Ford said on Friday that it is delaying the launch of the redesigned 2009 F-150 pickup to late Fall, AutoWeek reports, in order to give dealers more time to sell out stockpiles of the 2008 model. But more importantly, Ford also said it will begin building four- and five-door versions of the European Ford Focus in North America in late 2010—meaning that the car will be on the same platform in both markets for the first time.

The report called the moves a sign of the steep drop in sales of pickups and SUVs, as gasoline prices hover around $4/gallon and the economy remains weak. "It is also threatening Ford's financial recovery plan—the automaker makes bigger profits on sales of pickups and SUVs, compared with sales of cars." We've been waiting to see a vastly improved version of the Ford Focus for a long time, especially with the Ford Sync system.