Hugh

I agree with your statement about the Nissan (I see G35). The Honda reached back to a older Acura Coupe (can't think of the name) especially the rear. Nonetheless, both are good looking and it should have a market. Fusion should jump in on this one. If not, maybe the new Mazda 6 should.

HOLY CRAP! SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT QUICK!

I'm neither here nor there on that one. Horse is a fine meal BTW and I find Black Angus a majestic animal. As for pigs, I have no data but I don't agree overall with mistreatment of any animal. I don't like double standards in general. I think it's from "Pulp Fiction" where a dog has a great personality and that goes a long way. I see where the Giugiaro was going with the idea of horsehide yet as I look at it, simply put, the C&W feel to it I am not a fan of. Perhaps it's the Karma thing as well. Fine with me if you recycle the Mustangs to make horseshoes. Turnabout is fair play. I was been light-hearted anyway. Maybe some humor is what we need around here.

If the Solara is not selling it's because it has nothing special that the Camry doesn't already provide and the styling is not helping it IMHO. Believe it or not the Accord Coupe does have different rear quarters and aft section to give it a slicker coupe appearence. I don't know if it is still selling but I still see them on the road. I feel the Fusion Coupe has a market afterall. There is a new Accord Coupe and a possible Nissan Altima as well. The Fusion has to stick out a little more both on the outside and inside to get the sales plus some more power under the hood and a manual. The Accord has a 244hp (2006) V6 and a manual and it has good handling. At least enough to get you out of trouble. I remember when the last Euro Ford (Mercury) Couger came out it got shot at because of it's lack of power (Duratec 25 165 hp) and it's handling was soft and more for cruising. My friend still drives his 2003 (Black Pussy) and it is true. My other friend drives a Pontiac G6 with the 3900 and it blows it out of the water powerwise yet the handling is on par. My other friend drives a Acura RSX (std not Spec) with the 200hp I4 and it circles around them but the ride is a little on the firm side. My point is the Fusion Coupe has to offer something more in the performance category then the sedan and it really doesn't have to go overboard. In conclusion; my theory with Toyota is they put too much money in the Tundra project and just are leaving a perception that the market is non-existant and therefore if we don't have it, you don't need it. Sounds like something Detroit would have said. :shades:

I personnally like the concept a lot. I have a issue with the horse skin seats considering there is a popular "Save the Mustang" campaign. You Europeans can't have our Mustangs for supper but you can have them for our Mustang seats. Overall; the concept does look like a Mustang and cannot be mistaken for anything but a Mustang. I'm sure some of the concept will come over and that's alright with me. Except the seats of course.

Just for powertrains: D35 with a increase to 4.0L for a base engine. You can get maybe 270-290 hp to start. A small Diesel (3.6 V8) previously mentioned to go with the 4.4L V8. Take the D35 and add 2 cylinder banks to them to make a DOHC 32V V8 of various sizes (4.7 to 5.3L). And of course the Boss. Have a manual available as well as that 6-spd auto. I've seen a lot of good suggestions so I won't repeat them. Hope you people get your wish.

Is that Victoria BC Canada? Sounds like it and the dealership doing the work at no charge is great for customer piece of mind. Better then getting a class-action suit for selling a possibly known defective product. Even though that example probably won't hold up in court, Mazda doesn't need the bad PR. This also shows the tenacity and ingenuity of car thieves. When there's a will, there's a way. I wonder how they figured that out? I should tell my roomate. He drives a 2006 Mazda 3 GT.

I feel that comment is misleading. Jaguar was in the red for a while (still is isn't it?), Land Rover is starting to turn a profit, Volvo is slipping and Aston Martin has just turned a profit for a year or two. Now; I dont have the figures on me but can somone provide? My point is that this paragraph states that MF comes to a division, turns it around and when he leaves it turns to garbage again. I don't think this is the case. I won't get into the plane stuff because that has been done to death. Go 1st class anyway, it's not that bad. I guess you have to leave work early Friday to get through the 1 1/2 - 2 hour wait in line to check in.

Looks great. Great photoshop work. Personally, I can't see the market for a full-size RWD Coupe. Full-size RWD sedan, absolutely. It still looks great though; hell the 427 still looks great IMO. I think it has aged well and is still a looker.

