Ken Block and Ford part ways; is Ford totally out of their minds?

[QuitPlayinWithYourDingy]

man, some of y'all sound mad too lmao

what did he do to you?

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[Lorenzo]

Anybody who can build a 1965(?) AWD twin turbo mustang making over 1000hp should be kept on the team. That Hoonicorn vs The World series is a pretty good watch over on the YouTube.

Block is a hell of a driver, but I have to agree with GC. The bang for the bucks may not be there as the average Ford buyer probably has no idea who Ken Block is.

Did Ken win any races? Ever?

 

[Lorenzo]

Vaughn Gittin Jr. - Drifting



Ken Block (WHO?) - in a MachE



I'm cheering for Jr.

 

[Rev68]

Did Ken win any races? Ever?

19 wins, 17 podiums according to his latest video where he's saying goodbye to Ford.

 

[jaspercasidino]

I never understood why any company would pay more for a 'name' as a shill then any other actor, everyone understands that they just say the words that they are paid to say. Do fans of people really buy products based on a specific paid endorser? In numbers than make additional profit in excess of the cost of the endorser (taxes and other costs included)? Shrug, I actually do the opposite, if I see someone who I assume is a costly spokesperson, I figure the product must be overpriced to cover the costs and I am less interested. I think it is a good move to get rid of as much advertising costs as possible

This is not the same as a McConaughey driving a Lincoln. Ken is a racer and absolute auto-enthusiast. The stuff he does in his videos is really cool and his skill at driving is among the best in the world. He is a proud supporter of Ford. Come on! He has RS2000!

Whether or not advertising works on you, I won't debate. I can see cutting the contract if cost prohibitive, but he is far from a shill.

You might see something that catches your eye at the bottom of this list.

 

[Jr87mustang]

Anecdotal evidence is the worst evidence. I disconnected from NASCAR, so in a few years, I won't be able to tell you one active NASCAR driver. Does that mean NASCAR is a waste of time for manufactures or sponsors? Should Ford not have built the GT40? Does your wife know what a GT40 is, let alone it's legacy? Should Ford save money dumping NASCAR since I don't give a fuck about it anymore?

Bro, this was sarcasm in the heaviest sense. I couldn't have been more sarcastic. I guess I need to work on my presentation better. Just suppose to be funny.

 

[Ricepuddin]

Did Ken win any races? Ever?

28 podiums in Rally America, three 2nd place seasons.

12 podiums in GRC, one second place season

18 podiums I'm FIA World rallycross , no overall victories.

 

[BAUS67]

Did Ken win any races? Ever?

Even though he has, my first thought is a good team and good equipment wins races not just the driver.

 

[BAUS67]

Anecdotal evidence is the worst evidence. I disconnected from NASCAR, so in a few years, I won't be able to tell you one active NASCAR driver. Does that mean NASCAR is a waste of time for manufactures or sponsors? Should Ford not have built the GT40? Does your wife know what a GT40 is, let alone it's legacy? Should Ford save money dumping NASCAR since I don't give a fuck about it anymore?

Ford got out of Pro Stock drag racing years ago to send more money to NASCAR.

 

[codydb19]

This isn't the guy that helped test develop the Bronco in Johnson Valley is it?
Dude, did a walk around with the black trail rig a few months back.
Seems like the only guy to speak that knew what off roading was all about. He was real jazzed on the Bronco and the turn trail assist..not like the dopey kids doing Q&A on the white 2DR BL the other day.
Ring any bells to anyone...

I think the video you were referring to was done by Brad Lovell in conjunction with BN.

As far as the theory of this thread, just because Ford cut ties with Block doesn’t mean they are swirlin’ the terlet. Lovell, Loren Healy and Vaughn Gitten Jr were all heavily involved with the testing of the Bronco. All three of them mentioned that when they suggested something Ford listened and made adjustments. So I think Ford is still in good hands (except for the obvious pitfalls of this Bronco rollout).

 

[Rick Astley]

He's certainly a skilled driver. But, to date, he has not shown either the ability to produce results in highly competitive formats, or the desire to seriously attempt to break into the ranks of competitive professional drivers.

From what i've seen of him and followed his career pre and during-stunt driving, he's a creative business person (co-founder of DC shoes, then turned it into the primary sponsor for his career), which transitioned him into a very competent driver through quite a bit of paid training.

But the transition from competent driver to being a professional racecar driver is as massive of the gulf between myself in billiards (pool, if you will), and paying my mortgage by shooting. I'll usually clear the room until the real sharks get there and want to play $100 a ball. Better to spend my money on the drinks than paying somebody else to beat me (unless you're into that sort of thing, i'm not).

Then there's the fact that Ford won't be producing anymore cars. And transitioning to being a stunt driver for pickup trucks and CUV's is pointless. No need for that marketing expense.

 

[BAUS67]

According to Wikipedia he does have some rally wins.

Ken Block - Wikipedia

 

[Squatch]

He's certainly a skilled driver. But, to date, he has not shown either the ability to produce results in highly competitive formats, or the desire to seriously attempt to break into the ranks of competitive professional drivers.

From what i've seen of him and followed his career pre and during-stunt driving, he's a creative business person (co-founder of DC shoes, then turned it into the primary sponsor for his career), which transitioned him into a very competent driver through quite a bit of paid training.

But the transition from competent driver to being a professional racecar driver is as massive of the gulf between myself in billiards (pool, if you will), and paying my mortgage by shooting. I'll usually clear the room until the real sharks get there and want to play $100 a ball. Better to spend my money on the drinks than paying somebody else to beat me (unless you're into that sort of thing, i'm not).

Then there's the fact that Ford won't be producing anymore cars. And transitioning to being a stunt driver for pickup trucks and CUV's is pointless. No need for that marketing expense.

Ford also spends millions on NASCAR, so...

*You also don't have to win to be a successful advertising commodity, see: Danica Patrick

 

[395N]

I think the video you were referring to was done by Brad Lovell in conjunction with BN.

As far as the theory of this thread, just because Ford cut ties with Block doesn’t mean they are swirlin’ the terlet. Lovell, Loren Healy and Vaughn Gitten Jr were all heavily involved with the testing of the Bronco. All three of them mentioned that when they suggested something Ford listened and made adjustments. So I think Ford is still in good hands (except for the obvious pitfalls of this Bronco rollout).

Thank you!. BN needs to hire him. The guy has real street cred.

I have true no clue if Ford is circling the drain or not. My guess is not.

 

[Squatch]

I have no clue if Ford is circling the drain or not. My guess is not.

I'm projecting they're on a 5 year plan (Uncle Buck reference).

You can't release a bunch of vaporware in the auto industry as a major manufacturer. The Explorer just got a release only envied by Cyberpunk 2077. The Mustang is long in the tooth and needs a costly redesign soon. The Transit is not as popular as the E-Series nor the Mercedes Sprinter. The Mach-E and Bronco are completely new and still vaporware/paper launches. The new F150 even had a clunky roll-out.

Maybe Farley will hit his stride in 2021, but he hit the ground on his face instead of running so far. It used to be that a company the size of Ford held all of the Information close until they were ready to show it off. Now, the fourth wall has been broken and you can't act like the internet doesn't exist and not communicate. I see them going the way of IBM and Sega if they're not careful. I am proud to introduce to you the Tesla Mustang and Tesla F150! Or maybe, the all-new Mustang powered by Tesla? *no Ford, only brands like F150, Bronco, and Mustang survived in the last scenario.

Remember, at one point, people never thought Mercury or Plymouth would go away. I'm just thinking of possibilities that don't seem likely now, but could happen.

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