This past weekend I was at the Ford dealership where I purchased my wife's new Escape a couple of months back. After picking up a few accessories at the parts department, I ran into the salesman I worked with on the Escape, and got to talking to him about the '06 Mustang. Specifically, I tried to get some information out of him that would give me at least some hope that ordering an '06 GT would not end up being the grueling experience that has been discussed so many times on this forum. What he told me did not give me cause for optimism.
Apparently Mustang availability came up at a recent dealer's meeting, and from the looks of things, Ford isn't exactly poised to dramatically "ramp-up" GT production any time soon. It seems the feeling within certain Ford circles is that the current GT supply situation is good for FoMoCo and their dealers, creating a premium price point for the car, and no need to offer factory incentives to move inventory. Additionally, the feeling within the company is that the shortage of GT's is not really driving customer's away from Ford -- it's merely driving them into V6 Mustang's instead!
Long story short, it seem's apparent to me that Ford is taking a page out of Harley-Davidson's playbook with the new Mustang in that they are keeping supply for the car somewhat below demand, which creates a "premium" around the car in terms of price point, and to a certain extent, an air of exclusivity around the car that keeps fueling interest and/or demand from the consumer!
I've already been waiting since the release of the car last fall for things to come back to normal in terms of pricing and availability, and can honestly say that I'm not really anxious to place an order in May, and hope like heck the vehicle arrives before the end of the year. Breaks my heart to admit it, but it's looking more and more like I'll be ordering that new F-150 instead of that new Mustang....
Heck.............OPEC has been doing the supply/demand manipulation thing for 35 years. My wife wanted a PT Cruiser. I refused to pay $4,500 over sticker. We waited 14 months...........still paid sticker, but saved $4,500.
I don't understand how someone can go from a sports car to a pickup truck....
Easy!
My automotive "Dream Plan" has always been to have two nice vehicles that I keep as my babies -- one pick-up and one "enthusiast" car. I will purchase each vehicle brand new, set-up just the way I want, and I will keep and maintain them to very high standards for the rest of my life.
These two vehicles will not be my daily drivers -- just "weekend cruisers" to take out and enjoy when the weather is nice! Then, what I will do is drive one for 3-months while the other is in storage, and then "flip" the cars for the next 3-month period. That way I will always have something to look forward to in driving the other vehicle for a while, and will only have to pay for insurance on one "extra" vehicle at a time!
My original plan was always to get the pick-up first, and I was actually at the dealership this past winter getting serious about ordering an F-150, when I made the "mistake" of walking by the new Mustangs and falling in love! From that point forward, I began thinking about how maybe my "enthusiast car" should actually be the first purchase in my plan.
With this in mind, I figured that if I waited until the '06 Mustangs came out, some of the craziness around the car would have subsided, and getting a GT would not be such a ridiculous process. (Translated: Place the order in good faith, and have Ford actually manufacture and deliver the damn thing as promised, within a reasonable period of time!)
So I guess if I order the F-150 instead, I'm not really changing my long-range "plan" that much -- it's just that I'm kind of disappointed that I'll probably have to wait five years until I can enjoy the Mustang! But I guess if that is the worst problem I ever have in my life, I will have had a pretty good "gig"....:thumbsup
In all honesty though, I have to admit that even though I'm a HUGE Ford fan, I'm a little disappointed in how they have handled the Mustang thing. Reading all the posts on this forum from guys who placed their orders in December or January, and now their being told, "Too bad -- your car is not going to be built. And oh, by the way, get in line with everyone else for an '06 -- and get ready to pay the higher '06 prices, even though you signed a purchase agreement in good faith for a vehicle at '05 prices!"
I mean let's be serious here folks -- the Mustang is nice and all, BUT IT'S A FORD NOT A FERRARI! I SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO DOWN TO MY LOCAL DEALER, PLACE AN ORDER, AND NOT HAVE TO WONDER IF I'LL ACTUALLY GET TO SEE THE THING BEFORE THE YEAR IS UP!
Sorry to you guys having trouble finding a GT, but this is good business and keeps the resale value up. There ARE dealers where you can just go buy one - I did so a month ago. Dream plans are usually hard to come by on very popular models. Try finding a factory rebate on a car that is selling out. Won't happen, those plans are generally used to help dealers get rid of distressed merchandise, which the GT isn't.
I'm not trying to start a flame war, and I wish you guys luck in finding the car you want at an acceptable price.
