Gaunt points to the Ford-owned Young Drivers, which can make money giving driving lessons (all of which courses are widely believed to be of spurious value to long-term safety levels) while exposing high school kids to the charms of the Focus.
There's also the Fast Lane service centres, which offer factory service and parts at factory prices but with quick, no-appointment work.
"Sixteen Fast Lanes are now operational in Canada and 75 more are in the works," says Gaunt, adding that, "We take a certain amount of pride, by the way, in the fact that we're ahead of Ford U.S. in launching this new business."
Gaunt says that Ford of Canada's websites "also make customers' lives easier, and help to rev up our dealers' sales. For example, our new Quality Certified Pre-owned website puts thousands of two-year-old vehicles online for easy searching. It, too, is a first in Canada and is also ahead of the U.S."
"In total," Gaunt says, "we're showcasing to our dealers 13 new business opportunities and new ways to connect with customers, all geared at driving growth," but few of which she will talk about in public. "Wait and see" is what she always says when asked for more details.Indeed, wait and see seems to be the operative instruction for everything regarding Ford of Canada.