Chris – You quit? Or did I fire you?

Truth is … I’d NEVER let you go. You’re the best of the best!!! Funny how rumors made their way – even here!

Whoa….did I quit working with Brenda?!
Someone forgot to tell me!

:-D

I like the concept but it’s too late great.

God knows there is a lot more potential here to look forward to than an electric car that depends on a government subsidy.

It is better to be a bit late than far too late.

GM golden parachute holders prepare to jump. What the hell, push them out now and get it over with.

Any damage that the millions of dollars they will receive does not protect them from will be taken care of by their grossly, overinflated egos.

Ford is doing some good things. If in 5 years their reliability seems to be on par with Toyota and Honda, I will start considering them for myself and recommending to others.

That’s exactly is what Ford should should do. Bring back the Super High Output, and make sure the suspension does justice, too. Forget the fancy multi clutch stuff; not for this price class. Just a modern automatic and a Mazda supplied 6 speed manual…Just don’t forget to weld the cams on this version, please!!

So SHO me, don’t tell me.

OK, now tell me exactly how much money will you guys be willing to part with for this Taurus?

Now if Ford gets a TT, AWD, Sedan based on a Vovlo chassis, where does Volvo now fit in at?

The 3.5 Ecoboost will appear in the 2010 models of the Taurus, Flex, F-150, MKS and MKT according to most reports. All will retain their non-Ecoboost engines (MKT excepted as we don’t know what it will have in the first place). There is a 2.0 Ecoboost that appears in 2011 MY vehicles (although there are rumors this is part of the “acceleration of fuel-saving vehicles”). There is also a 1.6 Ecoboost and a 1.0 Ecoboost more or less recognized to debut in the next couple years too.

The fuel economy of the engine will depend on how hard you push it. If you are constantly running to 60 in under 6 seconds, no, you will not magically get good gas mileage (it turns out if you push your Prius, its mileage advantage falters too). However, in highway cruising, your car will likely return similar mileage to a regular 3.5. In an F-150, that might be as much as mid-20 mpg highway depending on drag. But the engine can also ramp down really effectively under idle and throttle can be controlled in interesting ways that keeps the engine operating optimally in the city if you drive like you currently do, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see mid-to-upper teens city for an Ecoboost in the F-150 just like the current 3.5 produces.

There is a DSG heading towards the U.S. It’s not clear if that will debut with the 3.5 Ecoboost next year or in subsequent years, but they have a prototype of a Fiesta with an Ecoboost engine and a DSG transmission that is supposed to show up for the 2011 MY in the states.

(4) 2010 will see the Ford Fiesta / Verve

I’d consider a Euro Focus convertible…

‘Course, their hatchback’s a beaut, too. Hope you’re right Detroit.

The next-gen machine looks *very* attractive, especially if it comes in at about $35K nicely equipped.

TomAnderson:

only if it has a dual-clutch auto

Very interesting thought. Could happen, since Ford does have a DSG they've been developing and it is going into some (relatively) torquey diesel cars over in Europe. Sadly, we definitely won't get a three pedal car.

GAH! There’s that year again. And here it is again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uyr8UIvbLuE
The lyrics will have special poignancy for the D2.8 at the rate things are going.

Back on topic: A TTV6, AWD Taurus SHO would be the cat’s pajamas, but only if it has a dual-clutch auto or an old-skool 6-speed manual available.

Aren’t the Fusion, 6 and Mondeo going to share a platform giong forward?

Whether or not it will actually return high overall mpg numbers remains to be seen. Especially if you like to use that boost.