In a time when we hear about the endless troubles facing the American Automotive Industry, there seem to be an endless line of explanations as to why our domestic vehicles are taking a back-seat to foreign-owned and imported vehicles. While explanations seem to be in endless supply, one simple fact (as a younger, potential auto buyer) is that often times foreign vehicles have a much higher value/cool ratio than their domestic counterparts. The success of the auto brand Scion is evidence of this fact: value-pricing coupled with a surprising level of amenities wrapped in a stylish package.
So then imagine my surprise when I happened to see a commercial for the 'New' 2008 Ford Focus sold overseas. Here is a photo of the 'new' Focus currently available to the masses here in the U.S.:
...and here is a picture of the 2008 Ford Focus currently available in Europe and Australia:
Here's an even cooler version that you can buy, known as the Focus Cabriolet:
And in today's fuel-conscious buying mode, imagine how well a car like the Ford Fiesta would sell opposite vehicles like the Toyota Yaris or the Honda Fit:
But it's not just the small economy vehicles that Ford is inexplicably saving it's style for. In the latest James Bond film installment, Casino Royale, Bond arrives in the then-concept vehicle Ford Mondeo. It is now available in dealerships, and looks like this:
This is America's version of the Mondeo, known as the Five Hundred:
It would seem that the Ford Motor Company is saving its retarded step-children for sale in the U.S. and sending their more stylish, award-winning (no joke) vehicles to overseas markets. I have to ask: why? I wouldn't think twice about purchasing another Ford vehicle if they looked like their European cousins. As it is, Ford seems to be pursuing a sales tactic based on a golf-cart mentality that is promoting their vehicles as pragmatic people-movers, rather than dynamic and fun to drive vehicles.
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