wish they could’ve figured out the RS’s engine..

 

They will never stop building them overseas, so they can re-introduce them to the US market when needed. In Europe, Ford sells a LOT of cars.

My fear is just alienating that customer. It's not easy to enter back into a new market. It took Toyota 20 years to become even a minor player in the full size truck market.

 

The engine is fine. They just put the wrong head gasket in a series of the motors on the production line.

Problem is exactly what I'm talking about though. The buying public thinks they are all junk now. It's not easy to change a perception or become a different company. Takes a long time.

 

https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-cul...asket-failure/

Ford became Subaru with the amount of head gasket failures.

 

i’ve never had head gasket issues on any of my subaru’s. btw it’s not just the gaskets it’s also the block itself. too bad it’s all gone before i got to try my first personal ford product. lol


lots of experience with rentals..

 

People think there's a problem with Ford's block because of the open deck design. Same design as Subaru. Is it weaker than closed deck? Yes. Is it the normal in engine design today? Yes.

Any failure of the block has been due to overheating caused by the head gasket issue. Same with Subaru. Blow the head gasket and you could warp the block if you get it hot enough.

No reports of block failure on Ford's or Subaru's without a blown head gasket to my knowledge.

 

BTW, VW...closed deck block. It is a superior design from the beginning. Not to mention forged internals.

VW has their issues, but they start out with a better design. It is the German way. Over engineer from the beginning.

 

I should add that I'm friends with a couple Ford mechanics, a service writer, and a service manager spread between two dealers. I hear all the horror stories about Ford/Lincoln models.

It's good to know which vehicles and drivetrains to avoid.

I will agree that trucks are their best products. Get a 5.0 F150 and it will likely run forever. 5.0 Mustangs do well also as long as they aren't abused or wrecked. The naturally aspirated v6 cars/suv's are also dependable. Maybe not exciting, but they hold up well.

Really, even the Focus ST and Fiesta ST do pretty well. Those motors can take a ton of abuse. Even going big turbo on them is fine with stock internals. The interiors leave a bit to be desired and the fit and finish should be better, but the cars are durable.

 

What did I miss? Are we discussing how Ford announced several hybrids including a F150 and Mustang Hybrid?

 

Ford is canning the Fiesta, Fusion, and Taurus. Not sure where that leaves the Focus. The press releases say they will keep the Focus crossover, but that hasn't been released yet.

Strange thing is they have said they want to be an electric car company in the future.

Guess they are thinking they will profit from trucks and SUV's while developing the electric cars and then make the switch at some point.

Problem I see is that they will need the "car" customer if they want to sell those electric cars in the future. I see them alienating a market that they will later need.

 

As far as I know, they're ONLY offering the Focus crossover. Not the regular focus.

I bought a Ford brand new in 2014.

They'll never get another cent from me.

 

I said that about VW in 2000. I've changed my thinking to evaluate model by model. Seems every company makes some junk.

 

why pull subaru into the discussion. we are talking about ford making a bold move.
ford makes crappy cars (from experience) but they make good trucks from wat i hear. good for them to concentrate on wat they do best. end of story.

 

vw uses so much steel on my Golf. one way to make it like a tank.

i don’t know about the other VW’s except for the beetle i drove once but my GTI and R are fantastic cars. well, i do still hit myself in the head for not getting the S3 instead of the GTI 2yrs ago but hey..

 

WRX/STI is worth mentioning in any discussion of the Focus RS because they are very similar in design and execution. I'd own either one of them in a heartbeat, but both share some of the same strengths and weaknesses.

Kind of like bringing the Camaro into a Mustang discussion or a Camry into an Accord discussion.

I'm guessing that Ford is looking for ways to finance their electric car dreams and trucks/suv's are the best way. Will be a strange transition though if they go from gas guzzling trucks straight into electric cars.

Edited to add...I brought up Subaru primarily to point out that Ford's open deck block is not a problem. Some people early on, before they found out about idiot Ford employees installing the wrong head gaskets, that the problem was the open deck design. Subaru has proven you can run an open deck block with boost. Ford's block is fine, but their employees could use some better training.

 

That's so true it's crazy! Our Golf's external dimensions aren't far off of our Fit's dimensions and yet it's 500 lbs heavier.

 

Ah so they will only have the Mustang and Focus left for 'cars'.

Read that they are also investing in autonomous taxi service.

 

Not even the Focus as we know it. Just the new Focus crossover that's coming. Even dropping the C-Max.

Basically they will not be making anything that gets decent fuel economy. Strange move given their intended direction.

 

In all honesty...there isn't really a Ford I'd be interested in at the moment...MAYBE the new ranger/bronco. But besides that they are typically not on my radar.

 

In that regard, their new move makes sense. If you want a rear drive sports car, the Mustang GT/Shelby GT350 is one of the best. If you want a full size truck, the F Series is one of the best.

Pretty much everything else they make is trumped by something better in the marketplace.

I was excited about the Ranger/Bronco until I heard the only motor option for the first year will be the 2.3 turbo. Last thing I'd want is a 4 cylinder turbocharged truck of any size, but that's just me. Same basic motor as the Focus RS, Explorer, Ecoboost Mustang, etc. They use it in everything and it's ok'ish for a car, but not a good truck choice IMO.