1990RangerinSK
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Oct 5, 2016
- Messages
- 2,346
- City
- Saskatchewan, Canada
- Vehicle Year
- 1990
- Engine
- 2.9 V6
- Transmission
- Automatic
Yup. My wife and I each have very small performance front wheel drive hatchbacks for daily drivers. We're looking at a small SUV that is a bit larger and more comfortable for longer trips with more passengers, and can carry more cargo - a small station wagon, but with a bit of power, an AWD system for good snow/rain traction (not off road), and still decent handling and economy. There's even one with a manual trans we want. That is what people buy these for, not for off road. We don't want it lifted too high as that would ruin the on-road handling.
If for the most part, you're not out of the city (and therefore, like me, needing to deal with snow being blown in), then I found my Fit to be more than capable, with studded winter tires. I haven't looked to be sure, but as of 2015/2016, the current model offered a manual transmission. Their cargo space is CAVERNOUS, and my 2010 was quite comfortable for a 2.5 hour road trip. HOWEVER, while it was fine for me when I lived in the city, living now in a small town, in a part of town that's quite open, I'm not sure that the Fit would cut it.
In the same way nobody buys full size trucks for use as trucks, they're just 4dr sedans. Even when you see a truck with one of the serious off-road packages it's likely just for show and is rarely if ever taken off road.
That's just it. For all the complaining around here that Ford doesn't offer what a few off roaders want, and somebody telling me that if I'm not planning to do what they think an SUV is meant for I should buy a sedan so that EVERY SUV can be equipped to be truck like, that's not what people want.
Ford is responding to customer needs/wants. Ford is building vehicles for what most people are using them for. And, like you and me, most people aren't going off road, but we need the capability and room. Remember back before the 2011 Explorer came out? Ford's model line for SUVS was:
Escape: Small unibody with car like handling
Edge: Bigger than the Escape. Unibody. Car like handling
Taurus X: One step up from the Edge, essentially a Ford Frestyle. Unibody. Car like handling
Flex: Similar size to Freestyle (Taurus X). Unibody. Car like handling
Explorer: Bigger than the Flex. Body on Frame. Truck like handling.
Expedition: Bigger than the Explorer. Body on Frame. Truck like handling.
Expedition Maxx/XL (replaced excursion): Biggest SUV in Ford's lineup. Body on Frame. Truck like handling.
Here's the thing that we need to remember, too. Ford did something smart. Each of their SUVS that were unibody corresponded in a way to a sedan.
Escape=Focus
Edge=Fusion
Freestyle/Taurus X=Taurus/500
Flex=Crown Vic
NONE of these sedans, prior to 2012, were available as a hatchback or wagon (Taurus wagon was cut in 2006/07). In 2012, Ford brought out the Focus hatch (Focus previously (2000-2007) had a hatch and a wagon, though). And neither of the wagons available had AWD. So, Ford did something smart, building an SUV/Crossover to correspond to each sedan (exept the Fiesta). But, what they found was that nobody was buying the Flex, they went up to the Explorer, so the Explorer was moved to unibody, and gained car like handling.
If you think about it, killing off the sedans, and making their corresponding crossovers more car like, is a smart move, and not just because it streamlines the model lineup. Making the biggest SUVS more car like? Well, they're not off-roaders any more, they're people movers. The minivan craze ended, because people were shifting to SUVS. That's why Explorer and Expedition became more car like.
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