What to Know Before Taking a Concept Car for a Test Drive For The Best Choice

Concept cars are a playground for the automobile designer's imagination. While some concept cars eventually become production models, the vast majority of prototype designs put out by major manufacturers are never mass produced. However, that doesn't mean that concept cars never see the road. A handful of concept cars are scooped up by collectors and car aficionados who are looking for something unique to put into their garage.

While concept cars offer something wild for car lovers, they also provide a dilemma for car enthusiasts. After all, you can't rely on reviews to tell you if it's the right car for you, or to warn you about potential problems – these are cars that few people have driven. In fact, the only way to make sure that you are going to be happy with a concept car is to take it for a test drive yourself. And this doesn't mean just around the block, as many issues that occur with concept cars can only be found after an extensive drive.

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Ford Focus RS Dreamed up as Three-Door Hot Hatch

Ford's global boss for small cars, Gunnar Herrmann, confirmed the development of a next generation Focus RS. The news motivated Carscoop reader Lil-k Amaru to create a computer generated version of the future hot hatch.

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New Ford Fiesta Sport Special Edition Only for Europe

The Sport Special edition is available exclusively as a three door model with buyers having a choice of seven exterior colors including a flat black finish. A styling kit complete with lowered side skirts and spoilers for the front bumper and rear hatch as well as silver-colored front grille surround, aerofoil, fog lamp bezels and polished twin exhausts come as standard.

The exterior upgrades also include Panther Black 17-inch alloy wheels on the petrol model and 16-inch on the diesel, while silver alloy wheels are also available as an option. Inside, the sporty Fiesta features Ebony Black heated leather sports seats with silver stitching and an identically upholstered steering wheel with gloss black spokes. Standard features include air conditioning with automatic temperature control as well as a leather handbrake and gear knob, alloy metal pedals, gloss black instrument bezels, bespoke floor mats and silver scuff plates.

Building on the success of the European market Fiesta Sport + (called the 1600S in the UK and Sport S in Germany) that was launched this past February, Ford has unleashed a new Sport Special Edition that includes further enhancements inside and out. The latest sporty Fiesta is available with two engine options, the most potent of which is the 1.6-liter Duratec Ti-VCT petrol unit delivering 134-horses and 160Nm torque at 4,250rpm. Combined with a close-ratio gearing and a redeveloped exhaust system, the Fiesta Sport Special Edition with the petrol engine completes the 0-100km/h (0-62mph) acceleration in 8.7 seconds and has a top speed of 195km/h (122mph).

The other option is a less powerful but more frugal 1.6-liter turbo diesel producing 95-horses that returns 107g of CO2 and a combined fuel economy of 4.1lt/100km (57.4mpg US or 68.9 mpg UK). The Fiesta Sport Special Edition is available in most markets across the continent, including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and Switzerland.

Ford Japan Special Edition Mustang V6 Sport Appearance

More often than not, the words “Mustang” and “Special” usually point to a different paint job and added extras, and sure enough, that’s the case with the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) version of Ford’s Mustang V6 Sport Appearance.

On the outside, Japanese buyers can choose between two colors, “Performance White” or the 70’s style “Grabber Blue”, both of which come with special pin stripes on the sides and the bonnet bump.

There’s also a rear boot lid spoiler and 18-inch chromed alloy wheels wrapped around chunky 235/50 R18 tires, while inside, we can see that Ford added leather seatsAmerica’s second favorite muscle car after the Camaro (in terms of 2011 sales as Chevy’s model has outsold Ford’s pony car by around 33 percent through May, according to the latest data), is being offered in Japan in a limited edition version called the “Mustang V6 Sport Appearance”.Production is limited to 25 pieces for each body style with prices set at a hefty 4.35 million Yen for the Coupe and 5.05 million Yen for the soft-top Convertible (equal to US$54,250 and US$63,000 respectively at the current exchange rates). The package is available on both the coupe and convertible models with the 3.7-liter V6 engine, which is rated in Japan at 309-horses and 378Nm (278.8 lb-ft) of peak torque.

