Post 2016, what would you think the rwd Falcon would survive better as (or better suited to being), a mainstream family sedan, or a premium vehicle?
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Post 2016, what would you think the rwd Falcon would survive better as (or better suited to being), a mainstream family sedan, or a premium vehicle?
As much as it pains me to admit it the RWD platform for a family sedan is heading the way of the dinosaurs. Yes, I know, I've been called one by my kids many times! LOL.
However there will always be a demand I believe for a RWD performance sedan/coupe as BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar, Aston, etc etc. The problem for Australia is whether there is enough market demand here for a locally grown product of that ilk. Let's hope Falcon can survive and be that car. Those of us who demand and will drive ONLY that type of vehicle may well be faced with going the M5 route ... or whatever. There will most likely not be a local product available to us in 5-10 years time ... if that long in fact.
Again with much pain I can see the Japs stepping up into this field to compete against the Euros. Remember it's easier for them as they are already a RHD country so a few extra cars off their mainstream production line to ship over here is cheap competition in their eyes.
I think if they get the GRWD program right it can survive as both. The everyday family car will be able to survive in the Ecoboost mould. It appears to be a great car delivering good performace and fuel economy. It has already been used overseas so the economies of scale makes sense. There will always be a V8 in the Ford stable and you would think that it would also be able to slot onto this chassis. It would then allow for FPV styled cars. In the States it would certainly make sense for Lincoln badged cars or a performance arm for Ford there. The difference between our cars may only be sheetmetal and a few interior changes. You would think that tech would hopefully be similar once again. More volume would make it easier to fit.
Niche. The market is telling us they are no longer interested in large RWD sedans for run of the mill duties.
Agreed. Australia was unique in having a large traditionasl sedan/wagon as it's best seller. The USA had pick ups as there best seller for many years, but medium sized cars Camry / Accord / Taurus now battle for the best seller. Everywhere else the best seller is a small cheap car. And logically it should be the volume seller.Quote:
Originally Posted by Road_Warrior
That said it quite possible that Ford will sell less RWD sedans than the combined efforts of BMW & Mecedes Benz. Companies with and average sell price of double that of a Falcon. Something unthinkable even 5 years ago.
So Niche it is. You can't out cheap the cheapies from Asia. New Falcon (for want of a better name to call it) needs to be a luxo / sports model with exceptional value for money - but no longer the volume model.
Success for FoA would be to build GRWD Falcon/Lincoln and export to the USA. That would add some Halo effect to the local car and return it to being the car to have.
Well, it would need to have some sort of export opportunity to support a business case for developing an all new one. On current volumes, that support isnt there, but neither is an export opportunity.
Sure, they could add a third vehicle line to Broady to "subsidise" a new Falcon, but it really needs to be able to stand on its own, from an economics perspective.
But what we are unequivocally saying is that it appears investment and direction points to ongoing manufacturing of something? Is that right?
Yes. In fact, I would say it is more certain than a RWD Falcon after 2016.Quote:
Originally Posted by HSE2
I guess it depends what we call 'mainstream' and 'niche'. regardless of what car gets built here (or even imported), if its a large sedan, its sales figures won't be a lot better than what large sedans are selling for now. commodore is selling about 2500/month give or take and falcon is around 1100/month give or take. camry sells a few more (still less than commodore) but it is priced a lot cheaper. australia has more choice in the auto market than any other country in the world, and given our population is on the smaller side, that is very unique and a big reason why sales of some segments are drying up. if you are looking at spending $40k on a family car, the options are much larger than commodore or falcon which once upon a time was all there was. so even if the post 2016 car has a lot of goodies and is priced competitively, i'd guess it will still struggle to average 2000 units/month. the beauty is, it should be a global car, or at least have many shared components so the costs will be spread far and wide rather than just here.
personally i think ford should still aim to make it what it is today. another option for families to choose, rather than a 'niche' vehicle. it just opens it up to a bigger market, and if it is a global car it should have a lot of attractive features.
Something between the Focus and Mondeo in interior room and sale price?Quote:
Originally Posted by prydey
A smaller RWD sharing some lighter design and components with Mustang?