福特、丰田：谁是销量冠军？

    福特汽车公司正宣扬其紧凑型汽车福克斯（Focus）是全球最畅销的车型——这种说法即便有待商榷，但也不算吹嘘。不过，丰田马上反驳称其卡罗拉（Corolla）品牌才是真正的冠军。

    这两款车型之间的销量差距并不是很大。哪一款的销量更高可能与车型命名方式以及销量记录方法有关——而除了汽车公司的营销高管外，这类神秘的问题不会有任何人感兴趣。

    而且，关键是福特终于找出了如何打造和推销世界级汽车的重要途径。福特苦苦摸索了数十年才摸到门路，而早已精通此道的丰田凭此已将自己打造为行业巨头，并从巨大的规模效益中攫取巨利。

    汽车行业高管喜欢宣称自己是市场领导者，其实原因有两点：一是自称你的车型是特定市场细分部门最畅销的，可以吸引购买者。二就是目空一切的狂妄。一位拒绝透露身份的汽车行业高管称：“口水战和自我中心主义四处横行。”他指出，“对任何汽车生产商，不应该将目标定为行业最大，更不应该为了达到这个目的而出卖灵魂，例如高额刺激措施”以及折扣，使得汽车销售利润很低甚至为零。

    根据市场调查公司R.L. Polk在全球80个国家通过追踪汽车牌照登记情况得到的数据，福克斯在2012年的销量为1,020,412辆。福特驻密歇根州迪尔伯恩的销售分析师艾里奇•默克尔表示，“这是对我们产品的有力证明，也足以回馈对福克斯感兴趣的人们。我们不会为了卖车无所不为，而是希望买车的人真正对这款产品有热情。”目前在售的车型是第三代，一段时间内它会与另一个欧洲版本使用同一名称，尽管两款车并不相同。这个策略调整发生在艾伦•穆拉利2006年就任首席执行官之后，他坚持采用“一个福特”（One Ford）方式，尽可能地发挥福特的全球效应。

    到目前为止，穆拉利的策略非常奏效，推动了福特的运营和财务表现大幅改善。分析师默克尔指出，在所有市场采用同一名称意味着：商业全球化时代，一位中国商业女性可能在美国出差时租用一辆福克斯，体验良好的话，回国之后她会寻求同一产品。

    而丰田方面，据公司驻加利福尼亚州托伦斯发言人麦克•米歇尔斯透露，2012年丰田在全球售出了116万辆卡罗拉，将使该车成为最畅销的紧凑型汽车。但是他指出，从R.L. Polk的数据看，卡罗拉的销量只有30万，原因尚不清楚。

    麦克承认在部分国家，丰田公司统计为卡罗拉的某些汽车，可能被R.L. Polk列为其他车型进行统计，例如卡罗拉Axio和Altis。他说，Axio和Altis就像在美国的SE和SL型号，其目的是显示不同的档次，比如汽车配置。

    在R.L. Polk负责市场预测业务的副总裁安东尼•普拉特发布的一份声明中，该公司表示“本周早些时候福特援引的Polk数据是精确的，依据的是单一使用福特福克斯品牌的汽车销量。”他还表示，这些数据来自于80个国家；丰田则表示卡罗拉的销售覆盖130个国家。

    中立分析师也认为：对福特来说，福克斯一直是成功的产品，拥有相当不错的口碑，并对全球买家都具有吸引力。同样，卡罗拉也是丰田的常青产品，一次次帮助丰田从质量、法律和政治困局（更不用提2011年的海啸）中复苏。

    如果要问这两款紧凑型汽车福克斯和卡罗拉谁是真正的冠军，这个问题本身就问错了。（财富中文网）

    译者：秋闲

    Ford Motor Company can't be faulted for bragging that it sells more of a single car model, the compact Ford Focus, than any automaker in the world -- even if the claim is debatable, given Toyota's rebuttal that its Corolla compact is the true champ.

    The number of cars separating the two models isn't that large. Which one sold more probably relates to model-naming nomenclature and to scorekeeping convention, arcane subjects of little interest to anyone but automotive marketing executives.

    Besides, the key point is that Ford (F) finally -- and importantly -- has figured out how to build and market a world car. That proficiency, which eluded Ford for decades, is what helped make Toyota (TM) a powerhouse and reap the financial benefits from vast efficiencies of scale.

    Auto executives like to brag about market leadership for two reasons: The claim that your model is the best-seller in a particular category could attract others to buy it for just that reason. Second reason: Hubris. "Trash talking and egos run amok," said one auto executive who declined to be identified. "Biggest shouldn't be the goal for any automaker, and you shouldn't have to sell your soul to get there, for example, big incentives" and discounts to move cars at little or no profit.

    According to R.L. Polk, which tracks registrations in 80 countries globally, Focus notched sales of 1,020,412 in 2012. Erich Merkle, Ford's sales analyst in Dearborn, Mich., said "it's a testament to our product, to the large number of people who are interested in Focus. We don't do everything to sell every last vehicle we can, we want owners to be passionate." The current model is in its third generation and for a time shared the name with a European version that was a different vehicle. That strategy changed following the arrival of Alan Mulally as CEO in 2006, who insisted on a "One Ford" approach to take advantage of global scale whenever possible.

    Mulally's strategy has worked brilliantly so far, leading to vast improvements in Ford's operating and financial results. Merkle points out that naming the car the same in all markets recognizes that global commerce means a Chinese business woman might well rent a Focus on a trip to the U.S. -- and look for it when she returns home.

    Toyota, according to Mike Michels, a spokesman in Torrance, California, sold 1.16 million Corollas worldwide in 2012 -- which would seem to make Corolla the best-selling compact car. But R.L. Polk numbers fail to reflect 300,000 Corolla sales, he said, for reasons that haven't been clarified.

    He acknowledges that some vehicles Toyota counts as Corolla might be counted as separate models in some countries, such as Corolla Axio and Corolla Altis. He says "Axio" and "Altis" are like SE and SL designations in the U.S., an indicator of trim level, i.e. what features are included.

    In a statement released by Anthony Pratt, vice president of forecasting for R.L. Polk, the company said "Polk data reported by Ford earlier this week is accurate based on the single nameplate Ford Focus." He also said the data is compiled from 80 countries; Toyota says its Corolla is sold in 130 countries.

    Neutral analysts agree that Focus has been a home run for Ford, with strong critical reviews as well as global appeal among buyers. Likewise, the Corolla's enduring appeal symbolizes Toyota core strength, helping it to rebound from a variety of quality, legal, and political difficulties – not to mention the 2011 tsunami.

    Asking which of the two compacts, Focus or Corolla, is the true sales champ is to ask the wrong question.