07-08 focus sedan pics

[focuspl99]

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

Notice how many people on focaljet used to have more than one foci? A few people and families owned more than one focus at the same time!

Honestly not really. I see one ever 2 months on the road, and I don’t see too many at ford dealers because they are all going out of business here. I see more 06 style Hyundai sonatas than fusions. The fusion has fewer options than the focus used to have, so even though it is “bigger” it is a crappier car. Not an upgrade at all IMO.

BMW, VW etc have NO trouble selling VERY un reliable products for a profit. Even though there cars are not reliable, they have style, quality feel, tech, and performance. Ford should have ADDED features to the focus to ad to its appeal even though it was not the most reliable car. By making it a boring, bland, unreliable car there was NO reason to buy it over a civic or corolla. There is no longer ANY compelling reason to buy the focus over any other small car except it is MUCH cheaper than anything else similar to it on the market. Not a good way to make money.

probably one of thse stupid comments ive seen in a while, congratulations

[chaz493]

um...yeah.... he doesnt seem to be the brightest crayon in the box

[rpvitiello]

Ford made the foolish marketing decision to become a volume seller of cars, and not go after any prestige in there brand. The result is no one wants to pay more than barging basement prices for there stuff. They pushed there volume so high, and the perceived value of there products so low no one WANTS to own a ford any more, they buy them solely because of price, prices so low ford LOSES money. I am sorry they are a business, not a charity. Unless they fix this you wind up with no company.

If you want a bland boring car, you buy a corolla because it is “reliable”

If you want a nice car you buy a “VW” with a great interior, lots of tech, and so so reliability. If you want “value” you buy a kia. Your product needs SOMETHING to sell it at a profit. Ford does not with in any category. There cars are bland, boring, cheep, “unreliable” etc… (true or not that is public perception) Ford sold the focus because it was edgy, not because it was bland and reliable. By taking away the edginess, and high feature content, you took away the incentive to buy a focus over a corolla. They may have fixed the reliability, but they did not fix the perception of reliability. Image is everything and fords NEEDS to get this.

It is not just me seeing things Esther. I have seen houses, just driving around, with more than 1 foci parked in the driveway. Also how bout all the jetters that were in crashes and replace the car with another one.

Also notice I said HERE, MY market, WHERE I LIVE. You may live in a part of the country that still likes American cars, here they are despised. The fusion has no direct ties to a euro car and is preserved as a junky American car because of that. The Focus actually had a better rep HERE, because it has a direct connection to the foci sold in EU. (engineered in Germany, built in the US, same thing VW does.)

Originally Posted by chaz493

um...yeah.... he doesnt seem to be the brightest crayon in the box

Btw a persona attacks on someone’s intelligence is completely un-called for. You do not know me and therefore you can not accurately judge my intelligence on opinions. This is a discussion where I will state my opinion. YOU do not have to agree with me and you are welcome to present a counterpoint of WHY “I am wrong.” Simply calling someone stupid does NOTHING to prove your point and it in fact makes YOU look like the un-intelligent one. Either make a constructive post or stop post whoring.

[EggYolkBill]

rpvitiello,

I think you confuse your opinion of things as everyone elses too. I would love to see you qualify your statements with actual data. I don't mean statements like "everyone where I live" or "my market" or "where I live." Show me unquestionable proof that nobody where you live likes American cars. I think this is a case of seeing and believing what you want to see or believe. The way you make it sound seems way off from the ytd sales at Ford and GM. Yes, they are down from last year but mostly because of lower SUV sales not lower car sales.

I am not trying to attack you but it drives me crazy when people make such broad, sweeping statements.

[chaz493]

That is EXACTLY how i see it. You attack all american branded cars without any firm proof of your conclusion.

Are american brand automotive sales down? yes. However car sales are up as everyone has stated, truck and suv sales are down. If you wouldnt make such posts maybe i wouldnt refer to your intelligence in a diminutive manner.

Your recent posts make as much sense as me proclaiming imports suck because the old guy that lives down the street says so.

[Thameth]

Originally Posted by SilverSVT

Damn interior looks cheap....

Please.... man i wish we has custom titles back so i could label you and Duc "Euro Haters" like the old days.

That blows away both our Focus interiors.......

[SilverSVT]

Originally Posted by Thameth

Please.... man i wish we has custom titles back so i could label you and Duc "Euro Haters" like the old days.

That blows away both our Focus interiors.......

Well I'll give it a nicer looking interior styling-wise, but the materials quality doesn't look any different then any American Ford interior I've been in or seen.

