*WEDDING.BLOG.LINK*

Here's a great post on Autoblog to get us going, on the topic of "What the hell is Ford going to do with Mercury?"

Right now Mercury is not anything in particular, and a bunch of things all at once - not nearly fancy enough to be a Lincoln, not nearly cheap enough (both with regards to cost and quality) to be a run of the mill Ford.

Recently I was discussing the plight of the "Big Three" with a good friend, and I found myself saying something I've been thinking for a long time now and had almost forgotten that I'm really the only person I know who's talking like this, so I want to get the word out.

For a long time now (I don't know the exact time frame, but since about the early-mid 1980's or so) the big three American car makers have been chasing their tail, trying to 'deal with' the problem of imports - specifically the small, cheap, fuel efficient, and wildly popular Asian imports. So much so, that pretty much everything they make now (with the exception of the full-size truck segment) is, for the most part, a Honda Civic or Accord/Toyota Corolla or Camry knock off.

Which seems ridiculous to me.

Even such sacred name plates as the Malibu, Mustang, Monte Carlo, Impala, Town Car, and Crown Victoria have at times felt the bite of their Eastern counterparts in their design at one time or another.

Here's where I think things are going wrong. (ignoring the other reasons why people buy cars of course, including service, friendly staff, rewarding incentives, etc)

Why have the recent 'heritage'/'retro' styled vehicles been so popular? (I am referring to the Chrysler 300/Dodge Magnum, and the new Mustang, in particular, but also will include the on-preorder Dodge Charger remake) Because they're REAL american sedans. They are (for the most part) styled like an American car, instead of like an American car trying to look as much like a Japanese car as possible. They look a little muscle-y, even if the base models really aren't. They ship with decent engines if you're willing to pay for it. They are REAR-WHEEL-DRIVE, and that makes them feel like an American car as well.

So, to keep this short (I could probably harp on this all day) I'll boil this down to a few distinct messages for Detroit (And Dearborn, and Auburn Hills) to pay attention to:

1. Quit being so cheap. Make the cars solid, with real interior materials that feel good and don't break every time you touch them or disintegrate into nothingness after just 5 years in the sun. People respect that and are willing to pay for it (click here if you need proof)
2. Quit being so arrogant. Get your prices under control. You're not worth that much. Unless you head advice item #1. If you start building cars again, you can start charging money for them again, until then, we want to pay for what we actually get, not a nameplate.
3. Don't try to be Honda/Toyota.
   Forget about the Camry/Corolla/Civic/Accord market. It's gone. It never existed until the Asian makers started shipping cars here, and it belongs to them - you don't need to own that market to feel good about yourselves as companies. Stick to your OWN core values, and make the cars you know how to make better than anyone in the world.
4. Don't try to be BMW/Volvo/Mercedes.
   They make fancy, technologically advanced vehicles and spend a TON of money on R&D - they build high quality and high volume, make high margin, and they have the user base to support it. You don't. Population density alone should explain that for you. They also have good roads. you don't.
   
5. I don't want to drive a spaceship and I don't think anyone else does either.
   

I might have more to add to this later.

Thanks for letting me vent.