All -
I don't if any of you pay attention to this, but one of the most distressing
car things I have seen in the last few years is Ford's plan to sell Volvo to
Geely - Geely is China's premier car maker.
Basically, Ford is selling Volvo to Geely for about 1/3 what they paid for
Volvo just a few years ago. Why would Geely want Volvo?
A bit of background from a guy who lives in China - right now the quality of
Chinese cars isn't all that bad except in one major area - safety. In this
area, Chinese cars are DECADES behind the rest of the world in design. The
reason why is designing crumple zones and safety cages is very very complex
requiring sophisticated technology and decades of engineering experience -
Volvo cars are safe for good reason. If you do any search on Youtube of
what happens to a Chinese made car in an accident should scare the crap out
of you.
So Ford, to settle a very small amount of debt, is selling Volvo for cash to
Geely. This has to be one of the most short sighted things I have ever seen
any American car company ever do. Basically, Ford is selling the very
expertise that Geely needs to destroy Ford in the future in worldwide
sales. All for less than 2 billion dollars. I suggest that within a decade
Ford will be losing more business globally than that on an annual basis to
Geely because of the expertise they are literally giving away for a pocket
full of change.
Who's to blame for giving assistance on a silver platter to the rise of
China? I certainly don't blame the Chinese for this. Ford should be
ashamed of itself.
Alan
'52 A90
'53 BN1
'59 Jag Mk IX
'64 BJ8
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