Ford's student driver takes the wheel.

Right after his company's staggering $5.8 billion third-quarter loss, new Ford Motor CEO Alan Mulally came to New York to present himself to automotive analysts and business journalists for the first time. I've seen plenty of embattled auto CEOs stick to their careful scripts, and for most of our 30-minute sitdown at a Midtown hotel Mulally stuck to his. The boyish 61-year-old spoke softly and sincerely, and said most of the right things. But he showed little of the steel he's going to need to turn the carmaker around. Ford must streamline, cut costs and move faster, he said. How? His first big move is - hold on to your seat - a weekly business plan meeting.