Every time I watch Top Gear I get so frustrated with Ford. The simple reason leading to my angst is that every time I see a Ford reviewed, it is always awesome and always stylish. Ford refuses to bring the USA any of the great vehicles it offers other markets, namely England and Australia. Yet, Ford continues to think that us Americans are drinking the Kool-aid and want to buy the Fusion. Here are few simple ways that Ford could completely turn itself around.

First, ditch the Taurus! Why does Ford continue to shove the Taurus down consumers throats and not offer us the Mondeo? I don’t even care if they ditch the Mondeo’s “mighty” 2.5 liter V6 as the top of the line engine and throw in one of the Taurus’ 3.5 liter offerings. Or don’t and tell everyone that they are saving the environment and what not. The 2.5 liter engine gets nearly 31 MPG and it has 220 horses! Who wouldn’t like that? The fact of the matter is: the Mondeo is a sexier better car than the Taurus and should be gracing the streets of America.

While they are at it, why not compete with Toyota and bring the Ka to the USA. It is a solid city car that would fit right in with the Scion, Yaris, Fit, and Cube. It makes no sense that Ford continues to ignore that market demographic. Not to mention it is a great little platform for rallying. If you haven’t noticed the Red Bull fueled extreme sports nuts have made rally racing the new in sport for the time being. Ford already have a one make race for the Ka that is extremely affordable and makes for great racing. Plus the Ka is not only made in Poland, it’s also made in Mexico for the Latin American countries. Just ship it here Ford and make everyone happy!

This may hurt to hear, but Ford needs to ditch the Mustang. Before you pick up your torches and pitchforks, understand this: the only Mustangs that are selling well are the V6 models that people can buy for cheap and in 4 or 5 years they will be worthless, further cheapening the Mustang name. On top of that the new Mustang is terrible! The only way to get a good Mustang today is to buy one made in the 60′s or to go to an aftermarket tuner like Roush or Saleen and pay a bundle for one. Ford can offer a car that is better than the Mustang in every way including history. Bring the Falcon back. You make it in Australia and it looks and performs amazingly, so why not sell it here? It has big engines in all trim levels, from 4.0 liter V6′s on the small end and a great 5.4 liter V8 at just under 400 horses in the XR8. The biggest plus is that Ford could race this platform in NASCAR series’ and garner a great following for it.

Lastly, the Focus needs an upgrade. Not to any of the basic models because they are all great, but to the top of the trim level. Ford has denied the sports car community for so long the top end of the compact hatch that it has left enthusiasts everywhere with a gaping hole in their hearts. One needs only to say one sentence to sully a SVT Focus owner: “Too bad it’s not an RS…” Four different Ford models have had the RS badge grace their bodies in Ford’s history and they were all street demons. With its genesis in the Escort, the Escort RS1600 was a car that won rally championships and garnered a following among enthusiasts. Ford still produces the Focus RS in England, where its all wheel drive turbocharged 4 cylinder platform is both a looker and a performer. Somehow Ford missed the boat and only brought the US a watered down front wheel drive naturally aspirated 4 cylinder platform. What happened? So Ford needs to fix it and bring us the RS so we can go about having the 40 years of fun we’ve missed out on.

Ford needs to make these few easy improvements to their fleet  in the American market to reinvigorate themselves as a brand and to become a worthy American car for the masses. I hope they do it because I’ll be the first in line for a Focus RS.