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Ford's Stock Slump Sends Dividend Yield to Highest Since 2001 Bloomberg / October 2, 2018 Ford Motor Co.’s plummeting share price has sent its dividend yield to the highest in 17 years, an indication of just how rich a disbursement the company is paying during troubled times. The automaker’s stock fell to $9.20 on Tuesday, the lowest close since August 2012. That means Ford’s 15 cents a share quarterly dividend currently has an annualized yield of 7.93 percent, a level last seen in September 2001. Wall Street has warned that Ford may have to pare back its dividend -- the most generous among its automotive peers -- as earnings evaporate overseas and the company initiates a restructuring that it’s said may cost $11 billion and take as much as five years. The company has insisted it’ll maintain the payout.

Unless the engine has been modified. stick with the Mack spec Spicer clutch that the truck was engineered with. Don't second guess Mack engineering. A new 108935-94 is exactly what's needed. Mack never installed Lipe......they don't offer a Mack spec clutch. The Spicer clutch I speak of is not an off-the-shelf clutch from Spicer. It was built by Spicer to Mack engineering's specification, and was never sold to any other OEM. If you have juiced up the engine above 500 horsepower, buy the 108935-15. But if you haven't, don't buy it.

Reuters / October 2, 2018 U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday hailed a “remarkably positive outlook” for the U.S. economy that he feels is on the verge of a “historically rare” era of ultra-low unemployment and tame prices for the foreseeable future. It is a view, he said, based on how a changed economy is operating today, with businesses and households immunized by strong central bank policy from the inflationary psychology that caused unemployment, inflation and interest rates to swing wildly in the 1960s and 1970s. It is an outlook that includes an economic performance “unique in modern U.S. data,” with unemployment of below 4 percent expected for at least two more years and inflation remaining modest even as wages rise. And it is an outlook he feels will even survive the Trump administration’s efforts to rewrite the global trading system, a policy shift Powell said may lead to one-time price hikes, but not to persistent changes in the annual rate of inflation going forward. “This forecast is not too good to be true,” Powell told the National Associate for Business Economics, but instead “is testament to the fact that we remain in extraordinary times.” “These developments amount to a better world for households and businesses which no longer experience or even fear the scourge of high and volatile inflation.” Asked about the impact of tariffs on inflation, he replied that, so far, “we don’t see that in the data.” Powell spoke as debate among economic analysts and investors has begun turning toward a central question: Will the current low rate of unemployment inevitably doom a near decade-long expansion by driving inflation to levels the Fed will have to suppress with faster and higher than expected rate increases? That’s not the view contained in the Fed’s most recent round of forecasts, which sees a hot job market, steady economic growth, steady 2 percent inflation and only modest rate increases through 2021 - as if the United States had slipped into the sort of pleasant long-run equilibrium described in textbook economic models. Seeds of Trouble But several economists here argue that the seeds of trouble have already been planted, with companies using the recent tariff hikes on steel and other goods as an excuse to raise prices more generally, and to perhaps keep doing so. At a time when Amazon announced a nationwide minimum wage increase that could put pressure on other retailers, the administration was trumpeting a trade pact with Mexico and Canada that will steer auto production to higher wage locales, and leaves in place new tariffs on steel, a key industrial input. Boston Federal Reserve bank president Eric Rosengren said the current debate over globalization was not so much a “trade war” but “more of a supply chain war” that could take years to sort out as companies shift around production to higher-cost locales to escape tariffs on imports from China. “Big importers will tell you it is not that easy to change...It becomes a real risk if all of a sudden you are not sure what your price is going to be,” he said on Monday. Catherine Mann, global chief economist at Citigroup and former chief economist at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, said the spark could be lit early next year. The costs of adjusting to tariffs and to trade uncertainty “gives firms cover to say, ‘I’m going to raise my prices,’” she told the NABE annual conference. “I’m timing it for the beginning of the year,” Mann said, when a windfall from this year’s tax cuts fade. Powell, in his remarks, said the Fed is not blind to the possible “revenge” of prices rising as they have before during times of sustained low unemployment. The central bank is guarding against that with its current, gradual interest rate increases, and will respond “with authority” if an inflationary mindset threatens to take hold. But he noted that many current and past Fed officials, himself among them, had warned in the years following the 2007 to 2009 financial crisis that falling unemployment and the Fed’s printing of trillions of dollars of new money would unhinge inflation at any moment. It never happened, and he said there is no reason now to expect it will. “I am glad to be able to stand here and say that the economy is strong, unemployment is near 50-year lows, and inflation is roughly at our 2 percent objective,” Powell said. “The baseline outlook for forecasters inside and outside the Fed is for more of the same.”

