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2008 Focus Sedan Shots


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Well it appears to have the same greenhouse..........................going on a decade old :doh:

 

Age aside, what's so wrong with the greenhouse?

 

I'd rather Ford spend money on the interior and powertrains, in addition to fixing the front and rear designs vs. pissing money away on a greenhouse. FWIW, the new Camry has a very similiar greenhouse to that of the one it replaced.

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Age aside, what's so wrong with the greenhouse?

 

I'd rather Ford spend money on the interior and powertrains, in addition to fixing the front and rear designs vs. pissing money away on a greenhouse. FWIW, the new Camry has a very similiar greenhouse to that of the one it replaced.

 

I agree. When is this supposed to start production. Wil it be an early 2008?

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Thats becasue they didnt redesign it. all they did on the "all new" camry was front, rear, and interior. everyhting else carried over

 

really an all-new engine, transaxle, longer wheelbase, wider, all-new hybrid model.

 

yeah, they carried over everything else. :finger:

 

Age aside, what's so wrong with the greenhouse?

 

I'd rather Ford spend money on the interior and powertrains, in addition to fixing the front and rear designs vs. pissing money away on a greenhouse. FWIW, the new Camry has a very similiar greenhouse to that of the one it replaced.

 

I thought we were trying to move away from half ass restyles?

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really an all-new engine, transaxle, longer wheelbase, wider, all-new hybrid model.

 

yeah, they carried over everything else. :finger:

crap suspension design, crap steering gear, crap body stiffness. crap crap crap. Buy an Accord if you want a well designed up to date Japanese sedan. Camry's underpinnings haven't been substantially revised since '92. Toyota's refusal to substantially upgrade the design of the Camry chassis means they still have to get that smooth Buick ride though soft springs and squishy bushings. Just like the old Buicks. They don't track well either.

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Corolla is going to be a 6 year car, so the whole car magazine dogma of "cars are dated at 3 years old" is itself 'dated'. Bet on Civic going to 6 years?

 

Were people actaully thinking a C1 was coming? If Ford did, 99% would say "I'll wait for the rebates". This ain't Europe, where only the upper classes [so much for Europe being so enlightened] can afford new cars.

 

And no, we don't need to see 'BicycleSixteen' post a long winded "Ford should force an expensive compact on America"

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This reminds me of 1979 when the Pinto received a Fairmont styled front end to make it look contemporary... But it was still the same old Pinto...

 

 

But the C170 Platform is no Pinto to start with. The problem with the Focus was its less then steelar launch and relaibitly problems, then a halfassed "restyling" that had just a new Nose and slightly redone taillights in 2005 that cheapened the hell of out the car.

 

It looks like Ford fixed the styling issues and lets see if it can take some of the cheapness out of it at the same time.

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crap suspension design, crap steering gear, crap body stiffness. crap crap crap. Buy an Accord if you want a well designed up to date Japanese sedan. Camry's underpinnings haven't been substantially revised since '92. Toyota's refusal to substantially upgrade the design of the Camry chassis means they still have to get that smooth Buick ride though soft springs and squishy bushings. Just like the old Buicks. They don't track well either.

I know you like Volume, so how caould you not like the Camry 400,000 units per year and a much higher ASP, than say the fusion, or milan.

 

Thus the camry makes more money.

 

But the C170 Platform is no Pinto to start with. The problem with the Focus was its less then steelar launch and relaibitly problems, then a halfassed "restyling" that had just a new Nose and slightly redone taillights in 2005 that cheapened the hell of out the car.

 

It looks like Ford fixed the styling issues and lets see if it can take some of the cheapness out of it at the same time.

 

there i no reson to buy the focus other than price. I don't see how a fusion grille will fix that. espcially when you are throwing away the hatches in favor of the "Fleet Queen" sedan. it is ford givng up on the only area tat makes the focus stand out the hatches. Wayne will be down to one shift by 2009. and the shrinkage continues.

 

C170 is 10years old, it was time to move on 3 years ago.

Edited by Biker16
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I know you like Volume, so how caould you not like the Camry 400,000 units per year and a much higher ASP, than say the fusion, or milan.

 

Thus the camry makes more money.

there i no reson to buy the focus other than price. I don't see how a fusion grille will fix that. espcially when you are throwing away the hatches in favor of the "Fleet Queen" sedan. it is ford givng up on the only area tat makes the focus stand out the hatches. Wayne will be down to one shift by 2009. and the shrinkage continues.

 

C170 is 10years old, it was time to move on 3 years ago.

 

They're getting rid of the hatch???? Man, that's the only Focus model I even looked at when I was considering one. That's a terrible idea.

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I am sorry, how do we know they are getting rid of the hatchback and why are we sure that they will not be using the C1 platform?

 

we know ....

 

we know that coupe is joining, and that last year they planned on the 08 no including a hatch

We also know (and if you look at the mule, you can see it) this is not C1 - besides - C2 is around the croner, and we will get that when that is ready.

