Overview & Reviews

For more than 100 years now, Ford Motor Company has been selling mass-produced automobiles in the United States and around the globe. Known as one of the Big Three American manufacturers, Ford has attracted millions of loyal customers with a wide range of vehicles that offer considerable value. The automaker's trucks and SUVs have been especially popular. For decades, Ford's F-Series truck has been the best-selling vehicle in America.

The company was founded by Henry Ford in 1903. Ford dreamed of building a car for the masses, and that's precisely what he did, most notably with the immortal Model T of 1908-'27. The latter was bought by 16.5 million Americans during its 20-year lifespan and was affordable enough for Ford's own factory workers to purchase. Ford's early years were also distinguished by its introduction of the moving assembly line. It was the first to utilize this more cost-effective method of production, and its innovation became a mainstay of the manufacturing process.

Ford expanded into the luxury-car market with its purchase of Lincoln Motor Company in 1925. Over the next few years, the company broadened its focus even further by creating the Mercury division to produce mid-priced cars. By the late '30s, Ford had unveiled the stylish Lincoln Zephyr, introduced a low-priced V8 engine and built more than 25 million vehicles.

The 1950s saw the introduction of the legendary Thunderbird. Offering sleek styling and spirited performance wedded to available luxury features like power windows and a signal-seeking radio, the car was a huge hit. Another model of that decade, the Edsel, met with a somewhat less enthusiastic reception. In the wake of abysmal sales, the Edsel was discontinued just a few months into its third model year.

Ford regained its footing in the early 1960s with the introduction of the compact Falcon, a model that was warmly received by the public. By the middle of the decade the automaker had given enthusiasts something to cheer about with the launch of the sporty Mustang, a car that went on to become one of the biggest sellers of its day. Buyers adored the Mustang's low price, available powerful V8 engines and sporty styling. The Mustang even created a brand-new vehicle category: the pony car.

By the 1970s, Ford, like other domestic automakers, was starting to suffer the effects of changing consumer tastes and new government regulations. Many of its cars became shadows of their former selves. But the seeds of rebirth were planted in this decade. In 1979, the company acquired a stake in Mazda; this move would later aid Ford significantly in co-development projects. The company also emerged with a new mindset of global competitiveness.

By the mid-to-late '80s, Ford was showing new strength with its popular Escort and Taurus models while further expanding its empire with the purchase of the Aston Martin and Jaguar brands. Meanwhile, its full-size LTD sedan (later renamed the Crown Victoria) remained a staple of taxi companies and police forces throughout America.

Ford rode a wave of popularity in the 1990s, thanks in part to the huge success of its Explorer midsize SUV. The truck played a huge role in ushering in the era of the SUV. In 1999, Ford expanded its family yet again with the purchase of Volvo's car division, and, in 2000, it acquired Land Rover. For awhile, there was talk of Ford even taking General Motors' spot as the No. 1 automaker in the world.

But the new millennium initially saw a downturn for Ford. Increased competition, a continuing operating loss for Jaguar, legacy costs and a reliance on SUVs for profit took their toll. To compensate, the company sold Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo and introduced a wave of successful new products. Models like the F-150, Fusion, Fiesta, Focus, Flex and Mustang have allowed Ford to regain its health and standing as a very competitive manufacturer.

User Reviews:

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  Thank God they are no longer built! - 1991 Ford Tempo
  By Claude Moore - September 18 - 2:00 am

  Rrom the get-go, the Ford Tempo was an American car companys attempt to take sales away from Honda, Toyota and Nissan, but not having good engineering or high quality/dependability in its product. Even now in late 2002 US car companies are still playing "catchup" with Honda and Toyota in virtually all their products at Ford, Gm and Chrysler- -when will we ever get it right?

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  Exploder - 2002 Ford Explorer
  By lastchance - September 16 - 2:43 am

  List of repairs under warranty 1) Rear ABS sensor 2) Gasket around thermostat 3) Rear Differential 4) Pitted rotors 5) rotors out of round. Poor quality is the norm with the Explorer. Only benefit is Ford dealer/customer services does seem to care and has been very helpful.

