- A portion of this video was sponsored by Allstate.
(Upbeat music)
- Almost every auto manufacturer currently
has one or multiple crossovers in their fleet.
Even exotic brands like Lamborghini, Bentley,
and Aston Martin have joined the movement.
The problem here is that now that everyone has one,
the market is overrun with a bunch of cars that look very
similar. It's kind of difficult to tell them apart,
they're basically all the same car with different logos,
but what does Ford done to fix this boring crossover
problem?
And are other car companies going to follow suit?
Today on wheelhouse,
Jeremiah is going to break my ankles with a harsh crossover.
It's a basketball thing, right?
- A huge thank you to Allstate for sponsoring this portion
of this video.
- That's right. You heard me, we got Allstate as a sponsor,
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Thanks again to Allstate for sponsoring this portion
of this video.
(Crowd cheering)
- Team James! Go Jerry!
- I'm going to show you guys several crossovers
on the screen right now without pressing pause.
I want to see if you can tell them apart.
Are you starting to see what I mean? Kind of sucks, right?
Well, it hasn't always been a problem.
There was a time when there were only a few crossovers on
the market, and guess what? They stood out.
Back in the 1990s sedans dominated sales,
the Honda Accord, Ford Taurus, and Toyota Camry
were the best sellers of that decade.
However, around the same time
SUV's are starting to gain popularity
for their practicality, but there was a problem.
They all got horrible gas mileage.
Consumers had to make an annoying trade-off between having
either good gas, mileage or more practicality
a remedy to this problem arrived from Japan
in the form of the Toyota RAV4,
a fun practical vehicle that was easy on gas.
And it wasn't a pain in the butt to park in the city.
People love the RAV4 right out the gate,
and it was followed closely by the Subaru Forester and Honda
CRV in 1997.
It was so early in this new era that this segment of
automobiles had yet to be named Crossovers. Then in 1998,
the segment really took off with the introduction of the
Lexus RX 300 setting the blueprint for how luxury crossover
should be made.
And that is evident when you look at all of day's
crossovers, they all have basically the same identifiable
shape that can be traced back to the RX 300
from over 20 years ago.
Nowadays that traditional crossover look,
it started to get a little long in the tooth, nevertheless,
boring design or not. We have no one to blame,
but ourselves, the consumer for the state of crossovers,
our dollar is what talks at the end of the day.
And we're the ones scooping up crossover after crossover.
Well, maybe not me, but well actually James is to blame.
He has a crossover. Joe is to blame, he drives crossovers.
Tactically. Max is the blame, he has a wagon.
That's kind of a crossover.
I am the only blameless person at Donut.
Nick has a Volvo crossover. Oh my God, I'm surrounded.
The demand for them is still high.
And that pressure to have an appealing crossover pushes
companies to keep making them look at Chevy. For instance,
they brought back the iconic blazer name to put on a pretty
boring crossover.
And it feels like the vast majority of crossovers haven't
evolved all that much over the last decade and a half.
At this point,
all you're doing is seeing which user interface is best
and which one has the most cup holders;
pretty important.
Probably the biggest innovation with the basic crossover is
the introduction of EV variants of the same vehicle like
the Volvo with the XC 40 recharge and Lexus has the all
electric UX. Actually the popularity of CUV is,
has grown so much in recent years that the argument could be
made that the current boring crossover has become the modern
day minivan. Nowadays,
families that are too cool to be rolling around in a
minivan, have transitioned to CUV's as their main form of
transportation.
But upon further inspection outside of the sliding doors,
crossovers and minivans are extremely similar.
Most CUV's are front wheel drive, Unibody constructed
family haulers that are optimized for cargo capacity and
spacious seating, just like minivans.
The only reason that they've been aging better than,
than minivan is because crossover design is inherently more
under the radar than the traditional minivan their
designed may not scream family hauler,
but truth be told there's no meaningful difference between a
CUV and a minivan.
The family hauler trend is causing younger buyers to shift
in a more outgoing and exciting direction when buying their
crossover.
Lately, there has been an increasing demand
for more rugged off-road focus vehicles think Jeep Wrangler,
4runner Tacoma problem with those is that they're all pretty
expensive. As a result,
a gap has begun to form between cool body on frame SUV's and
the basic crossovers. Back in 2019,
Autocar UK talked about how Volkswagen crossovers didn't
really differentiate themselves from each other enough.
