Supply chain is just an excuse, your dealer allocations are the reason you're waiting

[shieldsy]

Ford has not had a good launch on the Bronco. Period. Absolutely no denying this. However, Ford did not put years of development into the bronco to wake up one day and have Farley say "guys - lets make this the shitiest launch ever". Ford needs to look at the the components they can control and specifically the parts they failed at. They also need to look at the dealers as I suspect some dealers got greedy and are partially to blame.

Ford has a great deal of experience in shitty launches. For the Bronco launch, Ford can blame covid, supply chains, allocations, bad dealers and anything else to shift blame and avoid a stock hit....but at the end of the day Ford has become very good at shitty launches because they refuse to learn from their mistakes.

The 2020 Ford Explorer launch went incredibly horrible (not that long ago and directly helped with Hackett departing) and during the launch post mortem, Ford identified the primary root cause to be the complexity of the new product being launched.

What did Ford do? Fire people and then repeat the same mistakes but even worse with the Bronco.

The majority of issues with the Bronco launch have been self inflicted or internally exacerbated. From the many trim\series\equipment groups to their suppliers like Webesto to their dealership network to their end customer communications to their many broken promises.

Everything is fubared right now but the dye was cast well before any of the supply chain\allocation issues people want to discuss now. I hold Ford 100% accountable for the travesty of this launch. So much was avoidable regardless of economic headwinds.

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[Sherminiator]

Ford has a great deal of experience in shitty launches. For the Bronco launch, Ford can blame covid, supply chains, allocations, bad dealers and anything else to shift blame and avoid a stock hit....but at the end of the day Ford has become very good at shitty launches because they refuse to learn from their mistakes.

The 2020 Ford Explorer launch went incredibly horrible (not that long ago and directly helped with Hackett departing) and during the launch post mortem, Ford identified the primary root cause to be the complexity of the new product being launched.

What did Ford do? Fire people and then repeat the same mistakes but even worse with the Bronco.

The majority of issues with the Bronco launch have been self inflicted or internally exacerbated. From the many trim\series\equipment groups to their suppliers like Webesto to their dealership network to their end customer communications to their many broken promises.

Everything is fubared right now but the dye was cast well before any of the supply chain\allocation issues people want to discuss now. I hold Ford 100% accountable for the travesty of this launch. So much was avoidable regardless of economic headwinds.

So counterpoint-the F-150 launch was very similar to what was supposed to happen at Chicago, which was a complete shit show and went fine. The F-150 is MUCH more complex product then the Explorer is.

Chicago Assembly has a lot of issues internally that didn't help with launch and the some of the issues with the Explorer and Aviator where due to its new platform-the D6 was supposed to spawn other products that never came about due to change of direction.

The actual Bronco launch went fine...the problem was getting hardtops and supplier shortages with higher end models that was and still is due to COVID impact on the supply chain two plus years ago.

 

[JoshuaPrieto]

While ordering has been shut off, overall Dealer allocation models haven't changed. For a dealer that stopped taking orders based on their allocation, going into 2023, their allocation is still there. It changes to stock units, which in the coming months, dealer lots will be flooded.

EDIT: flooded with orders that Ford can build. I have said it before, and will say it again regardless if people want to accept it, the assembly line doesn't stop

 

[jddunfee]

It's unfortunate that the Bronco forum used to support each other but as time goes on and tensions run high, we argue more than support. I guess that's life.
Nobody has all the correct answers and we all have our own opinions/experiences. I'm glad that we share them and hopefully learn from them. That said,
I know I have been in a line at my dealer and there was no way I was going to get mine before the others got theirs. I saw the list on the dealers computer when I put my reservation in back in 10-2020 and he shows me when others get theirs and I move up. I am number 3 now so it should be soon. However, other dealers have more allocations so they are getting trucks in that were ordered this year while I still wait. I get it and hate it but it's Ford's way of doing it.
I think it was way wrong that order banks were closed and yet they still let walk in's in and have built them already. I'm talking about Raptors which might use a chip or two and maybe a hardtop but they get built asap. I don't think that is a supply chain issue. Have there been issues, sure. But that is not early reservation holders hold ups now. It is allocation just like I am waiting for and have accepted it.
Remember, Ford said they could build 15,000 broncos a month at max and we all know that is difficult to do but they are pumping out 10-15k each month. They are not all softop base models.
Just my opinion. Thanks for listening (reading).

 

[Combustion_King]

My dealer before the opening of the MY23 orders, told me they had an allocation of 12 broncos. i had a reservations from 7/21 ordered in 10/22 got passed up, re ordered for MY23 opening in Oct. and got a build week 12/19 and my VIN. back in Nov. cant freakin wait.

 

[flip]

I wrote 3 lengthy responses and deleted all of them so here's the condensed version. It's commodities, allocation from the region, market, zone, finally to the dealer, how production is split amongst all of those and a constantly moving formula how Ford decides what can get built. Not sure anyone on this side of the business has ever been told exactly how the scheduling team does it but assume there's a ton of moving targets behind the scenes.

Everyone wants to know the how and why but I don't think it's that simple. The frustrating part to understand is how does a dealer get any retail "stock" or have available allocation at this point. Everything should be going to fill current in-system orders before any surplus is handed out. I've got tons of Lightnings, both retail and commercial orders in and have only gotten one FCTP unit and one retail. The kick in the nuts is we're doing a courtesy delivery for another dealer, to a commercial customer that's getting 12 units and 4 of those showed up about a week ago. No E-Transits, no Lightnings, so my question is why. Is it because we're a medium small dealer or are they pumping the bulk of production to the costal states that have impending zero emission rules going into effect? There's no national transparency in the ordering system amongst dealers like none of us know the other's allocation for different models. If everything is on the up and up, then why do they all but threaten us to keep allocation numbers to ourselves?

