This century-old car company is getting younger

Abstract: A hundred years of history, sometimes experience, sometimes it is a burden. How to turn baggage into power, Ford is trying to answer the question

Wen | Guo Yu

Editor| Zhao Cheng

The venue was arranged like a fashion show, there was no leader to speak throughout the process, users were invited to announce the price, and Xu Zheng cooperated to make a micro-film, and the screen names of more than 4,000 scheduled users were played on the screen of the venue... This not so "serious" new car launch is happening to this car company that has been born for 119 years.

On March 18, Changan Ford's spring new product show was held in Shanghai, and the flagship of Ford's car, Changan Ford's fifth-generation Mondeo, officially opened pre-sale. The pre-sale manufacturer guidance price of the four models is 159,800 yuan to 219,800 yuan. In addition, the venue also unveiled a new Ford Explorer in advance, which will be officially released in May.

The evolutionary history of Ford Mondeo is, to some extent, the evolutionary history of Ford. 100 years ago, Ford pioneered the large-scale assembly line production of automobiles, taking the lead in bringing cars into ordinary people's homes; 100 years later, in the face of the wave of intelligence, Ford is also seeking innovation and change, trying to seize younger consumers with a younger attitude.

During this time, some things have changed, and some things have not changed.

New models from old car companies

In 1993, the first-generation Ford Mondeo went on sale. It was a model that invested $6 billion in R&D and design costs, and the intention of building it was obvious that Ford wanted to replace the Ford Sierra and Ford Telstar, which it was selling in Europe and Asia at the time, to make the Mondeo a world car and reduce Ford's design and development costs for similar models in various regions.

In 2004, ford Mondeo was launched in China for the first time, becoming Changan Ford's second mass production model in China. At this time, Mondeo has developed into the second generation, and the body size has increased significantly compared with the first generation.

Time to 2022, Ford Mondeo has also ushered in the fifth generation, but at this time the external world has a variable, the car is no longer a simple means of transportation, intelligence is becoming the new standard of the car.

For a long time, people have equated intelligence with new energy vehicles, but Ford is trying to break the cognition.

Fuel vehicles can also be intelligent, which is one of Ford's solutions. The latest generation of Ford Mondeo, whose performance fuel car genes have been inherited, the whole series is equipped with a 2.0T+8AT gold powertrain, accelerating 6.5 seconds per 100 kilometers.

The new generation of Mondeo and Ford pure electric models share the same new electronic and electrical platform - Ford FNV intelligent interconnection network architecture, with tram-level intelligent cockpit and intelligent driving capabilities, and also has the vehicle global OTA capabilities. The entire 1.1-meter-long screen takes into account the central control screen and the co-driver screen, and the effect of split screen can be achieved through software. In addition, the new Mondeo is equipped with Ford's first mass-produced vehicle-to-road coordination system, which can predict the traffic lights and other infrastructure conditions in advance.

More than that, Mondeo has changed from the original positioning of the world car to today's better understanding of different user preferences. For example, the latest Mondeo reduces the steering force at parking and low speeds, steering is lighter, more comfortable to adjust, smoother handling, to better meet the needs of Chinese users.

This isn't Ford's first intelligent fuel car.

During the Guangzhou Auto Show in November 2021, Changan Ford launched the Ford EVOS, Chinese "light chaser", which means to chase the amazement of life with the light of science and technology, and is a new starting point for Changan Ford to fully enter the era of scientific and technological intelligence.

Of course, Ford has also launched its own electric car series. Also in 2021, Ford launched the MustangMach-E GT model, officially entering the electric vehicle market at a starting price of 369,900 yuan, and the 3.65-second 100-kilometer acceleration became the biggest selling point of the model. "As the world's largest electric vehicle market, China is a must for all brands and an important part of Ford's global electrification strategy." Chen Anning, president and CEO of Ford Motor China, told Caijingqiche (ID: caijingqiche).

A new change under losses

"Gone are The days when Ford lost money in China for several years in a row, and the days when a Ford label could sell well are gone." In September 2020, Jim Farley, global CEO of Ford Motor, confessed to media outlets such as Caijingqiche in September 2020.

2016 was a watershed year for Ford in the Chinese market, when It sold 1.27 million vehicles. Next, Ford's sales in the Chinese market fell for three consecutive years. In 2017, Ford's sales in China fell by 6%, 37% in 2018 and 26.1% in 2019, and sales in 2019 have become 568,000 units, only half of what it was in 2016. Sales rebounded in 2021, but only 625,000 units.

In the face of the decline in sales in the Chinese market, Ford launched the "More Ford, More China" Ford China 2.0 strategy in 2019, and will launch more than 30 models to the Chinese market within three years, of which more than 10 are new energy models.

Chinese auto consumers have a high degree of attention and demand for intelligent interconnection. As early as September 2017, McKinsey's research showed that consumers have great expectations for in-vehicle services, hoping that existing functions will continue to improve and iterate. If demand is not met, 64% of consumers may choose to change brands, compared with 37% in the US and 19% in Germany.

Chen Anning, president and CEO of Ford China, said that the innovation and accumulation of the Ford China team in electrification, artificial intelligence technology, digital technology, product and service experience, etc., has brought consumers a younger and intelligent high-end model in 2021. "Through the innovation of electrification and sales models, and further increase investment in the field of intelligence, we will bring more products and technologies that consumers love."

In the first half of 2021, Ford China launched a new mid-size SUV, the Ford EVOS. In addition, the domestic pure electric SUV Mustang Mach-E also officially opened pre-sale at that time. For Ford, the former is a benchmark product developed locally, while the latter is a pure electric model that represents a future strategy.

At the same time, Ford China also began organizational change. Ford has two joint ventures in China, Changan Ford, which mainly produces family cars and SUVs, and Jiangling Ford, which mainly produces models for production. In April 2021, Ford China established two major business units: The Ford Brand Passenger Cars Division and the Ford Commercial Vehicle Division. The general manager of The Ford brand passenger car business unit is Lyle Watteers, president of Ford Motor's South America and International Markets, and the general manager of Ford's commercial vehicle business unit is Wang Wentao, former president of Jiangling Motors. In addition, Changan Ford also welcomed its first Chinese president, He Xiaoqing, ten years after its establishment.

Whether it is a person or a car, the century-old car company is adjusting its direction and trying to regain the lost share. Elephants turn around, and a hundred years of history is sometimes experience, sometimes it is a burden. How to turn baggage into power, Ford is trying to answer the question.