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currybob

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Good article, wonder how many of our trucks are parked out here. I think mine and Tireman have our trucks parked there now. Photo dated 11 Dec.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/mone...s-detroit-metro-airport-stockpile/3930707001/

Ford stockpiling thousands of new F-150 pickups near Detroit airport
Ford is conducting final quality checks on thousands of early-production F-150 pickups that are stockpiled in lots around Detroit Metro Airport as dealers clamor for deliveries of America’s best-selling truck.

Ford factory employees at the Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan have been working to meet an insatiable demand for the 2021 F-150. That meant Ford had to build trucks while the prototypes were still being driven as test models.

Those trucks from the early build make up the stockpile of vehicles that are plain to see parked near the airport lately, and they are undergoing a final assessment, according to Ford. New F-150s coming out of the factory in recent weeks have been loaded directly with no delay onto truck haulers and trains to go to dealerships around the country, Ford said.

Ford F-150 Ford stockpiling thousands of new 2021 F-150 pickups near Detroit airport 2021-f150-storage-lots

2021 Ford F-150 pickup trucks fill private parking lots around Detroit Metro Airport. This image was taken on December 11, 2020

"Trucks are on their way to dealers now and in customer hands," Ford spokesman Said Deep told the Detroit Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, on Tuesday. "We do have this other batch of 150s that were built before those shipments began and they're going through a final quality check before they're released."

Deep said quality reviews may require the need for things like software updates or parts adjustments, but he didn't provide detail on these trucks.

Customers who have already taken delivery of the new pickups have raved about them while dealers' lists of interested potential buyers grow.

CEO Jim Farley, who assumed leadership of the company Oct. 1, has assured Wall Street analysts that quality control is his top priority as is reducing overall warranty costs for the company.

Ford F-150 Ford stockpiling thousands of new 2021 F-150 pickups near Detroit airport 2021-f150-detroit-airport

2021 F-150 pickups parked for final inspection near Detroit Metro Airport on December 11, 2020

Automakers often store vehicles temporarily after building them, but this latest stockpile of the first redesign since 2015 has attracted attention from readers who see what appears to be thousands of them.

A source close to the situation who was not authorized to discuss the matter told the Free Press in recent days the stockpile in lots around the airport was larger than usual, possibly 6,000 or 7,000.

Ford declined to provide specific numbers, acknowledging "a few thousand." Deep did say there's a quality testing site where trucks are being driven and reviewed prior to shipping, an extra step following factory inspection.

"Ford is full-throttle building and shipping new F-150s while simultaneously giving (this) batch of trucks one more quality inspection," he said.

Ford F-150 Ford stockpiling thousands of new 2021 F-150 pickups near Detroit airport 4ba0fcd6-533d-47cb-bdab-6e220df08edd-truck_shot.JPG


The company built up the supply while first-run vehicles were being tested, refined and perfected.

Ford is mindful of the manufacturing issues it had in 2019 with the Ford Explorer launch and the company is committed to releasing its most valuable product without flaws.

This storage situation is not related to supply chain issues like those that have delayed delivery of the 2021 Ford Bronco, Deep said.

"We began shipping the new F-150 to dealers last month and are building as many trucks as we can to meet demand," Deep said.

"These were trucks built before dealer shipments started," he said. "As part of our commitment to delivering high-quality vehicles, we are now in the process of conducting final quality inspections on those units to ensure all of them meet the quality expectations of our customers."

Industry analysts responded to news of the F-150 hold with praise.

"Automakers always encounter issues during launch periods that require verification or fixing before delivering the vehicle to the customers," said Jeoff Burris, founder of Plymouth-based Advanced Purchasing Dynamics, a supply chain consultant to auto suppliers primarily in North America. He worked at Ford for 13 years.

"They can either complete these actions themselves or ship to dealers who perform them," he said. "There is considerable financial pressure to ship to dealers so that the automaker can record sales and profits. However, doing so increases the likelihood of customers experiencing issues. With an F-150 selling upwards of $70,000, kudos to Ford for putting the customer first and resisting the pressure to ship potential issues."

