Right now, the only thing Ranger has going for it is price.

The way sales are going now, the Explorer could be a vehicle that sells 150,000 units a year (by 2008), leaving ample room at Louisville Assembly for a light pickup.

It may be cliché at this point, but no doubt, product is king, and they need to establish what the Ford and Mercury and Lincoln brands are to the consumer.

Saturn has been a laggard when it comes to new vehicles, so expanding the lineup is a good sign. One of the criticisms is that GM targeted Saturn to fight the Japanese but without expanding the lineup, they've lost buyers.

It's obviously a disappointment. It's smart that Ford has taken the initiative to slow down the line rather than produce too many. But it doesn't bode well for the workers.

No matter what way you want to cut it, the contrast with is only that much more stark with Ford and GM. Toyota still has a much smaller production base in North America than GM or Ford, but increasing capacity as quickly as they have is an impressive feat.