I mean let's be serious here folks -- the Mustang is nice and all, BUT IT'S A FORD NOT A FERRARI! I SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO DOWN TO MY LOCAL DEALER, PLACE AN ORDER, AND NOT HAVE TO WONDER IF I'LL ACTUALLY GET TO SEE THE THING BEFORE THE YEAR IS UP!
Sorry to you guys having trouble finding a GT, but this is good business and keeps the resale value up. There ARE dealers where you can just go buy one - I did so a month ago. Dream plans are usually hard to come by on very popular models. Try finding a factory rebate on a car that is selling out. Won't happen, those plans are generally used to help dealers get rid of distressed merchandise, which the GT isn't.
I'm not trying to start a flame war, and I wish you guys luck in finding the car you want at an acceptable price.
Oh I agree with you totally -- this is very good business for Ford. Even though I'm somewhat frustrated with the situation from a personal standpoint, I do understand that it actually is good for the car in the long run. Let's face it, if the new car had come out and sold like the old model, the Mustang could have very realistically been headed for the same place that the Camaro and the Firebird now reside!
It's more about the fact that the fiscally conservative side of me (can you really say that about a guy who is willing to purchase two new vehicles that immediately begin to depreciate just to keep around as weekend playthings?!) understands that it is not a good economic decision to be shopping for a Mustang GT right now!
My automotive "Dream Plan" has always been to have two nice vehicles that I keep as my babies -- one pick-up and one "enthusiast" car. I will purchase each vehicle brand new, set-up just the way I want, and I will keep and maintain them to very high standards for the rest of my life.
These two vehicles will not be my daily drivers -- just "weekend cruisers" to take out and enjoy when the weather is nice! Then, what I will do is drive one for 3-months while the other is in storage, and then "flip" the cars for the next 3-month period. That way I will always have something to look forward to in driving the other vehicle for a while, and will only have to pay for insurance on one "extra" vehicle at a time!
My original plan was always to get the pick-up first, and I was actually at the dealership this past winter getting serious about ordering an F-150, when I made the "mistake" of walking by the new Mustangs and falling in love! From that point forward, I began thinking about how maybe my "enthusiast car" should actually be the first purchase in my plan.
With this in mind, I figured that if I waited until the '06 Mustangs came out, some of the craziness around the car would have subsided, and getting a GT would not be such a ridiculous process. (Translated: Place the order in good faith, and have Ford actually manufacture and deliver the damn thing as promised, within a reasonable period of time!)
So I guess if I order the F-150 instead, I'm not really changing my long-range "plan" that much -- it's just that I'm kind of disappointed that I'll probably have to wait five years until I can enjoy the Mustang! But I guess if that is the worst problem I ever have in my life, I will have had a pretty good "gig"....:thumbsup
In all honesty though, I have to admit that even though I'm a HUGE Ford fan, I'm a little disappointed in how they have handled the Mustang thing. Reading all the posts on this forum from guys who placed their orders in December or January, and now their being told, "Too bad -- your car is not going to be built. And oh, by the way, get in line with everyone else for an '06 -- and get ready to pay the higher '06 prices, even though you signed a purchase agreement in good faith for a vehicle at '05 prices!"
I mean let's be serious here folks -- the Mustang is nice and all, BUT IT'S A FORD NOT A FERRARI! I SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO DOWN TO MY LOCAL DEALER, PLACE AN ORDER, AND NOT HAVE TO WONDER IF I'LL ACTUALLY GET TO SEE THE THING BEFORE THE YEAR IS UP!
Ok -- I've vented!
Dude, they're sitting on the lots here.
In holton, KS especially, there's been a maroon GT sitting for a long time on the lot, gathering dust. You can barely see the color of the car.
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Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness,his upper rooms by injustice,making his countrymen work for nothing...Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar?Did not your father have food and drink?He did what was right and just,so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy,and so all went well...But your eyes and your heart are set only on dishonest gain,on shedding innocent blood and on oppression and extortion. Jer 22:13, 15-17
Ford wants to sell cars. Ford needs to sell cars. I predict that it will be much easier to get an 06 than it was for an 05 because they played it conservative with their production schedule not knowing if the new 05 body style would be a hit or not. Since it is a hit they will crank them out in mass ext round (they are already talking of converting the defuncked Thunderbird line) but if the dealer wants to play games and act like it's a premium car then he'll soon loose out to the dealer down the street who is pushing them out the door (an 05 GT can be found if you try). Volume sales equates to more profit than just the mark-up of a few "premium" cars.......IMHO.
