Ford, General Motors Traveling In Different Directions

It hasn't escaped too many ears that when the plight of the big American automobile producers was brought before Congress recently, Ford's position was different from that of General Motors and Chrysler. Chrysler's size is a big issue as the automaker doesn't have the scale to compete for the long haul. General Motors, on the other hand, is the second largest car producer in the world and has been losing money at a greater rate than Ford. But, only GM and Chrysler want loan money while Ford is simply looking for a line of credit.

Why the difference between General Motors and Ford? There are a few of them, but the biggest reason going forward are products in the pipeline. What Ford has coming to the market over the next year beats General Motors who is still two years away from bringing the Chevrolet Volt to the market. Let's take a look at Ford's fortune and how these products compare to General Motors.

Ford F Series – A few months ago, analysts were shaking their heads because of the poor timing of Ford bringing its next generation F-150 pick up truck to market. Ford actually delayed its launch in a bid to sell off remaining 2008 models and that delay has paid off. Gas prices have dropped and truck owners are doing what is expected of them: trading up every five years for the latest and greatest model. No V6 engine? Not a problem: they'll be one on hand next year when gas prices climb once again.

Fusion Hybrid – Oh, you have to love Ford for pushing the hybrid angle when GM has held back. Sure the Malibu hybrid is out there but when the 39 mpg city Fusion debuts this Spring, it'll blow everything else away including the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.

Small Cars – GM has delayed the introduction of the Chevrolet Cruze, a car that they say will get 45 mpg on the highway, with a  gas engine no less. Chevrolet customers will still be able to choose the Cobalt or Aveo but with a new Focus and the Fiesta coming online within a year or so, Ford will leap frog GM in the small car market.

Lincoln MKT – Finally, Lincoln is making a case for luxury car buyers to consider the brand again. The MKZ is refreshed as of this Spring, the larger MKS has been a hit and the MKT crossover will hit the market next summer. Cadillac is bringing out the CTS coupe and wagon and has a new SRX crossover coming, so Lincoln and Cadillac are now tied in exciting, new offerings.

EcoBoost – This Ford engine will allow a V6 to work like a V8 while delivering V6 fuel economy. Look for this engine to spread like wildfire and give Ford a leg up against all competitors. GM doesn't have anything like EcoBoost in the pipeline.

Certainly, GM has some new products on the way, but nothing as exciting as what Ford has planned. For that reason, GM's market share is likely to continue to decrease while Ford should stabilize and even benefit from a nice increase by 2010.