 

Igor

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But the C170 Platform is no Pinto to start with. The problem with the Focus was its less then steelar launch and relaibitly problems, then a halfassed "restyling" that had just a new Nose and slightly redone taillights in 2005 that cheapened the hell of out the car.

 

It looks like Ford fixed the styling issues and lets see if it can take some of the cheapness out of it at the same time.

 

Of course it's no Pinto but it seems like Ford is trying to push them like Pntos while neglecting improvements that make them truly competitive and appealing. It's the Chevy Cobalt that is a top seller in the same class. The platform may be competent or equal but the styling is fresh and appealing to closer match the competition.

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Here's my take on what happened with the Focus:

 

Ford had a choice in 2005, whether to continue on with the same design, or retool the factories to build an American-ized C1 European Focus. Given how much money they were spending on the Five Hundred, F-150, and Mustang launches, they figured if they restyled the front and rear to LOOK like the new C1 Focus, as well as give it a more conventional interior, and new engines, that would be sufficient change on top of an already highly-rated platform. By time all of this was set in stone, Ford THEN decided to go with the 427-styling for its signature design, leaving the Focus, Five Hundred, and Freestyle as orphans of this new direction. Fortunately, the Futura/Fusion was still in the early development stages, so they could change it. From what I've heard, it was supposed to look like a giant Focus/Mondeo, but they changed it after the excellent reaction to the 427.

 

It then sold decently for a bit, but then as new cars like the Civic and Cobalt hit the market, consumers started to drift towards these newer designs, and Ford realized it HAD to do something about it. Ford designers were talking about moving away from the European nature of the Focus, and looking at the next design being distinctly American. By time Focus sales started to slide, it was pointless to start plans to simply bring the C1 Focus over here, because the C2 is so far along in development.

 

The 2008 Focus will be a cheap, easy fix to make the car fresh for what will probably be an extra-long model year. Wayne will probably work overtime for a few months to build enough 2008 Focuses to last until the plant can retool for the completely redesigned, all-new 2009 Focus. Design-wise, I expect it to be similar to what the 2000 Cadillac Deville was to that brand. A bridge between the older-style European Focus, and the all-new American Focus.

 

I truly believe that Mark Fields and his team knows what the American consumer expects from a premium small car, and recognizes that the market is polarizing, so that Ford will follow Toyota and Chevrolet in offering both a B-car and a C-car. He also recognizes that Ford can't turn the Focus into a Corolla, since that simply isn't what it is. A Focus is not the boring econobox that they tried to turn it into with the 2005 model. It's an edgy, fun small car with distinctive design and a sporty character to back it up. If they can embrace what a Focus truly is, and sell to Focus customers, they will see sales take off.

 

Burger King sales are skyrocketing right now, because Burger King refuses to follow Wendy's and McDonalds in expanding their customer base. They're selling to their core customers, who will eat there every day, and want the biggest and most badass burgers out there, health be damned.

 

This means they need to forget about selling to the cheapo customers who want the most car for the least amount of money. That market will be taken care of by the B-car. They need to concentrate on Focus transaction prices from $15,000 all the way up to $21,000 for the well-equipped models. They need three distinct types of Focus models, all available in sedan, hatch, and wagon forms.

 

They need a well-equipped standard Focus model that most people will buy. They need a fuel-miser model, equipped with either a hybrid or diesel engine. They also need a range-topping sporty model in the tradition of the Subaru Impreza, that will compete directly with that car, as well as the Cobalt SS, Dodge SRT-4, and Civic Si.

 

Ford should also think about contracting out Roush or another performance shop to build an extremely limited edition Focus RS. Take all the stock internals of the hottest Focus that Europe has, and put it all underneath the American model. Build maybe 1,000 per year, and have all the parts for it available under warranty through the Ford Racing catalog, so buyers can build their own versions of it off the ranger-topping sporty Focus model. This thing needs Recaro seats, big rims, xenon lights, an optional killer stereo, and enough power to run with or beat an Evo outright. Yes, it will cost about $30,000, and yes, it will overlap with the Mustang, and provide GT500-beating performance for $15,000 less. GT500 buyers will NOT care about this car, and Focus RS buyers do not care about the GT500.

 

This will make Focus buyers happy, because they now have a car to drool over. It will make dealers happy because now they have a whole catalog of bolt-ons they can throw on lesser Focus models and up transaction prices. And it will make Ford happy, because they now have a hyped and hot small car brand. Yes, it will overlap the Mustang and Fusion brands, and may cannibalize some sales, but it will bring in far many more customers than a half-assed refresh would entail. Plus, all the costs would be spread throughout Volvo and Mazda, so they can can their own versions of basically the same car, drive showroom traffic, and since I doubt those brands are cross-shopped much, not worry about cannibalizing sales.

Edited by wescoent
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