Ford has announced that its small car, the Focus, will be revised and upgraded for 2008. Designed initially for Europe, the model has not been completely re-designed for America before and the idea is that, by offering more features for less money, sales will take off again after sliding recently.

The small car segment of the US market has not been a money earner for manufacturers in the past but the hope is that increasing gas prices will re-vitalize sales of cars like the Focus. Ford have not been doing well recently and are looking for ways to improve their position.

Having had experience of the Focus, I must admit to a wry smile and the thought that any improvement to it would be a step in the right direction. Just do a search for problems with it and see what you come up with…

CNN has an article looking at Consumer Reports’ latest survey on reliability in 2006 and 2007 cars. It makes interesting reading, with some winners you would expect and some surprising losers.

Toyota and Lexus do well but I was amazed that Volkswagen have so many models that owners reported as unreliable. As a result, I wonder just how reliable these surveys are. How were they conducted and what questions were asked? And to what extent has the usual problem with these surveys been overcome - that many owners hesitate to pour scorn on what was their own choice, after all?

These questions are answered in Consumer Reports’ FAQ on the matter. It does seem that they make a good job of their investigations and so we would be wise to take note of their findings when looking for a new car.

Have a read and be prepared for some surprises.