In another massively long press release, they never even mention whether the car is front-wheel drive, AWD or rear-wheel drive. Given the interior shots, I'm assuming it's front-wheel drive.

My biggest complaint with the design is one of safety. It appears to be very "cab-forward". That puts the driver's feet very close to the front bumper. The vast majority of collisions involve the front of the vehicle (it's leading when you're moving). Energy is the product of force times distance. The force is limited (go too high and your heart tears loose from your aorta). So, distance becomes the way that you absorb energy. How many feet can you crush the structure before the collision reaches your feet? With this vehicle, that's not a big number.

This may seem like an odd view, but I'm a volunteer fireman. We extricate people from wrecked cars all the time. One of the most common scenarios is having to wedge the dash up because the feet have been trapped. In other words, I've seen what happens in a crash. The drivers live, but their feet and lower legs can take a beating.

That's why I like a bit more room in front of my feet.

• Wed, 03/04/2009 - 12:55
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I think Ford should keep doing what they allways have been doing... delivering "Quality". The same marketing strategy they have been using since the 80's when their cars ran 100K miles and died. I've owned three American cars and they all died around 100K miles. Ya, Quality... jammin it down poeples throat to see if they still fall for it. No, Ford should keep producing the same Union Based crap they have been giving us for 30plus years and keep calling it the Taurus... nobody will ever know.

• Wed, 03/11/2009 - 13:11
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