I will be honest with you; Ford has never been my favorite brand. I do place Ford on the top of my favorite list for domestic car makers and I believe they will stay at the top of that list. The past month has been different in Ford’s garage with shouts of Initial Quality being equal with Toyota and Honda for the first quarter of 2008. This may be blown out of proportion by Ford but can you blame them? At this point in the market, I would grasp onto any favorable news and scream it from the hilltops! With all domestic car makers loosing big time and crying relentlessly about it, the time has finally come that quality has gone up as production quotas drop.

The initial quality survey was conducted by an independent research firm. Bad news was that they were hired by Ford to conduct the survey. The real test is not initial quality but long term quality and the history of the vehicles over the preceding years. Lets think this through, what can the first three months of a cars life tell you? It’s hardly enough to even require an oil change.

Ford has improved in one area that is noticeable to all, design. Save the likes of the Focus, the sharper design of the fleet does impress me for a domestic line. When Ford publicized its new designs on the Mustang in 2005 and Edge in 2006, it began the turn around for Fords image. Now there are a few Fords I wouldn’t mind rollin’ in. 

I sincerely hope that Ford has improved their quality and that it lasts longer than the first three months of a cars life. If they can keep costs down and deliver a good vehicle, they could have a winning combination. I am rooting for U.S. cars and someday hope they will be another option for my garage.

It’s about time all the Subaru tech in the new WRX STI was put to good use! I don’t mean to imply that we, the consumers, should consider ourselves useless to Subaru. On the contrary, without us buying their Imprezas and Outbacks in such large numbers, they would not have to money to sink into the fun specimens like this WRX STI World Rally Car. If you are still questioning Subaru’s reasoning for offering only a 5 door hatchback version for the STI, check out my article from last month, Subaru WRX STI - Love it or Else. With the intro of the new 2008 Rally version, I know I have my fingers crossed for our beloved Subaru World Rally Team. I also would not mind seeing Travis Pastrana jump one again! 

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I think this new coupe takes them a step backwards closer to the 1986 Ford Escort 2 door hatch that my mother owned. This new coupe is far from on par with the more attractive Edge and Fusion models as of late. Main issue lies around the fact that Ford is still using the original Focus platform from the launch of the Focus in 1999. This may not bother you if you already realize that many platforms that automakers use can last for years. The cost to develop a new platform is hefty so they keep the same design and make subtle changes through its life.

Now the bad news - Ford has had a newer and better platform for the Focus since 2005. Where is it? On nearly every continent other than North America. The international version of the Focus has been very popular since its inception; it’s arguably even more popular than here in the U.S. Unfortunately we are stuck with the U.S. platform for at least the next 3 - 4 years.

What does this means to you? Ford can’t even offer its best vehicles to the U.S. market where it began over a century ago, 1903. Come on Ford, treat us right and give us the Ford Kuga too!

Chances are that if you have seen the new BMW X6, you already have an opinion about its swooping lines and “coupe” like prowess. BMW refers to the X6 as a Sports Activity Coupe but I must disagree with automakers of late referring to 4 door cars or SUV’s as coupes. Regardless of my core beliefs of what a coupe is, the popularity of the X6 has been solidified by one fact that Jalopnik.com reported on this week…there are none left to buy in 2008. You would have had to be high on the preorder list with your dealer to get a shot at one since the whole 2008 supply is nearly exhausted.

Honestly this does not surprise me with the popularity of the Infiniti FX that debuted in 2003. Infiniti single-handily blazed the trail for this segment when they threw out some of the utility and infused heaps of sport into their creation. After 5 years of the BMW X5 competing with the Infiniti FX, BMW has finally realized this segment can make some money and will now target it with the X6, a vehicle boasting similar pedigree. Bad news for BMW is the Infiniti FX starts over $12,000 less.

What does this mean to you? If you have the $40,000 - $52,000 to slide into a base model of one of these beasts, it may now be tougher to choose with more blood in the water.

The current Lexus IS 250 and 350 are definitely nice cars; they’re easy on the eyes, have two decent engine choices and great reliability. The 250 is even reasonable on gas, but who gets excited about that? Not me. It seems the engineers down at Lexus were getting a little bored with it too. As a result, they have done the same thing car makers have been doing for years…take a popular small car and cram a huge engine, beefed up suspension and tranny in it. Add the ubiquitous extra letter, “F”, and you’ve got yourself a truly exciting car.

It seems Lexus has aimed this new beast directly at some of the most recognizable names in this ever popular market, the aforementioned Bimmer, Audi, and Mercedes. Offering 416 HP and 371 lb-ft of torque from a 5.0L V-8, this car comes equipped with astronomical power and some cool technology to keep it all firmly planted on the road.

