We had an interesting discussion at the Motor Trend Radio Detroit Auto Show studio today with J Mays. J is the Ford Group President of Design and Chief Creative Officer.
J was talking about Ford’s commitment to bring a B Class car to the North American marketplace. In Ford parlance, their definition of a “B Class” is anything smaller than a Focus.
J brought out a very interesting point about the “Millennial’s,” young people between the ages of 13 and 28. Mays said that that this highly technological group researches cars from around the world and as a result wants the “best in class” vehicles available. The internet has led this group to look at cars globally.
Last week I posted the 10 top selling autos in the UK. Top on the list was the Focus; right below it the Ford Fiesta. It appears that Ford feels the Fiesta is one of the more coveted B cars and wants to bring that success to North America in their concept Verve.
The Verve is a sleek looking B car that has the design elements to put it in the fast track for production if it is well received. If all goes as planned expect Ford to set the Verve loose sometime in 2010.
The car has a long roof line and pilarless side windows which give the illusion of one continuous piece of glass. The grill in my estimation is a little out of proportion to the rest of the car. No info on the innards that Ford would put into a fully blown production model.