who makes the best cars on the road??

[steve_spackman]

2 that come to mind are..

ford Europe And Australia
Vauxhall/opel

[Easy Drifter]

You know the 2 definations for a Ford?

Fix Or Repair Daily.

Found On Road Dead. ;)

[driveace]

I dont think you should be so hard on Fords,the old saying when I was a kid was"A Ford a Ford 4 wheels and a board" but I have a 02 Fiesta diesel that has been used all its life for driving instruction,and with 227,000 on the clock it runs brilliantly,the later 1.4 d would not have done as loyal service,i dont think !
Maybe the Merc is one of the better motors on the road !

[steve_spackman]

You know the 2 definations for a Ford?

Fix Or Repair Daily.

Found On Road Dead. ;)
The NA and European and Australian fords are a world apart...

Isnt it Ford NA that have a hard time making decent cars?

[Eki]

2 that come to mind are..

ford Europe And Australia
Vauxhall/opel


I thought they make cars in factories and not on the road.

I'll get my coat.

[steve_spackman]

I thought they make cars in factories and not on the road.

I'll get my coat.

funny.. :)

[Rollo]

This is such a generic question that requires a generic answer. The best car on the road is the one which fits the needs of the individual motorist the best.

A Mercedes SLK 350 might be a fantastic car to drive but if you happen to have three children and want to go camping, it's about as useful as a concrete model of a cheese sandwich encased in copper plating.


2 that come to mind are..
Ford Europe And Australia
Vauxhall/Opel


Ford Australia actually only produce two cars, the Falcon and the Territory. Both of which although a perfectly fine motor cars are losing market share because they're both too damn big these days.

[Mark in Oshawa]

Drifter...Ford is for "First on Race Day" too....

Best car maker in the world? Honda. No question for me. Most efficient designs...top drawer for efficiency and performance. Best spread of models and price points for every point in the normal car buying public.

AS for Ford's in NA Steve....well it might surprise you but actually they aren't that bad. The North American version of the Focus isn't radically different than the Euro version. The Fusion is an alright car...as was the Taurus. Nothing fancy but durable. The Mustang is an either or...either you like it or you don't but not that bad...and the f150 is a great pickup as is the smaller Ranger. Their vans and SUV's are gashogs tho and THAT is what has dropped them in the soup. They are not alone tho, that mentality is what is killing GM right now too. Chrysler just has other issues...which is a shame because some of their products are very much what people have been begging for in North America BEFORE the big gas price hike of last year. When that hit...they were stuck with all those Hemi powered SUV's and sedans......

[steve_spackman]

Drifter...Ford is for "First on Race Day" too....

Best car maker in the world? Honda. No question for me. Most efficient designs...top drawer for efficiency and performance. Best spread of models and price points for every point in the normal car buying public.

AS for Ford's in NA Steve....well it might surprise you but actually they aren't that bad. The North American version of the Focus isn't radically different than the Euro version. The Fusion is an alright car...as was the Taurus. Nothing fancy but durable. The Mustang is an either or...either you like it or you don't but not that bad...and the f150 is a great pickup as is the smaller Ranger. Their vans and SUV's are gashogs tho and THAT is what has dropped them in the soup. They are not alone tho, that mentality is what is killing GM right now too. Chrysler just has other issues...which is a shame because some of their products are very much what people have been begging for in North America BEFORE the big gas price hike of last year. When that hit...they were stuck with all those Hemi powered SUV's and sedans......

not a fan of the NA focus (its all that chrome)...its basically a 1st gen focus, given a face lift, compared to the Euro Focus (2nd gen)

[ioan]

You know the 2 definations for a Ford?

Fix Or Repair Daily.

Found On Road Dead. ;)

90% of the time I drove a car it was a Ford and never had the slightest problem with them (only one of 3 was new, both others were well past 10 years of use).

[Mark in Oshawa]

not a fan of the NA focus (its all that chrome)...its basically a 1st gen focus, given a face lift, compared to the Euro Focus (2nd gen)

No Chrome any Foci I have seen save one model....and you guys get the better Focus because your gas is 6 bucks a gallon....over here small cars didn't get the attention ....

[Rollo]

not a fan of the NA focus (its all that chrome)...its basically a 1st gen focus, given a face lift, compared to the Euro Focus (2nd gen)

Face lift? The NA Focus is one of the most horrid looking beasts ever to grace four wheels.

[Mark in Oshawa]

Rollo...I was thinking that when I saw a picture of one of the new Euro ones....

