mazda626

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This is the first television commercial I have seen promoting the 2010 Fusion Hybrid Other features promoted: -voice activated Sync technology -12 speaker Sony audio system -class exclusive Blind Spot Information System

Yes, those are Canadian prices. The exchange rate today is 0.7943 so CAN$55,000 is equal to US$43,686.50 The current Canadian starting MSRP for the FWD is CAN$46,099 which converts to US$36,616.44 It is currently cheaper to buy the same car in Canada because of the exchange rate. This time last year the reverse was true.

Praises: -stance is athletic -beautiful leather seats -interior dimensions provide plenty of space for passengers -good handling and capable performance Criticisms: -view out of back window is narrow -rear visibility out side windows not great for rear passengers -trunk is an odd shape; opening is small and high -center console styling is too stark -instrument cluster is very simple; expect more from luxury car

A co-worker of mine bought a Volkswagen Jetta TDI this week, yet the salesman was trying to convince her to get the gas model, because diesel did not make financial sense at today’s prices. He projected that over the lease period of the car, the initial higher cost of the diesel would not be made up in fuel savings. She told him she kept her current Jetta for 22 years, and was paying cash, so she didn’t care about his calculations. I wouldn’t buy a V8 right now unless it is in a truck, because fuel will get very expensive in the next few years. Anyone who buys a Dodge Challenger as their sole vehicle right now is a fool. It will be just like the 80’s again when you could buy a used Chevy Impala cheap because nobody wanted a gas guzzler.

The problem is that it takes time to explore, drill wells, build pipelines and facilities, and build refineries to process it. The lead time is approximately five years. If the construction is not happening right now, there is nothing we can do tomorrow no matter how high the price gets. Yes, you will see a burst of activity when the price comes back, but it will be too late. We don't shut-in a lot of wells like Saudi Arabia used to when the price was too low.

Diesel is taxed quite heavily in Canada by Federal and Provincial govenrnments, so we generally pay more per gallon than drivers in the US. In Canada the average tax on diesel works out to about US$0.40/gallon. Canada mostly exports crude to Gulf Coast refineries via pipelines from Alberta to Chicago. Refined products are generally net imported back into the major Canadian population centers around Toronto and Montreal. Of course these are broad generalizations, and different geographic regions have refineries that influence local supply. In fact, last year the center of the Canadian oil industry, Alberta, faced diesel shortages due to several refineries being shut down where ironically big trucks could not get to the oil fields to service petroleum wells that produce the crude to make diesel. By the way, it is a little known fact that the US gets more crude from Canada than they do Saudi Arabia: http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petrole...ent/import.html Expect fuel shortages in the future because the oil industry in Canada has collapsed due to the combination of low oil prices and the lack of capital due to the financial meltdown. Oil Companies had $100 billion worth of petroleum projects planned in Alberta, but those are all cancelled now. This will certainly be felt by Americans several years from now when supply will not meet demand. http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Upgrader...9493/story.html

The Ford news release Richard Jensen refers to is here: http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=29800

This question is partially answered in this thread: http://www.blueovalforums.com/forums/index...showtopic=29571

I could have told you that without getting up from my internet arm-chair. It is well known in the software industry that a bug in your program will cost magnitudes more in support costs than the original cost of doing things right and avoid introducing the bug in the first place. I think a similar thing is happens with automotive warranty repairs; if Ford designs and builds high quality vehicles it seems obvious that the warranty costs would be lower and more predictable, allowing them to price their vehicles with lower margins and be more competitive. I don't think they planned to fix the $2300 PTU on my car at the time they built it, so part of their profit from me is up in smoke. I want Ford to succeed and turn a fair profit. I don't want to play games to see who gets screwed by a defective design when the warranty expires.

Funny you should say this. I watched a BBC documentary last night that showed medical research to find out if diesel particles cause allergies. I put it on YouTube for you here: The documentary is called Allergy Planet. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g2k9m

What would the actual cost be then? My car has been up on the hoist three times for this problem. Don't you think this adds up? Somebody has to pay for this, even if I didn't because it was covered under warranty. Is this PTU made by BorgWarner? Do they pay Ford back for these repairs? I see today that Ford settled their dispute with Navistar which centered around warranty costs.

The build date on the B-pillar sticker says 06/07. I just picked the car up from the dealer two hours ago (in between making posts to this topic ); they just put a new PTU (part# 7T4Z-7251-D ). I hope this is the redesigned part. Does anyone know if the last letter indicates the iteration of the design? I'm asking because in the Ford Edge forum someone said 7251-A is the newest part. I asked how much this would cost if it wasn't under warranty. The lady said it would have been $2300. Wow! Ford is losing serious money on this car.

If you look at TSB 08-12-03 you will see the PTU seal leak is common to the 2008 Taurus X, 2008 Taurus, 2007-2008 Edge, 2007-2008 MKX and 2008 Sable. So this confirms that a total of 5 vehicles have had this problem? TSB 08-12-03 http://www.blueovalforums.com/forums/index...ost&id=8860

Those cars have higher perceived quality than Ford, in addition to being status symbols. The "crowd" I spoke of were actually my co-workers, so I can't really choose to hang with other people. My wife and I did test drive a Volvo at the time, but it was way overpriced for what it was. When I tried to bargain for a lower price on a V70, the salesman said the price was not negotiable because "we are not like the domestics". I noticed the dealership was filled with pretentious well dressed middle aged buyers. Every time I see someone driving a Volvo now, I think they are more concerned with image than getting a good value from their car.