Might label me a Euro Hater, but I'm not impressed just because it comes From Europe, nor does it make it any better then what we have here just because we can't get it either.

[guitarseth]

Originally Posted by SilverSVT

Damn interior looks cheap....

Looks alot like an 05+ Mustang interior to me...

Honestly, Ford is making a huge mistake getting rid of the hatches. The hatch segment (to name it loosely) is just getting warmed up IMO. Dodge has the Caliber/Compass, the new Rabbit, the Versa, the Fit, the Yaris, etc. I bought my ZX3 because it aligned itself with my ideals of functionality, economy, and sportiness, and when my wife was looking for a car, we wanted to get another Focus for those same reasons. We ended up with a SPI, which quite frankly has been fairly disappointing, but regardless you can add me to the list of multiple Focus owners'.

At the moment, Ford has no car that I'm interested in stepping into. IMO, the Fusion is not an adequate step above the Focus. It doesn't really offer me the wow that I got when I got my Focus. It seems like it would be a good car for a person who wants to have a mobile office/entertainment center, but I'm not looking for a car like that. I think that the biggest problem that we as car enthusiasts face is that the culture views their car as an extension of their house, where they can talk on the phone, eat food, do business, etc. Cars are being built to cater to that audience (which is a large, deep-pocketed segment), but those of us looking for a car that is really enjoyable to drive are left wanting. The only bone that car companies seem to be throwing anymore is horsepower, but its so detached from the driving experience that it's not even fun power.

I honestly have no idea what cars I would like to look at to replace my Focus here in the next couple of years...

[SilverSVT]

Originally Posted by guitarseth

Looks alot like an 05+ Mustang interior to me...

LOL

I'm not the biggest fan of the Materials of the dash and side panels, but I like the design overall vs what is in the 05+ Focus.

[Thameth]

Originally Posted by guitarseth

Looks alot like an 05+ Mustang interior to me...

Honestly, Ford is making a huge mistake getting rid of the hatches. The hatch segment (to name it loosely) is just getting warmed up IMO. Dodge has the Caliber/Compass, the new Rabbit, the Versa, the Fit, the Yaris, etc. I bought my ZX3 because it aligned itself with my ideals of functionality, economy, and sportiness, and when my wife was looking for a car, we wanted to get another Focus for those same reasons. We ended up with a SPI, which quite frankly has been fairly disappointing, but regardless you can add me to the list of multiple Focus owners'.

At the moment, Ford has no car that I'm interested in stepping into. IMO, the Fusion is not an adequate step above the Focus. It doesn't really offer me the wow that I got when I got my Focus. It seems like it would be a good car for a person who wants to have a mobile office/entertainment center, but I'm not looking for a car like that. I think that the biggest problem that we as car enthusiasts face is that the culture views their car as an extension of their house, where they can talk on the phone, eat food, do business, etc. Cars are being built to cater to that audience (which is a large, deep-pocketed segment), but those of us looking for a car that is really enjoyable to drive are left wanting. The only bone that car companies seem to be throwing anymore is horsepower, but its so detached from the driving experience that it's not even fun power.

I honestly have no idea what cars I would like to look at to replace my Focus here in the next couple of years...

From everything you described it sounds like your ready for a MINI. But i'm only biased once in a while....

[Thameth]

Originally Posted by SilverSVT

Well I'll give it a nicer looking interior styling-wise, but the materials quality doesn't look any different then any American Ford interior I've been in or seen.

Might label me a Euro Hater, but I'm not impressed just because it comes From Europe, nor does it make it any better then what we have here just because we can't get it either.

Its not better because it comes from Europe, its better because....... its better. The materials and quality (from the picture) look very Audi esc or Volvo like, those two companies are known for great quality interiors and design. And thats a base stripper model. If you've ever look at any of the super hi res photo's of the Euro Focus ST interior you can tell the materials are up to par with Audi, Volvo, and VW.

But to you if its European its crap so you just as reversed biased as you think i am for everything European.

[Angelus897]

If you think the materials of Euro Fords are the same as American Fords, then you should really have your eyes checked. Just compare the 00-04 interior with the 05+ interior. The feel of the plastic is night and day (the 05+ is cheap as hell, on par with my friend's SRT-4, if not worse). The difference between the C1 Focus and our current one is even greater. After all, it's much more of an upscale car there than here.

[rpvitiello]

The “proof” that no one where I live likes American cars anymore is the fact that all the long term dealers are going out of business. Hell even car and driver made a comment in reference to American car dealers going away when a local ford dealer that has been around since the 40’s became a used Lexus dealer.

