.
"... the hugely popular F-150 pickup truck series, accounted for 150 percent of its earnings before interest and taxes..."
Is this correct? 150 percent of its earnings?
54
The trucks are 150% of earnings because the cars lost money.
2
Yes, Sam, Ford actually loses money on many of its other models and FORD would have a net loss without the F150 profits.
Therefore, it is entirely possible that the F150 profits do indeed account for 150% of its earnings before interest and taxes.
It's true, albeit a little confusing.
7
Easily possible when you consider there are money losing vehicles.
5
It will be interesting to watch the evolution of car marketing over the next several years as autonomous cars come on line and inevitably capture market share. You can't sell a robot car with "wind-in-your-hair" roadtrip type freedom bits of imagery. These are the last years of driving for fun. Mustang is sort of a fun car, but still more a memory now as highways devolve into digitally controlled mazes with people as passengers instead of drivers.
4
On the 25th anniversary of the Mustang back in 1988, Lee Iacocca said the secret of the pony car's success was that it fast, stylish and cool and that ihe sticker price was $2,368. He ended his observation with the phrase, "today, they get that for the radio."
I had two a 68 and a 73.
Bullitt was a great exhibition for the car, and the hill scene was beautifully reprised in a 2012 Geico Commercial.
4