justins

And I think if FoA can overcome the bad image Focus has thanks to DCT debacle, it may be seen as a Golf competitor rather than a Corolla / Astra competitor. We've already seen Holden announce the spark is gone, with sales expected to come from base Astra, while FoA have said there won't be a bargain basement, price leader Focus. Problems for FoA are Escape and Ecosport - both booming segments and FoA going nowhere quickly. Escape isn't bad, but Ecosport is outclassed by basically everything.

What is it with Ford and those MASSIVE front overhangs and looooong windscreens!? It makes their cars look like the wheels are smack bang in the middle of the car and tiny, like I used to draw when I was 3. Current EcoSport and Escape both suffer from the same affliction.

Word is that Penske basically told them he'd go to Holden if they didn't OK it, which would have left Tickford as the sole Ford team, which would have been untenable given development costs etc. Agree with what you're saying re it being a bit of a joke. If you're going to give us FP, give us the FP versions of everything we can get our hands on. All they've really done is re-launch vehicles that are already here, but in a sub-brand.

Ford Performance launched in Australia https://www.motoring.com.au/ford-performance-launched-in-australia-112153/ Why Ford is Back in Supercars Racing - https://www.motoring.com.au/official-ford-mustang-for-australian-supercars-112139/

They just had the media event streamed live on FB. BIG news is Mustang entering Virgin Australia Supercars with official factory backing. Ford "officially" pulled factory support for racing in Oz back in 2014, but with this they're dipping their toes back in - more in an engineering support capacity than an outright factory funding capacity, but it's a start. Ranger Raptor will also be official track recovery vehicle. Also announced was the launch of the Ford Performance sub-brand in Oz, to sell ST / RS vehicles and the Ranger Raptor. (Hopefully this will also mean we get to see more FP Mustang variants in the future). Also (quietly) confirmed was that Fiesta will be dumped from Oz lineup, with the Fiesta ST being the only model sold, through FP. No articles online to link to as yet, but will as they go up. This is pretty big news for FoA. They're on a roll with Ranger being 2nd highest selling vehicle in the country, Mustang being highest selling sports car by a mile (though admittedly none of their other vehicles trouble the scorers much at the moment), and arch rival Holden struggling to get traction.

50kg??? Hardly worth writing home about...

Is that to imply we'll see a version of this in Oz? Or the Explorer? Perhaps as a Terry?

So this is the first use of the almost mythical CD6 platform? It looks beautiful! If only we could get this in Oz...

I still think the lower opening aperture of the rear door is too narrow. Other than that, it looks nice. Really nice.

The sad fact is not every market is as performance oriented as the US & Australia, and on top of that multiple countries have heavy taxes on vehicles depending on their engine capacity and CO2 output. My guess is FoA would have loved a TT2.7l petrol, but it just doesn't make sense for what would be a niche vehicle in a niche market (Australia). I also think FoUSA want to keep the 2.7 up their sleeve so they have something different to launch in the US, as opposed to the Ranger Raptor being "nothing new" when it launches there. Whether that means it will then filter through to RoW, who knows.

Henry Ford's vision was to pay his employees more so they could afford his cars so he could make more profit. It was in no way philanthropic or because he was charitable.

I'm so far removed from the US market here in Oz it isn't funny, but to me it looks like Ford are happy to sell less and less "Cars" and focus more and more on CUV / SUVs (I read Hackett has said as much). So while the sales numbers may be down mainly due to cars, I imagine the profit margins on those CUV / SUVs will more than make up for those lost on the cars. And it's those profit margins that will fund Hackett's grand plan for electric vehicles and the "connected world" that he showed off at CES. It's probably the greatest advantage Ford has over the likes of Tesla - profit to cross subsidise development of future directions. Whether that pays off in the long run only time will tell.

Agreed. For suicide doors to meet all the stringent standards that OEMs have to, they'd have to be designed in from the very beginning.

I like Doug because he takes a more ireverant look at the cars in his vids. It's not serious serious serious. This isn't a bad vid IMO.

Just found a couple of reviews up on youtube... Edmunds... and Roadshow Both very positive.

Coils - http://www.caradvice.com.au/558226/2019-ford-ranger-raptor-v6-this-is-the-ute-youve-been-waiting-for/

And from caradvice.com.au The Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) has started proceedings against Ford Australia today, over long-running concerns regarding the company’s PowerShift automatic transmission fitted to variants of the Ford Focus, Fiesta and EcoSport sold between 2011 and 2016. http://www.caradvice.com.au/570156/accc-to-sue-ford-over-powershift-conduct-ford-strongly-refutes-allegations/

CAR maker Ford’s Australian business is facing legal action from the consumer watchdog over allegations it misled customers who bought faulty cars. And despite being aware of widespread problems, the company allegedly onsold problem vehicles to unsuspecting new buyers. http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/motoring/ford-misled-customers-in-australia-over-faulty-vehicles-and-onsold-problem-cars-to-buyers-accc-says/news-story/11c05121b636e5125936786cffa15ff5

It makes sense for MKC to be built there if non-Europe Focus is moving there as well. Same platform. Wouldn't surprise me if Escape rolled down the same line as well.

From what I read, Ford is supplying the chassis, while DP is contracting the actual battery and body production to another party. Much in the same way Ford provides chassis to RV & specialty body makers in the states.

From GoAuto.com.au http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/0F421D01DC69594BCA258124007E9311

I think compared to the Escalade, the dash is great. Retro and minimalist at the same time. I'd love to see some nice light coloured wood accent instead of the white accents in the photos, but I likey.

Don't know if this is really anything new, but thought worth posting anyway... http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/motoring/vehicle-manufacturer-ford-predicts-a-future-of-diminishing-car-ownership/news-story/f4216d586e7006310408ae2390fb8c60

But those things - track, handling, cornering etc are exactly what makes RS RS. If it doesn't have those things, it's not an RS IMO.

So I imagine they're going to drop the ride height and have to overcome the tall-box CoG issues, perhaps wider tracks, but seriously? Surely a hot hatch, in most circumstances, will ride and handle better than a tall box CUV...