Hi and Welcome.

My name is Ed Barrett, and I’m an auto enthusiast who has been reviewing new cars in magazines and newspapers for nearly 20 years.

Like my columns that appear in print, my reviews in this blog are designed to help you make a well informed decision when buying a new car. I hope you find them informative and entertaining.

Look under the “Categories” listings along the right side of the page and select the make or year of the vehicle you’d like to learn more about. To find my latest reviews, check the bottom of this page.

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Ford Thinks Small is Big

At a November 19th press event in Sausalito, California, Ford sales analyst, George Pipas, painted a picture of the car market in coming years. His message can be best summed up by a quote from Ford executive vice president, Mark fields, who said “Small is big, particularly for the under 30 set.”

The popularity of small cars is expected to grow. According to Pipas, they represented only 14-percent of the market in 2000, now they account for 21-percent of cars sold. By 2013, that number will increase to 36-percent.

An obvious reason for their increased market share is the price of gasoline, which has risen, sometimes dramatically, in recent times. But Pipas stated that a more important factor than the actual increase in the price of gas is the volatility of its price. Consumers can’t predict where gas prices are going to be. However, they can mitigate the uncertainty by buying more fuel-efficient vehicles—small cars. And they are doing so.

Pipas identified two groups that are driving the trend to small cars. The first are the Millennials, buyers aged 15 to 30. This group just represents 11-percent of vehicle sales, but six out of ten of their purchases are small cars. The other group is the Baby Boomers. These folks buy a whopping 46-percent of cars sold, and they are downsizing. Both of these groups are very picky about their purchases. The Boomers, in particular, seek the same luxury features that they had in their larger cars.

How is Ford planning to deal with the trend to small cars? Right now, they own only 7-percent of the small car market, but they hope to gain market share very soon with two European imports. The first is the Ford Fiesta (shown above), which will be coming here next year. The other is the European Ford Focus, which follow sometime later.

To drive home their commitment to the small cars, Ford brought a European Fiesta to the press event for journalists to drive. I had a brief stint behind the wheel of this car, and was favorable impressed. It’s cute and peppy. I hope to have a full review of the Fiesta in the early part of 2010.

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2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster, 2010 Lexus HS2550h, 2010 Kia Forte, 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid