ibinubu12

None of the cars had Ford badging of any kind besides EcoBoost on the Escape. That's the point of the ad - and to the non-car guys I've run it past, it's extremely effective. I look forward to seeing more reactions to it as the campaign develops.

That button layout ain't going anywhere. It's on the new Focus and Escape, so it'll be around for a few more years, even if the Fiesta drops it. Plus, it's really functional, so I see no reason to change.

Unimpressed with my service at Village Ford's Quick Lane in Dearborn, MI. First off, the tech took my Focus and "drove it like he stole it" from the parking lot into the building - I'm sorry, but I'm the only one that can abuse my car, I'm the one paying for it! The tech also couldn't tell me if the oil life monitor was reset, didn't appear to know the 2012 Focus has such a thing. And then when I get home, I find that half of the screws holding the aerodynamic shield under the engine weren't replaced! Sorry, I'm not letting ANYBODY touch this Focus again.

That and the Grabber Blue are tied for first on the current Mustang in my eyes. If I could afford insurance on a Mustang, I'd have a Gotta Have it Green 2013 in my driveway instead of the Blue Candy 2012 Focus in a minute.

I've been driving one for over five months now, and it's been flawless. I adore the way it actually shifts when you're slowing down, and it's far more sporty than any auto I've ever driven. I would (and frequently do) recommend the PowerShift to anyone, without reservation. It's a great transmission - can't imagine it could get much better.

Yes, they did. Just as they always do, in PDF documents along the right side of the article, as pointed out above.

GM posted US sales 3 hours ago. http://media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2012/Feb/gmsales

ALL currently announced models of the 2013 Fusion will be produced at HSAP. It is uncertain at this point which models will have added capacity at AAI once the plant is retooled. What is clear is that HSAP will launch the Fusion this summer, and AAI will not be ready until this time next year (2013) at a minimum. What surprises me the most is the engine assembly locations. The 1.6 EB is being imported from Bridgend, Wales, and the 2.0 EB from Valencia, Spain. I wouldn't be surprised if all the EB models are in tight supply. We know CHEP can produce the NA 2.5 in high quantities, but Bridgend has to supply Focus and C-Max assembly in Saarlouis and Valencia, respectively with 1.6 EB engines, so I'd imagine they're going to be quite busy.

Right, thought "iPhone", said "iPad". Point remains the same.

If you think that $40,000 for one car is outrageous because they *might* be making money on it (in your opinion, Ford says this car WILL NOT be profitable, neither is the Leaf or Volt), imagine how much the engineers cost. Just consider it. Ford easily spent twice that $40,000 A DAY on salaries for Focus Electric engineers and suppliers, for close to the last 5 years. Nobody complains that an iPad costs around $100 and sells for $500+. The Focus Electric is a technology product. You have to pay to develop it.

There is NOTHING wrong with the PowerShift. Period. That. The SE shouldn't need over $1,000 in options for aluminium wheels and cruise control. That's unacceptable. In 2002, my Escort was standard with aluminium wheels - crank windows, but 15" alloys. There's no reason we can't have alloys standard on Focus 10 years later. None. That is more unacceptable to me than anything someone could say about the transmission. The PowerShift is minor in comparison to the option packaging. My Focus was over $22,000. I could have gotten an Fusion SEL for more than my single-CD, non-moonroof Focus. On a $100,000 budget, I would still choose my $22,375 Focus. There is nothing at any price that can compare.

Why update the 2.5? Why not just use the Focus 2.0 GDI? Could have been tuned to bump the torque up a bit, probably increase base model fuel efficiency as well. I'll be disappointed if the 2013 Fusion uses the 2.5 instead of the GDI 2.0.

I'm 6'0" and have just as much headroom and shoulder room in the 500 as I do in my non-moonroof Focus. I fit quite comfortably, with 4-5 inches between my head and the headliner. Seats were really comfortable, but not as aggressively bolstered as the seats in the Focus. Hell, even the back seat was acceptable for me. Not that I'd want to drive coast-to-coast in the back seat, but it would not be a problem for under 2 hour trips.

The ribbing is done for resonant noise and vibration damping. And yeah, it's plastic. So are all the MZR-based Duratecs, no?