[steve_spackman]

Face lift? The NA Focus is one of the most horrid looking beasts ever to grace four wheels.

well it got a facelift for the 08 model...saves them bringing in the 2nd gen focus as the 3 rd gen is on its way..lets hope FORD NA dont balls that one up either

[steve_spackman]

http://www.cardata.com/images/2008_new_cars/Ford/2008_Ford_Focus_SES_4-door_sedan.jpg
Ford US focus..made in mexico LOL

[steve_spackman]

http://www.hyts.hu/autok/ford/focus-st-2007/ford_focus-st-2007_r9.jpghttp://cache.jalopnik.com/cars/assets/resources/2007/09/New-Euro-Ford-Focus.jpg (http://cache.jalopnik.com/cars/assets/resources/2007/09/New-Euro-Ford-Focus.jpg)
'euro focus

[steve_spackman]

http://www.forddesktops.com/show.asp?f=focus&i=Ford_Focus_RS_2009_21.jpg

[steve_spackman]

http://cache.jalopnik.com/cars/assets/resources/2007/09/New-Euro-Ford-Focus.jpg
euro focus

[Mark in Oshawa]

Steve...it is better than the NA one. But that is Ford...taking their best cars and leaving them overseas. Heck...the Aussie Falcon kicks the hell out of a Taurus but Ford wont bring it to the Americas. GM isn't stupid...they take Monaros and put Pontiac parts on them and voila...the G8 kicks serious @ss....

[rah]

Toyota for me. They do the job right most of the time.

[steve_spackman]

Steve...it is better than the NA one. But that is Ford...taking their best cars and leaving them overseas. Heck...the Aussie Falcon kicks the hell out of a Taurus but Ford wont bring it to the Americas. GM isn't stupid...they take Monaros and put Pontiac parts on them and voila...the G8 kicks serious @ss....

i do like the Falcons..the V8 supercars are amazing to watch.

[Rollo]

Toyota for me. They do the job right most of the time.

That's the crux of this thread. Toyota make uninspiring motor cars which do the job reasonably reliably. The top selling car in Australia in 2008 was the Corolla (subject to pending VFacts Data), and the Corolla is the white bread of motoring.

[Valve Bounce]

It's a toss-up between Citroen : http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=XXOJ28b6WIo&feature=related

and Fiat: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=yIwv9yGe_Ec&feature=related

and EMO: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=P6QmJDy8JJg&feature=related

[Kneeslider]

I guess it all depends upon what you mean by 'best'.

Trying to define what best actually means is somewhat tricky. Performance is one measure of best, and handily it's easy to quantify interms of top speed, acceleration, cornering, braking etc.etc. Build quality is another, but this is much harder to quantify.

Styling? Well they say that beauty if in the eye of the beholder...

Way back when, many years ago, it used to be that the best built everyman car there was was probably the VW Beetle, compared to most other things around at the time it was better made, because the bodywork would typically last 20 years, at a time when certain Italian efforts used to be full of holes in 4 in this climate. Also the engine block was made from Magneseum alloy, how that managed to get past the bean counters I will never know.

Rolls Royce or Mercedes used to be considered the last word in build quality, and some oddball low volume coach builders like Bristol, might be uttered in the same breath.

In the motorcycling world, best build quality used to belong to BMW, the finish on their 50s to 70 bikes was the best I have seen, and detailing was a joy, no messy frame welds like the Japanese. My Laverda restoration has been impressing me with unexpected joys being uncovered as the teardown progresses. No wonder they cost twice as much as a BMW in the early '80s.

Today? Who can tell, the ravages of time on mechanical things are the ultimate arbiter of quality.

[Mark]

Continuting on the discussion about Ford USA, apparently Ford are going to release the new Fiesta in the US market in 2010.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3145/3055774966_4c683ba2b1_m.jpg

Although I'd expect it to look a little different. Probably with a boot on the back :s

[Mark in Oshawa]

It'll have a trunk (Boot) for sure likely. For some reason the Yanks are not much for hatches as a rule. Us Canadians like em...but the Yanks are hit and miss on them.

[steve_spackman]

Continuting on the discussion about Ford USA, apparently Ford are going to release the new Fiesta in the US market in 2010.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3145/3055774966_4c683ba2b1_m.jpg

Although I'd expect it to look a little different. Probably with a boot on the back :s

Its like the Saturn Astra...its a opel/vauxhall astra, but its been changed to suit the US market...they changed the front bumper and the engine, so expect the same with the fiesta..aswell as the new Focus.

This is strange coming from the Ford CEO saying he wants a 'one world' Ford, when the cars in the US and Europe and elsewhere will not be the same Ford that is sold elewhere

[Mark in Oshawa]

Every time the Head Honcho at Ford wants a world car...they take the Euro car and tone it down for the Yanks...who then don't like it. What works in a climate and culture where parking is limited and petrol is 7 bucks a gallon doesn't work in the US where parking is not a problem and gas is under 3 a gallon or less....

