Browsing through the many useless e-mails that flood our inbox every day, I stumbled upon this interesting piece of automotive trivia that has surprisingly managed to miss the eyes of Indian automotive media. The mail had this picture in it and stated that a 1999 Ford Focus in Europe has clocked a mileage of 1,000,000 km. Now, stop counting the zeros. You read it right, it is 10 Lakh or 1 Million km. Incredibly surprised by what I saw, I did some research in the internet and found out that it was indeed true.
A gentle-man in Austria by the name Mario Folger had bought this Ford Focus 1.8 TDDi 90PS model in 1999 and since then has been using this car for his personal and business trips across the country. In the first week of April 2011, 12 years after it was bought, the car had crossed a mileage of 1,000,000 km. Apparently, this was the first time ever that a Ford vehicle has achieved this historic milestone and the company obviously was elated with this landmark feat.
Speaking on the occasion to honor the car and the owner in April 2011, Steffen Knapp, Director of Ford Austria had said “This vehicle is an example of the outstanding quality of the Ford Focus. The introduction of the first Focus in 1998 was a milestone in Ford history and set new benchmarks in driving dynamics, design and quality. With the launch of the new Focus this month we continue this success story and take our entire range to a new level in terms of technology, efficiency, safety and quality.”
What is even more commendable is that the car has had just one engine repair and one clutch replacement in the entire 12 years of ownership. Almost everything else in the car is pretty much stock, just as it came out of the factory in 1999. I don’t doubt that claim as the car is absolutely spotless, shows no signs of wear and tear and still looks fresh out of the showroom floor. Maybe, it’s time to start reusing the old tagline “Built Ford Tough”, which in this case is true after all.
A gentle-man in Austria by the name Mario Folger had bought this Ford Focus 1.8 TDDi 90PS model in 1999 and since then has been using this car for his personal and business trips across the country. In the first week of April 2011, 12 years after it was bought, the car had crossed a mileage of 1,000,000 km. Apparently, this was the first time ever that a Ford vehicle has achieved this historic milestone and the company obviously was elated with this landmark feat.
Speaking on the occasion to honor the car and the owner in April 2011, Steffen Knapp, Director of Ford Austria had said “This vehicle is an example of the outstanding quality of the Ford Focus. The introduction of the first Focus in 1998 was a milestone in Ford history and set new benchmarks in driving dynamics, design and quality. With the launch of the new Focus this month we continue this success story and take our entire range to a new level in terms of technology, efficiency, safety and quality.”
What is even more commendable is that the car has had just one engine repair and one clutch replacement in the entire 12 years of ownership. Almost everything else in the car is pretty much stock, just as it came out of the factory in 1999. I don’t doubt that claim as the car is absolutely spotless, shows no signs of wear and tear and still looks fresh out of the showroom floor. Maybe, it’s time to start reusing the old tagline “Built Ford Tough”, which in this case is true after all.
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