The cool little car pictured above gets 65 miles to the gallon. It will soon be available in Europe. It’s a Ford. It won’t be coming to the U.S.
You can read the full story in BusinessWeek. In the article, a myriad of excuses are given as to why the car can’t be brought to the U.S. Too expensive because of the exchange rate (about $400-$1,700 more than a Prius). It’s a diesel. Diesel’s too expensive. “We don’t think North and South America would buy that many diesel cars,” says Ford American President Mark Fields. Blah. Blah. Blah.
I’ve said variations of this before: Most companies make excuses, great companies make it happen. Bottom line is that the folks in Detroit can’t lead, can’t take chances, and refuse to make a decision not backed up by focus groups. Meanwhile they hemorrhage cash and want a government bailout.
It also seems that Detroit is desperate for an instant hit. If I recall, the Prius took a couple years to really take off. Detroit appears unwilling to be ahead of a curve and make the necessary investment in time and PR to build a potentially lucrative leadership position in an uncontested market space.
Sadly, I’m guessing that this means that it won’t be long before a foreign auto maker will make a splash with a diesel sub-compact with eye-catching style and an arresting PR and advertising campaign.