All it's missing is the Volvo emblem in the centre. Maybe those were the only grilles they had? :unsure:

Do you have a picture?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Duratec_...obal_straight-4 According to wiki, all Fords moved to the MZR I-4 in 2004-5. There are differences between the Ranger, Escape, Escape Hybrid and Focus/Mazda 3. And that is just the D23 for example. I think having VVT (intake and exhaust) and DI across the board would be a step in the right direction for this engine line. That should give it some more years of life. After that, a displacement increase to 2.5 perhaps. For the smaller sizes, maybe the 1.6 or 1.8L for the 'B' platforms with the previously mentioned modifications.

Ah there we go. Mea Culpa.

I cannot remember if Volvo-Penta works with Volvo Truck which in turn still belongs to GM? Sounds like a good idea and worth exploring.

If it weren't for June 24th, I thought you were talking about Victoria BC. It may be a parliament in your mind, Our White House equivient is in Ottawa. You know Federal Government and all that. If you translate the site I still wouldn't go there, Je suis Anglais so sorry no dice. Good luck in your future endevours Monseiur Citron.

"Van Dyke Transmission Plant received $320 million to install a flexible machining line to assemble a fuel-efficient, high performance 6-speed, front-wheel drive transmission for the next generation Ford Escape." Is this a different 6F then the Ford/GM collaberation? If that is the case then there will be 3 different 6F's in the lineup. As well, how long will it take to get this online? Good for the F-series too, they're going to need that transmission.

If they want a shot at the title, let have it. Actions speak loader then words and if Toyota wants conquest sales from Ford, this is where it starts; they are calling Ford out. I say to Ford: Don't start resting on your laurels now when it comes to trucks. They may be the no. 1 truck but their not perfect as owners and operators have said more then once. Don't give Toyota the sastifaction and make the 09's a Grand Slam (sorry for the cheezy cliche). I see lots of Hinos around and thier pretty good. I heard the Ford LCF is pretty decent too and should be a good competitor.

There you go. I rest my case.

It's "Quebecois" not "Parisian" french. Just like Websters English is not real English such as Oxford.

Looks good. A hell of a lot better then our 08 Focus exterior. I can see that as a holdover 'B' until we get the super-duper-uber 'B' everyone is all hyped about. Besides the current Fiesta seems a heck of a lot better then the Accent and Aveo and the other 'B' boxes we got here. At least in the photos but can anyone vouch? I thought the Fiesta ST (150hp D20 unlike our 136hp sewing machine) looks cool.

"What the hell did you say in french?" quote from Kyle "Your full of shit" en francais. Reporter: You with the Journal? Have you sent your request through his site? Maybe that would be better ot the moderator may kick you off this site for trying to illicite personal info on a BON member. Not cool.

Not a bad pic. Take your Accent rear and put a 05-07 ZX3 spoiler on it and lengthen the rear from the b-piller aft, not bad at all. IMHO I like the Accent (current HB) a lot better then the Aveo. It is a nice and not bad quality b-car. What if there was the coupe with the ST underpinnings and spoiler? Not the outrageous GFX one. What the hell...photoshop a GFX kit on it and see how it looks. Nice wheels. Euro Focus ST?

Exactly. I remember people sugessting that very same thing early last year. Ford, make it happen and put it in a Fusion coupe. Sedan is just as good too BTW.

Let's see: To get a PZEV rating you minus 5 hp off the total? I can live with that. You take the Montego taillights, and wood trim for starters and does that mean that Mercury is slowly going away? Just kidding...At least for the love of...Have real wood. I despise that fake crap. Why why why? Center console has not dealt with the issue the Fusion has: HVAC controls are intuitive but too close to the shifter so your hand gets knocked. I believe that was from a "Canadian Driver" review. Stereo controls. Oh well, get Sync and your all set. Well it looks like thay fixed what Ford said they were going to. The heart transplant appears to be successful. Now when is that 6F getting into the MKZ (Snicker)? The front will grow on me but I did prefer the honeycomb/mesh grille. I always liked the front. In fact I didn't have a problem with the whole plain exterior. It needed a new engine and an improved interior. So: New engine, kind of improved interior and kind of improved exterior. I have to drive it in person before I render final judgement.