ANTAUS

I remember that concept actually, but if produced, it would probably sticker around $25-30K. That's one of the issue with the Ridgeline, for what it is. And since it's much more complex than BOF, then not much profits at that. People would choose a Sport Trac, or F-150 at that price. The only business cause I would see on this concept would be that it wouldn't require that much tooling to produce, and considering gas prices will continue to rise, this would give them an option.

Actually the Probe sold very well at that time, coupled with the Mazda MX6...Ford at that time, and even now, sold the most "coupes" of any other manufacturer. The 2nd generation Probe debuted in 93, sold better obviously. The Duratec 2.5L and 2.0L were good "sophisticated" engines for their time. Ford decided to kill the Probe/MX-6 for various reasons. One of them, were the high claims of warranty repair compared to the Mustang which had generation of tweaking/fine tuning considering it's simple architecture. Also, in 1997/98, I believe was the year that federal mandate required a standard passenger airbag. Instead of Ford retrofitting it (seeing they knew this years ago), they phased out those cars, along with the Aspire, Aerostar, etc. and Focus more attention on the Mustang. Tbird/Cougar/Mark8 was also shot off during that time. Also, the coupe segment has dropped quite a bit from that time. It's only now that you see a little resurgence, and some state it's because of the empty nesters who want a coupe. Hence, possible Fusion Coupe....

It's the Volvo 2.5L Turbo I-5...EU Ford is now using it on a few Ford branded vehicles. While Volvo will start phasing in the 3.2L I-6...Ford is getting the left overs.

My thoughts...

Or a Turbocharged 3.5L V6 making 350HP ? Rather than a 4.4L V8 with 315HP ?

This is nothing more than an ephiphany... Ford may sell Volvo, Ford may Sell Mazda, Ford may go backrupt, Ford MAY MAY MAY... There's nothing to verify or justify rather, it's just "May". In the lines of "What If". Funny how one story, is now going to get the medias panties up in a roar.

LINK-Autospies.com

And another point to take into consideration. When the Big3 had reliability issues in the 70's and 80s, there really wasn't a benchmark, or some set of standards that would indicate how reliable a brand was. At that time, S--t happened and you deal with it because that is, what it was. It wasn't till Toyota and Honda set such standards, that made reliability a focus for the Big3...Specially when they started seeing customers deflect to foreign brands. One Detroit start improving the issue, you might say they have lost numerous customers that will take some time to regain, and possibly (considering how hard they were burned) might never come back. In Toyota's case, which I have stated before... as a manufacturer gets bigger, the problems will be bigger. They won't be immune to this issue. It's better to have slower sustained growth, than rapid all out growth.

That sums it up well. Unfortunately the media, as well as consumers, will only take note when they see/hear about new vehicles being launches. It stirs up some interest on the brand, and gets people into the showroom. Unfortunatelyh the Edge/MkX isn't enough for now. Ford needs to have a constant cycle where 4-5 new vehicles are being introduced/refreshened at a yearly rate. Nissan is facing a similar issue with declining sales, because it's main sellers Altima/Sentra/Maxima, are in their last year of their product cycle. And following their 4-5 year redesign philosophy, this cycle has occured for over a decade. Same occurs with VW...their sales slump for awhile, because the Passat and Jetta's introductions are done at the same time...

If you look at the Windstar/Freestar, in it's time and era, it was actually good looking for what it was. Just read the lines around the car, they were nicely integrated, and in harmony. It's just now minivans have taken more of a styling emphansize, as it has been in Europe for awhile. Although risky considering the Quest as one example. The S-Max does look a bit attractive in a sport way, although that "A" Pillar window reminds me of the Aerostar. I just have a beef with those types of senseless pieces of glass. If you look at the rest of that car and remove some of the styling elements, it's really pretty basic and plain. My main beef with the Wind/Freestar were the lack of reliability, the OHV engines, and crappy transmissions. Ford last attempt sharpened up the quality and styling a bit, although changes in the exterior weren't enough to offset the bad aura it gained through time. R.I.P., Bring in the Fairlane ! And please, dont call it the FairStar... Kill this star s--t, we are on Earth !

