How we can help the Falcon

[nstg8a]

im not saying dont advertise, i just dont think in this day and age that tv ads are the most effective form of advertsing available.

[falconnut]

Toyota, Holden and other competitors seem to think it is...

[.FoMoCo.]

Originally Posted by Spammy

My commodore is screwed togther much better than my wife's Territory, my neighbour's Hyundai is better than my Commodore.

Neither the commodore or or Hyundai have rust - the Territory has lots.

Mate, ive seen plenty of commodores falling apart prematurely, diff and driveline clunks, clearcoat failure, electrical faults, coil failures, and on it goes.

Also drove a brand new i30 for 2 weeks last year, gutless, horrible gearbox, NVH levels very high, tinny construction, overrall cheap feel to it.

It's a myth about Ford's being substandard. Not sure how its gained so much traction while other brands have recalls all over the shop.

[nstg8a]

Originally Posted by .FoMoCo.

Mate, ive seen plenty of commodores falling apart prematurely, diff and driveline clunks, clearcoat failure, electrical faults, coil failures, and on it goes.

Also drove a brand new i30 for 2 weeks last year, gutless, horrible gearbox, NVH levels very high, tinny construction, overrall cheap feel to it.

It's a myth about Ford's being substandard. Not sure how its gained so much traction while other brands have recalls all over the shop.

id rank falcon and commodore as equal build quality, despite hyundais success they are still a budget brand.
compare the quality to a 'normal' brands like toyota, honda etc, even euro fords are markedly better built and specified.


imo its just part of trying to be a viable car maker in a tiny market place. costs have to be trimmed where they can.

[Spammy]

Originally Posted by .FoMoCo.

Mate, ive seen plenty of commodores falling apart prematurely, diff and driveline clunks, clearcoat failure, electrical faults, coil failures, and on it goes.

Also drove a brand new i30 for 2 weeks last year, gutless, horrible gearbox, NVH levels very high, tinny construction, overrall cheap feel to it.

It's a myth about Ford's being substandard. Not sure how its gained so much traction while other brands have recalls all over the shop.

I never said commodores don't have problems or that Hyundais drive like a rolls royce. My comment is that they are both better built than my Territory.

[.FoMoCo.]

Originally Posted by Spammy

I never said commodores don't have problems or that Hyundais drive like a rolls royce. My comment is that they are both better built than my Territory.

So therefore there's an endemic problem with Ford's QC and build quality? That arguement doesn't fly... This is what I'm talking about with this myth, I've had plenty of Ford's with no dramas. Does this mean all Ford's are perfect? Nope.

There are so many comments on this forum about how ford have dropped the ball on quality... I just don't see it.

[nstg8a]

theres plenty of owners that have complained about it, surely they are not all wrong... about a year ago a mate bought himself a terri' think it was 2-3 years old. reached in to pop the bonnet to show me the engine bay and snap, the bonnet latch comes away in his hand.
and when you look at the lever, its very thin, very light, and obviously, very britle. my fg's glove box lid feels like its made from a ice cream container, boot lid fills with water when it rains, all small things, but when you look at them as a whole it does detract from the 'feel' of the things.
on the plus side, what else could i have bought that has 290 kw, rwd and under 30k? and unless your a trainspotter, still looks like the latest model.

[mik]

Originally Posted by Spammy

My commodore is screwed togther much better than my wife's Territory, my neighbour's Hyundai is better than my Commodore.

Neither the commodore or or Hyundai have rust - the Territory has lots.

yeah but not all commys or hyundies are screwed together perfectly either, same for the toyo`s,
funnily enough if you go onto other car forums including the likes of other esteemed marque`s by some here on ford forums they whinge about the same types of issues, in fact some other brands have more gripes.

[Romulus]

Nothing will help Ford Oz more than people purchasing the local Ford product. It's as simple as that.

