aneekr

Correct. Here are interior volume measurements for Fusion, MKZ, and a few competitors: Fusion: 100 cu.ft. MKZ: 99 cu.ft. Accord: 103 cu.ft. Camry: 103 cu.ft. Avalon: 104 cu.ft. ES 350: 100 cu.ft. Sonata: 106 cu.ft.

Ridgeline is available with Honda's i-VTM4 AWD system. Here's the video:

Quality materials, ergonomics, and functionality are all areas where Mercedes-Benz E-Class have excelled. Personally, I prefer the interior design of the W212 E-Class over the new W213, but I'm sure the latter continues the tradition of high quality established by its predecessors.

The source of those numbers is data from a mobile, "on demand" automobile mechanic service called YourMechanic.com. This service dispatches a mechanic to the customer's home or worksite. Automotive described YourMechanic.com as "Uber-style mechanics [that] make house calls." It's a relatively new service, having been established in 2012, and emphasizes convenience rather than bargain pricing. As such, the sample of cars and customers in YourMechanic.com's datasets may not be representative of the overall population.

I think it's a great idea to consider used cars of varying vintage vis a vis new cars at specific price points. The May 2014 issue of Car and Driver had an excellent article with five different "new vs. used" comparisons in which the used cars ranged from 4 to 24 model years old.

What's downright stupid is refusal to consider late model used cars when shopping for new ones. Smart consumers compare the two categories all the time. Automobile shopping websites provide helpful tools enabling consumers to make an appropriate buying decision.

That's a valid comparison. For example, a two or three year old Audi A6 3.0L Supercharged Quattro aligns closely with a new Fusion Sport in terms of size and pricing, and probably performance levels as well. Well maintained pre-owned cars from premium brands can be excellent values compared to new cars from more plebian brands. I used to own one, a Mercedes-Benz W220 S55 AMG that I purchased from a car club member (private party).

Correct. While Ford now has the lead in sales of passenger cars and light trucks to rental fleets, GM is still in the top three among all OEMs. To GM's credit, they are now emphasizing mid and highline trim vehicles to customers in the daily rental fleet segment, following the lead that Ford set several years ago to ensure this business is consistently profitable.

Sample size is 4 (including a Mustang Ecoboost tested by Automobile magazine, part of the same parent company as MT).

That doesn't appear to be the case. On the contrary, MT fielded a Mustang Ecoboost equipped with Performance Package in this comparison test. This pretty much guaranteed the Mustang would win, which it did. The only performance metrics in which Camaro delivered better results were those related to straight line acceleration.

Excellent analogy, brucelinc! NVH characteristics of the Ecoboost 2.3L engine in Mustang leave a lot to be desired.

Ford does a better job serving fleet customers, who generally do not incorporate television/YouTube adverts into their purchasing decisions.

Since the same lousy driver also tested Camaro 2.0T in the comparison test, wouldn't that result in the Camaro "getting slower" too?

Pickup truck adverts like the one Bryan1 posted in this thread often involve rather contrived scenarios. Several Ford, FCA, Toyota, and Nissan truck adverts demonstrate other situations that are irrelevant in the real world. I admit these adverts can be amusing to watch, especially for an old geezer like me who has seen such advertising for 40+ years.

A slower, less agile, uglier, and inefficient Focus wagon. Speaking of Focus wagons, I agree with Car and Driver that Focus ST Diesel Wagon is the most sensible performance car in the world.

I know that looks are subjective, but for me, styling for the current crop of crossovers ultimately boil down to degrees of ugliness. Hideous on one end of the spectrum, tolerable on the other. Station wagons, on the other hand, can actually be aesthetically pleasing! A good example is Ford's current generation Mondeo wagon. While I'll acknowledge that not all styling elements of this wagon will be to everyone's liking, to me it looks much better than any crossover vehicle in Ford's global product portfolio:

Too many new vehicle buyers, too. Customers who are averse to doing a sold order on a new vehicle should consider pre-owned vehicles instead.

I think Ford sold nearly all of its shares in Mazda. As of September 30, 2015, Ford is not listed among Mazda's main shareholders (institutions with 1% or greater stake).

I believe Mazda's U.S. market share has been essentially flat in that timeframe, registering approx. 1.9% or 2.0% each year from 2012 to 2015. I haven't verified this using data from IHS Automotive, though. Mazda's market share in Japan, China, Australia, Thailand, and Canada has been flat, too. Most of Mazda's market share growth since 2012 has been in Europe, Mexico and in some ASEAN countries like Malaysia and Vietnam.

Mazda introduced SKYACTIV technology to the U.S. market in 2012, and the company's sales in this market have grown every year since. Last year's U.S. sales volume of approximately 306,000 was the highest Mazda achieved in 20 years.

Any word on when second generation CX-9 will be available at U.S. dealerships? One of my family members has this vehicle at the top of his list for new vehicle shopping.

+1 This piecemeal approach is the opposite of Mazda's holistic SKYACTIV approach encompassing powertrain, body, and chassis. It's quite clear which approach is more effective.

Ford's relentless cost cutting, especially its push to share components and engineering, had an especially negative impact on Jaguar and Volvo during the PAG era. To its credit, Ford Motor Company eventually acknowledged it lacked the expertise to invest in and sustain premium automotive marques. As others mentioned in this thread, Ford's divestiture of Volvo, JLR, and Mazda in the 2008 to 2011 period was mutually beneficial for all parties involved including Ford itself.

Isn't in the other way around? Sixth generation Camaro is the current benchmark among pony cars, winning numerous industry awards. Sixth gen Mustang (other than the Shelby GT350 and GT350R) is certainly a decent product and arguably the best Mustang generation ever, but hasn't really advanced the segment.

Volvo Cars' recent "product momentum" would not be possible if it had not been freed from the constraints of being a Ford Motor Company business unit or subsidiary.