Car: A Drama of the American Workplace

by Mary Walton

"An enlightening peek at the inner workings of a large corporation trying to reinvent itself. . . . It's rare to find an auto book that explains the process of creating a car with so much color and detail."― Business Week (a Best Business Book of 1997) Faced with the task of redesigning the Taurus, America's best-selling car and the flagship of its fleet, Ford Motor Company assembled 700 designers, engineers, planners, and bean-counters under a tough manager who set out to retake engineering and manufacturing ground lost to the Japanese. On their shoulders rested the reputation and the profits of Ford, not to mention an investment of close to 3 billion dollars. This biting, insightful account by a seasoned journalist follows the 1996 Taurus from its conception as a clay model in Detroit to its birth in an Atlanta assembly plant to its public debut in a New Jersey dealership. Mary Walton, who was given unprecedented access to the Taurus team, chronicles brilliantly the clashes between designers and engineers, marketers and accountants, product guys and manufacturing guys to create a revealing portrait of the tension, the passions, and the pride that fuel the race to #1. "An engrossing drama . . . with fascinating insights into every aspect of the car's creation. . . . Walton does an admirable job of making the redesign of a car into a compelling human-interest story."― Publishers Weekly (starred review) "An engrossing, satisfying read."―Doron Levin, Philadelphia Inquirer (a Best Book of 1997) "Vivid and informative. . . . Consistently entertaining because it is engagingly written, this is the rare business book that is a page turner."―Keith Bradsher, New York Times Book Review 8 pages of plates, photographs

Genres: Business, Cars, Nonfiction

394 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1997

Reviews

[Alex W. · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unexpectedly captivating tale of car development from sketch to showroom floor. I developed a new appreciation for the 1996 Ford Taurus, a car I've long seen as ugly.

[Noah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was intrigued, because I saw a few people saying how much they loved this book, and I'm pre-inclined to be interested in transportation. And there's a lot that's cool about the multi-year, multi-billion dollar product development process. It's a whole world of technology and engineers I don't know the first thing about.

But there's a lot too much workplace drama, per the title, that I don't care about. The individual characters at Ford aren't well-drawn enough that I'm interested in this as a novelistic enterprise, but there's still too much time spent on them to have the book be a zippy window into just how hard it is to design a good headlight/mirror/each of 10,000 components. Didn't work for me, and I put it down.

[Albert Dexter]

It's wild how cars aren’t just about transportation anymore—they’ve become part of the experience, especially when traveling. In cities like Dubai, driving something luxurious kind of blends right into the vibe. I remember when I visited, I went for a luxury car rental dubai https://www.thephuketnews.com/top-10-... instead of sticking with the usual compacts. Totally changed the feel of the trip. Cruising past the Burj Khalifa or pulling up to a beach spot just hits different when you're behind the wheel of something sleek. I even found some great tips for exploring the city in this list of top things to do—it really helped plan my days better.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my usual read. My son recommended it and as I’m always recommending books to him I thought I’d give it a try. Not a fan of Fords or car industry. However, the book was written tongue in cheek with an interesting perspective on the auto industry. The process that goes into designing a car from concept to sale is painstakingly arduous. Written from a 70’s-90’s POV the auto industry culture is toxic and demanding. I sure hope it’s changed. I’ll never look at a car the same.

[Eric Beaudoin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gives an awesome look into the inner workings of the automotive industry. From concept to prototype to production this book tells it all about how the 1996 Ford Taurus came to be. It’s a fascinating peek into all of the work that went into a seemingly mundane object like a 90s Family Sedan. I highly recommend this one if you know anyone involved in the automotive business!

[Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just ate this book up. It was written in such a way to really get you in the mindset of the car designers and gave you great overview of all the intracacies involved with designing, manufacturing and releasing a car from the ground up. I would recommend this book to any car enthusiaste even if the Ford Taurus seems a bit 'boring'.

[Jean Robert Petnkeu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging read from a current Ford Motor Company employee. The topics discussed are still relevant today.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

The level of access granted to the author is extremely impressive. Very informative. The overwhelming thing I came out with is that I would not want to work at Ford.