[mik]

Originally Posted by nstg8a

theres plenty of owners that have complained about it, surely they are not all wrong... about a year ago a mate bought himself a terri' think it was 2-3 years old. reached in to pop the bonnet to show me the engine bay and snap, the bonnet latch comes away in his hand.
and when you look at the lever, its very thin, very light, and obviously, very britle. my fg's glove box lid feels like its made from a ice cream container, boot lid fills with water when it rains, all small things, but when you look at them as a whole it does detract from the 'feel' of the things.
on the plus side, what else could i have bought that has 290 kw, rwd and under 30k? and unless your a trainspotter, still looks like the latest model.

water leaks should have been fixed under warranty,
bonnet catches are a bit prone to abuse and lack of a bonnet catch being adjusted properly or even lubed, as for problems with with your mates 3 year old car it`d be hard to know what sort of abuse or accidents it`s possibly been in,
but yes in some area`s they need to lift their game, i did a few years in a ford service dept as a young apprentice more often than not doing crappy warranty jobs, also did a year in a holden service dept, so i have seen both sides of the fence,
i have to say at times i have been disappointed to see some issues come brought up that where around in cars for both teams 30+ odd years ago still come up today, but considering the complexity of todays motor cars i still think they are pretty good.
you don`t think other brands have similar problems?, join a few other car brand forums, i`d put money on it you will be surprised at just how similar the problems are they have.

[prydey]

is anyone else amused that this thread didn't even make one page before the negative comments set in

[Resurrection]

Buy one.
Tell your family to buy one.
Tell your friends to buy one.
Tell your work colleagues to buy one.

[prydey]

as mentioned off the top, there are many of us that can't afford to buy new cars.

if i bought one new, i wouldn't be able to upgrade every couple of years. in my financial position, i'll continue to buy what i can afford and upgrade every couple of years. maybe i'll just buy my used ones from a ford dealer.

i also now get mine serviced by my local dealer. obviously while it was under warranty i couldn't do it myself (previously did all my own servicing), but now its out of warranty but i get on well with my dealer and would like to keep that relationship strong. not sure if it helps ford, but it helps me. build a good strong relationship and they look after you.



having said all that, most of the things brazen mentioned don't involve spending money and can actually help. anyone looking to buy a new falcon that does a google search would come across this site pretty high on the list, and if they spent more than 5 minutes here at the moment, they would run a mile from ford. public perception is key. these are not mitsi 380 days. falcon is confirmed until 2016 at least. there is no reason for doom and gloom.

a previous generation of people were raised with a saying, 'if you can't say something nice, don't say anything'!! i think more than a few members on here need to take that on board.

[joolz]

Originally Posted by Wretched

I'd like to see many here put their money where their mouth is and actually buy a NEW Falcon.

I did in June 2009 and still very happy with my FG XR6. Next car will be the Territory Diesel when $$$ are saved. Id rather buy a car that is mostly made in Australia too keep the local jobs going.

[joolz]

Originally Posted by Resurrection

Buy one.
Tell your family to buy one.
Tell your friends to buy one.
Tell your work colleagues to buy one.

Buy one.
Let your family test dive it.
Let your freinds test drive it.
Let your work colleages test drive it.
And they will buy one.

[MelsGolf]

hey! this place here seems to care about the Falcon;
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Fal...50817288320639

[joolz]

Originally Posted by MelsGolf

hey! this place here seems to care about the Falcon;
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Fal...50817288320639

Done.

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by .FoMoCo.

So therefore there's an endemic problem with Ford's QC and build quality? That arguement doesn't fly... This is what I'm talking about with this myth, I've had plenty of Ford's with no dramas. Does this mean all Ford's are perfect? Nope.

There are so many comments on this forum about how ford have dropped the ball on quality... I just don't see it.

If you say myth often enough, maybe it will become one? Myth implies it never happened- that's stretching it a bit and basically implies that anyone who has had touble with a Ford is making it up. My BA Falcon was better built then our Territory. Our Mazda 6 is better built then both.

