Ford going all Euro on us!

Ford has been making much better looking and overall quality cars in the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe for a while now. So why has it taken them so long to bring that fit and finish over here to America? I mean how hard could it be to bring a Focus to America that has 296 horsepower like the 2009 Focus RS? The Ford Mondeo just by it’s looks in the James Bond movie Casino Royale would sell like hotcakes in the United States. It could be the oppressive laws in the United States or it could be that Ford Europe has just been better run. None of that matters now because Ford is rolling out the European version Focus in 2010. Along with the Focus the newly revived Taurus and the re-skinned Fusion look like they got their style cues from Europe.

When reviewing the versions of the Focus it seems that the first incarnation we got here in America was no different than the European version. However while the European version was and is a best seller the American version was discontinued for a couple years. Recently the Focus has been brought back to life in its current form. The 2009 Focus’ performance and looks still pale when compared to the 2009 European version.

The Fusion has been re-worked as well. 2010 will bring a more powerful Fusion and also a hybrid version. The regular version will have an optional V6 engine that will produce 263 horsepower while the hybrid version will be getting 41 miles per gallon in the city and 36 on the highway. The hybrid will have a new setup with a battery that will not only be smaller than other ford hybrid versions but also produce 20% more power.

Taurus has been a name that was synonymous with Ford quality for many years. Ford thought it better to capitalize on that name and change the sinking Ford 500’s name to Taurus. Without quality a name change wouldn’t matter at all. The new Taurus will have many of the engine options that go with the Duratec options list and there are rumors of a new SHO (Super High Output) version which will turn the Taurus from family sedan to performance track car. Along with pumped up quality of the 500/Taurus the facelift will look astoundingly like the Euro Ford Mondeo.

Ford will also bring the Fiesta back 2009. It has been in production in Europe for some time now but was discontinued in the U.S. This plucky little car will compete with the Honda Fit
and other similar cars for its share of the mini-car market.

Many in not only America but the American car culture will be thanking Ford for their decency in bringing these cars over the Pond. With a list of new additions like these and the F-150 backing all of them up it looks like the bailout holdout will be sitting pretty in the coming years.