Hybrid 5-Seat C-MAX Ford Says No to 7-Seat Grand C-MAX for the USA

Ford’s plan it to compete head on the forthcoming Prius V minivan and possibly steal some customers away from GM’s Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf with the plug-in hybrid version. The company said the pure hybrid version of the C-MAX is targeted to deliver better fuel economy than Fusion Hybrid and travel at a higher all-electric speed than Fusion Hybrid’s 47 mph. It will also be the first of two new Ford Hybrids to use lithium-ion battery technology.

The C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid will be equipped with a 240-volt charging system allowing it –according to Ford- to fully recharge faster than Chevy Volt. Ford added that it is being engineered to “deliver more overall driving range than any other plug-in or extended range electric vehicle”. Both variants of the North American C-MAX minivan will be built alongside the all-new 2012 Focus and Focus Electric at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant. Earlier today, we told you about Ford’s decision to increase production of the Focus-based C-MAX minivan at its Valencia plant in Spain to meet strong demand from European customers. We also noted that Ford was planning to launch the longer and more spacious 7-seat Grand C-MAX in the United States.

Well, it turns out there’s been a slight change of plans as the Detroit automaker just announced it won’t be bringing the petrol-powered Grand C-MAX to the U.S. after all. But not all is lost for fans of the Focus-based minivan as Ford will focus on the five-seat C-MAX in both hybrid and plug-in hybrid formats. The C-MAX Hybrid and C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid vehicles were previewed at the Detroit Auto Show this past January.

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Dennis Fitzpatrick, regional vice president of California New Car Dealers Association and owner of Concord Chevrolet, said that consumers in San Francisco aren’t buying into Detroit’s products. “It's a tough market. Imports have a much bigger share in San Francisco. When you can sell 100 imports a month as opposed to 25 domestic, and what with the rents and real estate, it's tough to make a U.S. car dealership pencil,” said Fitzpatrick. “San Francisco is not loyal to anything domestic; its allegiance is to anything but domestic.”

San Francisco Ford Lincoln Mercury was the last Ford dealership in the city after S & C Ford disappeared back in 2008, and various offers to buy out the business – including one from Journey Ford Lincoln owner Ali Omoomy – have all since fallen through. It’s sad, but life goes on.Are you in the market for a new car in San Francisco and are considering a product built by America’s Big 2.5? If so, then I have some bad news: the last U.S. domestic automaker dealership has just shut up shop. San Francisco Ford Lincoln Mercury on Van Ness Avenue closed a few weeks ago, leaving some 50 employees out of a job.

Ford Lincoln Mercury presidente Mel Turner told the San Fransisco Chronicle: “We are proud to have served the San Francisco community and will be focusing over the coming weeks on helping employees through this transition and ensuring our current customer commitments are met.”

Ford’s Celebrates Production of One Million New Fiestas in 33 Months

Ford revealed that the construction time for a new Fiesta at the Cologne site currently stands at thirteen hours, an improvement of five-hours over a decade ago. The company said that the reduction in build time comes as a result of “ongoing improvements and investment” with some €100 million (about US$148 million) being invested in 2010 alone.The festivities over the new Fiesta continue at Ford with the production of the one-millionth current generation model at the company’s central European plant in Cologne, Germany. The production milestone comes less than two months after Ford announced that European sales of the new Fiesta reached the 1 million mark in the beginning of March, 2011. Current global sales of the new Fiesta stand at 1,350,000 unit since its introduction in October 2008.

The Cologne facility has been manufacturing the new Fiesta since 2008, with the factory churning out an average of 1,770 Fiestas and Fusions (a small crossover based on the previous generation Fiesta) per day. The plant employs 4,200 workers in each of the three production shifts and has an annually capacity of 400,000 vehicles.