I can tell you for a fact that 4MR334P21 is indeed the Mack part number.

You want a new coaxially dampened ceramic button Spicer. Mack model number CL7984 (part number 11HB59P120) (9 spring / 6 paddle 15.5'" discs) Spicer number 108935-94 reference: https://www.stemontreal.com/cat/Eaton-Fuller-Clts/Clts-Mack-App-Guide.pdf

What's the number you're seeing?

Diesel News Australia / September 2018 After being shown at an expo next week, there will be an example of Iveco’s Electric Acco on the road. The new truck will be an Australian-first, an operational Iveco Acco waste truck, not powered by traditional diesel but by battery electric power. The joint project between waste body equipment manufacturer, Superior Pak and Australian electric drivetrain manufacturer SEA Electric, will see the Acco enter full service shortly after the expo with WM Waste Management Services. Superior Pak have the exclusive distributorship for the vehicle within the Australian Waste Industry. Powering the truck is a SEA-Drive 180 electric driveline featuring 220kWh NMC (nickel manganese cobalt oxide) batteries, which provides the vehicle with a range of approximately 250km at full GVM (up to 23.5 tonnes) along with a limited top speed of 100km/h. The vehicle features a 22kW on-board charger allowing the truck to be plugged-in and charged from any three-phase power source. Battery charging time from totally flat to full charge is reckoned to be approximately eight hours. Battery longevity is calculated at 3,500 charge cycles. The first truck off the production line is a special order featuring a two-in-one body incorporating an industrial cage with electric ramp for picking up white goods and similar heavy items, while at the rear is a more traditional compactor body, it will be used on a hard waste collection with the City of Casey in Melbourne. “We’ve had a similar electric powered collection vehicle operating in New Zealand for some time now, and the owners are very pleased with the performance,” said Rob Wrigley, Superior Pak Managing Director. “The payback on the vehicle is attractive as is the low operating costs and lower total cost of ownership. “So when the idea came to develop a vehicle for Australia we again looked at the Iveco Acco platform. The Acco is such an icon of the industry and we’re already extremely familiar working with this platform, so our choice of truck was easy. “Being locally manufactured was another consideration for us in using the Acco, as the build process was more streamlined and we could also offer the market a complete, Australian designed and built, turn-key solution.” Iveco’s production line can provide Superior Pak and SEA Electric with a ‘glider’, essentially this is a complete cab chassis minus the driveline and associated equipment such as exhaust, fuel tanks, traditional battery boxes and related items. “These vehicles normally operate on known fixed routes where their travel range can be managed,” said Tony Fairweather, SEA Electric Group Managing Director. “The work is also ‘back to base’ in nature, meaning that at the end of a route, the vehicle has completed the job and can then be fully charged before the next working day.” .

Cloudy but no rain. https://weather.com/weather/5day/l/USPA0925:1:US

“This isn’t a revolutionary deal. It’s a modification of a deal already in place,” said Eric Winograd, senior U.S. economist at AllianceBernstein, an investment and research firm. “The total economic impact will be very small. I do not expect it to boost the U.S. economy.” “We see this rebranded NAFTA agreement as a marketing exercise,” said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at MUFG Union Bank. “The harsh war of words from Trump’s economics team terrified markets, consumers and businesses for a time, but what the U.S. actually got was much more modest than what the angry war of words seemingly demanded.” Lorenzo Caliendo, an economics professor at Yale University’s School of Management who co-authored a NAFTA study published in 2015 that concluded each American had gained about $45 a year from that treaty, said the new agreement would “clearly not” return significant numbers of manufacturing jobs to the United States.

