The Starting Lineup

It's almost summer and the sports pages (Web and newsprint ; -) are chock full of baseball. So how does baseball have anything to do with cars, beyond the old Chevrolet ad campaign, 'Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet'?

Well, the heart of a car companies product lineup is analogous to the first four spots on a baseball team's batting order. You need an 'on-base' batter to lead off, a decent percentage hitter in second and third spots, and a power hitter in the cleanup spot.

For car companies that equates to a good compact and mid-size sedan, a mid-size SUV, and a full size truck.

Ford has a decent entry product, the Focus which compares favorably with Toyota's Corolla and the Chevy Cobalt. The Cobalt is a good product - much better than its predecessors - but the Corolla is the All-Star.

The Chevy Malibu is the first mid-size GM sedan in a long time that has the attention to detail in the interior that is needed in this segment. It's a very good product that anyone could use in their lineup. Ford's Fusion is good but the Camry is the gold standard.

The Toyota Highlander is as good a mid-size SUV as a product planner could hope for. The Explorer the aging 'slugger' and the late Chevy Trailblazer (gone now - replaced by the Traverse) the 'Roy Hobbs' of the bunch (it should have been a contender - especially with the creamy smooth in-line six cylinder GM did for that truck).

Cleanup hitter, Ford's F-150 - the best of the bunch, with the Silverado and Tundra playing catchup. Ford has managed to keep the F series at the top of the sales charts and is a big reason it is still healthy.

Now where does Chrysler's product fit. What's their Corolla equivalent, the Sebring? Nope that's the Camry fighter - but it's a minor leaguer compared to the rest. Medium sized SUV, the Dodge Durango - well check the interior out on that truck. And finally the Ram, a good product but an also ran - never getting any All-Star votes.

Notice also the first four slots for Chrysler are across two brands. Could this be why Chrysler couldn't make it? It's all about product.