ZanatWork

Thanks for your efforts, on behalf of some of us that geek out on sales numbers...!

Many companies failed to give wagons much push, again with Subaru as the exception. When's the last Ford Flex commercial you saw? How many years back?

That 7.3 swap makes for interesting thoughts...and I already figure that "enhanced" versions will be at SEMA, so I'm sure that Ford Racing will have some toys to free up some ponies. If they get headers and other basics figured out for popular applications, the new motor may be a real option for those that aren't all about supercharger whine.

I didn't see if this was covered, but there are two lawsuits: one against Ford for the fumes and one against the department for making their officers use the known-to-be afflicted vehicles. This will be ugly.

(shaking head) To me, this whole pissing match on screen size is as bad as the cupholder fixation, 20 years ago.

I promise that you're not the only one. I kinda wish the Flex had been named Fairlane, like the concept.

Well, the Flex has been selling at or just above 2000 per month forever...and with basically NO promotion from FoMoCo. Throw in the Outbacks, the Buick thing, plus the rogue Benz/Volvo/etc models...200K may be possible. It's hard to think that there's not enough market for a capacious vehicle that's not carrying the extra weight of CUV bodywork....

The roads here in the NW are thick with Subarus...but also Flexes, and Volvo wagons. As Ford as barely offered wagons beyond the Flex since the old Taurus/Sable wagon were killed over a decade ago...and the CMAX is fugly...that distorts the numbers, somewhat.

I think it could handily outsell the Flex, as its boxy appearance is polarizing in this era of rolling melted soap bars. The trick would be actually staying with an ad campaign, something that did NOT happen with the Flex.

I like the concept, though I'd like slightly more cargo area. I think that Ford could truly carve out room for their niche "Outback", but it'd have to have the goods and Ford would need to show something like Subaru's charisma and patience to drill it into the market. I won't lie, I'm a huge fan of the Flex (mine recently had a tragic transmission failure, I miss it every day) and think that Ford has room for a stylish, capacious, AWD wagon that draws just enough cues from CUVs to fit within current trends. I love real SUVs, but I'm a musician at night; I also love low lift-over and having a powerful AWD vehicle that can cope with the often slimy streets of western Washington. Hence, I loved my Flex. A vehicle like the one rendered would be a great compromise for people like myself that would own a separate, "real SUV" for actual off-road driving.

Apparently, kinda somber. From the review, it seems that the ST has a good ride, is very capable, but it feels somewhat disconnected and is less "bonkers" than the Durango SRT. I'll reserve my judgement until I drive one, but my initial concern would be that this sounds worryingly similar to the knocks on the Fusion ST.

I just read the Autoblog review, and it seems that they like the powertrains, found the steering/suspension to be kind of numb and "springy", they loved the styling, but weren't stunned by the interior materials and various issues involving the back row. While I don't see the criticisms as damning, I do hope that the ST answers the steering/suspension gripes somewhat. The hybrid appears to be more about torque than mpg, which is both kind of refreshing but potentially damaging to perceptions. I find it odd that Ford didn't go all-in regarding USB connectivity throughout the vehicle, as that's become the new "cupholders" standard for interiors. All in all, I look very forward to the ST reviews.

So...add weight and drag, but leave the little 302 in the nose? I do NOT get the point.

Torn on the whole IFS debate, because a well tuned IFS could be better, if losing some "macho" points in the process. I want the Bronco to be genuinely capable off-road...but I don't know if trying to out-hardcore the Wrangler is the best way for the model to succeed.

Hmmm... ...I keep kinda thinking that they could have something that would be easily scalable to compete with, say, half of Subaru's offerings within a single mode's range. I thought the Focus Active had that potential, but maybe this one...?