From HJ test .... "But as soon as they found out it was a Ford, badge snobbery and the fear of massive depreciation would start getting in the way. Ford has addressed that by raising specification levels, reducing ?list? prices and cutting fleet discounts. Instead of churning out fields of LXs for rental fleets they are concentrating on high spec cars to order."
So Ford's new policy didn't last long! As previous model, a great second-hand buy.
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My best mate can't wait for the used models to come on stream (after the initial batch or two to hopefully ensure any bugs have been ironed out).
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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>>And Ford might manage to stop this. They did when a couple of brokers came up with mega discounts on the Focus ST
Can't they just cut the discount off at source - after they control what they sell them for to anyone don't they -
If it's 18% discount from the er, discounter, what are Ford selling them for?
It would seem once the 'cat's out of the bag' (or Pandora's box is opened to you more literary!) it would
seem difficult to reverse it, no?
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I thought Genk was running flat out to meet the demad for S-Max and Galaxy, so why the need to discount the Mondeo, especially so soon - I haven't seen any yet. Unless it's just a bit of publicity on the part of the broker?
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The badge devalues any car, GT40 excepted. If it was marketed as a Jagwah or something from Sweden then it would be a sensation.
The Mondeo demonstrates that the real value of a second hand car has nothing to do with what it can offer, and everything to do with perceived value. Long may it continue.
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The badge devalues any car GT40 excepted. If it was marketed as a Jagwah or something from Sweden then it would be a sensation.
My something from Sweden cost me £7k at 3.5 years old with 50k miles, against a £26k original list price.
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That's quite an achievement, perhaps my perception of Swedish residuals dates back to the time before the marque was tainted.
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>>dates back to the time before the marque was tainted.>>
Or General Motors became involved?
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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The only reason for buying a Ford (IMO) is that you can get a good car at a handsome discount. If this is likely to be limited then for me my money's going elsewhere.
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And now £1400 off new model Skoda Fabias, bringing them under £7,000!
With new cars this cheap is it any wonder that:
A. Used car values fall so much.
B. The roads are so busy as (almost) everyone shuns public transport.
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The OP nicked my idea, I was going to post on the discounts offered on mondeos, like the one to the right of the page offering £3,500 discount (now old news).
In most articals I read ford promised not to discount the cars, and before I see the first one on the roads they are offering 18% off! Pah.
What I can't understand here is why ford don't just cut the list prices by 18%? it would make the discounters go away, provide good headline figures for price comparasons and defeat the bugbear of depreation all in one swoop.
I think ford is trying to make the car a premuim model, and knows it has an image problem, like skoda (used to??). Ford thus needs high list prices to compete with the likes of audi and mercedes.
Ford should abandon this approach since it will not be able to shift brand values by making the list prices high (since it shoots itself in the foot doiing so by discounting and therefore has problems with deprecation). Instead ford should try to say they make cars as good as mercedes, but at 2/3's of the price. As long as ford sells lots of city and small cars it will never be an aspirational brand.To make the mondeo work, first Ford needs to make the new Ka like the MINI etc.
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Torque means nothing without RPM
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But why invest in all that R&D and still place that badge on it? Mundanos have always run rings around the opposition in every measurable field except for residuals and image. So why am I dribbling over Alfas? Can I rely on an Alfa to do 30k per annum with minimal problems?
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Comparing the price positioning of Ford/GM against the more "perceived" premium brands in the UK and US is that here Ford/GM with their mainstream brands try and price very close to the lower eschelons of the BMW/Audi/Merc territory. Hence alot of buyers vote for the snob value of the perceived better brand for almost the same money. My experience of the car market in the US is that there is clear blue water between the pricing of regular mass market models and the prices charged by BMW/Mercedes often with the latter costing 30-40% more minimum and therefore you see many fewer people driving BMW/Mercs (they look alot more well heeled/older than the average BMW driver here). The pricing of regular cars there seems so competitive that making a decision to buy an imported prestige make seems to be a significant upscaling of your motoring expenditure.
Would Ford?GM make money if they list priced their cars here at say £4-6K clear of Merc/BMW?
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They need to subtly change their mono-branding obsession, imho - here are a few of my ideas:
Develop a brand differentiating logo & buying context for their more 'aspriing' model ranges:
Get rid of the word 'Ford' , especially on the front grille - keep & udate the blue oval, lose the word 'Ford' entirely,
make the blue slightly deeper & more lustrous & smaller. Keep the bread & butter car's branding the same, over
time people will begin to associate both brand images as distinct - just as Toyota do with their Lexus brand - notice the
similarity/differences in Toyota/Lexus logos?
Don't attempt, at any cost, to shift vast quantities of entry spec. upmarket models - and stick to it.
- take the hit on volumes for a few years.
Differentiate the showrooms - or better still (a la Lexus) - have separate & distinct premises for each brand.
Don't name the cars so they sound like girly mags or package holiday destinations- perhaps a flippant sounding point, but by association the Mondeo is sold alongside cars with names like escort & fiesta, probe (or as was,capri, sierra, cortina etc) - not terribly aspirational
sounding names.
Use blander (& shorter) names - think of how Audi, BMW & Mercedes have established their 'A?' , 1/2/3/7 series, & a/b/c/e/s class
naming dynasties over the years.
Ford tried the buying route to upmarketness with Jaguar - for one reason or another this hasn't worked - or not at least
in the right niche to bring long term profitablility - so why not capitilalise on the fact of their long history & racing pedigree a bit?
The Mondeo does look like a real cracker, it would be a shame to see it become just another shiny-suit mobile.
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Ford has already done this, hasn't it, by buying Jaguar and Ford and sharing platforms?
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Seems not so cheap now?
www.drivethedeal.com Offers at 31-5-2007:
Ford New Mondeo 2.0 TDCi Zetec 5dr £17205 Save £1190
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Further down the page...
FORD Mondeo 1.6 Edge 110 Petrol (New Model) £12,691.55
SAVE £2,303.45
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Further down the page... FORD Mondeo 1.6 Edge 110 Petrol (New Model) £12 691.55 SAVE £2 303.45
it was about £4.5k before I think... Don't remember the model though
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I thought the new Mondeo was supposed to be heavier than the old one ..... surely a 1.6 engine is going to be seriously underpowered?
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"..They need to subtly change their mono-branding obsession, imho - here are a few of my ideas. Develop a brand differentiating logo & buying context for their more 'aspriing' model ranges:"
Surely that's why Ford bought the Rover badge from BMW last year!
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"Surely that's why Ford bought the Rover badge from BMW last year!"
Surely you jest. They bought the brand to protect Land Rover.
I'm guessing first batch of cheaper Mondeo's were the first of the production line to get the build process right. But not surprised some discount still available on these. I'm hoping if I like the car the price on the company scheme not too bad - we have a deal direct with Ford, Vauxhall and Toyota to get discounts apparently (so get cars from these groups, i.e. Ford, Volvo, LR, Jag, VX, Saab, Toyota, Lexus, etc.)
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