akirby

Product planners listening too much to enthusiasts and magazine reviewers and their own personal desires.

They're doing a relatively good job at making high performance sedans and coupes. But from a business standpoint they're wasting billions on new platforms and spending money on niche products instead of establishing a comprehensive lineup including high volume sellers like regular hybrid sedans.

Given the popularity of the current MKZ hybrid and knowing how focused Ford is on maximizing investments, I think it's safe to say they won't go too far from that formula (max mpg). But I could see a slight bump from 2.0L to 2.3L just to give it a bit of a difference without sacrificing too many mpg.

Too much legacy capacity in older plants. I'm sure if Ford built a new plant or totally remodeled an existing plant today they would follow this model.

Time will tell if moving the CTS up in size and price will result on a long term net gain. I think the money should have been spent on a hybrid CTS and a Lambda Caddy first. And if the CTS is getting larger why do you need the XTS? It's like the Caddy product team just sits around and says "what would be cool to build this time?" without regard to profit or marketability. They're too concerned with building a "BMW fighter" or a hugely overpriced 2 door Volt.

That might work, too, but it would depend on whether you could get enough volume on each to make it worthwhile to have two. Previous performance hybrids haven't worked as well as top mpg hybrids.

I think it is enough to replace both, provided there is a higher end option (2.7LEB?) as well. There should be a hybrid but I'm not sure if it will be for max mpg or more performance oriented like other luxury hybrids. Maybe they could use a N/A 2.3L instead of the 2.0L for the hybrid.

But it is worth mentioning if you're talking about how much the govt is losing to GM. Especially when it was totally unnecessary.

Not sure but I've used a pro-fit holder before and they work great.

They had to use the 2.0EB because the 2.3EB simply wasn't ready. I expect a lot more upgrades in engines and transmissions.

I was just saying there are some really good ultra high performance all season tires available now that can rival seasonal tire performance. There are some compromises but not as many as there used to be.

There is something different about the Focus/Escape/C-Max MFT system. It does seem to have more problems than the other vehicles. It could still be bad APIMs for certain people. I can only tell you this: There are a lot of 2013 Fusion and other vehicle owners with MFT who have not had a single freeze, reboot or any significant issue in the last year. 3/4 of all MFT owners recommend the system to others. It's also a fact that many people are reporting their confusion over how to use the system as a defect. That doesn't mean you or others don't have real problems or that ALL of the problems are fixed. But you make it sound like if YOU have problems then everyone must be having problems and I assure you that's not the case.

I guarantee you the Pilot Sport A/S will outhandle some summer tires. And probably outperform most in wet weather. They aren't as much of a compromise as you seem to think they are.

It is the electric Focus, not the C-Max.

Exactly - it's all about using what you got. In this case you not only produce some hopefully exciting and PR generating vehicles for Lincoln but you help amortize the platform and manufacturing costs at the same time. And you give people their coveted RWD. Sounds like a win/win/win to me if there are enough potential sales to justify it.

That's ridiculous. Since when does a soup kitchen have anything to do with religious beliefs? And why/how would an Atheist use that to "undermine" anything? Besides - don't Christians want to associate with Atheists so they can save them? Would they ban an Atheist from attending church?

Not a terrible review. At least they didn't spend 3 paragraphs talking about how Lincoln is doomed. Strange that they didn't mention Lincoln Ride Control and any effect it might have had on handling. Did they even use the sport setting? The Regal 2.0L turbo does perform better than the Ford 2.0L EB but it doesn't have a V6 option or electronic suspension or adaptive LED headlamps, etc. I guess they were only comparing the drivetrain. Lincoln needs the new 2.3L EB to distance itself from the Ford 2.0L EB. And a 350 hp option (2.7L EB?) would be really nice. And more gears. I suspect we may see all 3 next year starting with the MKC.

Especially since sales last October were low due to the new model changeover. I'd expect to see similar year over year increases for the next 3-4 months. That's why I hate that metric.

Ovals are boring. The cars aren't even close to stock. The rules are designed to prevent one brand or team from having an advantage. The technology is decades old. 2 or 3 teams dominate. What's not to like? How about a new Trans-Am series with near stock Mustangs, Camaros and Challengers on road courses?

1614 x 1.70 = 2743.

Because it already had those features.

How many other cars have you driven with a push button/fully electronic gear selector? It's not possible with a normal mechanical shifter.

I got it now. The part I was missing is that by engaging the smaller motor/generator it causes the larger main motor to turn more slowly thus reducing rpm on the large motor. Once the battery is depleted the engine engages the smaller motor/generator directly because it's more efficient than running it on electric power only. This was probably a big hit to fuel economy at higher speeds.

Nobody here is claiming there weren't problems with the C-Max, so if that's all you're implying then you're correct. It only has to do with how the problems are interpreted and reported and the conclusions that were drawn from it.

I think most Michelin Pilot Sport A/S and similar owners would disagree with that. They're not just good, they're VERY good at cornering and stopping especially in wet weather.