[Neil Pierson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always thought that car companies were miserable places to work. Turns out I was right.

But it's interesting to read about--if you like cars. This is the story of the redesign and introduction of the new (1996) Ford Taurus and shows us what a difficult, complicated process it is.

Car design and engineering is a zero-sum game. A budget is set for the overall cost of the car, of course. If I add a crash sensor and a bracket to hold it, and that adds $9.75 to the cost of the car, you have to cut $9.75 in cost from your part of the car. But cost is only the most obvious limit.

Consider space: If I place my crash sensor behind the grille, I take the space you were going to use for your wiring harness. You move your wiring harness over, which blocks air that's needed to cool the engine. The engine people install a diverter to direct more incoming air over the engine, which takes air away from the heating/air conditioning people...

How about weight? The Taurus had to weigh 3,387 pounds or less for Ford to meet federal fuel efficiency standards. My sensor and the bracket to hold it added about a pound, and the diverter for the incoming air added another pound. 3,389! Somebody is going to have to redesign something to get those two pounds back.

By the way, the sensor has to be manufactured and supplied by a vendor over whom we have little control.

The sensor and diverter have to be installed at an assembly plant that must produce 67 cars an hour. The added installation steps take assembly line time away from some other step in the process. They also account for hourly worker time and cost which is, of course budgeted. And since the sensor can't be installed if the diverter is in the way, the sequence of assembly steps and tools has to change.

There are between 15,000 and 30,000 parts in the '96 Taurus.

All of these decisions must be made quickly, because there is a hard deadline for the introduction. Any time taken to consider my suggestion is time that won't be spent on your idea.

How do all these conflicts get resolved? That's where the misery part comes in. Screaming, bluffing, back channels, deception, and mainly rank are the means. One NEVER (openly) expresses disagreement with a superior. For example, the team is considering various names for the new Taurus engine... until a senior exec announces that it will be Duratec. The team doesn't like it. One member (privately!) says that it sounds like a contact lens; another (privately!) says it would be a good name for a pair of pliers.* And no one says a word (publicly).

Accessible writing and humor (most of it black) make this a good read.

*Made me think of non-scratch cookware.

[Marty Greenwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This was a great book. If you want to appreciate your car, read this. I never thought what was sitting under me as I went down the road was simple, but I never envisioned the complexity of designing a car: the change in the body shapes the headlights which impacts the way the front end is designed which impacts how much can be "packaged" into the front. I thought there would be competition and there is. How almost twenty years ago multiple car makers would be in Death Valley to test their AC systems and in Bemiji, MN to test their heat. Stories well told of people who give their passion for what they believe in. This was a book picked up from Friends of the Public Library in Cincinnati. Best $2.00 I have spent. The 1996 second generation Taurus was the subject and we went from the beginning of the concept to how it failed (without discounts to buyers) in the marketplace. I am on the lookout to see these as there aren't many still around.

[Nln]

A surprisingly interesting read. It truly is the biography of a car (Ford Taurus) and like any good biography gives a glimpse of its parents and the countervailing forces (design, engineering, finance, individual features, the car as a whole) that shaped it. A good read for product development people in general -- this was a bet-the-farm model -- and for those in the auto and advertising industries.

[Mitzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Industrial drama at its best. I really enjoyed reading about all the thoughfulness that went into the making of the first Ford Taurus and about how seemingly small details (e.g. purple seat fabric, oval rear window) doomed the first year's model.

Good for people interested in inventing, innovation, marketing,and the American consumer's psyche.

[Tom Sparrenberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Being a big fan of the Ford Taurus, I had a soft spot for this book. The level of detail is impressive as there's so much that goes into building a new car. From start to finish, Mary Walton has nailed the process and those personalities that made the car come to life.

[Tom Olmsted · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trials of bringing the new Taurus to market. Good inside information on Ford product development in the 90s.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book ever written about the auto industry, and there will never be another one like it (nobody will ever grant access like Walton had).

[Wayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book that made me want to get into a technical field. It's a great look at a long, involved product development process from the viewpoint of the people involved, and not just the technical progression.