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Hatchbacks Ford Focus Ford Focus Owners Tell Ford What you Want!
132 messages, Last post on Dec 05, 2009 at 1:02 AM
You are in the Ford Focus Forum. Your Host is pf_flyer
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| I have something to tell Ford. Tell your official service departments that they will be arrested if they try to sell brakes that don't need replacing. And tell them that they must not charge a $50 service fee if I have my car towed to them (at only 4 months old) because it won't start and then they could not replicate the symtom. Did they think that I some kind of disease that forced me to imagine that my car would not start? | |
My basic 3 yr warranty is over next week. I am considering the Idea of one of the ESP packages that ford is selling.  I bought new and used FORD products for many years. I like them or obviously I would not come back. One of the things that ford has done extremely well historically was to find or create a market. Except for the Edsel just about any car they introduced into a market segment was extremely successful and ussually class leading in sales. The latest examples were the Taurus and the Explorer. I read in a very good article in the NY Times yesterday, about the Taurus as " a remarkable success in the late 80's will be a " footnote in Ford history" . Last Friday was last car off production line. I think that the Focus may soon be doomed as I see in these posts. Back in the late 60's I had another ford, an English Cortina GT that also went extict although that one was planned as they waited for the arrival of the much inferior Pinto. It is ironic that it was the memory of that Cortina that came to me so strongly on the unplanned test drive of the Focus 3 years ago. Ford should market this car to people who really like to drive. Even "Consumer Reports" magazine which is not philosophically oriented to be enthusiastic about driving, mentions in their reviews of that elusive quality of ride and handling dynamics. ( It is if nothing else a factor in safety they recognize)  Ford is not without fault: They did not back this car up or take responsibility but chose to save money in certain design aspects, one of them being the Side Mirrors and some of the other soft molding pieces. I had to replace my Front rotors at 25 K and I should have insisted that they pay for it. Pirellis were crummy but that is not their fault. However one of those assymetrical tyres was incorrectly mounted at the factory. ( The dealer said after 25,000 miles It could not be proven. Bottom line, If I see a nice 04 station wagon (I hate the dash treatment on the 05 models), it just might be the replacement for my wifes' 95 Explorer.
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www.autoweek.com The revised 2008 Ford Focus was revealed today (01/07/2006) at the Detroit Auto Show (North American International Auto Show for purists). www.naias.com I haven't seen any interior shots or driven one, so my comments are tempered. The changes on the outside are mostly cosmetic to make the car look longer and leaner without much more than surface detailing differences. The roof line appears unchanged. The wheel arches are less of a separate architectural detail, losing the hard circle edge and instead blending smoothly into the fenders. Commentary claims substantial improvements in noise control and sound deadening with different glass employed among other strategies. The 2008 Focus body doesn't wow, but neither does it offend. The back side and rear three quarters views have a bit of the Subaru Legacy. The front end and front fenders seem busier and a bit less refined. As the current Focus looks better in person than in photographs, I'll reserve final judgment. It's still an open question. Is a revision of the current Focus platform enough to be competitive or is it a false economy? I'm sure the development costs are less than an all new model, but ultimately it is sales, growth and profitability that Ford desperately needs. Can this restyled and mildly re-engineered Focus regain sales momentum and increase transaction prices? I drive a Focus and am a fan, but I'm reserving judgment. The exterior of the 2008 is not enough to make me run out and replace my 2005 with a new Focus. |
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The only compacts with Driving dynamics equal to or better than the current Focus are the Mazda3, the Civic, and the new Rabbit and the Focus is still competitive and way outshines the Corolla, the Cobalt, the Caliper, the Koreans, and the new Sentra. The Corolla and the Sentra do not even offer 4 wheel independant suspension. Focus costs significantly less than a Mazda3, Civic, or Rabbit. After rebates, a Focus SE 4 door Auto is under $14,000! Photos of 2008 Ford Focus
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Replying to: mschmal (Jan 09, 2007 8:34 am) The Focus does have great driving dynamics. (It's why I own a Focus ST.) But the styling has to get people into the car to experience the difference. My question is not about driving dynamics (which should be even better with a stiffer chassis), but about whether a mild re-engineering and reskinning is enough to grab consumer attention and revive sales. I'm not thrilled with the new exterior, but the new interior may just have the style for people to notice. The expected all-new 2010 model will have to contend with the new Saturn Astra that will almost certainly be more of a driver's car than the Japanese and Korean competitors. 2010 is too long to wait for a total redesign, but it's too late now for Ford to change. It does sound like a new B-class (next size smaller) will be coming to the Ford line-up in 2008 or 2009.