RT / October 1, 2018 A fiery speech by an Iranian representative, responding to Saudi accusations at the UN General Assembly, blamed terrorist activity around the globe on Riyadh – and even quoted Hillary Clinton to back that up. Accusing Iran of supporting terrorism was a “strange and outlandish claim” by Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir the Iranian representative said. He was addressing the United Nations in Arabic, explaining that he was doing so in order “to make sure that our position is rendered clear” to Riyadh. “Everybody knows that Saudi Arabia supports terrorism in a very blatant and widespread manner,” the diplomat said. He then added, unexpectedly, that “in the framework of WikiLeaks in 2009, Hillary Clinton is said to have stated that Saudi Arabia is the greatest donor to terrorist groups around the world.” WikiLeaks did publish a memo by Clinton – which she put together in 2009, while being the US Secretary of State – that said that “donors in Saudi Arabia constitute the most significant source of funding to Sunni terrorist groups worldwide… Saudi Arabia remains a critical financial support base for Al-Qaida, the Taliban… and other terrorist groups.” Tehran accuses Riyadh of being responsible for terrorist attacks “in the Middle East, north Africa and Europe” as well as of backing Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and Al-Qaeda.

Renault chief says governments have ‘condemned’ diesel Financial Times / October 1, 2018 Changing government policies over diesel have “condemned” the fuel by leaving car buyers afraid of feeling “trapped” with vehicles they cannot sell, the chief executive of Renault has warned. Carlos Ghosn, who heads the global alliance of Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, said on Monday that consumers buy cars based on price, running cost and resale value and “do not care” what engine their vehicles have. “They use common sense. Governments decide to support diesel, then the consumer goes in that direction,” he told an audience in Paris on the eve of the Paris Motor Show. “When governments give signals that it’s not good, they are going to stop incentives, stop using diesel cars in cities, consumers are saying ‘why should I buy diesel car to find myself trapped three to four years down the road with something that is a big investment’.” He added: “Diesel is condemned because policymakers have condemned diesel. That is it.” Governments across Europe had incentivised diesel technology as a way of lowering CO2 emissions, because the fuel is about 20 per cent more efficient than petrol. But many have begun phasing out incentives, or proposed banning the fuel type outright, following concerns over inner-city air quality, an issue linked to nitrogen oxide (NOx) fumes from older diesel cars. Concerns over the extent of diesel pollution were also raised by the 2015 Volkswagen scandal, when the carmaker admitted to selling 11m cars worldwide that emitted far higher levels of NOx on the road than in laboratory tests. Paris wants to ban all diesel cars from the centre of the city as soon as 2024, while several cities in Germany have begun banning older diesel cars in their most polluted streets. The public’s appetite for the fuel has also collapsed, with diesel’s market share falling from more than 50 per cent to about a third of sales. Carmakers are planning to phase out diesel engines, with Nissan, Toyota and Fiat Chrysler all killing off diesel from passenger cars in the coming years. Renault will halve the number of diesel cars it offers, Mr Ghosn said. “We have to follow the technology but at the same time listen to political trends . . . because those trends will define which technologies will win,” he said. In a barb at the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, he used her plans to ban diesel cars from the French capital as an example of the kind of policies condemning diesel and influencing consumer choices. Mr Ghosn’s comments come in the week that the European Parliament votes on tough new rules that will force the car industry to cut CO2 emissions by 2030. While the industry wants a 20 per cent by the end of the next decade, some countries are pushing for a 30 per cent reduction, which would be much more difficult to achieve. Carmakers already have to reduce CO2 emissions by 2020 or face significant fines, a goal that is spurring the launch of electric cars across Europe over the next two years.

Matt Cole, Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) / October 1, 2018 More than 28,000 International trucks are included in two separate recalls announced recently by Navistar, according to documents from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Continental Tire also announced a recall of approximately 2,000 commercial truck tires. The largest of the two Navistar recalls affects 26,288 trucks equipped with Cummins ISX15 or X15 diesel engines. In certain driving conditions, such as on a long downhill grade, the fuel line may burst if the fuel pump cooling circuit screen becomes restricted. This is the same issue that prompted Daimler Trucks North America to recall 4,500 trucks. Affected International trucks include: 2017-2018 International 9900I 2017-2019 International HX 2017-2019 International LoneStar 2018-2019 International LT 2017 International PayStar 2017-2018 International ProStar Cummins will notify owners of affected trucks. A remedy for the recall is still being developed. Affected truck owners can contact Navistar customer service at 1-800-448-7825 or Cummins customer service at 1-800-286-6467. NHTSA’s recall number is 18V-588. Another recall from Navistar affects approximately 2,089 vehicles equipped with long stroke brake chambers and spring actuated parking brakes. The recall affects a number of International buses in addition to several truck models. In the affected trucks, the spring actuated parking brake may be improperly crimped to the long stroke service brake chamber, causing an air leak and the possible separation of the spring brake chamber from the service brake section. Affected trucks include: 2019 International DuraStar 2019 International HV 2019 International HX 2019 International LoneStar 2019 International LT 2019 International MV 2019 International RH 2019 International WorkStar Navistar will begin notifying owners on Nov. 6, and dealers will replace the brake chamber assemblies for free. Owners can contact Navistar customer service at 1-800-448-7825 with recall number is 18512. NHTSA’s recall number is 18V-597.