First up is the transmission. The IS-F will not have a manual gearbox. Instead it comes with the world’s first 8 speed (that’s right 8 speed!) automatic with paddle shifters and manual mode. Lexus claims that if put in manual mode the car will shift in 100 milliseconds; I’ll bet that’s a little faster than you or I could shift a regular manual. For perspective, that’s roughly equivalent to the Ferrari F430. Lexus’ traction control “VDIM” promises to keep you out of trouble. In sport mode it will allow you to have plenty of fun without letting things get Eddie Griffin crazy. Although I don’t foresee many runs to the ski slopes in a car like this, it does comes with normal and snow mode. With the suspension promising an adequate amount of firmness to keep track day interesting, it seems a lot of input came from Toyota’s racing departments while this car was in development. It definitely shows!

Aside from all of the performance, this car is gorgeous. Check out the official Lexus website for pics and videos. Subtle changes from the base IS, including its $56k base price, definitely makes it stand out and should put it right in line with its German counterparts.

For a brand who’s average buyer is 55+, it will be interesting to see how a tire-shredding, back-end sliding, road-eating monster like this will sell. I for one think you get the best of both worlds. With bulletproof reliability and world class fit and finish on one hand then fire breathing, muscle car performance on the other, a surefire win-win is my forecast.

While I have not had the opportunity to drive the new ‘09, Popular Mechanics took it for a spin through the the Hollywood Hills. Naturally they opted for the FX50 with its new 5.0 liter V8 with 390 hp and 369 lb.ft. of torque. The V6 in the FX35 is a respectable 303 hp, 3.5 liter toy; nothing to cry about (especially if you are already crying about your gas bill in your Honda Civic). All models come equipped with a new, standard 7-speed automatic transmission that is reported to be smooth even at low speeds. I will reserve my judgement until the day I demo.  

As usual, Infiniti packs the new FX with enough tech to keep any electronics fanatic happy for years! The spec sheet includes options such as Intelligent Cruise and Distance Control, Around View Camera System, 11 speaker Bose audio system and an adaptive front lighting system.

To see the original review from Popular Mechanics, just click here.

Nissan has taken a few pages from its more upscale child, Infiniti. Granted you have to opt into a package or two for some of the “high end” options like HID (High Intensity Discharge) headlights, bluetooth phone connectivity with a very long list of compatible cell phones, intelligent key system, paddle shifters, Bose stereo and leather seating. Now if you do not opt for any options you can slide into a front wheel drive model for only $19,250 and only $1,320 extra for All Wheel Drive. 

The interior of the Rogue is oddly upscale for a $20,000 crossover. It is competently pieced together with everything working in harmony. Lets face it, it is not playing in the same sandbox as it’s $35,000 Infiniti EX cousin but it’s good for its class. The gauge cluster is a handsome blue and red combo with a center LCD info display. The LCD display in the dash does have a tendency to wash out on a sunny day with sunglasses on. The eight speaker Bose system is decent with good base response from its subwoofer and it eats MP3 and WMA disks also.

Dropping the rear seats down reveals an abundant storage area enough for a mountain bike and all the accompanying camping gear and coolers. Honorable mention is the cavernous glove box up front; I didn’t have one to experiment with but I think a small laptop could be stored inside! The front seat also has a fold flat feature to transport all those long items that you might have otherwise needed to borrow your friends truck.

All that said, this is not a sport crossover as much as Nissan markets it that way form a style standpoint. Granted it has sport paddle shifters on the up level model but it is mated to a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission). This type of transmission has no “gears” and is one smooth ride. It is belt driven and constantly changes to match the engines needs at every speed. I did find on my demo drive that it felt a bit numb and obviously not sporty feeling like a standard or even a conventional automatic. Nissan has been successful with this transmission for years now and they are about the only automaker that has tackled the CVT for mass production.

The AWD is not a simple stripped down system. It is an intelligent system and will adapt to the changing road conditions of the US. To save gas, the Rogue is primarily front wheel drive but every time it accelerates from a stop, the AWD system transfers 50% of the power to both the front and rear wheels. This helps on nearly every road surface and eliminates wheel slip when racing off the line.  It also has a AWD Lock feature that can be used for short times. This is not going to let you rock crawl on the Rubicon Trail but it will help in those sketchy winter situations.

Bottom line: if you are looking into a compact car or even a small waggon, check this out.  The reliability should be good as has been historically true with Nissan’s that are built in Japan as the Rogue is. Fortunately they did not choose Mexico, like some of their cars, where the reliability often suffers.