Why did Ford stop building Ford GTs?

[1827]

I never thought about it until a prospective buyer asked me why Ford stopped building Ford GTs. While we owners certainly appreciate the exclusivity of owning a limited production vehicle, I assume that Ford Motor Company made a reasonable profit per vehicle, so building more would put needed cash into Ford's till. I've never known a manufacturer to benefit its vehicle owners to the detriment of their own bottom line.

Does anybody know why they stopped?

 

[dgussin1]

they planned how many they were going to make before they made them.

 

[dbk]

Crash regulations. They knew they couldn't extend the vehicle past 2007 because it would have entailed re-certifying and changing the car, which would have killed any potential profit.

Pardo told me they would have had to raise the greenhouse or something, which obviously would have killed the way it looks. Something about unbelted occupants of a certain height slamming their foreheads into a certain point on the roof and breaking their neck. Novel concept: wear a seatbelt.

 

[1827]

Dave-

That makes more sense than anything else I've heard.

Thanks for the info,

Ken Silverman

 

[GT Tech]

DBK is right. I was told that an unbelted person, 5'6" or less, (.1 % of potential owners) would contact the "A" pillar with enough force to cause fatal injuries in certain crashes.

As I understand it, in every other country that has safety standards, all tests are done with a belted dummy. If anyone is dumb enough not to wear a seat belt, they are on their own. The US is the only country that requires the same standards for both belted and unbelted. :thumbsup

 

[dbk]

The U.S Government...saving us... one person of below average height, above average income, and below average intelligence at a time. :bored

Lame.

 

[06fordgt]

Also I heard emissions standards for 07/08 are going to be much tougher and I don't think the GT in its current set up would pass.

 

[427Aggie]

GOD HOW I MISS DARWINISM!! stop saving the stupid people....THEY REPRODUCE MORE!

See how the democrats get elected

Matt

 

[BlackICE]

The US government better study the global competition before passing more laws that reduce our ability to compete in the world's market. China and India have no such restrictions!

 

[dbk]

GOD HOW I MISS DARWINISM!! stop saving the stupid people....THEY REPRODUCE MORE!

See how the democrats get elected

Matt

Ask Bigs how he thinks we can combat the problem of them outnumbering us. :biggrin

 

[911teo]

So did they really make a profit on each GT?
It is hard for me to think that with such a low number of cars and an aggressive price tag and a lot of outsourcing Ford has made a lot of money on these cars...

 

[FordGTGuy]

unbelted person

If your unbelted during a crash your most likely going to die anyway.

 

[427Aggie]

Being Bigs and I are both in Texas Dave I bet it involves some type of gunpowder

Don't get me started...I'm telling you..and alot of us have employee's..look at the kids nowdays..they don't want to work and its always someone elses fault and god forbid they get hurt..someone didn't warn them.

I mean come on do you really need a warning on PREPERATION H that says not to be taken ORALY!

IN THE IMMORTAL WORDS OF FOREST GUMP...Stupid is as Stupid does...and GOD HELP US there are a crap load of stupid people.

Hey hows that global warming doing for you up there Dave? Its 73 here today and beautiful...I think I will go to the gun range...

Matt

 

[1827]

Whether or not Ford made money on the entire FordGT project as a whole, considering the control arm problem; it is reasonable to assume that all of the R&D had been written off through the 4,200 +/- vehicle production run. So building one more, or two more (and so on) would have to be very profitable.

 

[Empty Pockets]

Referencing Dave's crash regs. point, I think SIDE air bags are suppose to be manditory in '07 or '08, are they not? :shrug If that's the case, where the devil could one put 'em in the current car? There isn't any room left. (I think that's what Pardo's "greenhouse" stmt was pbly referring to.)

 

[dbk]

No, the greenhouse thing was specifically because of the neck breaking bit. If you raise the greenhouse any dwarfs would miss the roof and just smash into the windshield.

 

[Empty Pockets]

No, the greenhouse thing was specifically because of the neck breaking bit. If you raise the greenhouse any dwarfs would miss the roof and just smash into the windshield.

...And of coarse it makes a big difference which surface provides the broken neck (or whatever), doesn't it! :lol

Oh, how I love government... :thumbsdow

 

[SteveA]

Rules, laws and regulations are written for the lowest common denominator. ie. One dumbass climbs into the shower with a blow dryer, all blow dryers get warning labels, one clueless person drops hot coffee in their lap at Mc Donalds everyone gets luke warm coffee... and so on and so on.
As for the working age kids of today, I wouldn't know. Out of our 100 plus employees not one is a middle-class teenager. They all appear to be way to busy driving BMW's.

 

[Empty Pockets]

And you can thank idle lawyers for all that crap. LAW SUITS are behind all of it.

It's gotten so bad that "Superman" suits now have labels that declare the wearing of the suit does NOT enable the wearer to fly. (WOW! Really??? I'm SO glad they told me!:frown )

 

[fjpikul]

The new pedestrian crash regulations in Europe also killed any exports there.