Driving a sleeper is all fine and dandy, but one reason I would like the Contour to have a better public reputation (remember the Audi 5000?) would be for some RESALE VALUE!
In my experience, the guys my age (27) who have been working several years and who now have enough dough to think about possibly their first new car invariably have a shopping list that looks like this:
1. VW GTI 1.8T (why is a boring box so popular with the yuppies?? What is VW doing so right?)
2. Honda Civic Si-R (Si in the United States)
They all rag on domestic cars as being "crap" and apparently the quality Japanese reputation helps them immediately eliminate some very good cars out there.
GM totally misses the boat on cars for Gen-X ers (unless you count the laughable Saturn Ion), Ford only barely catches the frugal ones with the Focus, and Dodge will skim a few with the Neon R/T but that's it. (PT Cruiser is for the boomers, generally.)
Up a class, there's the Saab 9-3 which might just be a real drivers car this time, Acura RS-X which was styled by students, Toyota Celica, Infiniti G20.
However, the newest cars in the parking lot at my office are a bunch of Cavaliers and a Kia Spectra. Sort of proves that the purchasing power of the Canadian dollar is in the toilet. Most popular new car here in Canada is the Civic and the Protege.
Bringing this back on topic, the Ford dealers don't even think much of the Contour. However, I've never had anyone say "just a Contour" to me. They usually don't know *what* my car is.
Kerry
