Category: Ford

The all-new Ford Explorer moved from a traditional SUV to a crossover SUV for 2011.  It adopted all new styling, package and powertrain.  Its owners rate the Explorer highest in AutoPacific’s 2011 Ideal Vehicle Research.  As the class winner, Explorer owners identify few attributes they want changed, but there are a few.  Ford consciously adopted more contemporary, more modern and aerodynamic styling for the new Explorer.  The result is that owners want better visibility and easier ingress/egress.  Available only with a 3.5L V6 for 2011, about 25% of Explorer owners want more power.  Explorer owners most like its seat comfort, ride, size and handling.  The Explorer outpoints the all-new 2011 Dodge Durango and wins by a nose.

The Fusion is the top rated Premium Mid-Size Car based on owner ratings of changes they want in their car in AutoPacific’s 2011 Ideal Vehicle Research.  As the class winner, its owners indicate there is little they would change about their car, but there are notable exceptions.  Over 30% of Fusion owners want better visibility and over 25% want their car to be easier to get into and out of.  25% want more power.  Fusion owners least want to change its ride or seat comfort.  Fusion ekes out this win over the highly acclaimed, and second place in class, 2011 Hyundai Sonata. 

Ford’s Super Duties are the top ranked Heavy Duty Pickups based on owner ratings in AutoPacific’s 2011 Ideal Vehicle Research.  As class winner, Super Duty owners don’t want to change a lot.  About 30% want better lighting in the interior.  About 25% want larger wheels and tires, better interior storage and more infotainment technology.  Heavy Duty pickups are workhorses – about 20% of Super Duty owners want more power.  About 22% of Super Duty owners want a softer ride.  The Super Duty outpoints second place Chevrolet Silverado HD by a substantial margin. 

Fusion Hybrid owners rate the car at the top of the Hybrid Car class in AutoPacific’s 2011 Ideal Vehicle Awards.  As the class winner, owners of the Fusion Hybrid don’t want much changed with the significant exception of cargo room.  The battery pack compromise cargo room and over 50% of Fusion Hybrid owners want more cargo room.  Similar to the normally powered Fusion, about 30% want the car to be easier to get into and out of and about 25% want better visibility.  About 15% want a softer ride.  Fusion Hybrid owners most like the seat comfort of the car.  The Fusion Hybrid outpoints the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid, a sibling to the Fusion, by only a few points.

 Hybrid Car

For vehicles equipped with two powertrains, one gas and one battery-powered, or pure electric vehicles like [...]

The all new Hyundai Accent has just been introduced and it may be part three of Hyundai's grand slam in sedans.

Delving in to AutoPacific's Research Suite database we find that the buyer of the EcoBoost models are dramatically different than the buyers of the base models.

Over the years, most Americans have considered small cars penalty boxes they were forced to drive because they couldn’t drive anything bigger or better. The Big Three concurred with their small cars designed to appeal to the lowest common denominator driver, at the lowest cost and at the lowest price. No wonder the Pinto/Bobcat, Vega, Omni/Horizon, Escort/Lynx, Cavalier/Sunbird, Cobalt/G5 never resonated. They sold in relatively large numbers because they had to to help their manufacturers meet CAFE requirements, but rarely did a buyer purchase one out of desire or lust. The Japanese partially solved the small car equation offering Civic, Corolla, Mazda3, Lancer, Impreza and more recently the Kizashi. All were desirable small cars with great quality offered at affordable prices. With their latest offerings, the Koreans are fully engaged with the new Kia Forte and Hyundai Elantra. So, the small car – C-Class – segment is now ready for more real competition this time [...]

According to Wikipedia, “white van man” is a usually pejorative stereotype used in the United Kingdom to describe drivers of light commercial vehicles such as the Ford Transit. Such vehicles are commonly painted white in order to facilitate easy sign-writing on the paneled sides. The stereotype represents the drivers of such vehicles as having poor driving skills and / or an aggressive and inconsiderate manner. The stereotypical “white van man” is often self-employed or the owner of a small business such as builder, carpenter, or plumber. For one week I was able to play the part in a 2010 Ford Transit Connect.

If you were to ask anyone who knows me they’ll tell you that I never really like most vehicles. I always find something wrong with any of them. The best example I have goes back six years ago when I bought a 2004 Mustang Cobra convertible. It had all the horsepower one could ever want, independent rear suspension etc. but looked like it had been put together with duct tape and silly putty. It had loose screws, leaks, and an orchestra of squeaks and rattles. It’s amazing what six years has done for the Mustang. I must confess, I have been smiling more during the past week than I can recently remember and that says a lot about the 2011 Mustang GT and how much I like it. Let me explain…

The new Explorer has, by far, the most distinctive styling of all Explorers. It does have Explorer cues, but also cues from the Ford Taurus. Its predecessors were evolutionary from the first generation almost to a fault. The new Explorer breaks the mold and its Taurus-esque cues are very evident.