Faults:

Fuel sensor went at 46,000 km. Dealer installed new fuel pump and sensor under warranty.

Outer rear passenger side window molding came loose.

Rear tail light burnt out.

Other than those few things, car has been great.

General Comments:

I love this car, it is a blast to drive as one feels good enough in it to open up the sunroof, roll down the window, and go cruising.

Sport Package includes two tone cloth seats, leather wrapped steering wheel, pewter accents on dash and console, Mach audio with 6-disk CD changer, special aluminum rims, and Sport floor mats and badging on fenders, but good luck finding one as they are quite rare.

Very comfortable seats, interior is pleasing to the eyes with great fit and finish and nice touch points, I can drive in it for hours without cramping up.

The Duratec (201 hp, 200 Lbs.Ft. of torque) performs very well with great passing power and a high RPM power band. Very quiet and seemingly tame at an idle, but punch it down and it roars to life emitting a very nice exhaust note, the tires squeal (almost too easily) and it pulls hard up to about 60-70 Km/h, but picks up again at 80 km/h and continues to pull until it reaches it's governor ends the fun at about 170km/h. Pity.

I did notice, however, that it's performance is dampened greatly with more than one person in the vehicle.

It also handles very nicely, steering is quite predictable and responsive.

My only real problem with the car is that there was no horsepower boost with the Sport Package, and extra 20-30 hp would have made this car a real ground pounder. I guess that's what after market parts are for, but one might as well wait until the warranty is up.

Faults:

There was a problem of the electrical system, which resulted in the malfunctionings of minor parts.

General Comments:

The steering is very tight and it handles slightly sub-par, but acceptable.

The doors are annoyingly heavy to open or close!

The plastic of the console and whatnot gives it a sort-of cheap feel.

It's a comfortable, safe, practical car. Overall, I would recommend it to another driver, as any problems I have had with it thusfar (at ~50k) have been minor and expected.

Faults:

The passenger seat belt retractor locked up and failed at 44000 miles. It was replaced under warranty.

The rear struts and springs have sagged excessively since 50000 miles. Ride height is way below specs. Replaced struts and springs. Springs were dealer only.

The blower motor thermal limiter has failed three times in 40000 miles. Dealer only part. $18 each time.

EGR differential pressure sensor failed at 58000 miles. Not covered under warranty. Replaced it myself with $20 dealer part.

Fuel system Injection pressure Sensor failed at 68000 miles. Difficult to get from dealer.

Cam position sensor and cam position synchronizer failed at 69500 miles. This appears to be an all too common failure item. Sensor was $35 and synchronizer was $160, but you need a special tool to install the synchronizer. Dealer charge for this repair was $275.

General Comments:

Rides good on the highway and in town.

Fuel economy is good on highway when car is running good with no broken parts, about 30 mpg.

All the failure items above seem to be common. I'm not sure that 'Quality is Job 1' at Ford.