 

[Cyber2D]

OP stated the supply chain issue was BS. Simply stating facts rather than speculation regarding the supply chain.

Nobody said it was BS. I do think you're basically high if you think for one second that these years old orders are lingering around because of supply issues.

Yes, blah blah everyone knows the supply chain is fucked. It isn't that bad to the point where Ford can't deliver on 1-2 year old orders. Ford pumped out 30k Broncos last quarter, don't act like the sky is falling and the SuPpLy ChAiN is the main reason people don't have their Broncos.

 

[indio22]

Quirk Ford in Quincy, MA is in the Top 50 dealers for volume in the U.S. Most dealers won't share their allocation with you. Instead, provide them with your build details and ask them for a timeframe for when you will likely be scheduled. If they tell you over a year, then they don't have any allocation.

Here's a link to a list of the top 150 Ford dealers in the country. It's from 2015 and doesn't list the location, but I used it to find my high volume dealer.

https://www.focusrs.org/threads/whe...-largest-ford-dealers-in-the-us.386/post-6690

Thanks for the list. I noticed Golf Mill Motor Sales on the list, which is in my area. But a quick check of the forum, shows a thread dedicated to Golf Mill screwing a forum member out of his Bronco!

It's like every time I think of lifting a finger to see about getting a Bronco, I quickly realize I don't need that grief in my life. Thankfully I'm lazy and don't want a Bronco enough to expend much effort on aggravation, lol.

 

[Cyber2D]

Ford identified the primary root cause to be the complexity of the new product being launched.

Made all the more ironic by the CD6 Explorer being a flaming pile of garbage. Helped my aunt buy a Palisade last summer; she had two Explorers prior, wasn't going to let her buy another!

 

[jddunfee]

So counterpoint-the F-150 launch was very similar to what was supposed to happen at Chicago, which was a complete shit show and went fine. The F-150 is MUCH more complex product then the Explorer is.

Chicago Assembly has a lot of issues internally that didn't help with launch and the some of the issues with the Explorer and Aviator where due to its new platform-the D6 was supposed to spawn other products that never came about due to change of direction.

The actual Bronco launch went fine...the problem was getting hardtops and supplier shortages with higher end models that was and still is due to COVID impact on the supply chain two plus years ago.

The only thing I really don't agree with is the top shortage. There was all kinds of discussion in 2019 about the tops being an issue with that jack ass company they used. They were trying to get it right in 2019 and failed but only had more issues when it went into 2020 with covid. Ford really messed that part up themselves.

 

[Cyber2D]

Thanks for the list. I noticed Golf Mill Motor Sales on the list, which is in my area. But a quick check of the forum, shows a thread dedicated to Golf Mill screwing a forum member out of his Bronco!

It's like every time I think of lifting a finger to see about getting a Bronco, I quickly realize I don't need that grief in my life. Thankfully I'm lazy and don't want a Bronco enough to expend much effort on aggravation, lol.

Not hating, but why do you have 2500 messages on a forum board of a vehicle you have no intention of buying. Sort of like me being a hugely active member in a Jeep community or something.

 

[indio22]

Not hating, but why do you have 2500 messages on a forum board of a vehicle you have no intention of buying. Sort of like me being a hugely active member in a Jeep community or something.

Oh don't get me wrong, I was quite interested in a Bronco (base 2-door manual). I even attended an early Ford invite-only event in my area, to see prior to release. Made a thread here somewhere about it, including photos and suspension measurements and other stuff. In that thread I wrote "Ford hit a home run".

And later I went to a free Ford offered driving event, where I got to test off-road a 2-door manual. As a long time open top 4x4 fan, the Bronco vehicle itself, I think is great.

But not great enough to pay ADMs or pay for aggravations. I was an early person pointing out why the reservation system would not work like many people thought.

I would still get a Bronco if easily available for MSRP. So at this point, I mainly check back to see if the availability situation has changed, and because I still own a bunch of Ford stock, and frankly also to make fun of the situation, lol.

Even though I do feel bad for folks who were all-in, and got screwed over by dealerships. To wait a year or more and have a dealer tack on 10k ADM or whatever, it would bite to invite that grief.

 

[MichiganMichael]

Yeah, no shit. I'm not getting rid of my old order, but I'm betting placing a new order a different dealer might get me my Bronco faster. It's VERY clear Ford does not prioritize older orders at this point.

Huh, I just put through my 2 year old order off 99 status in October, and it's being built next week. So yeah, try telling me that again.

Or are you just bitter

 

[MichiganMichael]

It’s both dealer allocations and supply constraints.

But nothing that can be done about allocations. Ford has long-standing dealership agreements that dictates the existence of the allocation system, and they can’t just remove that allocation system without renegotiating those contracts. Heck… they are trying to change the dealership agreements for EV vehicles to make dealers more customer-focused, and many dealers are fighting back.

It’s a 2-way street for sure. Ford should be up-front regarding the existence of the allocation system, and dealers need to be up-front with their customers and realistic about their allocations before taking orders. If you typically sell 50 new Ford vehicles a months total… for example… maybe it’s a bad idea to take orders for 800 Broncos.

SO MUCH THIS !

 

[MichiganMichael]

Seems like this dude just wants to argue with everyone and not listen. Let him be.

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