I was an engineer at ford and I left because i couldn't stand the crap they did. They only care about CAReers, not cars. They play their little games for career advancement and the product sucks because what happens in the field is far removed from them. After working there, it became evident the proper acronym for FORD is not fix or repair daily but:

Fornicating Our Retarded Designs

Post that on your site :o)

I have a page which was just added to the anti-Ford Web Ring you may be interested in reading.

http://www.angelfire.lycos.com/mi3/woodust/ford.htm

As for your escort, it is similar to the Mazda Protoge. Check the quality and see how ford quality is job none. Quanity is Job 1 The escort was a joint venture with mazda. The instrument panel for instance is almost identical to the Protoge. Ford had more problems because of their drive for quanity. The cover which snapped into the IP next to the windshield was warping on ford products built at wayne assembly in MI. The escort was also built in mexico and they didn't have that problem, neither did the Protoge. Why? It was traced to an assembly process. The four clips which fasten the part each needed to be pressed into place but maybe 2 or 3 were.

You are observant to notice the similarites of the Villager to the Nissan Quest. The villager is a joint venture with Nissan. The quality between the two are again proof that quality is job none!

I have many stories LOL You did right to buy a foreign product as the other US autocompanies are not much better. Look at the JD Powers report, Foriegn companies are always at the top with quality.