[booman]

:? Any comments about the Ford Escape with the Toyota Hybrid drive train?

Points I have noted:

It is the classic voltage pak, the 35 mpg quoted is for a 2 wheel drive, and the production numbers will be limited.

Comments or Corrections?

Thanks!

Booman - 2003 classic silver

 

[Daniel]

Toyota's technology, but Ford's assembly. FORD = "Fix Or Repair Daily."

 

[Panjandrum]

FORD quality in general

Well, despite the horrible Focus disaster, the last time I looked through the C.R. car guide, it looked like Ford was actually the best of the three "American" manufacturers by a slim margin, so maybe it won't be utterly horrible.

Personally, I've had miserable luck with anything and everything I've ever owned from any of the "big 3", but some close friends have had good luck with their Ford trucks. Of course, they own trucks and use them as cars (never haul, never tow), so that might have something to do with it.

 

[Daniel]

I have a particular disgust with Ford because of the Pinto. For those too young to remember: the Pinto exploded in rear-end collisions, due to bad placement of the fuel tank. Ford realized the problem before putting the car on the market. They made a cost-benefit analysis: cost to settle the inevitable lawsuits when people were killed or horribly mutilated, vs. cost to re-design the car. Settling the lawsuits seemed cheaper, so they sold the cars knowing that some number of people would be killed, crippled, and horribly burned by their car. They put their profits above the human suffering that their design error would cause.

I will never, ever, buy a Ford. In part because I do not trust their cars, and in part because I think they are even more evil than most other profit-hungry corporations.

 

[Panjandrum]

Door latches

Yes, I remember this well. Ford is in trouble again just now due to a similar decision involving their door latches. You think they would have learned. I've actually never considered a Ford specifically because of the Pinto scandal. I would not, however, be surprised to find out that a huge number of companies make similar decisions routinely, maybe even Toyota...

 

[rmwtsou]

My V-8, all-wheel-drive Ford Explorer gave me 267K miles of near trouble-free service until I replaced it last month with my '04 Prius. The only problem with the Ford is its 15 MPG, otherwise it is a good vehicle (it is now retired in my garage). I figure the Prius will save me $285 a month on gas bill alone, since I drive so much.

 

[rmwtsou]

Ford Pinto

I bought my first brand-new car, a Ford Pinto, in 1972 for $1999. Ninety-thousand-plus miles later, I sold it for $400. It served me well, without major problems--except one time the stick-shift lever came completely off in my hand while driving.

Of course, I was never rear-ended!