This past weekend I was at the Ford dealership where I purchased my wife's new Escape a couple of months back. After picking up a few accessories at the parts department, I ran into the salesman I worked with on the Escape, and got to talking to him about the '06 Mustang. Specifically, I tried to get some information out of him that would give me at least some hope that ordering an '06 GT would not end up being the grueling experience that has been discussed so many times on this forum. What he told me did not give me cause for optimism.
Apparently Mustang availability came up at a recent dealer's meeting, and from the looks of things, Ford isn't exactly poised to dramatically "ramp-up" GT production any time soon. It seems the feeling within certain Ford circles is that the current GT supply situation is good for FoMoCo and their dealers, creating a premium price point for the car, and no need to offer factory incentives to move inventory. Additionally, the feeling within the company is that the shortage of GT's is not really driving customer's away from Ford -- it's merely driving them into V6 Mustang's instead!
Long story short, it seem's apparent to me that Ford is taking a page out of Harley-Davidson's playbook with the new Mustang in that they are keeping supply for the car somewhat below demand, which creates a "premium" around the car in terms of price point, and to a certain extent, an air of exclusivity around the car that keeps fueling interest and/or demand from the consumer!
I've already been waiting since the release of the car last fall for things to come back to normal in terms of pricing and availability, and can honestly say that I'm not really anxious to place an order in May, and hope like heck the vehicle arrives before the end of the year. Breaks my heart to admit it, but it's looking more and more like I'll be ordering that new F-150 instead of that new Mustang....
At least you will get the same engine but it will probably keep someone else from getting their GT
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2006 GT Tungsten Grey 5 spd, Xcal2/Pipeline CAI, Powerhouse tune. Spoiler delete. Front Speakers:Infinity 6812CF;Blaupunkt GTc652. Rear:Infinity Kappa 682.7CF. H/U:Alpine CDA-9885. Alpine MRP-F250 amp. Sequentials. President of the Splash guard registry. On Deck: Motoblue UDP's.
At least you will get the same engine but it will probably keep someone else from getting their GT
Oh contraire -- if I get an F-150 I'll order it with the 5.4 engine!
In fact, the last time I looked, all of the F-150's on the dealer lot that had the 5.4 engine also had what was called a "Tow And Go" discount, whereby they gave you a no-cost upgrade to the 5.4 from the 4.6.
Any money says that the "Tow And Go" discount should really be called the "We're Trying To Free-Up Some More 4.6's For The Mustang GT" discount!
Ford wants to sell cars. Ford needs to sell cars. I predict that it will be much easier to get an 06 than it was for an 05 because they played it conservative with their production schedule not knowing if the new 05 body style would be a hit or not. Since it is a hit they will crank them out in mass ext round (they are already talking of converting the defuncked Thunderbird line) but if the dealer wants to play games and act like it's a premium car then he'll soon loose out to the dealer down the street who is pushing them out the door (an 05 GT can be found if you try). Volume sales equates to more profit than just the mark-up of a few "premium" cars.......IMHO.
It's more due to industrial engineering problems on the flex-production line. It's been in Autoweek, and tripleblack seems to have insider information.
Ford needs to sell as many Mustangs as it can, nothing else (except the F-150) is really selling without substantial discounts, which decrease the profit margin. Right now they're only making money on the loans through Ford Credit.
I still don't understand why they diluted the 427 Concept, and came out with the 500. They really need to put the SHO V8 in the 500 flagship to get those cars moving.
__________________
Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness,his upper rooms by injustice,making his countrymen work for nothing...Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar?Did not your father have food and drink?He did what was right and just,so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy,and so all went well...But your eyes and your heart are set only on dishonest gain,on shedding innocent blood and on oppression and extortion. Jer 22:13, 15-17
The 4.6 in the truck is a totally different animal. It's a stroked iron block torque machine.
Not according to Ford, and the card and driver magazines that I have read. They said they were not going to sacrifice the engines to the Mustang because the F150 was the moneymaker, in case there was an engine shortage.
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2006 GT Tungsten Grey 5 spd, Xcal2/Pipeline CAI, Powerhouse tune. Spoiler delete. Front Speakers:Infinity 6812CF;Blaupunkt GTc652. Rear:Infinity Kappa 682.7CF. H/U:Alpine CDA-9885. Alpine MRP-F250 amp. Sequentials. President of the Splash guard registry. On Deck: Motoblue UDP's.
Ford Doing A "Harley-Davidson" With The Mustang? 