And this was due to the fact that they were all using the
same platform. For example,
Volkswagen had a platform called the MLB Evo that was used
not just in their Touareg,
but also in other brands like the Audi QA and the Porsche
Cayenne. Ford noticed this issue with having so much overlap
and they might've solved it with their new C2 platform.
Ford's new Unibody C2 platform designed
for cars, crossovers, and vans
has been making its way into several cars in Ford's
new lineup.
Like we talked about before Ford is not the first company to
share platforms and parts across vehicles,
as a very old idea, all major manufacturers do this.
Some of the most popular cars on the road share platforms.
However, Ford is steering their new platform into
a new space that is not limited
just to the Ford Escape and Ford Focus.
They're building new vehicles on this platform that have
more utility and capability.
The biggest difference is that vehicles Ford builds the
C2 platform on are diverse and not as boring.
According to Joe Bakaj,
pretty sure it's pronounced that way.
He's Ford of Europe's head of engineering. During the
development of the C2 platform, quote,
we've reduced the number of parts we've engineered.
We've reduced the cost of engineering,
but we've offered more derivatives to suit different
personalities, and that's the holy grail.
Ford has applied their new
platform to several new models across our lineup,
which include the Focus, Escape, Lincoln Corsair,
the upcoming Fusion, and most notably the Ford Bronco Sport
and Ford Maverick.
Think about how diverse that lineup is.
A compact economy car, a small SUV, a luxury SUV,
an off-roader and a truck all built on the same platform.
So what makes these vehicles so unique?
Let's start with the new Bronco Sport,
the little brother of the highly anticipated full sized
Bronco. There's a longstanding stereotype,
a crossover stating that while they do have some additional
ground clearance, they're really just toys
and not capable off-road. As annoying as that
is for crossover owners to hear,
the criticism for their lack of off-road capabilities,
largely true.
Ford aimed to fix this by creating
a cost-effective option for its
buyers while maintaining some of its off-road capability.
The Bronco sport can provide buyers with a name that has a
rugged image consumers want
without dealing with the lumbering size of a
traditional four by four while still having the off-road
capability to back it up.
Ford modified the C2 platform by chaining the wheelbase to
105.1 inches and adding their own set of anti-roll bars,
new springs and special 46 millimeter diameter Monotube rear
shocks and its base configuration.
It has a ground clearance of 7.8 inches.
And if you get the optional upgraded tires,
it has an approach angle of 30.4 degrees,
our break-over of 20.4 degrees and a departure angle of 33.1
degrees.
Those figures are better than a Jeep Grand Cherokee.
These changes give the Bronco Sport relatively stout
operability. Given the type of vehicle it is.
MotorTrend was elated in their review saying yes,
that Bronco Sport is built on the same platform as the now
far more roadgoing Escape,
but you wouldn't know it from looking or driving it and
their appraise continued leading to a statement claiming
that quote,
"the Bronco Sport takes far more abuse than the average
owner will throw at it."
That type of high praise is what will convince buyers in
Ford dealerships to pull the trigger on a new Bronco Sport
Ford put a ton of effort into making sure the Bronco's
little brother didn't get overlooked as a wannabe off-roader
like most other crossovers. And luckily for us Ford,
didn't stop there. In addition to the Bronco Sport,
it also debuted a pickup truck using the same platform.
They called it the Ford Maverick.
My favorite place to surf dude ha'
With the all new Maverick Ford has expectations
that will not just lure people in to buy their first truck,
but maybe it'll be their first Ford vehicle ever since they
removed cars from their lineup.
Ford now sees the Maverick as an entry-level vehicle into
their lineup.
Ford was extremely excited to point out a notable factor of
the Ford Mavericks development,
which was how the C2 platform actually saved them two whole
years in development time.
That's pretty significant since it can take three to five or
even 10 years to design a car from scratch. During the
Mavericks development, Ford's main goal was to develop a
truck for people who wanted the distinct utility of a truck
without the normal size inconveniences and high price of
off-road trucks currently on the market.
It's only about four inches longer than a Honda accord at
about 200 inches and is exactly the same width.
Making a Maverick and more manageable vehicle to drive on a
daily basis for people not used to the size of a mid-size
half ton truck,
while still having a four and a half foot bed.
They also have plans to offer a whole array of Ford
accessories for the truck bed.
Keith Daugherty an Engineering Specialist involved in the
Maverick box design. Explain that quote,
"The whole bed is a DIY fans paradise.