So in the last year, Ford, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Cadillac, Pontiac, Buick, Saturn, Chevy etc... have all lost dealers where I live. The only non American brands that went away were Mitsubishi, Kia, and Hyundai, and Kia was a last ditch effort where the Chrysler dealer tried to turn into a Kia before they went out of business, and the Hyundai dealer was a new dealership that was a Hyundai for less than 6 months before they switched over to Subaru. I could not tell you where the closest Chevy dealer is if my life depended on it. In one of the most densely populated parts of the US, with 1000’s of people a sq mile, and a part of the country with the highest concentration of dealers per sq mile, I would probably have to drive well over an hour to find a Chevy dealer. New England and California are known for being a few years “ahead” of the US in car trends, but what usually happens here happens in the rest of the US. If what is happening here is ANY indication at ALL what ford and GM face in the rest of the US in the next few years they NEED drastic changes or they WILL go out of business. Even the most loyal of ford fan people I know have finally given up on ford and started buying “imports.” True or not the mob mentality has taken over, and there is a stigma with driving an American car. If you do you are seen as foolish, and uneducated. If you want to score well at an interview, don’t even think of pulling up to it in something like a late model Taurus.

Focus loyalty for 2003…
http://consumeraffairs.com/news03/polk.html
The same list for 2005
http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2...18/207656.html
Ford still has vehicles on that list, but imports are taking up more of the list. It seems at this point the American car companies are simply trying to not lose as many customers as possible, but they are not replacing the ones the DO lose.

Also if you want a CT opinion on American cars, read consumer reports. They are based in CT, and for YEARS favored imports. There way of thinking is not unusual for the northeast.

I have been trying to find statistics on what are the most popular cars in CT, but so far I can not find any good statistics. From what I have seen from visiting other states, pick up trucks, and big American cars are MUCH more popular in other parts of the US than in CT (f-150, crown vic). In Florida for example I saw allot of people driving A pick up truck for daily driver and they had trucks where the bed was in flawless condition (obviously not a work truck.) Where I live pick up trucks are not that popular at all. Even FOR business use Vans (like the sprinter) are MUCH more popular than trucks. You see some people drive them because they want to, but the majority here are used for work or business. I have even dealt with people that work in construction and they won’t drive a truck on a daily basis to go grocery shopping, they will instead drive something like a mini as there “daily driver.”
There are some exceptions, but if you mention to your friends, family, or a stranger on the street in CT you want to buy an American car, they will probably try to talk you out of it, say you are an idiot, or suggest a “better” car from Toyota or something you should buy instead.

[Angelus897]

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

There are some exceptions, but if you mention to your friends, family, or a stranger on the street in CT you want to buy an American car, they will probably try to talk you out of it, say you are an idiot, or suggest a “better” car from Toyota or something you should buy instead.

I think that happens everywhere nowdays, not only in CT.

[guitarseth]

Originally Posted by Thameth

From everything you described it sounds like your ready for a MINI. But i'm only biased once in a while....

You have no idea how ready I am. I've been checking them out for a while, and it seems like there are a crapload of them anymore. I'm afraid I wouldn't fit into one, though (at a very limber 6'2"). I passed one yesterday on my way home from work with 3 people that were all at least 250 lbs, probably. The poor rear suspension looked like it was at about 5 degrees of negative camber. I'm afraid to drive one, because I know I'll really want it...and we can't afford another car payment very readily at the moment.

[Thameth]

Originally Posted by guitarseth

You have no idea how ready I am. I've been checking them out for a while, and it seems like there are a crapload of them anymore. I'm afraid I wouldn't fit into one, though (at a very limber 6'2"). I passed one yesterday on my way home from work with 3 people that were all at least 250 lbs, probably. The poor rear suspension looked like it was at about 5 degrees of negative camber. I'm afraid to drive one, because I know I'll really want it...and we can't afford another car payment very readily at the moment.

6'2" 220 here and i fit perfectly in mine. Actually i have to move the seat up because if i slide it all the way back my feet can't touch the pedals. I do wish it had telescoping wheel though. There are a few 7 footers which own MINI's.

[EggYolkBill]

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

If you want to score well at an interview, don’t even think of pulling up to it in something like a late model Taurus.

And what interview would they see you drive up? The carwash? That is a dumb reason for buying or not buying a car. Sounds more like an ego issue to me.

