The Ford Focus
For those reading this from you US of A, you might ask why I would write about a car which is so “American.” This, however, is simply not true. Many cars made in the USA also find root in other countries. Ford, long a player in the United Kingdom, also has a Focus sold to buyers in the UK – and only the UK.
Ford in the UK faces many different market forces not found in the US. For example, Americans tend to love car that chug gas. And at $2.50/gallon, it’s not wonder. Petrol prices in the UK are more than twice that figure, and so the buyers are much more mindful of fuel efficient vehicles. This of course means that UK buyers like cars that look like ants compared to big bad American cars like the Ford F-250 Super Duty truck. A truck so big and powerful that it could haul away my house without me even knowing it. Indeed, throughout Europe you see dozens of different hatchback models. Still, just because they value petrol more than the Americans, and thus little, versatile hatchbacks, the British enjoy the same thrill of driving that the Americans enjoy.
Enter the Ford Focus ST. Unbeknowst to most Americans, the Europeans have a class of car called the “hot hatchback.” Fine, but what does this mean? It means that car makers like Ford, Volkswagen, and all the others take a regular 3 or 5 door hatchback and tune it. They firm up the suspension to improve the handling, give it more horsepower to make it go like the wind, screw on bigger wheels, and typically do something exciting and radical with the face of the thing. In short, they give the car more “masculine” features – balls if you will.
Does everyone buy such a car? Certainly not everybody needs one, otherwise, why make model variations? The truth is, car companies need exciting models. They attract buyers. It’s the same thing for cell phone companies that make a “prototype” $1million cell phone studded with diamonds. It gets people’s attention, even if it’s not meant to be sold. The same thing is happening here. Ford may not sell a ton of “hot hatches” but it gets people in the door of the dealership. And for that reason Ford UK needs hot hatches.
And to explain my original point, Ford back home in the US needs the hot hatch too. Sure, there is currently little market for this in the US (e.g. the VW GTI), but that market is what builds other markets.
I read the newspaper these days and I note how everyone is predicting the demise of Ford Motor Company. It doesn’t have to be that way though. It’s true though that part of the problem is high healthcare costs, but that doesn’t explain why marketshare is shrinking. It’s shrinking because Ford isn’t putting out the goods. They need to get people excited again. Ford of America NEEDS the Focus ST, and it needs it now.
Additional: Autoblog