The next F-150 can be a Ranger replacement if it can beat 22/27 MPG. Otherwise, it's a not a Ranger replacement and can never be. I don't think the people on here who say "F-150 is the perfect Ranger replacement" have ever owned a Ranger... or an F-150. My 1995 is hard to park as it is and I'm at eye-level with the door handles on the new 2011 F-150s, can't imagine how much more bloated the next gen will be.

In much the same way I can't stop telling my friends how awesome the DCT in mine is. Already got one friend who wasn't in the market to go to a dealer and get a quote. This car markets itself - I get people stopping me in parking lots asking about it! 5 complete strangers so far, and it's been less than a week! At this point, I literally have nothing negative to say about this car. So while you "wouldn't buy another one" I'd recommend you stop painting with such a broad brush. Focus added 2,000 in sales vs. September, and if you go look at Michigan Assembly (was there last week) it's obvious that probably 5-7k Focuses are still sitting there. There's at least a square mile of them in lots all around the area waiting to get to the dealers. Give it some more time.

Having just bought a 2012 Focus SE that had a MSRP of $22,375, I can attest that it is VERY hard to find the right mix of Focus out there. The dealers that have tons all have the steel wheeled SEs, and the Sport Package seems common on gray and silver Focuses, of all choices. Red Candy and Blue Candy (mine) are seemingly nonexistent. I would not be surprised to see the 2013 Focus add a new style 16" aluminium wheel as standard, and drop the price of the Rapid Spec 203A (over $1,000 for cruise and Sync?? I thought Sync was supposed to be coming down in price!). Also, Focuses with moonroofs seem nonexistent as well, although that's fine by me, I didn't want one. Yeah, Fusion is cheaper and that's no doubt helping, but I can't imagine a Focus buyer would really consider a Fusion - they're dramatic opposites in personality.

One of those Focuses was mine! :happy feet: :happy feet: Inventory seems to be building up, but they're all gray SE sedans with the steel wheels around here. Hatches are rare, and I'd bet they'd sell more overall if aluminium wheels weren't so darn expensive on the SE (and not available at all with Frosted Glass Metallic - why?).

Well there was only one possible combination of Focus I was willing to accept, and if it had the new window sticker, it would have been impossible. The sticker design change is what prompted me to buy a month earlier than I had intended. The new one is simply not deserving of framing, as the old one is, and soon will be in my home.

Picked up my new 2012 Focus SE Hatchback on Saturday and haven't stopped smiling since! The new PowerShift transmission is excellent -- far beyond my wildest dreams. I get a kick out of the little throttle blip when it changes gear, and while some people have panicked about the slight rollback, for me it makes me feel at home. Sync doesn't understand one of my friends' names yet, but that's something that bears further investigating. Otherwise loving it as well. There are so many features in this car that I wasn't expecting, but that make it in my opinion best-in-class, like the blue footwell lighting, the interior lamps that come on when you turn the car off, the automatic headlamps, the full-color displays, etc. I can't say anything negative about this thing! It's amazing! :happy feet:

Picked up my new 2012 Focus SE Hatchback on Saturday and haven't stopped smiling since! The new PowerShift transmission is excellent -- far beyond my wildest dreams. I get a kick out of the little throttle blip when it changes gear, and while some people have panicked about the slight rollback, for me it makes me feel at home. Sync doesn't understand one of my friends' names yet, but that's something that bears further investigating. Otherwise loving it as well. There are so many features in this car that I wasn't expecting, but that make it in my opinion best-in-class, like the blue footwell lighting, the interior lamps that come on when you turn the car off, the automatic headlamps, the full-color displays, etc. I can't say anything negative about this thing! It's amazing! :happy feet:

I thought the opposite about it. The old design was classy - the new one looks like a kid made it in MS Paint. I specifically had my dealer find my Focus with a September build date to avoid it. And FWIW, mine has the Michigan Assembly sticker in the window, though it's at a jaunty angle, which I found ironic for a sticker that says "Built with Pride."

I would think it would work fairly well. That's more power than the 4.9L I6 had in the pre-1997 F-150s, as well as more power than the Essex V6 in the 1997-2008 trucks. I could rant about how the modern driver is spoiled for power, but nobody would listen anyway...