I totally agree and really, says everything I feel in this final paragraph he wrote:.... "Now Ford wants to speed up restructuring efforts, with talk of taking waste and cost out of the product development process. My immediate reaction to such statements is that we have heard them many times before, and if the main sources of 'waste' have not already been uncovered, then something is clearly amiss. Of equal concern is the question of the personnel involved; where are the product experts, the real car people, among Ford's top ranks? Judged from outside, at least, the bench does not seem that deep. After seeing product droughts hit Ford more than once in the past, one has to ask why it has been allowed to happen again."

LINK_Ford Media

LINK-Ford Media

Good point, and during many of those years, the Mustang survived while there was a T-bird available, a Ford Probe. All relatively around the same price range, different configurations and demographics. Obviously, the coupe segment has dwindled since But again, as long as it's economically feasable, it works.

Just 5 minutes? Took me 10 with everything I had to say...

I guess the 5.8L will replace where the current 5.4L resides...Since the 4.6L 3V can make same HP and a little less torque.

So if the oil filter situation was fixed on this new vehicle, is that to say that Honda admits there's a problem, serious enough to warrant a redesign of that component?

I dont know why Ford has to spend so much on all this stupid research groups and such...all they have to do is listen to this site when they visit, and they can leave the decision making to them

Therefore, if the RDX doesn't receive anything but preimium, it can lead to engine damage which could cause a.................... fire? (Waiting for Range to post that infamous picture)

Mark....hmm well in that case, I would welcome any tweaking he might see fit. As long as it's positive for the product, rather than just conversative beancounting.

That actually isn't a bad idea as a stop gap. And as seen on the S-type, it shouldn't be that difficult either. Actually the Escape is the only vehicle I see would benefit from this the most if it doesn't receive the 3.5L, and of course, the Fusion/Milan. I would doubt they would even bother with the 500/Mtg since they receive it after the Edge/Markie. Would be interesting to see what Ford will use to replace the 3.0L Vulcan in the Ranger. Either it dies along with the vehicle, or just offer the 2.3L and 4.0L

The MKS was sent back to the drawing board? Last I heard, what we saw is 95% in concrete.

I agree, this article was alot about nothing actually. It's not reporting anything that we don't already know. Knowing is one thing, action is another. As it stands, Ford needs a major product push, so NOW is the time to make decisions on pulling a "B" segment vehicle sooner, 2010 won't cut it. As much as Ford brags on all this super computer BS, and how it cuts engineering time, it's of no good use if they can't make decisions, and most importantly, stand by them.

No not really, the compressor will run more taking hot outside air and cooling it down, than taking already cool air, and making it cooler. Ford's literature (not sure now) would state that running the vehicle in Max A/C was more efficient than running it in Norm A/C...again, because of taking constant hot air, and cooling. Granted, the first few minutes you enter the car, yes having the RECIRC off Helps a little. I just lower the windows for a few blocks, then and raise them as I approach the main street, and switch to RECIRC. But as for suffocation, each and every vehicle (and specially with the manual Ford systems) I've always had it on Max-A/C. No need to place it on off, or even change it since in FL, it's just one season...Summer. On those Volvos, the system switches from RECIRC, when it detects if the inside, or outside air is dirty, and change accordingly. I noticed this annoying bit since I borrowed a friends S80 for a week. Plus, I don't like smelling the bad toxic smells smelly cars leave behind, during traffic. I prefer smelling my car deoderizer. So again, I just rather have whatever the selection on the RECIRC, to stay. It's like, I enter the car, and each and everytime... "Click Agree in the Navigation system. Click "RECIRC" in the A/C. Click the "ON" for the cooled seats for myself, and click "ON" for my passengers cooled seat (another one that doesnt stay on and resets each time). And it really doesn't need to be this complex.

I've always been Pro-Fusion coupe...We've all discussed this previously before the Fusion debuted. Of course, provided that it is economically feasable with minimal changes. Of course, tailoring the "B" Pillar is usually the most expensive factor in that. And I'll repeat as others have previous mentioned, there ARE people who don't want all the show and noise of a Mustang, and rather have something a bit more refined and polished. Now, in years past. The threat of the Probe (being geared to replace the Mustang), called upon it's own death, but even then the Probe and MX-6 had VERY good sales. This time around, instead of threatening Mustang sales, it can deliberatly pick up the demographic, that the previous Tbird, enjoyed... Which was a "Personal Coupe". Keep the trim levels simple, and nicely packaged/optioned as well.