Kenworth Truck Co. Press Release / September 20, 2018 .

For design director, developing the Kenworth W990 a balance of emotions Neil Abt, Fleet Owner / September 30, 2018 When Jonathan Duncan, director of design for Kenworth Trucks, and his team set out to create the next generation of the W900, he said they were facing “more emotional than functional details.” Since its debut in 1961, the W900 had bas been a vehicle that “makes other truckers stare and nod their heads in appreciation,” he said. After working on the project for more than two years, the new W990 was unveiled Sept. 27 at the Las Vegas Speedway during an event for fleet and dealer representatives. “The Kenworth W990 represents the pride, image and freedom of trucking, and captures the spirit of what trucking is all about,” said Mike Dozier, general manager of Kenworth. The following morning, during a ride-and-drive event for journalists at the nearby Kenworth Sales Las Vegas dealership, Duncan said every step of the process focused maintaining the “wow factor” from the W900, while trying to improve it. “Balancing the legacy with true innovation was really rewarding for our design team,” Duncan said. He called the grill the “face of the new W990” and discussed how the hood complements the stainless steel air intakes. The bumper-to-back measures 131.5-inches - 1.5 inches longer than the existing W900L. The cab is based on the T680 and T880, so there are eight more inches between the seats, making it easier to move around the cab. The mirrors were lowered for better visibility and the bolt-on fender makes it easier to get on and off. Kurt Swihart, Kenworth’s marketing director, said the W990 is viewed by many fleets as an important component of their driver recruiting and retention programs. He called it a “reward truck,” with an exterior that displays pride and small details on the inside that drivers appreciate. That feeling was shared by Kyle Cousins, vice president of operations of Fleetnor Bros., who was on hand to take the keys to one of the first W990s. “A well-spec’d long-hood conventional stands out in a crowd,” he said. “The big hoods get you noticed; and customers, as well as our, drivers love them. I know it’s helped in our recruiting and retention.” .

Kenworth Touts New W990 at Las Vegas Media Event Joe Antoshak, Transport Topics / September 28, 2018 Kenworth Truck Co. introduced a new long-hood conventional Class 8 tractor at a media event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sept. 27. The Kenworth W990 will be available as a day cab as well as with 40-inch flat top and 52-inch and 76-inch midroof sleeper configurations. Standard power will come from a Paccar MX-13 engine, with ratings up to 510 horsepower and 1,850 pound-feet of torque. Standard equipment includes Paccar’s proprietary 12-speed automated transmission and 40K tandem rear axles. “We are passionate about our products, our customers that depend on them, and the drivers that operate them,” Mike Dozier, Kenworth general manager and Paccar vice president, said in a news release. “We know that there are many customers and drivers out there who share our passion.” The new truck is built on the same 2.1-meter cab platform used in the Kenworth T680 and T880, with style options including a limited edition cab and sleeper interior, and the W990 Driver’s Studio package of premium options. “The Kenworth W990’s excellent performance, classical styling, premium finishes and lifestyle amenities underscore a sense of driver achievement and pride,” Dozer said. “We are driven to provide the best equipment in the industry to get the job done.” Audio entertainment components include a 320-watt amp, 10-inch subwoofer and eight speakers. A swivel TV mount can accommodate up to a 28-inch flat screen, and prewire for satellite TV is an option. The Driver’s Studio offers a 180-degree swivel passenger seat and rotating table for two, a refrigerator and a space that can fit a microwave. The sleeper boasts ample LED lighting, and under the lower bunk there is room for a full-size wardrobe, multiple drawers and more storage. The W990 also features an 1,800-watt inverter that includes shore power connection and four standard 120-volt sleeper outlets. The truck is standard with Kenworth’s TruckTech+ remote diagnostics system, and the Kenworth NAV+HD 7-inch in-dash display gives access to truck-specific navigation, roadside assistance, vehicle data, hands-free calling, audio control, blind-spot camera inputs and the internet.

