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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  Nightmare fleet - 2013 Ford Fiesta
  By Thomas Z - November 14 - 3:06 pm

  I repair and maintain the fleet of a large utility company, this is one of the fleet cars, the worst, most unreliable cars in the fleet. Transmission problems galore! all of the transmissions slip, stall, shudder and clunk, 30% have rebuilt transmissions (one within 15K miles most around 50K) the rest have been flashed (works for 6k miles), a few had damaged harnesses, which the dealer refused to repair under warranty (2 yr old 30K miles) Almost all have been towed at one point due to not going into gear, now some of them crank themselves and dont start. But thats not all! All the interior door handles break, the trim around the door and on the roof gutter fall off, the seats are down to rags and springs already, brakes wear super fast, CV shafts snap and support bearings make noise, ball joints go fast, body cracks where door hinge connects due to paper thin steel. To add insult to injury when they are running, they are slow, noisy, uncomfortable and feel cheap going down the road. The absolute worse car you can buy today (or ever) I understand what DCT is, how it works and how it should feel, we have others in the fleet with them (not ford) and these are not right. You could literally buy any other car and have better luck.

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  Drivers Nightmare - 2013 Ford Fiesta
  By sergey - November 10 - 2:17 pm

  It has well-documented problems with transmission (clutch). I wish Id read this before buying it. It jerks when starts moving and feels absolutely unsafe when driving it. A good exterior design is what makes people to be attracted by this car. Its heavily overprices and its losing its value very fast (60% over 2 years).

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  Dont Buy It. Dont Be another Statistic - 2012 Ford Focus
  By Mark - November 9 - 11:42 am

  Dont buy this car. Its not worth taking the chance with the transmission. I bought this car thinking that the transmission problems would get fixed. Bought the car at 28,000. In my first months of having the car, I went to the dealership for shuddering and gear grinding noises.. oh and how the car completely shut down engine light on and wouldnt go faster than 20 mph. THAT was scary on the freeway. Supposedly its a safety mechanism. Talked with at Susan with my car at 50,000 at corporate and theres nothing that she can do. My car doesnt count to be a lemon. It would be a great car if it wasnt for the transmission. Everything else is there but the fundamentals are all shot. And to my surprise, they are still implementing the same faulty transmission even in their new 2016 cars.

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  Very expensive lemon - 2011 Ford Fiesta
  By Kenneth - November 8 - 10:30 pm

  Very small car great on gas good for intercity driving car has cost me more money than what its worth I am a mechanic and the issues that I am seeing with this transmission worries me really looking forward to trading this in due to the mechanical issues not worth the money.

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  Unreliable - 2014 Ford Focus
  By Hmorabustos - November 6 - 2:23 pm

  It all seemed like a good deal, great milage, good engine, comfortable ride, but all the bells and whistles dont mean jack if you have a garbage transmission. its [non-permissible content removed] to take into account all the good aspects of this vehicle if one of its most important and expensive mechanisms is garbage. Great milage, a good engine, the comfort of the ride, all the technology, and safety features mean jack if your vehicles transmission goes out, our vehicle is eleven months old. 2015 year model. The vehicle has only had eight oil changes, and the transmission goes out??? That is a serious issue. Besides this Ford Focus (on the transmission Issue) I also own both a Chevy and a Toyota that are well over ten years old, one with 130000 miles and the other with 235000 miles on it, and im yet to experience this type of issue with either vehicle. There is a reason why this vehicle is so affordable... its simply cheaply made. Manufacturers of these types of vehicles obviously Focus more on the aestetics (as if) of the product than the quality of the product itself.

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  Buy A Toyota!!! - 2012 Ford Fiesta
  By Tchris - November 3 - 4:25 pm

  I have a 2012 FORD FIESTA that has had to have 2 transmissions replaced and now the catalytic converter replaced due to the issues with the transmission. FORD is aware that the fiestas and fusions all have the shutter and lag when you push on the gas. You can call their 800-WE-DONT-CARE number but FORD will not stand behind their product. If enough people come forward maybe FORD will take some action. [HTML removed]

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  Disappointed - 2015 Ford Focus
  By C S - November 2 - 5:03 pm

  SYNC is a disaster, did not work with my Android phone. Slow, quirky experience with iPhone. NVH on highway felt pronounced, but not necessarily worse than other cars in this class. As compared to a low spec Toyota Corolla, this cars non-driving interface (ventilation, radio, and car information) is clunky, awkward, and slow. Otherwise the two cars are similar.

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  Worst car purchase ever - 2015 Ford Fusion
  By Amanda - October 31 - 1:57 pm

  Nothing but trouble since purchasing. The lie about the fuel economy. Wheel cupping on the rear tires already, at less than 20,000 miles. By far the worst design fail for gravel road driving. Dust just rolls in through the doors. Ford refuses to fix the design flaw stating "its normal" when my one year old develops asthma or other lung issues from breathing in constant dust you better bet Ill be going after Ford legally. Do not purchase if you travel gravel on a consistent basis. Total fail on Ford. This will be a very long 3 years of ownership, counting down until I can trade this piece of crap off.

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  From Taurus to Focus same issues - 2014 Ford Focus
  By Mark OKeefe - October 28 - 2:27 pm

  Several years back I had a Taurus wagon and transmission needed to be replace 3 times. Twice by ford and after going to transmission professional I was shown the cheap part Ford had put back into my transmission and was shown the upgraded parts need to make my transmission work. Transmission professional told me the same transmission was in the Ford Escort and to sell the car as fast as I could.

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  HATED THE CAR!! - 2012 Ford Focus
  By Mark Clemson - October 28 - 1:03 pm

  I bought my 2012 Ford Focus in October 2014. I should have done the research, but I didnt. I test drove the car and noticed a little shutter and how it went backwards on the hill, but didnt think anything of it. I should have!!! Within two weeks of having the car, my breaks started squeaking. I thought I needed to changed my brake pads. They said they were fine and couldnt duplicate the problem. Then two weeks later, it start stuttering to the point the car would shake every time I hit the gas to get the car moving. Took the car back and thankfully the warranty covered that. The brakes continued to squeak and I just had my mechanic change the brake pads anyway and the squeaking stopped. The car worked fine for a while then all of a sudden the stuttering came back and also when I would drive in the city and hit a even a small bump it felt like the back of my car would fall apart. I took the car in and was told I needed new shocks in the back. $450 dollars later I had new shocks and a realignment and that noise was still there!!! The stuttering would happen EVERYTIME I hit the brake and then the gas. Finally after dealing with this for over 6 months, the car violently shook on a hill while trying to accelerate. I couldnt take it anymore and traded it in the next day. I didnt get very much for the car and had to take money out of my Savings account to get my new Nissan Altima. Didnt want to, shouldnt have had to, but it was a great decision. I had my 2012 Ford Focus for a year and dumped almost $1000 of my own money on repairs and only put on 13,000 miles on the car. This was a complete POS and the biggest waste of money ever!! DONT BUY THIS CAR, YOU WILL REGRET IT!