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

Also if you want a CT opinion on American cars, read consumer reports. They are based in CT, and for YEARS favored imports. There way of thinking is not unusual for the northeast.

Funny, I've never had any faith in Consumer Reports.

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

There are some exceptions, but if you mention to your friends, family, or a stranger on the street in CT you want to buy an American car, they will probably try to talk you out of it, say you are an idiot, or suggest a “better” car from Toyota or something you should buy instead.

With friends who call you an idiot and judge you for not doing what they tell you, who needs enemies.

[rpvitiello]

Originally Posted by EggYolkBill

And what interview would they see you drive up? The carwash? That is a dumb reason for buying or not buying a car. Sounds more like an ego issue to me.

Funny, I've never had any faith in Consumer Reports.

With friends who call you an idiot and judge you for not doing what they tell you, who needs enemies.

If you pull up to any type of store, or small office you park on the street right in front of the place. We don't have 1/4 mile long parking lots surrounding every building like they do in Florida. Yes it is a bit of an ego issue. It is borderline embarrassing to most people here to even be seen in an American car. Yes there is THAT much dislike for American cars. Even businesses here are shifting away from buying American cars for fleet use. The local enterprise stocks almost exclusively Nissan, not GM, and the smaller car rental places rent Toyotas. Pizza deliver places will buy a mini before they will buy a cobalt, and most businesses will only buy sprinter vans (dodge branded, but most people seem to realize it is a euro van with a dodge badge) One of my friends was telling me about a family friend where the wife divorced the husband because he took a corporate job with GM. She despised UAW workers, and GM THAT much she refused to associate her self with anyone involved with that company. Yes the hate of American car companies is THAT strong in the northeast. Towns here have declared eminent domain on American car dealers to get them out of there city when they could and listed them as “blighted” prosperities.

If ford or GM want a wake up call they should move there headquarters to either new England, or Cali and AWAY from the Detroit area where everyone is pro American. If they want to see the actual mindset of the US, look in a part of the country where peoples lively hood is not solely dependant on the success of a particular company.

As for consumer reports I don't like them much either. You do not rate a sports car poorly because it has poor gas mileage and a firm ride, it's a SPORTS car. Regardless it gives you an idea of the northeast's mindset.

Because they are trying to look out for there friends by advising them against something that is a foolish decision (in there eyes) It is seen as a completely irrational decision to buy an American car. Allot of my friends told me NOT to buy a focus because it was a ford and there service sucks. In a year and 1/2 and 36k miles my focus spent 2 MONTHS in the service department. Some of the problems were minor, and many of them were turned into HUGE issues by incompetent ford dealers. My friends wouldn’t even give me the "I told you so" because they felt so bad that I was going through SO much crap with my car and ford service. Over the 2 foci I have owned over the last 6 years ford dealers have caused about $16,000 in damage to my cars collectively, and left me without a car for probably 4 months out of the last 6 years.

That is not an isolated incident, and these things happen with EVERYONE I know that goes to a ford or GM dealer. They get crappy service, and the tech causes more damage than he fixes. It's not isolated to 1 dealer, I tried about 1/2 a dozen dealers, and its not just me, I know MANY people now that have been burned, friends, family, acquaintances etc...


Like I said the car culture in Florida is NOTHING like what it is in the US. We buy completely different cars for different uses, different lifestyles, and different roads.

[EggYolkBill]

I am not from Florida. I moved here 5 years ago. I grew up in Michigan.

I still would not call anyone who calls me an idiot my friend. There are ways of giving friends guidance without resorting to name calling. I also think that many of the things you are saying are grossly exaggerated. I'm not saying they have no basis in truth mind you.

I have had my share of bad experiences with dealerships. These issues are not unique to American cars but seem to be more prevailant. It's a dealer issue however. I also understand how people perceive the UAW. It has it's pluses and it has it's minuses. The UAW must now choose to evolve or it will not have any members to pay dues. It's a pretty sad ground for divorce however and I would say good riddance to a women like that.

The car culture in Florida is far worse than it is in Michigan.

[rpvitiello]

Originally Posted by EggYolkBill

I still would not call anyone who calls me an idiot my friend. There are ways of giving friends guidance without resorting to name calling. I also think that many of the things you are saying are grossly exaggerated. I'm not saying they have no basis in truth mind you.

It’s just us New Yorkers, we are very blunt people and are not known for coming of for being the nicest people in the world. Just how people are, I actually find it REALLY annoying how “nice” people try to be in Florida, feels like they are being phony.


