Ford’s Got a Serious “Effing” Problem
Daniel Howes of the Detroit News says, “Ford Motor Co. evidently hasn't rid itself of its effing problem.
- Manufacturers
- Acura
- Alfa Romeo
- Ariel
- Aston Martin
- Audi
- Bentley
- BMW
- Bugatti
- Buick
- Cadillac
- Chaparral
- Chery
- Chevrolet
- Chrysler
- Daewoo
- Daihatsu
- DaimlerChrysler
- DeLorean
- Dodge
- Ferrari
- Fiat
- Ford
- General Motors
- GMC
- Honda
- Hummer
- Hyundai
- Infiniti
- Isuzu
- Jaguar
- Jeep
- Kia
- Lamborghini
- Lancia
- Land Rover
- Lexus
- Lincoln
- Lotus
- Maserati
- Maybach
- Mazda
- Mercedes-Benz
- Mercury
- Mini
- Mitsubishi
- Nissan
- Opel/Vauxhall
- Pontiac
- Porsche
- PSA-Peugeot Citroen
- Renault
- Rolls-Royce
- Saab
- Saturn
- Scion
- Smart
- Spyker
- Subaru
- Suzuki
- Tata
- Tesla
- Toyota
- TVR
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
- Spy Shots
- Road Tests
- Executives
Unguzzle
Design & Auto Shows
Driving & Motorsports
Motorcycles
© Copyright 2003-2008 NextAutos.com. All rights reserved. All wrongs reversed.
Winding Road and NextAutos.com are trademarks of NextScreen LLC
AVGuide.com | Playback Magazine | The Absolute Sound
Winding Road and NextAutos.com are trademarks of NextScreen LLC
AVGuide.com | Playback Magazine | The Absolute Sound
Comments
Jeb
I can go either way, but I like that Ford recognizes its history.
Scratch
I've said it before here and it sounds like I'm not the only one. The Fiesta was nothing to be proud of the first time around, and it only brings up bad memories. The old Fiesta was a piece of crap. Reviving the name just to satisfy the alliteration is a mistake. For a car that will likely target the younger generation, "Verve" was a very cool name. "Fiesta" makes it sound like a cheap Mexican import.
chartguy
Whatever it's called, it's a promising design.
That's going to be the real issue. If it's a good car, it'll overcome whatever name they saddle it with. If it's junk, no name will be enough to make it sell well.
X3 SoB
FI Feel For Ford, For Ford Forgot Finding Fortuitous Favorable Fengineering Fand Fabulous Fquality Fin Favor Fof Falliteration. Freakin' Forgetable Fautomobiles Force Fpeople Fto Flook Felsewhere!
Paul In Jersey
Who is Vince Neil? Or who was Vince Neil? And Scratch, I hate to tell you, but all cars from the late-70s were lousy. My only complaint against the 1980 Fiesta I knew and enjoyed so well was that the front seats didn't recline, and it had a bit more torque steer than my roommate's German-made Rabbit. But other than that, it was in the shop a helluva lot less than the Rabbit, which was the Motojourno-annoited "Best In Class" econobox at the time.
And no, you don't want to know how we kept the Rabbit's radiator filled during one road trip.
Mark
This is a stupid story. You guys celebrated Mulally for bringing back the Taurus name and putting an end to Ford's hodgepodge approach to running its global business. Yet now that they're actually following through on the one car for all markets notion, you suggest that they're wrong and should create a new brand only for the US? That makes no sense.
I'm thrilled with the idea that Ford is bringing the Fiesta back. It looks damn good. Massive improvement over the mutant Focus they currently foist on US consumers. Now get the Ka, Mondeo and Falcon here, too.
Steven T
This is an overblown issue. The name was used so long ago in the U.S. that it is effectively a new name. Since Fiesta has been around so long elsewhere, what's wrong with maintaining continuity? Toyota and Honda have done well with that strategy with the likes of the Corolla and Civic.
The American automakers have tended to throw away perfectly good names too quickly. Lutz has been a particularly big proponent of this strategy, and by and large I'd argue that it hasn't worked very well. Buick Lucerne, anyone?
Bob
I think Ford Fiesta rolls off the lips a little better, but Ford should have stuck w/ Verve.
The Stig
It should be the Verve. Even I remember what a steam pile the original Fiesta was, and that's all I think about when I hear that name. I'm all for Ford and their world cars, but come on - there's PLENTY of other words to use. Why use one that brings up bad memories?
Michael
Even though the car looks great, it would have been a much better choice in my mind to have gone with Verve. I do recognize the fact about not throwing a name away, but Verve just sounds much cooler and more sophisticated, and that's coming from a college student.
Paul
I think Fiesta is an excellent choice. I raced a 78 Fiesta into the ground and owned two others. Some here are referring to the Fiesta as a piece of cr*p but I wonder if they are confused with the Festiva from the early nineties, built by Kia for Ford. That was a piece of cr*p. Hate to see people confuse it with the Fiesta. Think I might have to invest in a new Fiesta and take it to the track.
Scratch
Paul, you're absolutely right. I was thinking of the Festiva. Apologies to all the Fiesta-lovers out there. I'm still not crazy about the name, but I'll shut up about it now.
btw, for those wondering (Paul in Jersey), Vince Neil was/is the lead singer of Motley Crue. Was he ever cool?