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| Hello!!! I have a Focus and recently I change a light, and I deconnect the batery. After that I cannot use the radio-cd. I have the key code for that but I do not know how to enter it. Can you help me, please? | |
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Replying to: basiliskst (Jan 11, 2007 7:02 pm) |
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| The enthusiasts are not happy about the re-engineered '08 Focus. Ford drops our favorite 2.3 liter engine and denies us the well received European Focus. Message? For the next couple of years, enthusiasts are not a Focus target market. Will Ford be around in 2010 to win some of us back with an all new Focus? Or will Ford try to win enthusiasts in 2009 with a new B-class car? Will anyone be left who cares? Ford's failure to sustain and support successes with real replacements is killing it. Taurus was left to languish on the vine, surrendering even competition for the top sales slot. Now Focus and Ranger are fading to anonymity just when fuel economy matters again. Ford cannot survive on just the F-150. Style and quality drive transaction price. The only virtue of the 2008 Focus is low development costs. Ford cannot save its way to profitability. People have to want to buy. Ford is killing the passion. | |
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How many $19,000 Focui (Focuses) do you think Ford can sell? Thats more than an SE Fusion with the 2.3L I'd like to see Ford with a true B-segment entry so that the Focus can be moved a little up market. A Focus SE with Auto and Convenience and Sport Pkgs is under $18,000. With discount and and $2,500 rebate, you are under $15,000 which is less than a Nissan Versa S. Ford needs to decide WHAT THE FOCUS is suppose to be, right now its kind of bastardized. Its not really a B-segment car, nor does it compete with Civic, Mazda3, Rabbit. Mark. |
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mschmal asks a great question. What is the Focus supposed to be right now? Is it a C-class to compete with the Golf/Rabbit/Jetta? e.g., a small family car in the compact class. In size and driving dynamics, the Focus is a Jetta competitor, but not in list or transaction price. Is it an overgrown B-class to compete with the Hyundai Accent, e.g., a sub-compact car. The B-class in America has a lot of new entrants with the new Accent, Nissan Versa, Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and updated Chevy Aveo. In transaction price (not list) the Focus competes against these smaller cars. The new Focus may provide more car and safety than the B-Class competitors, but not higher fuel economy. Can the Focus image be polished enough to be cool to the young buyers drawn to B-class cars? Or will it only catch the value-conscious who are not image conscious? How to design the next Focus depends a lot on the answers. If it has to compete in the B-class price range, Ford better build the next Focus somewhere other than high cost countries like the US, Canada or Germany. Should it be practical as a family car (a C-class attribute) or more geared to the two front seats (a B-class attribute)? Can the sporting version of the Focus overlap the midsize cousin (the Fusion/Milan) in price? Are Americans willing to pay for sport at the expense of rear seat and trunk room? Stay with the upright family friendly architecture or go more low slung like the Civic? How much should fuel economy drive design? Or driving dynamics? Do prospective Focus owners really care about the superior driving dynamics? Corolla gets by with a twist beam rear axle and no one complains. The Civic has no back seat compared to the Focus and no one complains. Does Ford need a car in between the new (as yet unnamed) B-class and the Fusion? Is it in between in price or in between in size? Features? Fuel economy? Can Ford afford such model diversity? Complexity is costly. I understand why the Focus model line was trimmed for 2008. All I know for sure is that while Ford has to save money, saving money by delaying competitive model replacements won't work. Ford can't save its way to profitability. It desperately needs a real and sustained sales hit beyond the F-150. The re-engineered Focus for 2008 is like a defeated army regrouping behind a delaying action. It is not a counter attack. I guess we have to wait for 2009 (the B-class) or 2010 for the new offensive. Can an independent Ford hang on that long? At minimum list prices have to move closer to real transaction prices so that people are making real value comparisons. If Ford could point out how much more car for the dollar they are getting with a Focus compared to the B-class price competition (size, driving dynamics and safety especially), they'd have legitimate attributes to market. |
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