Also they may be a little exaggerated, but they are true. At best people are indifferent to American cars, at worst people detest the companies and wish them bankruptcy ASAP. There are allot of corporate big business jobs here, so the average worker despises unions because they know how much of a pain they can be. Same way I doubt anyone in corporate ford or gm is thrilled about unions either.

[JFord]

Originally Posted by rpvitiello

If you pull up to any type of store, or small office you park on the street right in front of the place. We don't have 1/4 mile long parking lots surrounding every building like they do in Florida. Yes it is a bit of an ego issue. It is borderline embarrassing to most people here to even be seen in an American car. Yes there is THAT much dislike for American cars. Even businesses here are shifting away from buying American cars for fleet use.

Did alot of business in both CT and MASS as an employer and an employee. Unless your working at Mickey Ds or somewhere where the employer is an immature 18 year old (or an immature adult) I can't see your employment being in danger. If your employment IS in danger because you drive a domestic, you shouldn't want to work there anyways as thats just the beginning of the problems to come.

One of the largest companys I worked for, the owner drove an escort. ;-)

"Hey John! Did that guy just stab you in the stomache?!"
"::ugh::: Yeah but he drives a wicked sweet import, he's getting a promotion!"

[rpvitiello]

Originally Posted by BlckXenonZx3

Did alot of business in both CT and MASS as an employer and an employee. Unless your working at Mickey Ds or somewhere where the employer is an immature 18 year old (or an immature adult) I can't see your employment being in danger. If your employment IS in danger because you drive a domestic, you shouldn't want to work there anyways as thats just the beginning of the problems to come.

It is no different than people looking down on people that drive an import in Michigan. It is seen as “getting along with the enemy.” I live in a corporate driven area where our economies success is based on the success of large, corporate, international business. American car companies are the epitome of what NOONE wants a company to be.

Was it northern CT near mass, or the panhandle in the tri state area? (Southern CT may have a different mindset; we more follow NYC’s mindset than Northern CT’s thoughts.

[chaz493]

wow man, you really need to stop talking.. You aren't making yourself look any more intelligent. I dont know if you are some foreign elitist or a good-ole boy with a narrow mind but you have a very skewed perspecitive of the world. And just in case you haven't noticed, CT is not exactly the trendsetting capital of the world...

[rpvitiello]

Originally Posted by chaz493

wow man, you really need to stop talking.. You aren't making yourself look any more intelligent. I dont know if you are some foreign elitist or a good-ole boy with a narrow mind but you have a very skewed perspecitive of the world. And just in case you haven't noticed, CT is not exactly the trendsetting capital of the world...

No but the NYC metro area is. The population in this area is about 30million people and the part of CT that I live in is part of the metro area. I live 40 minutes outside of Manhattan, and I am in NYC every day of the week.

Like I said "Right" or not, I am stating the minded of the people I am around. YOU may be around very different mindsets and I would expect that. People may very well have a very different mindset where you live, I don’t expect people in Detroit to think or see things the same way as people that live in NYC. Even here you will see variation in mindset from town to town. The simple fact is NOONE aspires to own an American car here. It is not a status symbol at all to own an American car, and in some circles it is an embarrassment. Snobby, rich, pretentious people maybe, but those are people with disposable income to spend on cars they like, and that make companies money. Selling a car at a loss to move volume, and “gain” very poor customers that can barley make ends meet, and the primary reason they bought the car was solely because of price is NOT the best market to be going after.

Detroit would rejoice if Honda, VW or Toyota went out of business or left the US market, but it would KILL our local car economy. It would leave many dealers and service people out of business here, FAR more than if any American company went away.

Agree with anything I say or not, Think I am a pretentious *******, think my perspectives are skewed, think my perspectives are not representative of the US as a whole etc… the one thing NOONE is going to tell me that the current focus in any way, shape, or form is a GOOD thing for Ford, a company trying to make money selling cars. The focus is losing market shares in the fastest growing segment in the US auto industry. It sells for FAR less than the average price of a car in the C segment class. If requires thousands in incentives to even get the sales volume it currently puts out. It alienated all of its original customers and LOST its segment leading customer loyalty, it lost its place among the praise of EVERY car magazine in the United States and moved on represent the pinnacle of fords shortcomings along with the Taurus.

[sicko]

Originally Posted by Blis

Nice pics.

You just got us linked by Autoblog

http://www.autoblog.com/2006/07/21/s...08-ford-focus/

P.S. Ron 4tw.

I searched through but didn't find mention of the the jalopnik link

http://www.jalopnik.com/cars/focus/