Ford and Mazda may develop vehicles separately going forward

[Wretched]

For the last umpteen years (since about 1979, to be exact), Ford has owned a significant share of Japanese automaker Mazda, growing in 1997 to a 33.4-percent controlling stake. As such, the two automakers have historically shared a significant amount of resources and product architectures - a system that has helped both companies remain competitive in the increasingly tough automotive market.

At present, the Ford Fiesta, European Focus and Fusion sedan all borrow unseen bits and pieces from Mazda platforms, and the Japanese automaker offers its own versions of the Ford's compact and midsize crossovers.

Lately, though, it seems Ford and Mazda have been seeing less and less of each other. About a year ago, Ford sold off 20 percent of its stake in the Japanese company, and while it's likely the two automakers will continue to enjoy cooperation in some capacity, Bloomberg is reporting that product sharing may very well be diminished moving forward. Drat. And to think, for all these years, we've apparently been wasting our time holding out hope for a Ford-badged fixed-head coupe based on Mazda's ever-delightful MX-5 Miata.

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/12/04/r...ely-going-for/