I dont know how they managed..i was told but forgot. Sadly, business friends here had to shut down, Shetler Lincoln Merc and sell Don Shetler Ford because of $$$$ economy issues. But soon after all was good with Ford...but forgot how they managed to stay afloat. I'll be sure to ask my brother about thier bailout if so and get back to you with what I find out.

 

I talked to my brother (he's friends and business partners with these Ford Dealer guys) this morning and he reminded me that Ford did not take any bailouts but they used some of their employees funds or 401 or even gave them pay cuts or something. It was hard on the employees but they were happy that they didn't loose there jobs. But as of today, ALL Ford employees are now getting 5000k dollar bonuses for their help in saving Ford. I think they became stock holders but not sure and I think they will be getting profits or bonuses for the rest of their careers...at least the ones that took part in this. Don't quote me on this but I'm sure that the employees took part in saving Ford by pay cuts or their own retirements funds so the employees are being compensated for this by way huge big dividends because they are no longwer in the red...cudos to Ford!

 

Ford is in the best position of the big three.

GM is in a fairly decent position.

Chrysler.... They have the most issues. Here we are again... Gas going up and they STILL do not have anything worth mentioning, or should I say popular enough, for the "economy minded market". I know they are working on it, but there will be NO MORE bail outs and time is not something they have on their side.

I hate to say it, but investing in things like, oh, a new Viper right now is something they should not be doing. If you go back to the mid 00's you will notice how Ford moved away from SVT for a couple years.... Lightning, gone. GT... history. Cobra put into hibernation... They concentrated on the money makers/high vloume stuff. Now they can crank out things like Raptors, GT500s, Taurus SHO, ect since they have a strong high volume money making part of the market.... Wonder when the Ford's will figure out how to run a football team though?

I really think you will see a major car company fold some time this decade (or be bought out by one of the others), and I am affraid it could be Chrysler.

 

Well Said. I agree.

 

Chryslers biggest problem has always been quality and price ever since I can remember. Even in todays era, both Chevy and Ford far surpass Chrysler in quality performance engines. The only engine Chrysler ever produced with race ready quality parts and at a good price was the SS 426 R Hemi. Chrysler has NEVER built an engine that could compare or hold up to a ZO6, or a Ford built and designed by both their racing teams for street cars. Look at Chevy's 50th year small block anniversary engine...it sold for 8k dollars with all race quality parts rated at over 500hp and it's a collectors item. Chrysler builds a collectors item Drag Pac with junk quality that doesn't even come with a rear end or anything that could hold up past 500hp and call it an unstreetable Drag Pac. The ONLY reason they can justify the cost is because it WILL be a collectors item and that sux! What really boggles my mind is how they can get away with selling you a stripped down version of the Challenger and sell it for twice the price when you can build your own DP at cost less. I think Fiat is eventually going to put an end to that **** as long as they have something to do with it or in the pic. The only thing that's gonna save Chrysler's Challenger is the new and improved 2011 SRT8 and low price aluminum 426 crate for their muscle. And it is a good price compared to even an Arrington build (high quality) when you consider that it is an aluminum block and still priced lower. Arringtons 15k 426 or 440 cast iron plus 3k core charge (18k) would go up a couple of thousand extra for the aluminum block build. So 13,700 is a damn good price considering...cudos to Chrysler for a good build for a reasonable price. But in the future, they need to do away with the junk 5.7 Challenger build and stick with the 6.4 and 426 only for performance RT line to save the Hemi. And last, it seems to me that Chrysler still hasn't repaired their customer service reputation and that should be that number one first priority. I can vouch for that...I owned a 79 Dodge Aspen (for the wife), 79 and 80 Ram (work and play) all under warranty and less than two years old at purchase except for 79 Ram I bought from my bro when he switched to Toyota because of customer service. A used 80 Ford one ton van (work) under warranty (great service), and then new 92 Astro cargo van for me and 93 LT for the wife, and new 94 Silverado, 98 and then 99 Silverado (5.3/373 gear special order stepside) as my last brand new vehicles before purchasing my 09 Ram. All of my Chevys had terrific customer service and no hassles. These were all new or under warranty vehicles except for the one from my brother that he sold because of his poor customer service from Chrysler. That doesn't count my used vehicles or Ford, Chevy, Dodge and Plymouth race cars so I experienced tons of customer service. My 09 Ram dealer has been good to me so far but I haven't had any warranty issues to judge yet so I can only hope for the best...we'll see. So they had better be working on an eco PACKAGE (meaning plural cars) and customer service or they can forget all about staying afloat long. I agree that with Ford employees having a stake in stocks, they're going to quality build them as it was for their personal use and most likely sink Chrysler. But that being said, this is a Dodge forum and I still hate Ford...they SUCK, lol!

 

On a side note (or back on topic)... The Four Wheeler Magazine- 2011 Pickup Truck Of The Year is... the 2011 Ford F-150 S.V.T. Raptor SuperCab 6.2L!!!

Now, before the Ford trash talk starts again, take a moment to think about it. Dodge/Ram owners should be happy. This means that this truck, as well as the Ram Power Wagon, is a success. Hopefully, Ram (Power Wagon), as well as Ford and General Motors, will look at this as proof that there is a strong market for these off-roading machines. Let's cross our fingers and hope that the companies use this information as a business case to improve, or come out with more choices of, performance trucks. Competition improves the breed, as they say!

 

And that is why the Ford F-Series, has been the best selling vehicle (car or truck) for over 20 years...the best selling truck for over 30 years...why Ford Explorer was the best selling sport utility for many years...why Ford Taurus was the best selling passenger car for many years...why Mustang has been the best selling pony car...etc... Do not get me started on the most popular; ambulances, contractor/commercial/construction fleets, police cars, taxis, tow trucks, etc...

 

Who cares...they still suck, lol!

 

Only thing I know about Ford trucks is how they look in my rear view mirror, I have to admit they look pretty good there.......

 

That is going to change with the 2011 F-150 with the 3.5L V6 and 6.2L V8 engines! I hope you like reading vanity plates on the back of trucks...like, "BLEWBYU".