Then again the FG I rented for a holiday recently was better built then any Falcon I've owned too. Hopefully they are getting better and antedotally it seems they are. I think the only long term solution is for Ford to continue to improve the product, not to go into spin control. Thing is fixing the products will take years to change minds. There is no fast forward button for rebuilding a brand.

[.FoMoCo.]

Originally Posted by DanielXR8

If you say myth often enough, maybe it will become one? Myth implies it never happened- that's stretching it a bit and basically implies that anyone who has had touble with a Ford is making it up. My BA Falcon was better built then our Territory. Our Mazda 6 is better built then both.

Then again the FG I rented for a holiday recently was better built then any Falcon I've owned too. Hopefully they are getting better and antedotally it seems they are. I think the only long term solution is for Ford to continue to improve the product, not to go into spin control. Thing is fixing the products will take years to change minds. There is no fast forward button for rebuilding a brand.

I wouldn't dare be so arrogant as to say people who have had trouble with their falcons are making it up. That's absurd. Lots of people have had dramas, some of them so regularly and similarly that it would have to be called a trend. In fact I openly acknowledge that FOA have had bad stuff ups.

If you read my posts carefully, you will see all I am trying to say that at worst FOA are about the same as other reputable brands when it comes to QC and overall quality. I pointed out on another thread recently that Porsche ranked nearly last in reliability surveys in the US. To say we are worse than Holden, Toyota, or just about anyone else doesn't seem to be backed up by any facts or figures anywhere that I have seen. Perhaps you could point me in the direction of some hard statistics to back the claim that FOA are among the worst?

If I may indulge; a quote from another thread:

" This idea that Fords have serious reliability and quality control issues is a myth.

BMW:

http://news.drive.com.au/drive/motor...101-179ps.html

http://www.bimmerfest.com/news/49430...ure-fuel-pump-

Toyota:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009%E2...ehicle_recalls

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...7A84V120111109

Mercedes Benz:

http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/in.../itemId/952860

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...7345SO20110405

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/10/17/m...diesel-models/

Porsche:

http://www.topspeed.com/cars/car-new...d-ar88987.html

http://www.motortrend.com/new_cars/1...tible/recalls/

Mazda:

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stor...da-recall.html

http://rotarynews.com/node/view/822

Kia:

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/01/20/k...airbag-issues/

http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/03/auto...call/index.htm

Hyundai:

http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/in.../itemId/952887

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/20/m...issues-affect/

And these are not trivial things; seat belts, wheels nuts, fuel pumps, electricals, brakelights,accelerator pedals jamming, rust, ect, ect, etc.

I could go on for hours with these sources, reuters, cnn, wikipedia, motortrend, aust federal govt, and so on. So the facts are there in black and white.

To say Euro or Jap or korean stuff has top notch QC and flawless design may have evidence anecdotally, but a 5 minute search from reliable sources proves otherwise.

The local fords are built to a price, hence some of the cheaper materials, but to suggest they fall apart left right and centre is unjustified, especially in the context of these "esteemed" brands. "

[Falc'man]

Originally Posted by DanielXR8

If you say myth often enough, maybe it will become one? Myth implies it never happened- that's stretching it a bit and basically implies that anyone who has had touble with a Ford is making it up. My BA Falcon was better built then our Territory. Our Mazda 6 is better built then both.

Then again the FG I rented for a holiday recently was better built then any Falcon I've owned too. Hopefully they are getting better and antedotally it seems they are. I think the only long term solution is for Ford to continue to improve the product, not to go into spin control. Thing is fixing the products will take years to change minds. There is no fast forward button for rebuilding a brand.

He's saying it's not endemic and he isn't saying there are zero problems. You're putting words into his mouth and that's just plain rude.

[Resurrection]

Originally Posted by prydey

as mentioned off the top, there are many of us that can't afford to buy new cars.

