corporate reversal:Ford Edsel

The blunder: After months of letting the American public believe it was working on a revolutionary type of car, Ford Motor Co. unveiled the Edsel in late 1957. Problem was, it looked quite similar to other cars. Because of confusing pricing, customers didn’t understand where it fit into the Ford hierarchy. Mechanics hated the engine. And the Edsel launched just as the country was heading into recession.
Little known fact: Before its rollout, Ford marketing brass invited Pulitzer-prize winning poet Marianne Moore to make suggestions for the car’s name. In a New Yorker article, she claimed her picks included “Pastelogram” and “Mongoose Civique.”
The reversal: In late 1959, Ford announced the end of the Edsel. The car is now a collector’s item.(REUTERS)