Ford Compact Cars

The Ford Fusion sedan is not long for this world, but just as the sedan is set to be axed in the coming years, the “Fusion” nameplate will live on in another form. Word has it that Ford is looking to use the name on a high-roofed sport wagon that the company is developing to compete against the Subaru Outback. There’s no timetable on when the Fusion Sport Wagon is going to arrive but look for its debut to happen shortly after the Fusion sedan gets the heave-ho from Ford early next decade.

A ratty looking 1976 Ford Escort GL sedan is expected to sell for as much as $300,000 at a coming RM Sotheby’s auction, all because it was once owned by St. John Paul the Great, a lot of whom know him more as the late Pope John Paul II. The unassuming Escort isn’t in the best of condition, but its provenance is the biggest reason why it’s predicted to go for that much money.

Less than a couple of weeks ago we found out that the Ford Fiesta RS might finally happen. It was Ford Performance Europe boss Leo Roeks who hinted about the possibility, but we just learned that the Fiesta RS remains just a rumor for the time being. The news comes from Ford’s head of design for Europe, Amko Leenarts, who argued that an RS model isn’t necessary because the Fiesta ST is fast and powerful enough.

Rumors about Ford wanting to add a high-performance RS model to the Fiesta lineup have been flying around for quite a few years. Unfortunately, we never got a hot-hatch above the 212-horsepower ST200, despite the first Fiesta RS concept dating back to 2004. But Ford’s more recent plans to expand the RS performance lineup may finally include the tiny Fiesta.

Why Ford CEO Jim Hackett thought that killing off almost all of Ford’s car lineup, after watching stock prices drop 12 percent in five months, was a good idea is outlandishly puzzling. That’s a huge drop in stock price, and his plan is to cut $25.2 billion in costs by 2022. Apparently, the route to take to do that is to force loyal Ford customers into trucks or SUVs. He’s taken a lot of heat from shareholders over this move and actually had the nerve to say that Ford is “reinventing the American car.” So, riding a wave that was created by consumers, while killing off most of your car lineup, is now considered reinventing the American car.

Even worse, Hackett wants to blame the sour reaction to this move on media coverage, saying “I wish the coverage had been a little different. If you got beyond the headline, you’ll see we’re adding to our product lineup, and by 2020 we’ll have the freshest showroom in the industry. The headlines look like Ford’s retreating. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.”

Truth be told, the brand is killing off an entire range of affordable, economical cars in hopes that loyal customers will be willing to step up from a car like the Taurus or Focus to an SUV. According to him, customers say they want Ford SUVs. That’s “what they really want.” I don’t know about you, but to me, that sounds like reasoning that tries to shift the focus away from him being an idiot in hopes that the next five years will yield a better profit with no cars.

Well, he better be right. I mean, Ford isn’t reinventing the American car – that’s not how this works. But, if things don’t work out, and this proves to be as much of a bonehead move as it appears to be, Hackett will probably find himself out of a job a lot sooner than he expected.

More than a few hearts were broken when Ford announced plans to dramatically scale back its non-crossover and non-SUV lineups in the U.S. One of the casualties of that downsizing is the Ford Focus. Unfortunately, all but one version of the Focus are expected to be eliminated from the company’s U.S. lineup. That means that there’s a good chance that we can say goodbye to hatchback and sedan versions of the Focus. It’s not likely, but the ST could also get the heave-ho as could the range-topping RS, which only arrived in the country in 2015. We barely knew it. The good news is that there is one version of the Focus that will, without a dout, remain in the U.S. It’s called the Focus Active, and it’s essentially a raised five-door hatchback with some semblance of a crossover.

The next-generation Ford Focus ST was recently spotted testing in the wild, and we’ve already discussed what it may bring to the table in our speculative review. Now, a new rumor suggests that the new ST might be the last non-hybrid hot-hatch from Ford and that it could get its juice from the same 2.3-liter EcoBoost found in the Mustang. Sounds pretty wild, but it makes sense given Ford’s plans for the next-generation Focus RS.

After seven successful years on the market, the third-generation Ford Focus was replaced by a brand-new hatchback. Although it’s too early to say whether the new model will be as successful as its predecessor, it has many features to brag about, starting with a new platform that will underpin several Ford vehicles in the future. It also boasts a sportier exterior, new tech inside the cabin, and a revised engine lineup. With the standard Focus on its way to dealerships as of 2018, it’s time to talk about the RS model. The performance-oriented model might arrive by the end of the year and rumors and renderings are already making headlines on the internet.

Ford’s very own competitor for the all-popular Volkswagen Golf GTI, the Focus ST will benefit from all the cool features of the new Focus, but it will receive a few extra features inside and out. The sportier exterior with more aggressive cues will be joined by an exclusive interior, while its engine will provide the most power in an ST model yet. Until the next-generation Focus RS arrives, the ST will sit at the top of the range in terms of performance and pricing. Let’s take a closer look at what we already know about this car in the speculative review below.

Continue reading to learn more about the upcoming Ford Fiesta ST.

Unveiled earlier this month, the new-generation Ford Focus introduced a brand-new platform from the company, as well as a number of new or updated engines. Set to arrive in the United States sometime next year, the Focus could also bring Ford’s brand-new, 1.5-liter, three-cylinder EcoBoost unit to North America.

