Car “Edsel” (Edsel) of 1957 release became the personification of rude miscalculations in marketing policy.
Ford company put up its new car for sale in the lower average market sector, between large Ford cars and the economical model of Mercury (Mercury). No matter how sad for Ford, by the time the model was launched into production, the market was experiencing a crisis: buyers were interested in small cars, and Edsel, the inappropriate car at the wrong time, became a victim of its own excess advertising. Predicting the sales level of 200,000 cars for the first year of production, Ford announced that the development of a new machine – named after the deceased son Henry Ford – cost $ 250,000,000.
After the number of buyers was only 62,000 in the first season, criticism collapsed to the design of the car with its unusual vertical grate, described by one wit as Oldsmobile, “sucking lemon”. In fact, “Edsel” consistent with the standards of that time, differing from other models with honed stabilizers on the wings and sophisticated body lines.
Modifications Edsel
A line of 15 different models of Edsel actually produced a special unit of Ford: including cars with a closed body, with a folding top and the type of “universal” on the basis of the same ordinary basic chassis. Typically, modifications with a six-cylinder and V-shaped eight-cylinder engines were produced (power varied from 145 to 345 liters. c), three -speed mechanical and automatic transmission boxes.
In 1959, the design of the car was slightly changed: Ford tried to stop the rapid fall in sales; and a completely new body appeared, presented in a substantially abbreviated line, designed for the 1960 model. One way or another, the release of the Edsel series was stopped at the beginning of the next decade due to low demand for these machines.
The irony of fate, once rejected “Edsel” today occupies a worthy place in the most recognized collections, becoming a prince among losers.
Photo Edsel
Video edsel