Ford Road Tests

If you've ever wondered what the difference is between strong performance and dynamic sparkle, then I suggest you head down to your Ford dealer and ask to take a 1.4-litre automatic version of the latest Fiesta for a spin rather than the more obviously sporty 1.6-litre manual.

Trying to outsmart nature was David Thomson's major preoccupation when he took temporary command of the latest FPV F6 Falcon.

Attending a V8 Supercar meeting recently I was asked on which side of the blue-red divide I stood.

The new diesel Mondeo more than makes David Thomson's short list.

Fast food, cheap motel rooms, lonely nights and long days. Extreme pressure to shift that load of office stationery by Friday . . . who'd want to be a travelling salesperson?

The FPV Force 6 is a thinking person's car.

While petrol-heads will hanker after the Boss V8 in the Force 8, the turbo-charged six-cylinder Force 6 offers the more enjoyable driving experience of the dynamic duo.

A fresh look, new engines, and a change of name from Courier to Ranger mark the arrival of Ford's latest player in the light commercial utility market.

Friends of mine have two sons of contrasting athletic abilities: while the older lad enjoys his sport and tries hard, he is invariably overshadowed by his very talented younger sibling.

The Ford Escape is very much that older brother in a Ford family SUV range utterly dominated by the newer, larger and more capable Territory.

There is something disturbingly appealing about more than two tonnes of steel being able to go from rest to 100kmh in 6.5 seconds.

Driving Ford's turbocharged Territory sports utility vehicle makes you feel that you have gone over to the dark side.

Ford took the opportunity at the Territory launch to reveal a face-lifted version of the smaller Escape SUV.

Ford has launched a new performance flagship combining key features from the two vehicles tested on Wednesday's motoring page - the Territory and the Falcon XR6 Turbo.

The Ford Territory was very much the right vehicle at the right time when it was launched back in 2004, and quickly established itself as New Zealand's favourite sports utility vehicle (SUV).

On sale here since mid-2005, the second-generation Ford Focus has yet to make the expected impression on the sales charts. That could be set to change over coming months, as a change in source from South Africa to Europe coincides with the disappearance of the hatchback variant of one of its key rivals, the Honda Civic, from our new car sales charts.

Aussie V8 muscle car owners beware - there is a new bad boy on the block.

First up, a confession: when it comes to fast Falcons, I've always been an XR6 bloke rather than an XR8 man, for to my mind the six-cylinder cars have long been better handlers.

These two vehicles are streets apart - the Ford Escape is an entry in the compact sports utility market, while the more demure Fiesta competes in the compact hatchback segment.

But both have something new to offer - the Escape is now available as a four-cylinder and it was my first drive of the European-style Fiesta.