Ford to end Focus output in Argentina Paul Lienert, Automotive News / October 1, 2018 DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. plans to stop building the Focus compact car in Argentina in May 2019 as it seeks to stem losses from its operations in South America. Ford said it will continue to build Ranger compact pickups at its Pacheco plant in Argentina, which employs about 3,440 people. A spokesman said it was "too early" to say if there would be layoffs at Pacheco once the Focus ceases production, but the company was in talks with the union that represents workers at the plant. Once one of Ford's most popular models, the Focus will no longer be built in the Americas after 2019, although it is expected to continue in production in China and Europe, where redesigned versions were just introduced. Ford said South American customers, like their counterparts in North America, are increasingly choosing SUVs and crossovers over traditional passenger cars like the Focus. The U.S. automaker, meanwhile, is discussing joint vehicle development with Germany's Volkswagen Group in Europe and South America. Last week, Pablo Di Si, chief executive for Volkswagen in Latin America, told Reuters the companies are studying a partnership in Brazil and the talks are "advancing positively." In a statement on Monday, Ford said it is evaluating "multiple alternative investment projects" in South America, where "a significant redesign of our business model is required to determine where and how we should participate" in the market. VW currently builds a Ranger-size pickup called the Amarok at its own plant in Pacheco and said last year that it plans to add a new SUV, the Tarek, in 2019. Ford may add one or two new crossovers to its Pacheco plant in 2021-2021, according to a supplier source familiar with the automaker's plans. The two companies previously shared vehicle development and assembly in South America in a joint venture called Autolatina, that was dissolved in 1995. General Motors said earlier this year it was planning for long-term profitability in South America, built on the back of draconian cost cutting and the introduction in 2019 of the same low-cost vehicles it is developing for Chinese consumers. Ford earlier this year stopped building the Focus in Michigan, blaming declining U.S. demand for passenger cars. In late August, it also scrapped a plan to import a version of the next-generation Focus from China because of the prospect of higher U.S. tariffs.

With NAFTA redo, Trump claims victory for hardball trade tactics Eric Kulisch, Automotive News / October 1, 2018 WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump on Monday touted a new North American trade agreement as not only a victory for U.S. companies and workers, but also validation of an aggressive policy approach built on threatening trading partners with tariffs to exact concessions. Recent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports -- as well as the threat of tariffs on autos and higher duties on all goods if the U.S. exercised its right to terminate NAFTA -- got Canada's and Mexico's attention, forcing them to make concessions, Trump said in a televised address from the White House's Rose Garden to promote the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The replacement for NAFTA would raise the threshold for regional content in autos crossing North American borders duty-free and add stricter labor standards in the auto trade, including a minimum wage for some products. Canada, which has long supported the labor provisions as a way to defend against the flight of factory jobs, agreed to open up its market further to U.S. dairy products. "Without tariffs we wouldn't be talking about a deal," the president said, comparing lawmakers and others who feared tariffs would backfire to "babies" lacking the stomach to confront trading partners that don't provide reciprocal market access to U.S. exports. Trump said tariffs also provide negotiating leverage in other trade disputes. "Because of the power of tariffs, in many cases, we won't even have to use them," he said. "And in many cases, countries that are charging massive tariffs are eliminating them." In the past two months, he said, the European Union, Japan and India have reached out to the U.S. to start negotiations designed to address their respective trade surpluses with the U.S. Japan talks Last week, the U.S. and Japan announced the start of trade talks. Trump claimed Japan had refused to talk about opening its market to U.S. goods until he threatened a "very substantial tax" on Japanese auto imports, although Japan had negotiated with the U.S. on the multilateral Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement before Trump withdrew from the deal upon taking office. The European Union, Trump said, was unwilling to loosen protections on domestic markets until "I said we're going to put a tax of 20 percent on all the millions of Mercedes and BMWs that they sell here." Trump recently suggested tariffs on the EU should be imposed even if regulatory barriers fall away because Europeans don't have a cultural affinity for American brands. "Billions and billions" of dollars would flow into U.S. coffers, he said. Steel tariffs not lifted The U.S. did not lift steel tariffs on Canada and Mexico as part of the new trilateral deal, but Trump and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said talks are underway on a compromise that could involve replacing tariffs with quotas. The 25 percent tariffs on imported steel have significantly added to production costs for automakers as the price of steel from all sources has surged more than 30 percent. "We are not going to allow our steel industry to disappear," Trump said. "It was almost gone. I don't want plants closing." U.S. Steel, Nucor and other domestic producers have announced plant expansions this year. "They're hiring thousands of workers. I'm not giving that up," the president said. Other tariffs The Trump administration is studying the possibility of imposing wholesale tariffs of up to 25 percent on imported autos and auto parts on the grounds of a potential national security threat they pose and the need to protect a domestic auto manufacturing base. Japan and the EU are under a moratorium from any potential tariffs while trade talks continue, but the White House has made clear they could be imposed if its conditions aren't met. German automakers exported 657,000 vehicles to North America last year, with total exports of vehicle components, cars, engines, as well as secondhand vehicles totaling $36.4 billion in 2016, according to the German auto industry association VDA. U.S. Commerce Department figures show the U.S. imported 1.16 million new vehicles from the European Union in 2017, of which 491,587 were from Germany. On a dollar basis, the U.S. imported $42.8 billion worth of vehicles from the EU, while the value of exports to the region was $8.6 billion.

