Although Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) has fallen on hard times -- like much of the auto industry -- the company will eventually come back around. Its success, like that of competitor General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), will be on its ability to be flexible enough to build the vehicles customers want as needs change.

That's a large order, though. Ford CEO Alan Mulally recently stated that his Way Forward plan was behind schedule, and the automaker wasn't expected to post an annual profit until 2010. Ford knows it needs to be more globally flexible or it won't even make that extended target. Profit centers like SUVs are so 1999.

On top of all that, a Volkswagen (OTC: VLKAY) executive recently said that the German automaker intends to surpass Ford to become the third-largest seller of vehicles in the world. That's quite a bold prediction and it puts Ford under even more pressure to get automobiles delivered to customers with increasing manufacturing and selling flexibility. As of last year, Volkswagen sold 6.19 million vehicles to Ford's 8.55 million. Is one year enough of a background to declare VW a future winner over Ford? Possibly.

Then again, Japanese automakers Honda Motor Corp. (NYSE: HMC) and Nissan Motor Co. (NASDAQ: NSANY) are not going anywhere and will continue to put up a great fight. Toyota Motor Co. (NYSE: TM) is currently the king of the Japanese automakers, right behind GM globally. If Volkswagen really believes it can charge into the third spot, it better have the global vehicle finesse to know what its regions' customers want before they want it -- and then, make those sales.