Iv'e seen the Austraulin Mondeo and the russian and european Focus.... Why cant we as americans have those great looking vehicles here too? I mean the new Focus is not ugly, but the europe market Focus looks hot! And the Mondeo? Whats the deal, are we tyrying for plain Jane? Whats your view?
Good topic. We've had a couple of threads already on it. Try the search feature.
No, the new focus is FUGLY and unfortunatley my mom loves it,ewwwwwwwww.
Agreed though,some of the europen cars are hot.
That notched back does nothing for me i still prefer our focus's. Now i have a feeling if ford come out with this focus GT turbo 4 the hatchback will re appear probably as the euro focus.
Dude I would take that car over our Focus anyday!!!
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/17/further-proof-that-future-fords-will-have-euro-flair/
;)
Maybe Europeans aren't as picky about their cars, or maybe they are more so.... I personally don't like the looks of many of their cars. They aren't as sleek... and most just look dorky to me. lol
It could also be production costs.... I think a lot more Americans own cars than Europeans.... although I have nothing to back this up. I just think more Europeans ride bikes and walk than Americans do..... so maybe the production costs are different for each area.
Yes. The production costs of European cars are quite a bit more than comparable North American ones. Most Europeans are willing to pay more than we do for a car, which is why they think our cars have cheap materials. It's because they do. Most Americans aren't willing to spend an extra $3G to have a soft dash.
I think it would depend on the benefits of having a soft dash as to whether I'd pay more for it to be in my car. (just using that as an example)
A huge part of it is that North Americans consider small cars to be cheap shiznitboxes, so they expect them to be cheap. Europeans are used to high fuel prices, and premium small cars are not a new thing over there. They've long realized that you don't need to sacrifice style or comfort for fuel economy (an ugly car is just as expensive to build as a pretty one). Ford (and every other manufacturer) is more willing to invest in small cars in a market where people will pay premium prices for them. In markets where small = bottom-of-the-heap, we get bottom-of-the-heap cars. There are a few exceptions (Volvo C30, Mini) but for the most part we think cheap when we think small.
This might change as people move out of their SUV's and into smaller vehicles. Somebody with a leather-lined Eddie Bauer Explorer is not going to find a cloth-lined Focus acceptable.
And that would explain why Mini's sales are up, to the point where more production is warranted, whilst everyone else's sales are down. Smart is doing well here too.
*Sniff* *Sniff*
I smell bad rice.
You're familiar with the term "Ugly American", right?
Pretty much every Euro version of a car makes the US version look like the homely cousin...
Yeah. That's similar to the "Fat American", right.
WOW! Could you guys be any more offensive?
I just did a google image search on the European Focus and the Mondeo, I don't see a huge difference between the Euro and American versions in either of them. I mean, unless I'm not seeing the correct pictures of these cars, I don't see where the Euro versions are so much better than the American ones.
Maybe it's a matter of personal preference.
Fat isn't an offence. It's a layer of lazy between a person's skin and bones. I should know, I've got plenty. ;)
It's just a Top Gear reference.
Well, we don't have a Mondeo. That might be why the pictures you see aren't any different. As for the Focus....
(http://www.autounleashed.com/images/2008_ford_focus_adjusted.jpg)
(http://www.automotoportal.com/media/images/vijesti/071112003.jpg)
... day and night.