THE AUTOEXTREMIST

March 16, 2011

This spring’s Heavyweight Championship marketing fight: Chevrolet Cruze vs. Ford Focus.

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 3/15, 12:00 p.m.) Detroit. Even casual observers of the U.S. auto industry are familiar with the annual tussle between Chevrolet and Ford when it comes to the sales race in the light pickup truck segment. And particularly when you get away from the urban centers and spend some time in regions of the country where pickup trucks are the standard mode of transportation, the battle between these two U.S. auto industry giants is even more pronounced and hard fought in the trenches, in communities big and small all across America.

But though this annual pickup truck battle has a familiar ring to it when it comes to the ebb and flow of the U.S. auto industry, what’s about to unfurl this spring will be decidedly unfamiliar and something we’ve not seen in this industry since the 60s.

Chevrolet and Ford will be squaring off for the first time in a long time against each other with their two newest mainstream passenger cars: the Chevy Cruze and the Ford Focus, and needless to say just about everything will be on the line and at stake in this battle.

First of all, with gas prices slowly but surely inching up to a new minimum level, which I’m guessing will be around $3.50 per gallon from here on out, the American consumer public is going to have to get comfortable with the idea that these “C” segment cars are the new mainstream American sedans in terms of packaging and overall operating efficiency. And believe me, for many this will be an adjustment.

And while getting used to the overall size of these new “C” segment cars, American consumers will also be getting used to the idea of “premium” compact cars, which will put them more in line with consumers around the globe. It’s no secret that American car buyers have equated smaller dimensions in American cars with “cheap” or with “poorly equipped” for years and it’s easy to see why: they basically were.

The explosion of sales of thoroughly-equipped smaller imported cars in this market over the last 30 years did much to alter that basic impression with American consumers, but only for imported cars. With American cars the old stereotype remains for a lot of American consumers, as in small = cheap and worse, less desirable.

But all of that’s about to change, because the Chevrolet Cruze and Ford Focus are both superbly-executed machines, no matter what the segment.

The Chevy is obviously more conservative in design and geared for a much broader swath of buyers, adhering closely to the traditional Chevrolet mission in this market. Too much so from where I sit, as the Chevy, particularly in lesser trim levels, tends to blend in to the woodwork. And that’s not necessarily a good thing when you’re trying to reach beyond the usual Chevrolet persona and sway import-oriented consumers. But it is a solid and supremely competent machine, and it is already resonating with buyers.

The Ford Focus on the other hand is a machine with a more distinct point of view. Flaunting Ford’s new global design language, the Focus is more avant-garde in its reach and execution inside and out. It’s more swoopy and aerodynamic looking, particularly in the hatchback configuration, and its distinct character extends to the way it drives too, with a more engaging feel that reacquaints people with the fact that they are in fact driving something, and not just going along for the ride. But the Focus is pricier as well. And therein lays the fundamental difference between these two vehicles.

Despite all of its competence and mainstream appeal, Chevrolet hedged their bets with the Cruze, as if they wanted to make sure that if things didn’t work out with the whole “Americans embracing premium compact cars” thing, they could move the metal just the same, with the help of the sheer inertia offered by the sales muscle of Chevy dealers all across the country.

The Focus on the other hand represents the new, confident, upward trajectory of Ford, probably more so than any other product they’ve delivered yet under Alan Mulally’s laser-focused leadership. The Focus bristles with detailed touches that suggest that this is not just another compact car, but rather Ford’s stake in the ground as a maker of desirable, forward-looking, premium-equipped cars that are engaging to look at and most important, fun to drive.

And fueling this heavyweight bout is the burgeoning battle between the marketing mavens at each company as well. Joel Ewanick, now entrenched as GM’s global marketing leader, is facing-off against the similarly-titled Jim Farley at Ford, and true to form the marketing and advertising from these two camps are as different as the products themselves.

Chevrolet has had almost a six-month head start with the Cruze, and Ewanick has played the “America & Chevrolet” card to the hilt, wanting to quickly inject the name “Cruze” into the American consumer consciousness. With a huge war chest at his disposal Ewanick has spurred his troops to make maximum impact for Chevrolet with the Cruze, and for the most part he has succeeded, at least to this point.

Farley on the other hand will take more risks with the Focus advertising both in social media and with the TV and print campaign, mirroring the confident, sophisticated, on-road presence of the machine with marketing that is smartly conceived and executed and that elevates the brand.

We haven’t seen this kind of a knock-down; drag-out, heavyweight championship fight between mainstream cars from Ford and Chevrolet in a long, long time. It’s got all the ingredients of a bout for the ages too, including excellent products, massive budgets, combative, mercurial personalities, and a legacy of battles from years gone by fueling the intensity of the fight.

And needless to say, the stakes are huge.

Not just for the more obvious reasons – the convincing of consumers about to the desirability of these “C” class machines while getting a higher transactional price for them, etc., etc. – but because these two manufacturers are aiming to capture the hearts and minds of the American consumer public, which will directly affect the future viability, strength and perception of these brands for years and years to come.

I can hardly wait.

And that’s the High-Octane Truth for this week.

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