[Hondo]

I bought my Nissan Titan pickup truck new in 2005. It has not been back to the dealership since I bought it, even for scheduled dealer checks. It has it's oil changed every 3000-5000 miles using Mobil 1 Synthetic and I've used up one set of tires. It pulls, not at the same time, a 4500 pound boat or a 9000 pound camping trailer, along with a fat Labrador Retriever in the back seat. I haven't had any problems with it at all. It has been the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned.

[steve_spackman]

i want myself a RV so i can go coon hunting, frog gigging, drink some Bud while i fry some chicken and watch some nascar HA HA

[Hondo]

i want myself a RV so i can go coon hunting, frog gigging, drink some Bud while i fry some chicken and watch some nascar HA HA

If you can convince your government you need it for health reasons, maybe they'll buy you one.

[Daniel]

Continuting on the discussion about Ford USA, apparently Ford are going to release the new Fiesta in the US market in 2010.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3145/3055774966_4c683ba2b1_m.jpg

Although I'd expect it to look a little different. Probably with a boot on the back :s

The biggest change will be the bumpers


See the US ford Focus :mark:
http://z.about.com/d/cars/1/0/m/n/2002_ford_focus_zx5.jpg

[ioan]

If you can convince your government you need it for health reasons, maybe they'll buy you one.

:rotflmao: Good one! :rotflmao:

[Easy Drifter]

I would assume mental Health? :confused:

[Rollo]

Its like the Saturn Astra...its a opel/vauxhall astra, but its been changed to suit the US market...

...by not selling it anymore.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/business/03auto.html?_r=1&em
G.M. said it planned to focus on four core brands — Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC — and sell, eliminate or consolidate the Saturn, Saab, Hummer and Pontiac brands.

What I'm hoping is thus:
GM Europe as a result of the EU's orders for GM to draw corporate and national rings around the various divisions, then buys Saturn for €1 - and then sells Opels in NA whilst GM NA falls ever so silently into oblivion.

[Jag_Warrior]

http://cache.jalopnik.com/cars/assets/resources/2007/09/New-Euro-Ford-Focus.jpg
euro focus

That's about as ugly as the '08+ Subaru Impreza (IMO).

http://64.251.10.3/nimg/2007/08/thumbs/lrg_article_10861-img_0.jpg

As for "best car", I agree with Kneeslider: it depends on how you want to define "best". In the U.S./North America, J.D. Power provides the industry standard data (although a lot of consumers follow Consumer Reports and other publications).

J.D. Power's Top 10 U.S./North American brands for 2008 in Vehicle Dependability are:
1) Lexus
2) Mercury
3) Cadillac
4) Toyota
5) Acura
6) Buick
7) BMW
8) Lincoln
9) Honda
10) Jaguar

The Bottom 10 are:
37) Land Rover
36) Suzuki
35) Kia
34) Isuzu
33) Saab
32) Volkswagen
31) Jeep
30) Saturn
29) Volvo
28) Scion

That's just the Vehicle Dependability metric - and just for this market. Initial Quality is under a totally separate measurement system. And there are other metrics under the Dependability measurement system which have a very different ordering of the brands: Powertrain, Body & Interior and Features & Accessories Dependability metrics.

But Lexus is the only brand which got the highest possible marks for each of the four dependabilty categories. What does all that mean? I don't know. It still depends on how you want to define "best".

[Jag_Warrior]

What I'm hoping is thus:
GM Europe as a result of the EU's orders for GM to draw corporate and national rings around the various divisions, then buys Saturn for €1 - and then sells Opels in NA whilst GM NA falls ever so silently into oblivion.

The problem GM is going to face is being able to sell enough cars (in all markets) to cover its huge fixed obligations. Short of Chapter 7, there is really no practical way for GM N.A. to fail and for any other part of the corporation to remain healthy (not that any part is healthy right now).

After reading and hearing mountains of ideas over the past two months, I think the notion of a prepackaged (Chapter 11 like) bankruptcy is the best option that GM can take. Some people and companies will take a haircut, but at least it will be orderly. Chapter 7 means the corporation and its various divisions will cease operation and be liquidated - that'll cause a shock that the U.S. and global economy hasn't seen in my lifetime. And I don't know of any car company looking for more capacity right now. So who would buy these divisions?

But if people don't start buying cars again by the end of this year, I don't think it's going to matter anyway. If North American sales drop below 10 million units, I'm going to buy a house in Mexico for about $10K and go to work for a drug gang. My new screen name will be El Jefe Gato. You guys come down to visit me and I'll set you up with free drinks and girls at my bar. My new motto is: Have AK-47, will travel. :vader:

[leopard]

The best job in the world then, eh?

[vauxhall corsa]

ford's normally make reliable cars