Say what you will, I thought Franken was very effective, based on what I observed on C-SPAN. Pelosi (age 78) and Waters (age 80) both should have retired long ago.

Franken resigned in January, ten months ago.

Who is "frankenstein" ?

They copied the idea from Galpin Ford, who does it best. https://www.galpinford.com/horselesscarriage/

Would you like fries with that EcoSport? Michael Martinez, Automotive News / October 1, 2018 A concept imagined 20 years ago is finally bearing fruit — and vegetables and cheese and meats — at Marcotte Ford in Holyoke, Mass. The family-owned dealership recently underwent an $8 million renovation, nearly doubling its size to 40,000 square feet. But despite the glistening new showroom and well-equipped service center, the main attraction isn't an F-150 or Mustang — it's LugNutz Cafe. The full-fledged diner, which serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday, has increased sales and improved morale within the company, dealership leaders say. A version of the cafe existed in the old showroom but only served breakfast two days a week. The idea was thought up 20 years ago by Bryan Marcotte, who trademarked the name in 2014, according to his son, Mike Marcotte, the dealership's president. He said his father, now treasurer at Marcotte Ford, got the idea after reading in Automotive News about a dealership that served breakfast. "It's something that's kind of unique," Mike Filomeno, the general manager, said. "People who have to go to the dealership, it's like the dentist — you don't want to do it. Now, it's not a task or chore that they dread anymore. They enjoy coming down." The dealership hired a consultant who owns a restaurant in the area to help design the diner. It's open to the public in addition to dealership customers and employees and is staffed by two full-time and two part-time workers. The menu features Ford-themed food, such as the Galaxy Salad, Explorer Omelets and a number of pizzas labeled GT Specialties, Filomeno said. Everything is priced under $10. "It's a bigger draw than the new dealership right now," Mike Marcotte said. The rest of the dealership, which opened last month and has a grand opening planned for the fall, is worth talking about, too, he said. Marcotte sells about 1,500 new, used and fleet vehicles per year and employs 114 workers, who needed more space. They had been in the same building since 1967, six years after it was founded by Mike Marcotte's grandfather, Al Marcotte. "We just outgrew the facility based on what's going on in the marketplace," Filomeno said. "We knew we had to change to stay in business, survive and grow." The team traveled to showrooms near Ford's headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., to see the latest facility improvements and design styles that Ford was implementing before it embarked on the 14-month project. Marcotte tore down its 25,000-square-foot showroom to make way for the new building. During construction, the team moved into a former Hyundai dealership building across the street that Marcotte purchased. That space will be used for its commercial sales department, and the showroom will feature F-series trucks and Transit vans. "That enabled us to have a home and keep business going," Filomeno said. "It was a struggle in service, but we didn't miss a beat in sales." Marcotte now has 48 service bays across the campus, which includes the commercial truck center, a car wash and a separate Quick Lane facility. It also has a 120-vehicle rental fleet with 2016 to 2018 model-year vehicles. The renovated dealership features a drive-in service area with new lifts, equipment, flooring and exhaust systems. It also has a computer room for technicians to take Ford's online certification classes. "They're upbeat, really excited to have a new workplace," Filomeno said of the workers. "They're proud of where they're working. We see an uptick in their attitude." The new showroom is opening as Ford prepares for a product blitz in North America. The automaker is dropping all of its cars except for the Mustang and reinvesting in its SUVs, crossovers, pickups and vans as it attempts to offer the industry's freshest lineup by 2020. Over the next two years, Ford will redesign its Escape and Explorer crossovers and introduce off-road utilities to better compete with brands such as Jeep. That should help Marcotte, Filomeno said, because it sells a large number of four-wheel-drive vehicles, which are popular during East Coast winters. The EcoSport, launched this year, has also been a big seller, Filomeno said. And officials expect high demand for the upcoming Ranger midsize pickup and Bronco off-road SUV. "We're excited about what's coming down the pike," he said. "We're making a huge investment, and we're totally committed to Ford and all the products." .