In 2019, Ford sold 896,526 F-Series in the U.S. They have been the best-selling trucks for more than 40 years.

Market analyst Jon Gabrielsen, who advises automakers and auto suppliers, said Ford would never risk its crown jewel.

"So it is absolutely critical that its legacy of Built Ford Tough high quality and reliability be maintained no matter what the cost or delay," he said. "So it is a true testament to the new Ford under Farley, that rather than rushing these preproduction vehicles to dealers and then customers, that they have segregated them and are making the needed tweaks no matter how minor they may be."

Ford F-150 Ford stockpiling thousands of new 2021 F-150 pickups near Detroit airport 2021-f150-detroit-airport-2

2021 Ford F-150 pickup trucks fill private parking lots around Detroit Metro Airport and other areas around the city. This image was taken on December 11, 2020

Dearborn Truck began building preproduction F-150 prototypes Sept. 21. The Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri started in late October.
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Alpha1

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That must be where my king ranch that I ordered in July is sitting. My salesman was told by his rep that it's already been built just waiting on a commodity issue
 

jjblas

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Mine was built Monday the 14th. I hope they ship right away as the article states. However the tracker doesn't show a ship date yet. However, if I go the Ford site I find the vehicle listed on my dealers site as a stock order. I am tempted to sign up for a test drive!?
 

HCFX

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Makes sense. Ford probably still has PTSD for the disaster that was the 2020 Explorer launch last fall.

The couple 2021's I've seen in person are, for the first run, very well put together at first glance.
 

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currybob

currybob

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The REAL question is: Is the airport charging Bob for long-term parking or short-term parking rate?
Lol, I think they are using it to carry passengers around the airport and towing big planes around the runways. Heck, they may be using it to power the tower.
 
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currybob

currybob

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Someone is out there with a hole saw putting sensors in all of the Lariat front bumpers...
Tim, you are one funny guy! Your comments keep me going to the bathroom on a regular basis!

Looks like they have cleared all the hold issues and plan on clearing out those parking lots by years end. Just got this from my dealer.

"My Ford Rep just called and said that Ford is having some logistic issues but their goal is to have all the F150's that are ready to ship delivered by year end. The railroad, shipping and carrier companies will continue to operate throughout the Christmas and New Year Holidays. So, hopefully that will in fact happen."
 

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Fingers crossed my order gets pulled soon and they don’t forget us few diesel orders ?
 

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Mine is definitely in that lot. Waiting patiently....
 

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LaserDawg1981

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If they want to give them away I'll take a black lariat sport with the luxury package and power deploy running boards.
 

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"My Ford Rep just called and said that Ford is having some logistic issues but their goal is to have all the F150's that are ready to ship delivered by year end. The railroad, shipping and carrier companies will continue to operate throughout the Christmas and New Year Holidays. So, hopefully that will in fact happen."
Finger's crossed, indeed. If my build is completed on Sunday, they could definitely get it shipped to Iowa year end.

Wonder what's going to happen to all of those incentives which expire on 1/4/21?
 

GABAR

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Better to wait and make sure all is well instead of just shipping vehicles to dealers and driving up warranty cost for recalls and at the same time, and this is the most important part, “pissing off” customers when they have to take their new vehicle back to the dealer.

The same people who are complaining about waiting will be the first ones saying why said vehicles were shipped out with problems.

You can satisfy all of the people none of the time. ?
 

TomH

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Lol, I think they are using it to carry passengers around the airport and towing big planes around the runways. Heck, they may be using it to power the tower.
APU for ground crews !
 

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Finger's crossed, indeed. If my build is completed on Sunday, they could definitely get it shipped to Iowa year end.

Wonder what's going to happen to all of those incentives which expire on 1/4/21?
Wondering the same.. a lot of our builds will be delivered during Ford truck month (march). I’m wondering what incentives Ford will have by then.
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