You can buy the bolt-in Ford cargo management system,
and we're happy to sell it to you,
but if you're a bit more creative,
you can also just go to the hardware store and get some C-
channels and bolts of the bed to make your own solutions."
There's even a Ford flex bed QR code in the bed that owners
can scan and get cargo carrying ideas.
And just in case you think those are just statements they're
making for marketing purposes and August, 2021 in Dallas,
Texas, during a dealer meeting
a whole fleet of Ford Mavericks
responded with a ton of Ford available.
Add-ons already installed on the trucks.
It's safe to say that Ford put real time and effort into
ensuring that the Maverick is an actual pickup truck,
not just a truck built on a crossover platform.
That is to be expected since Ford also has tons of
experience designing and manufacturing,
their best selling F-150 so far,
all this effort Ford has put into the Maverick's development
looks promising and the public seems to agree.
I really think they're cool.
They're already been a hundred thousand pre-orders and a
fair amount of them are the hybrid versions.
So that's pretty cool while we're on the topic of electric
Power Trans, Ford continued with their execution of the C2
platform with another vehicle
you may have already heard about.
Not too long ago Ford debuted their new EV crossover.
The Mustang Mach-E,
technically its platform is called the GE1,
but after doing a little research,
it turns out the GE1 platform is a modified version of
the C2 that we've been discussing.
Now that means the C2 platform is currently being used for a
compact off-roader, a light offer,
a truck and a mid-sized skeevy crossover.
And not to mention all the other standard vehicles with
being used for like the Escape, Focus and Lincoln vehicles.
This is an amazing level of flexibility.
The C2 is nothing short of a home run for Ford.
Now some of you might be watching this and be saying, okay,
Nolan. Yeah, sure.
Ford made some neat little cars. What's the big deal.
You know what? That's a fair question.
When looking at the big picture, why is this so important?
Well, the answer is impact.
The creative boom Ford is experiencing will make waves and
hopefully those waves are hitting other automakers as well.
And creating a widespread trend across the entire car
industry. Some might say it's already started.
The most obvious example is with Hyundai and the new Santa
Cruz crossover pickup truck.
Which is another light truck based on a car platform and
likely a direct competitor to the Ford Maverick.
Some might say the Maverick is a competitor because the
Santa Cruz is already here. Look,
I surfed in Santa Cruz too. I do prefer Mavericks.
Automakers are seeing that people are responding positively
to this new version of crossovers with an emphasis on
ruggedness and utility.
Some companies already saw this rising trend and have begun
modifying vehicles they already have
to be more interesting than the base
product. Models like the Subaru Outback Wilderness, Toyota
RAV4, TRD off-road, Honda Ridgeline HPD,
and the Volvo V90 Cross Country are out there for sale
ready for people who want their crossovers to have a little
more spice.
The era of boring crossovers is coming to an end and one
sign at Ford, is that they're finally canceling the edge.
Another frankly,
boring crossover in favor of new EV's. Ford is currently
leading the charge for a more exciting crossover market.
They've done incredible work,
developing the C2 platform and an even better job
implementing it into a line of new, exciting vehicles.
The Bronco Sport is an affordable,
compact capable off-roader, and the Maverick
is a usable truck at a manageable size and
price. And even the Mustang Mach-E is a cool crossover
for the inevitable EV future.
I've heard tons of great things about the Mach-E,
heard really good things about the Bronco Sport.
You know, it's not, it's not the big boy.
It's not the big boy, it's not the big Bronco.
Everyone knows that,
but the little one is pretty cool too.
All of these vehicles were designed for the common man or
woman, but more importantly for didn't get trapped,
making some boring vehicles with about as much personality
as a floor mat.
They made cool cars that get people excited to drive them
and maybe adventure out and try outdoors-y things they might
not have done otherwise in their Tiguan or their Niro or
Rogue or whatever. Larger, more traditional automakers
usually don't go out on a limb to try to develop a new car
for a niche market and risk losing time and money.
But fortunately for all of us Ford actually dived in and
came out with some pretty exciting stuff.
And that's a great sign for both regular car buyers and car
enthusiasts alike.
Thank you very much for watching rental house.
I know crossover's kind of boring,
but I think that there's change in the winds. You know,
we've been doing this crossover thing for like 20 years now,
it's time to spice it up. And I think it's it's happening.
Fear, Donut, super freak,
click that join button down below,
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Check it out. Be kind, take your Bronco Sport.
Off-road I'll see you next time.