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  Looks can be deceiving! - 1997 Ford Aspire
  By jstar - September 15 - 2:00 am

  I bought my ford aspire a little over a year ago with the intention of it lasting a few years. boy was I wrong!!! The car looked great appearance wise, but after two weeks of driving it everything started to go wrong!!! It stalls when I stop at a stop light, it stalls trying to go up hills at too slow a speed... its a nightmare to drive!! on the upside... when i moved into my apartment i fit almost all of by boxes into it!!!

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  Big mistake - 1995 Ford Windstar
  By flower - September 13 - 2:00 am

  We bought our van so we could have more room. We had the van only 4 days before the transmission gave out. I cannot believe that ford does not recall these transmissions. We are so sorry we ever bought this van. It is going to cost us $2,100 to fix it. We use to have a dodge caravan which we loved but was not as roomy as the windstar.

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  Oh the Horror - 1993 Ford Taurus
  By Jamie B - September 12 - 2:00 am

  So many repairs.Completely replaced AC. New brakes x3. Water pump, map sensor, two new axels for front, new tie rod end,new heater core, radiator fixed, speakers were actually dry rotted when I replaced them. Could have paid the car off at least twice for the repair bills. But mine has a total of 230,000 miles on it. Engine was replaced by previous owner at 100,000 miles, so never any problems there for me. Just everything else.

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  2007 ford focus ses 4 dr - 2007 Ford Focus
  By ron i - September 11 - 1:52 pm

  I will never buy another ford focus. What a piece of junk. Never have I seen so much plastic on a car. At 40k miles the automatic door lock for the drivers side breaks. Cost to fix? $250. At not even 50k miles the thermostat gives up. The thermostat and housing are one piece. Cost to fix? approx $300 (the part is about $100 and the coolant is replaced). The labor costs more than the part. Now the car has a coolant leak (at 59k miles) and I figure its the water pump. I dont even want to know what that is going to cost. The car is a dog in hot weather with more than one person in it and it slogs along with the AC on. Dont even try to climb hills in hot weather. If 99% of your driving is around town and you only need basic transportation (around town) and you are the only one driving it then its ok. If you want to take friends somewhere that involve climbing hills forget it and have someone else drive. Make sure you have roadside assistance with your insurance because you will need it sooner or later. This car makes me wonder if I just bought a bad year for the Focus because I rented one before and was pleased, but then again those were low mileage cars. If you buy a Focus make sure you thoroughly test drive the car and do some research. Better yet spend the extra money and buy a Japanese car. Chances are you will get 80k miles on the car before you have a problem. The bad thing about newer cars is it is hard to work on them yourself and save the money because they have transverse mounted engines. I used to own a Datsun 510 and I did all the work myself. It was easy. Not anymore.

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  lots o money - 1994 Ford Thunderbird
  By tp - September 11 - 2:00 am

  transmision, headgasket, brakes you name it i replaced it.... nice car fun to drive expensive to fix

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  This is a good car but! - 1997 Ford Taurus
  By Fanula - September 11 - 2:00 am

  The best part of this car is it seats eight. Very few vans even do this. We changed fuel pump at 55,000 miles (This year0. Door clips come off, and AC not best. Makes noise driving on steep hills except when on premium gas. Handles well in wind on highway.

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  Never Again!! - 1994 Ford Mustang
  By ngsings - September 10 - 2:00 am

  This car has ruined my opinion on sports cars. I consistently dumped money into expensive repairs ($1-2k per year) and could not wait to get out of it.

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  Stereo/DVD not worth money should be FREE - 2005 Ford F-150
  By Sweet - September 9 - 11:13 am

  Good ride -- not sure on power, typical Ford lurch at slow speed, steering terrible; hit pot hole steering wheel goes crazy, hard to control. Stereo/DVD does not work well; if you do not want to listen to the movie this truck is not for you. Very difficult to get dual zone listening, no directions with DVD, dealer made photocopy; not very professional. Ford sent wrong remote after dealer insisted it was correct, cannot hook up amp on stereo.