New cars are being purchased all the time. If you can't afford a new car, you will certainly know somobody who can. Therefore:

Tell your family to test drive one.
Tell your neighbours to test drive one.
Tell your friends to test drive one.
Tell your work colleagues to test drive one.

If they don't want to consider a Falcon, challenge them to justify their decision.

[MelsGolf]

Originally Posted by DanielXR8

If you say myth often enough, maybe it will become one? Myth implies it never happened- that's stretching it a bit and basically implies that anyone who has had touble with a Ford is making it up. My BA Falcon was better built then our Territory. Our Mazda 6 is better built then both.

Then again the FG I rented for a holiday recently was better built then any Falcon I've owned too. Hopefully they are getting better and antedotally it seems they are. I think the only long term solution is for Ford to continue to improve the product, not to go into spin control. Thing is fixing the products will take years to change minds. There is no fast forward button for rebuilding a brand.

You're very black and white on this with little appreciation or acknowledgement for what other brands offer and how Ford and particularly Falcon stacks up against its competition with regards to quality, which in all honesty smacks of biasing your position for the purpose of an agenda.

We have owned 5 other brands over the past 28 years, Ford and particularly Falcon's quality are certainly no worse than their immediate competition.

Prydey was right, my god where am i??!!

[Moby Vic]

As others have said, buying one new is the most helpful. Convincing others to buy new is next most helpful.

The next step is raising awareness. Start Facebook campaigns, have very visible club presence, lobby politicians to purchase fleet Falcons to support Australian production, call talk radio shows (Do you have those? They're an epidemic here), organize a flash mob of Falcons in Geelong, buy the products of Ford V8 Supercars sponsors ... you get the idea.

Online petitions are also one method, but thousands of actual letters delivered to Ford Australia (or even Alan Mulally in Dearborn, Michigan) are more dramatic.

Is there an Australian magazine that is an advocate for modern Falcons? If so, hook up with them. They should be able to help publicize the cause.

[tezxr8man]

Originally Posted by Spammy

My commodore is screwed togther much better than my wife's Territory, my neighbour's Hyundai is better than my Commodore.

Neither the commodore or or Hyundai have rust - the Territory has lots.

I don't Know but working at a spare parts shop for 4 years the two cars that seem to keep people coming back for more are commodores first and small hyundai's second
I would go close to saying that you wouldn't need to sell any other car parts to keep the doors open

[Majestic]

lol why should anyone have to justify their decision for not chosing a falcon just because you want them to buy one!

Originally Posted by Resurrection

.

If they don't want to consider a Falcon, challenge them to justify their decision.

[Spammy]

Isn't the real problem that the Australian buying public & fleets aren't buying large rwd cars like they used to?? If there were we would probably still have the Fairlane, LTD and wagon.

Some facts here (that may not be welcome in such an emotional and factless discussion) http://smh.drive.com.au/motor-news/s...203-1qw33.html

Ford have worked hard to spin off the Territory to get more numbers on the falcon platform - but without a major export campaign the numbers are not convincing.

[.FoMoCo.]

This thread is titled "how we can help the falcon" , not "what's wrong with falcon sales".

There's an emotionless fact for you.

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by .FoMoCo.

There are so many comments on this forum about how ford have dropped the ball on quality... I just don't see it.

Thats the thing that really gets me, the quality on the FG is the highest its EVER been, the factory quality ratings prove it in the TGW ratings, Things Gone Wrong per 1000 vehicles. Lowest ever TGW's.

Then you get a whole bunch of brain dead clowns who come on here whinging that they thing Falcon quality is poor. When the facts say the opposite.

No wonder Ford are on a hiding to nothing.

[Resurrection]

Originally Posted by Majestic

lol why should anyone have to justify their decision for not chosing a falcon just because you want them to buy one!

Reading and comprehension is not one of your strong points eh?

The OP asked a question. I provided my opinion. What people decided to buy is their decision. If you don't understand that then I suggest you go back to school.

[Road Games]

Hmmmm... will reconsider my response on the above post !!