In a shock move Ford Performance Vehicles was decapitated last Friday. The move -- in which much of the FPV senior management team was dismissed -- was announced in a short statement issued by minority partner, Ford Australia.

FPV is a joint-venture between Ford Australia and UK-based automotive and race engineering specialist, Prodrive. The latter holds 51 per cent of FPV and operates what is effectively Ford's local hero car arm.

The retrenchments included recently-appointed managing director Sak Ryopponen and senior marketing, product planning, customer and media relations personnel.

Hot on the heels of announcements of FPV's best-ever sales performance, it was not only the extent of the sackings that shocked industry observers (and the unsuspecting FPV team), but the way in which Ford Australia also appeared also to be caught off-guard.

In the absence of FPV staff to report the move, it was left to Ford Australia to explain Friday's developments. In a short statement, Ford Australia claimed that "increased resources will now be dedicated to sales, marketing and dealer support" and "FPV will recruit a new sales and marketing general manager to lead the business while doubling the sales force."

However, when contacted by CarPoint Ford spokeswoman and Manager of Public Affairs Sinead McAlary conceded that the recruitment process had only just begun and couldn't speculate about how long it would take.

"The goal is to find the right person and FPV is committed to ensuring that occurs and isn't driven solely by time," McAlary told CarPoint.

Since Friday's sackings CarPoint has spoken with a number of well-placed current and ex FPV and Ford employees. And the story that is emerging clashes with the official line of a re-focus on sales for the hero car and performance R&D arm.

Indeed, the Ford statement does little to explain why Prodrive has effectively emptied its (relatively) new multi-million dollar Broadmeadows premises of key management staff without warning and without a replacement structure in place. The Ford release also cannot explain Prodrive's dismissal of FPV's product planning manager with a senior HSV background who by any objective measure, transformed the marketing and product direction of the FPV range.

CarPoint understands the dismissals came as a complete shock to senior Ford management who were working with senior FPV personnel on future model plans. No 'handover' process had taken place or had been scheduled as this story was compiled.

A recent media appointee from HRT was also among the retrenched FPV staff. It was clear from the timing and content of McAlary's communication to the media that there was little warning of the retrenchments.

As recently as a few days before Christmas, Ford Australia President, Mr Tom Gorman was talking of adding FPV chief Sak Ryopponen to his regular monthly media briefings. Gorman told CarPoint: "FPV has a great story to tell, we'll get Sak (Ryopponen) here [to one of the monthly briefings] to tell it."

Throughout these most recent statements from Ford and others made directly to the media, there is no mention of any immediate plans for FPV product planning, marketing direction, media or customer liaison. Ford has simply stated the yet to be recruited General Manager will be responsible for: "growing FPV's brand awareness and market share as well as leading the future product development team."

Ms McAlary said, last week's retrenchments would not affect any FPV new model launches in CY 2007 or 2008. She would not comment specifically on what those launches would be, however.

with Staff