'Golden noses' for Ford in China

Ford has employed 'smell assessors' in China to help combat falling sales.

The unusual employment may help boost sales for Ford. [Photo: VCG]

In Western countries, many people find the smell of a new car to be very appealing. You might think I'm mad, but I used to work in a garage cleaning cars, and sometimes I'd sit in them for a few minutes just to enjoy the smell!

However, the appeal of a new car smell isn't universal, and Ford is worried that its models smell too much for Chinese consumers.

As a result, they've employed 18 'golden noses' in China to try and sniff-out what's causing the odour, and how to make it more appealing.

The news comes just weeks after we reported that Ford had recorded three successive quarters of decline in China.

China represents a massive and dynamic car market, so it will be concerning to Ford that their model line-up has been described as 'ageing.'

The manufacturer now plans to revamp many of its existing models, as well as launching new ones.

 Ford has also revealed plans to release an electric car in China.

The new model should be launched as early as next year, as part of its partnership with Chongqing Changan Automobile. 

The firm had also revealed plans to ensure that 70 percent of its sales in China will be either hybrid or electric by 2025.

What's more, the company had also predicted growing demand in the country for its pick-up trucks, after starting shipping their F-Series trucks to China.

The F-Series was first built in 1948, and is currently in its thirteenth generation of production.

It has apparently been the best selling vehicle in the USA for the last 33 years, and although sales slipped during the financial recession, sales last year were an impressive 820,000 units in America alone, nearly as high as their peak in 2004.