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Detroit, 11:32 AM
Sat Nov 21
32 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/26/08
The Ford Mondeo-It's my Personal Obama, fixin all my problems and makin' the world a better place. Hopefully both will deliver.
11/26/08
11/26/08
Seriously, though, why hasn't Ford learned their lesson? If the other side of the world gets a new, better car, we do too. Is it that fucking hard? I mean, look at the Focus. If you can stand to, that is. How's that compare to the European model? That's right.
I'm afraid they're doing the same thing, though this new model is actually a bit nicer looking.
11/26/08
By that comparison, it's hard for the Fusion to not look like crap; but when compared against a Camry or Accord -- although that's not fair either, because a Fusion sits between a Civic and Accord in size -- it's a very valid competitor.
In fairness, we could be equally upset at Honda; the European Accord is the Acura TL over here, and by comparison, the TL is much better, and more expensive. Ford has a quandry, because it needs to compete against both in North America.
It will be interesting to see how they deploy the European models in North America. As it sits, Acura is pretty much alone in its segment, sitting between high-end economy cars and low-end luxury cars. Will the average consumer be willing to pony up more for the vastly-superior Mondeo? I have my doubts, with it wearing a Ford badge. I sincerely hope so.
11/26/08
I saw a Focus the other day (00-04 model) with european bumpers the other day in SoCal and I was floored by how pretty it was.
I continue to say that we need the C-max and S-max instead of that god-awful freestar. They could at least sell you a rebadged MPV instead of the antiquated crap that is Freestar.
11/26/08
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11/26/08
Now... all we need is the availability of the hybrid powertrain in the Ford and Mercury, have the Ecoboost engine available for all three, have the 400+HP Twin Force version of the Turbo V6 for a "Fusion SHO" and a real Luxury-Sport Lincoln and rename the MKZ to either "Zephyr" or "Continental"
11/26/08
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11/26/08
Her response: "Yep, that's a car." Does that mean they're on par with Toyota now?
The whole baleen grille pretty much killed Lincoln for me.
I can't even think of a clever insult for Mercury.
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11/26/08
HOWEVER. It is worth pointing out that everything I can find indicates that they don't have a "true" AWD system, they just have a viscous-coupling system that can transfer up to 10% of the power to the rear wheels in the event of slippage. Audi uses either a Haldex or a Torsen true AWD system that's capable of dividing power where it's needed up to preset limits. I believe Acura is using the 4th generation Haldex system, same as the smallest Audis, with some of their own technology tacked on.
Much as I do like the Lincoln, they're still not REALLY competing in that regard.
11/26/08
True, but that's still a step ahead of the previous TL, which I loved and wished I could own instead of just taking for an occasional test drive. I will be buying a new car in a two years, and if the MKS can match what I loved about driving the TL, it will be on the short list.
I agree with Jones Foyer in that we finally have Lincolns that don't feel like they are aimed at the geriatric crowd. Rather, they are stylish (in my opinion), well-built, and dynamically capable. I like that.
11/20/08
11/19/08
The Milan looks like a Buick concept from a few years back.
11/19/08
Anyway, it is probably easy to get a Lincoln owner into an optioned-up Mercury, but to get a wannabee Euro-snob into a Lincoln would be nigh unto impossible. Q.E.D., if the two were to be combined, Mercury should stay.
11/19/08
Mercury needs to go!!
11/19/08
11/19/08
We KNOW they won't be available like that, but put some bold, stylish wheels on them. You don't see BMW rolling out their 3-series wih the stock 16s on them. Chrysler even showcases their cars on, what, 22s? If you're following the trend of huge wheel-wells, fill them.