Fordowner

Probably because it didn't fit in with the narrative. Or they were afraid people would say .... Ford Lincoln is still making the MKT and Flex ?????

Not to mention the Focus is a better looking and more substantive vehicle. The Ecosport is on the Fiesta platform and I have no idea how hese vehicles made in India will hold up over time. Granted the Focus Auto Tran has issues for many, but the car otherwise has a good track record.

Besides the Cladding, It is made in China and its Gimicky - plus they should just give it a different name rather than tack on the "Active" Anyway, i'm NOT writing off Ford - I prefer driving a Stick, so guess i'm really on a dwindling list. I have a 2007 and 2014 Mustang and a 2016 Fusion in the household. I like Mustangs, though worried it's being priced out of the "Pony Car" range, but it will always be on my list. Had a 2000 Focus ZX3, I don't see buying a Focus made in China and the Focus ST is no longer an option. The Bronco looks interesting, though I live in a more urban than exurban place so don't want to pay for off road capabilities that I will never use. I looked at the Escape when we got the Fusion, too expensive for what it is and the Fusion is just a more enjoyable car to drive and better looking. Maybe I'll buy used if my 2007 dies. Did that with a Contour SVT that had a replaced engine. Fun as heck car but the I think the engine replacement was done in someone's back yard. Hopefully the White Space Freestyle 2 Deluxe they are developing will have a stick! Isn't that you in the new Freestyle 2 ! Isn't it you in an LTD 2 you'll never know till you try.

Thrilled everyone thinks a focus with plastic body cladding is the answer. If they want to build a small faux off road CUV that's great. But I don't know why they would bother keeping the Focus name. The Focus hatch at least was a great looking car that was affordable but did not look cheap (inside or out) and more importantly was designed for good driving dynamics on the road. Sure you can build a car with a higher center of gravity that rides corners like a sports car, but you lower the center of gravity and it will do that even better. I find it odd they would bring the hatch over as an Active and not bring over a sporty version. Except I guess it would be challenging from a marketing perspective. I just hope they can get Jamie Curtis to promote the Focus Active and its benefits for everyone's digestive health. Hey but the 500/Taurus' higher ride height was a smash so I guess it will work for Focus also

"The company is also exploring new “white space” vehicle silhouettes that combine the best attributes of cars and utilities, such as higher ride height, space and versatility." They are bringing the Ford 500 and Freestyle back?

Wow, only the Mustang and a Focus suv style? Not even the focus ST or RS? What is the ford gateway vehicle the baby SUV? How about bringing over the Fiesta Van from Europe - something about those metal panels replacing the rear windows does make it look cool.

Oh yea, I forgot about that. Guess I'm just more or a Star Trek person......

I also like the grill opening better. Hope it makes its way to the other Mustangs whose grill openings seem too large. The current Mustang's front sometimes reminds me of Darth Vader. This one kind of looks like the 2014 front.

Congrats! As seen in my profile pic, i like Blue Mustangs, Great looking car.

Fiesta hatches look good in the bright green - it makes them look more fun or Fiesta x 2. Though the bigger the car the more problematic neon colors become.

Yea the malibu looks like an ugly KIA or Hyundai (not sure which as I get the two brands confused). I can't really tell the difference on the Cruz.

But the Fiesta won't be the new version Europe got this year?

https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2017/12/07/repealing-fuel-economy-standards-to-cost-american-households-nearly-1000-per-year/#6ea9ce8e77f7 "According to a 2017 study by David L. Greene at the University of Tennessee, the fuel economy improvements to cars and light trucks since 1975 have saved Americans a cumulative 1.5 trillion gallons of gasoline, along with an estimated $4 trillion, spread across all income groups." "The greatest savings are achieved by the lowest-income households, but as the data shows, everyone benefits financially." "In other words, the costs of the regulation are expected to be just 3% of gross sales, while typical productivity gains of 1% per year easily outstrip that." "Over this same time period, vehicle choice has increased, with more makes and models of cars and trucks available than ever before. " Bottom line, I have a hard time believing EPA's Scott Pruitt and Trump are really doing the math on this one.