Blue Oval News – Ford Motor Company [NYSE: F] today reported second quarter 2011 net income of $2.4 billion, or 59 cents per share, a decrease of $201 million, or 2 cents per share, from second quarter 2010. The period was marked by continued Automotive growth, solid profitability and strong cash flow, and a continued focus on strengthening the balance sheet and investing for the future. “We delivered very good second quarter results while growing the business globally and serving more customers in every region,” said Alan Mulally, Ford president and CEO. “Despite an uncertain business environment, we further strengthened our balance sheet and continued to invest for the future.” Slides Press Release 1998-current sales results & figures Second quarter pre-tax operating profit was $2.9 billion, or 65 cents per share, a decrease of $64 million, or 3 cents per share, from second quarter 2010. Total Automotive results improved, offset by an anticipated reduction in Financial Services results. For the first half of 2011, Ford earned a pre-tax operating profit of $5.7 billion, net income of $4.9 billion and reported Automotive operating-related cash flow of $4.5 billion. Ford continued to grow volume and revenue during the period. Ford’s second quarter net income was affected by unfavorable special items of $272 million, $177 million more than a year ago. The special items include personnel reduction actions, Mercury and other dealer-related actions in North America, and pension settlements in Belgium. Second quarter Automotive pre-tax operating profit was $2.3 billion, an increase of $209 million from second quarter 2010. Second quarter Ford Credit pre-tax operating profit was $604 million, a decrease of $284 million from second quarter 2010. North America posted a second quarter pre-tax operating profit of $1.9 billion. South America, Europe and Asia Pacific Africa also were profitable. Ford’s second quarter revenue was $35.5 billion, an increase of $4.2 billion from second quarter 2010. Ford generated positive Automotive operating-related cash flow of $2.3 billion in the second quarter. Ford continued its focus on strengthening its balance sheet, with a net reduction in Automotive debt of $2.6 billion in the second quarter. The net reduction includes $2.3 billion of payments on its term loans and full repayment of the outstanding balance of $800 million on its revolving credit line. These actions were offset partially by an increase in low-cost loans to support advanced technology. Ford ended the second quarter with $22 billion of Automotive gross cash, an increase of $700 million compared to March 31, 2011. Automotive gross cash exceeded debt by $8 billion, leading to a first-half improvement of $6.6 billion compared with the end of 2010. Ford’s Automotive liquidity totaled $32.2 billion, an increase of $4.3 billion in the first half. “We are on track for solid results in 2011, including delivering on our guidance for improved full-year pre-tax operating profit and Automotive operating-related cash flow compared with last year,” said Lewis Booth, Ford executive vice president and chief financial officer. “Going forward, we will continue building on this solid foundation for future investment and growth.” SECOND QUARTER 2011 HIGHLIGHTS •Increased market share in the U.S. and Europe •Remained No. 1 in Canada, including best June result in 22 years •Increased sales volume by over 40 percent in Turkey and by over 30 percent in Russia •Increased market share in China and ASEAN •Focus, F-150 and MKX won IIHS Top Safety Pick; Focus won Euro NCAP’s five-star rating •Lincoln named the top brand in the 2011 AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Awards •Previewed 2013 Taurus at New York Auto Show •Announced plans to build 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost engine and all-new eight-speed transmission •Announced $350 million investment with joint-venture partners to build Ford’s first transmission plant in China with initial capacity of 400,000 six-speed transmissions •Announced plan to add 340 new dealerships in China by 2015 •Made commitment to build next-generation small SUV in China •Announced $72 million investment to increase production capacity at the Chennai Engine Plant in India •Began production of Duratorq TDCi engine in South Africa •Announced plan to export Ranger to 148 markets from South Africa •Revealed new production plans in Europe that will enable the launch of at least 20 all-new or significantly freshened vehicles in next three years •Signed agreement for a 50-50 joint venture in Russia with Sollers to provide more products and expanded services for the market •Announced plan to triple production capacity of electrified vehicles in the U.S. to more than 100,000 by 2013

I'm trying to find a rather specific 2011 Focus, and having a rather hard time. No dealer in Metro Detroit seems to have any 2011s left, so I've resorted to looking around small town Michigan to try to find a: 2011 Focus Sedan SE Blue Flame Metallic Charcoal Black Interior 4-Speed Automatic Transmission Sync Cruise Sport Appearance Package Does anyone know if there are still 2011 sedans out there and if so, what would be the odds of finding this exact one? Thanks for the help.