What's behind Hackett's new strategy at Ford? Michael Martinez, Automotive News / October 1, 2018 DETROIT — Ford Motor Co.'s stock price has tumbled into single digits, analysts have publicly questioned its communication strategies and grasp of today's industry, and its credit rating is back on the brink of junk status. A decade after the automaker's brush with collapse, clouds of uncertainty have settled over Ford World Headquarters again. An abrupt CEO change 16 months ago — the second time Henry Ford's great-grandson has installed an automotive novice to protect his family's legacy — has done little to appease shareholders and analysts. Outside Ford, and among some within it, there is mounting impatience with $9 shares and the vagueness of the vision that CEO Jim Hackett has articulated thus far. Up on the 12th floor, Hackett admits that some organizational changes have taken about four months longer than he would have liked. But he bristles at the notion that Ford isn't moving fast enough, the stated flaw that felled his predecessor. "We're addressing some long-term issues, and we're going to do those in very thoughtful and orderly ways — not chaotic ways," he told Automotive News last week. "We're not in a crisis. The company's in great shape." Interviews with a half-dozen senior executives last week revealed new details of how the company is implementing Hackett's transformation plan, which includes new vehicle architectures, redesigned product lineups, a shortened order-to-delivery process and revamped organizational structures around the globe. "All those things are evidence of what you would do as you're trying to make a company better," Hackett said. "It's why I'm not at all reeling from the criticism, because I know what we're doing from behind the scenes." Bill Ford, the executive chairman whose last name adorns the roof just above Hackett's office, continues to give the CEO his full-throated support. "I don't think it's even close to a crisis," Ford told reporters last week at a 100th anniversary celebration of the automaker's storied Rouge manufacturing complex. "We're still making good profitability." Those profits, which were absent the last time Ford needed to execute a turnaround plan, appear to be buying time for Hackett, who conceded that he needs to produce concrete results. Ford might have alleviated some of the concerns last week, at a long-anticipated investor day, but a few months ago, it canceled the event while signaling the need for an $11 billion global restructuring. "We're worried Ford does not have a good handle on either the operational or strategic levers of the global business," Barclays analyst Brian Johnson wrote July 26 in a blunt note to clients. Last week, Johnson wrote that, even if Ford fixes or sheds the unprofitable parts of its business, "We see little earnings upside and limited potential" for the stock price to rise considerably. Hackett said he doesn't believe the Wall Street angst is "as pervasive as represented," noting that one analyst who had been critical of him apologized in person during a visit to New York last week. He said Ford has spent the first 16 months of his tenure developing 19 "fitness projects" to improve every aspect of the business. "There's no one I know anywhere within 12 months of a company that's this old that in that short time is giving some kind of detail that answers every single question I was facing," Hackett said. "We're about action now," he said. "I've made it clear to my team we have to demonstrate results. CEOs' licenses are extended based on results. I'm not worried that they aren't there, because all [of] these things we've built." Product focus Many of those decisions center on revamping Ford's vehicle lineup by cutting failing nameplates, entering new segments and investing to redesign models that are at the end of their product life cycles. "There's nothing in this business that great, new product can't help solve," Joe Hinrichs, Ford's president of global operations, told Automotive News. Some of the biggest product challenges have been overseas. Jim Farley, Ford's president of global markets, said the company is focused on fixing its operations in China, where it's addressing stale product with a blitz of 50 new models by 2023, and in Europe, which has become a money loser again after briefly returning to profitability. "The work we're doing in China and Europe are key to the company's financial performance," Farley said. "These launches and the growth opportunity of improving profit really come down to those products and how they land in the market." And while North America continues to generate the bulk of Ford's global profits, the company is trying new ways of ensuring it's giving customers what they want. After Kumar Galhotra was promoted to Ford's president of North America in March, he took over the 11th floor of Ford's headquarters, converting executive offices into makeshift "franchise rooms" for individual nameplates. He also created meeting rooms to bring together communication, manufacturing, purchasing and customer-service teams that previously worked in different buildings. The idea is to treat each vehicle as its own business and focus on how to make it profitable as the company strives for 10 percent profit margins in the region. "How do we truly, as a team, drive the business?" Galhotra asked during an exclusive tour of the franchise rooms. "After a lot of thought, we settled on driving it through product lines. We're going