Car companies have said in the past that as long as its an even playing field then CAFE can be met. There are so many environmental, economic and infrastructure reasons to reduce or at least control our consumption of gasoline that are not and realistically cannot be factored into an individual's car purchase decision that it makes sense to set CAFE standards. I'm all for letting people buy whatever vehicle they want and think CAFE is the best way to not dictate car choices while pushing innovation in terms of fuel consumption. As to the pricing, that heritage foundation chart needs to be viewed in relation to the safety and connectivity advancements that have really taken off since 2009. My 2007 Mustang has a fraction of the crash avoidance and stereo connectivity of today's Mustang. Not to mention the move to larger and more luxurious vehicles that has occurred over the past 10 years as gas prices have fallen and lower interest rates with long terms have become more prevalent. Not to mention the economic recovery which began in 2008.

Fusion and Focus each at over 16,000 is still substantial #'s, I believe only F Series (astounding #'s maybe they should just build that.....) Explorer and Escape do better. As to MKZ it -2% is better than Fusion's numbers so I guess the more substantial front refresh is helping.

The Atlanta Auto Show is this weekend with a bunch of cars that have been out for at least 6 months.

Now that touchscreens have dropped in price and basically become a routine feature the backup camera is a cheap add on. Though I do share the concern about more things to break, one of my tire inflation sensors went out a couple years after I bought my 2007 Mustang new. Never fixed just drive with the check sensor message on or hit reset to turn it off. But I do think the pedestrian and crash avoidance stuff is something that needs to happen.

I think the article also used a picture of a Fiesta by mistake. The camo'd pictures appear different than this rendering. Hopefully this rendering is incorrect.

True on the value of the market for cars like the Focus. Guess I'm a late adopter and haven't bought into the SUV/CUV etc. trend and prefer 2 doors or a hatch than to the traditional sedans. Right now its only Focus* and Mustang are the only 2 offerings I could see buying for my next car, and I'm worried the Mustang will continue going upscale and thus get out of my price range. So it may well be a good business decision for Ford. A GM Cruz hatch made in would be better than a chinese Focus. As is the new Buick Regal hatch http://www.buick.com/sedans/regal-sportback-luxury-sedan/gallery which is made in Germany. Obviously Japanese manufacturers have lots of choices but I can't see myself buying a Japanese nameplate no matter where its built.

I agree 110% that most American's won't know or won't care that most of the Foci sold in the U.S. are made in China. Though I think more a higher % of Ford buyers vs. Kia buyers will care and know (and true about ST and RS owners being more aware). And perhaps an even smaller % of people have a more negative view of cars built in China than in Mexico. Re Mexico, Mexico and Canada are both a part of North America and have a fairer trade balance with us than China plus having healthy economies on our borders is good for our country. So I was Ok when I bought my 2000 focus made in Mexico - though I was happy my 2007 and 2014 Mustang had the sticker in the window saying they were made in Michigan in a Union Factory.

Uh yea, because if its just the high end editions being built in Europe, that means the majority of the Focus' in the U.S. will be built in China and that likely will be the narrative in the press. So if this offshoring to China experiment by Ford is successful it likely will continue and I'd prefer not to support that. I question sourcing the car based on its value - if the general public comes to recognize that there are 2 different Foci, Chinese and European (which I doubt) it will only make the cheaper Foci look like a cheap knock off.

If it ends up looking like this it will be a lot easier for me to overlook it for being made in China. If the ST pictures turn out not to be fake it will be harder to dismiss for being built in China. I'm not sure how I feel about buying a car that is largely identified as being built in China even if the car I bought was not made in China. Something about this one looks very Kia ish or sort of like one of those anime insects

Which is nice

Grill makes the front look like a Mazda design. I like the back. Too bad they will be making these in China. I might look at the euro ones, though concerned how much the upper levels will cost.

"The Blue Oval has a new electrified compact offering that will encompass an entire vehicle lineup, perhaps called Model E and arriving in 2019 or 2020." I've seen the discussion of Model E. And the recent article about the seperate Electric effort in China. But wasn't aware 2019 or 2020 would be when we see a new electric option in the U.S. Wonder what it will be. And wasn't there a story about an Electric Mustang coming one day?