The 2018 Ford Escape is, by most accounts, a good crossover. But its safety is being thrown into question after the model received the worst rating among seven small SUVs from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety’s passenger-side small overlap crash performance. Of all the SUV models that were tested, the Escape turned in the only ’poor’ rating among the group, a stunning grade considering that most of its rivals, including the Jeep Compass, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain, all received ’good’ ratings.

The new Focus is here, and its DNA has evolved in a way that pleases the car gods. It has a more aggressive look outside and a more refined interior with lots of new technology. It’s now a car for the modern ages and is now fully equipped to compete with the Honda Civic and Chevy Cruze, among others. The problem is that it will go on sale in Europe later this year (with more than 180 horsepower in range-topping form) but won’t come to the U.S. until sometime in 2019. It might not be a supercar, but the Focus does have its own following. If you’re one of the many Focus fans out there, we’ve hand-picked our favorite wallpaper of the new model and dropped a gallery for you to browse too – go ahead and take a few to keep your desktop fresh and the itch subdued until it goes on sale.

After seven years on the market, the third-generation Focus was finally retired in 2018 and replaced with a new model redesigned on a clean sheet. Highly popular in the U.S. and Europe, the third-gen Focus leaves a big legacy behind. The outgoing hatchback was a high seller, it spawned the best ST model yet, and marked the return of the RS nameplate. Whether the new Focus will be able to fill the big shoes or not is hard to predict at this point, but we can compare the two cars inside and out to see what changed and which is ultimately more appealing. Let’s have a closer look below.

Continue reading for the full story.

The Ford Focus has finally entered its fourth generation, and it brings a lot of change in terms of design, comfort, and economy. It comes complete with a largely revamped interior and loads of new technology; not to mention a range of new engines that are more powerful and more efficient. As usual, the new Focus will call Europe (and China) home first, before coming to the United States for the 2019 model year.

Ford just unveiled the fourth-generation Focus in London, and it’s pretty obvious that we have a new exciting hatchback underway. Sportier than ever before on the outside and equipped with better features on the inside, it’s powered by four drivetrains in Europe, including both gasoline and diesel options. And, just like the smaller Ka+ and Fiesta, it gained a crossover-inspired Active version. Having seen the new Focus, I can’t help but wonder how the ST and RS versions will look like. A couple of new renderings from X-Tomi Design provide the answer.

After seven years on the market, it’s time for the third-gen Focus to be put to rest as an all-new generation comes to life with major improvements in tow. Ford designed the fourth-gen Focus from the ground up, giving it some design cues from the now-defunct third-gen Focus RS to go with some seriously upgraded tech, new safety features, and a range of new engines that are not only more powerful but more efficient as well. Europe and China will see the fourth-gen Focus hit dealers by the turn of the year, but the U.S. won’t see the new model until sometime in 2019.

After almost 10 years on the market, the sixth-generation Ford Fiesta was finally discontinued in 2017, making way for a brand-new model with a fresh and sportier design. The new Fiesta also brought new technology on the table, as well as revised engines and an ST model powered by a three-cylinder unit. Come 2018 and Ford added a new member to the Fiesta family, this time around in the form of a crossover-styled model called Active. The Fiesta Active joins the Ka+ Active, a similar version of the smaller Ka+ hatchback launched earlier in 2018.

Designed for a small niche that used to include the Volkswagen CrossPolo — a model that is no longer available — the Fiesta Active will share the market with the Hyundai i20 Active. Essentially a hatchback with increase ground clearance and crossover-style cladding, the Fiesta Active is aimed at customers who want the benefits of crossover but still need a compact car that’s easy to drive and park inside the city. A bit more rugged on the outside, the Fiesta Active shares its technology and drivetrains with the standard hatchback, although certain differences are noticeable in every department. But more about that in the review below.

Continue reading to learn more about the Ford Fiesta Active.

The next-gen Ford Focus is set to debut, and Ford just can’t quit putting out the teasers in anticipation. It’s set to take on the Volkswagen Golf, Chevy Cruze, and Honda Civic, so it needs to be a looker. Work has it that it will be and you can even expect the Focus ST and Vignale to be released sometime this year as well. Word about the drivetrain is still nonexistent, but the Focus should grow a bit to offer more room inside and the Focus RS, which could come to be long before the end of the fourth-gen’s lifecycle, could even make use of Ford’s new Hybrid technology that could push the hatchback beyond the 400 horsepower mark. All eyes are on Ford today, folks. Stay tuned for the latest!

It looks like sedans are slowly getting extinct. We have seen the Volvo S80 and the Mitsubishi Lancer being discontinued in 2017, and next in line are sedans from Chevrolet and Ford. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Ford and GM will drop a number of sedans as crossovers have become the priority choice of consumers. Which cars are these? Read on to know.

Ford and General Motors are doing a little house cleaning, and a few models from each brand are expected to get discarded in the near future. On the chopping block on Ford’s end are the Taurus and the Fiesta. They’re expected to be joined by the Chevrolet Sonic after a Wall Street Journal report revealed that all three models are now on borrowed time in the U.S.

The unveiling of the next-generation Ford Focus is upon us. We’ve already seen the model numerous times through spy shots of test mules and photo shoots. Now, it’s Ford that’s doing the teasing courtesy of a new video that reveals a good number of details about the fourth-generation model. The all-new Ford Focus will make its highly anticipated debut next Wednesday, April 10. Circle those calendars, folks. The new Focus is arriving.