to move fast and be clear in our objectives." Wednesday meetings There are 13 rooms, one for each vehicle line. Galhotra and his team spend an hour in each room beginning every Wednesday, working their way through Ford's portfolio from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a one-hour break. The meetings routinely spill over into Thursday, and then the group starts each Friday with two hours at Ford's fledgling campus in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood, where work on electric and autonomous vehicles is being concentrated. Afterward, leadership team members meet back at headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., to review whether they reached their goals for the week. Inside the franchise rooms, sheets of data cover the walls, detailing every aspect of a particular model with brightly colored charts and graphs. Each vehicle has a thermometer that's filled in to depict how close it is to annual profitability goals for each model year through 2020. (Ford provided the tour on the condition that more specific details not be shared publicly.) Some rooms have newspaper ads for competitive models tacked up. And most rooms don't have chairs. The roughly 20-person team that meets each week prefers to discuss the issues standing around a center table. "The thinking about what needs to be done and the action are happening at a much faster clock speed here in the same room," Galhotra said. "The objectives are clear." The new format has helped deliver "very substantial progress" on vehicle profitability, Galhotra said, although he declined to elaborate. "We've been able to overcome substantial headwinds like commodity prices and tariffs," he said. "We've improved margins versus where we thought we were going to be." One recent Wednesday, the team was cooped up in the Expedition room trying to figure out why dealers were complaining about low inventory, even though the SUV's days-supply level was normal. After looking at the data, the team determined that Expeditions built with 8-inch touch screens were turning fast, while those with 4-inch screens stayed on dealer lots much longer. Galhotra's team immediately decided to stop installing 4-inch screens and build more Expeditions with the 8-inch screens. "We were able to isolate the issue and get the right product to the customer," Galhotra said. "The whole thing happened in a one-hour period." Dealer communication Executives said Ford wants to take a more active role with its dealers. After an April announcement that Ford would stop selling sedans in North America, members of its dealer council were upset they weren't involved in the move sooner. Hinrichs acknowledged the process could have been more transparent. "We could have spent a little more time explaining why we made the decision, what the ramifications of that would be and the opportunity to allocate that capital into other segments and products, especially with our dealer network," Hinrichs said. "We've listened, and we've learned from that for other announcements that we make." Ford will get a chance to show improvement this month, when roughly 5,000 members of Ford's retail network descend on Las Vegas for the company's national dealer meeting. Over the course of 28 hours, dealers will hear directly from Hackett about the direction of the company. They'll get to see new products, including the next-generation Escape and Explorer; they'll preview accessories for Ford's upcoming off-road utilities; and they'll get to drive vehicles such as the new Ranger midsize pickup and the GT supercar on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The retail network will hear from Galhotra and Mark LaNeve, Ford's vice president of U.S. marketing, sales and service, about the go-to-market strategy for the company's newest products. Ford also plans to give dealers the first glimpse of an advertising campaign debuting in the fourth quarter. "Our dealers are solidly behind our leadership and the company," LaNeve said. "I feel like we have solid roots to grow the tree." Work to do Hackett, known as a big thinker who tackles problems from a high-level view, admitted his leadership style may take a while to catch on. "My history has been that I can cause a confrontation of ideas — not necessarily people — and it takes time to work its way through," he said. "At the highest levels of the company, the temperature's much better. As you go down in the organization, there's still angst and lack of understanding, which is a test for how effective I can be in communicating and leading. I know that gestation period takes longer." Bill Ford last week said he's pleased with his CEO's performance and decision-making speed. Asked to compare the company's current struggles with past rough periods, he said the automaker is still operating from a relatively strong financial position. "Do we have work to do? Yes, we do," Ford said. "But we're investing heavily in the product, we're investing heavily in the future and there's really nothing we want to do that we can't do." Hackett said he has a "quiet confidence" that every decision executives are making now eventually will help improve Ford's sagging stock price. "There's a myth that says I'm only worried about the vision stuff," he said. "I was brought in because I know how to make the two work well — the current business and the evolving state. "I would never make it in my last job if all I did was sit around and dream. It's about designing a business to win." .