Richard; sincere thanks for designing the Flex, a vehicle that's working well for FoMoCo in the press, gathering much critical praise at a time when we need it most. Your team succeeded at turning the Freestyle's sows ear into a bigger, slicker, bolder silk purse that's drawing good attention to Ford. Unfortunately, now that we've got a viable neo-Country Squire, we no longer require your talents. Please accept the nice cardboard box we've left, it's been spray painted gold in an effort to call to mind the gold watch you might have gotten were our business not in such a shambles. Thanks for your service, and warmest regards.
Seriously though, Mr. Gresens is rumored to have departed Ford as part of a salaried layoff effort the automaker is undertaking, though he could have left for personal reasons, as well. The talented designer, inspired by everything from architecture to vacuum cleaners, hasn't officially landed anywhere yet. We'd have loved to have seen Gresen's take on the Focus, and we hope that the blocky CUV's bold, clean styling has some staying power.
Back when it was virtually guaranteed 20% US market share, Ford would redesign its vehicles every five or more years. The Ford Ranger, Focus, and Crown Victoria changed even slower, with mostly only new lights and grilles. When competitive pressures started to put the Blue Oval into an anaconda death grip, that once guaranteed share began to shrink. To battle those competitive forces, Ford is looking to do a major redesign on its vehicles every three years from now on. Ford design director Peter Horbury told Automotive News that minor styling changes just aren't effective, and that future redesigns will include changes to everything but the doors, roof, and glass. That leaves bumpers, hoods, trunks, lights, quarter panels and front and rear facias as some of the items that can be refreshed in a much more timely fashion.
Horbury claims the Dearborn, MI automaker listened to the press with regard to styling changes, which emboldens us to ask for more. We'd like a twin-turbo four-pot Mustang, a plug-in euro Focus, a 40 mpg F-150, a seat on the board, and free Mondeos for all.