PW
Whatever happened to the Escort rumors?
imoore
Ford has gone overboard with the F and E names. It's time to use something else - like Verve. (I'll forgive them for using the Falcon name as long as the bring the car from Austalia -- and the Territory too.)
Paul In Jersey
Motley Crue as "cool?" I'm not sure what makes a band "cool" or the opposite of cool. I might hazard a guess that the kind of girls the band attracts to their concerts might be a determining factor. Or perhaps what the girls look like who wear the band's t-shirts.
If that's the case, then I'm not putting Motley Crue in the "cool" category. Now if there was a band called "Motley Cure," that could have been interesting.
But I like Fiesta better than Verve. And too my knowledge, the Festiva was a Cruel joke.
06YellowGT
One more vote for "Verve"
...and do the people who came up with the "F" and "E" naming strategies actually have a degree in marketing? That's the best they could come up with?
What did they say.... "Let's name all our cars words starting with "F" and all trucks words starting with "E". We'll have to overlook a few.... Mustang, Thunderbird (if that ever comes back) Taurus, etc., but that's OK.
Maybe the 500 would have been a bigger success if they named it the Five hundered Fifty Five!
I'm a Ford fan at heart, but I can't take these stupid names and name changes.
Mark
I read that article late last night and I was appalled. Yes, unfortunately Fiesta falls in the alliteration game and its a name that's not particularly well regarded here in the US (especially since I here "Fiesta" and think "Festiva") But, if this is part of Ford's overall strategy to finally establish a global product line, I think its a smart move.
Yes, they could name it Verve, but then you'd have two identical cars with different names, like the some of the GM vehicles in the UK and continental Europe. Ford wants it to be like BMW/Mercedes/Audi: A BMW 330i is recognizable here in the US and anywhere else in the world. Yes, content varies slightly, but everyone knows its a bimmer. Likewise, Mercedes has established their line up (C, CLK, E, G, GL, ML, S, SL, SLK, AMG etc) and its the same everywhere. I watch Top Gear and drool over the new C350 and guess what? I can pop down to the MB dealership and ask to see...a C350.
So, viva la Fiesta!
Jonathan Fung
Having no personal connection with the Fiesta nameplate, I'd have to say that Verve was a far cooler word to name the car after. But as to how it has actually been named, I could really go with either. Fiesta is a cool sounding name too...although it evokes images of big sombreros and those musical shaker things and mexican-style dancing and nachos.
uragan
The only cool names in the car industry are Aston Martin, Alfa Romeo, Corvette, Mustang and a couple more. Many names of successful cars are or sound silly: Mitsubishi, Camaro, Taurus, Lincoln, El Dorado, Fifth Avenue, Tata, Aerostar, Neon; Others are hard to pronounce in more than one language: Porsche, Volkswagen, Peugeot, Citroën, Oldsmobile, Buick, Dodge; and Japanese cars have the most inoffensive and boring names ever: Corolla, Accord, Civic, Crown,Infinity, Galant, Legend.
The point is, after a time, if the product is right, people will get used to the name and will associate it with certain good qualities. If it is of poor quality, the name will be associated with that too (think Vega or Pinto).
hwyhobo
Since we so frequently bitch here that Ford should bring their European designs here, let's be consistent and let them keep the same name. It makes sense.
Mongo
Pinto
or
Maverick
Nope, Verve is just fine.
Ducati Minor
"Verve" please. "Fiesta" is pretty lame, and the Fiesta is no proud name here or in Europe.
klarens
uragan,
i agree with some of your cool names but i have to disagree with one:corvette just the word in my language means: little sl"t, w"ore......i'm sorry.
for me cool names are:charger,magnum,idea,ritmo,mondeo,element,.......
Winding Road » Archive » eBay Auction of the Day: 1965 Ford
[...] love it when symbiotic relationships work for the better, and in 1963, the arrangement between Ford of England and Lotus Cars did just that. Already using a modified form of Ford’s Kent I-4 for [...]
EyeHeartA2
Rather the Verve than the Fiasco, I mean Feista.
Steven
Daniel Howes' column was ridiculous. He has a history of being critical of Ford's vehicle name selections, so he set out to criticize Ford on the Fiesta name, irrespective of the facts. This was neither a matter of blindly choosing a "F" name to follow an "F"-naming strategy nor an obsession with reaching back to a long-dormant Ford vehicle name. It is Ford acknowledging the global nature of its business to leverage a name that has 30 years (and running) of global recognition. The attractiveness of "Fiesta" versus "Verve" as a vehicle name is a matter for legitimate debate, but Ford's motivation for selecting "Fiesta" was certainly legitimate as well.
Jeff
I'm all for using heritage names, but not the Fiesta. The first thing I thought of was the Festiva (and apparently I'm not alone), which was a piece of crap. It doesn't matter what the truth is--only people's perceptions matter. Ford should have brought back the "Escort" name. The Escort was an incredible automobile, and there are still a ton of them on the road today. Many of Ford's technicians drive them because of their reliability and they are easy to work on. I promise that if you start looking, you will see the early-mid 90s body style all over the place. That's amazing for a vehicle that's 15 years old! The Escort, like the Fiesta, was a worldwide name. The difference is that the Escort has a great reputation in the U.S.
cannon
will it be available with the 58mpg town/73mpg highway meets euro-emissions diesel engin?? if so, sign me up on the waighting list.
Post new comment