With the price of gasoline on the rise, consumers are looking for smaller and thus, more fuel efficient vehicles. In countries outside the United States especially in Asia, small cars are more popular than large vehicles. Thus, even if Ford offers compact cars in Europe, it still does not have one in the United States. That is about to change though as the automaker recently unveiled what would be its newest offering in the all-important United States auto market.

The new Ford Verve concept vehicle which was unveiled at the ongoing North American International Auto Show has the technology, styling, and content which the automaker hopes will attract customers into their dealerships. At the said event, the Dearborn automaker will also showcase the Ford Verve concept vehicle designed for Europe and Asia.

A four-door and a three-door version of the Ford Verve will be on display at the event. The three-door version of the Ford Verve is designed for the European market. The four-door version on the other hand was designed for the North American auto market. This move by the automaker is a first step in exploiting its small car leadership in Europe. As can be remembered, the automaker posted record sales figures for Europe in 2007. The automaker received much boost from their lineup of small cars.

Derrick Kuzak, the automaker's group vice president for Global product Development said that they have taken a look at what made them a leader in the small car market in Europe and used it to design the Ford Verve.

"We're looking at every aspect of what’s defined Ford as a small-car leader in Europe and working to build on this expertise in driving dynamics and design across a global family of Ford cars that are as exciting to drive as they are to look at," said Kuzak. "The Verve concept family provides a vision for a new world standard for quality, design and comfort in the small car segment. These concepts demonstrate how leveraging our global strengths can yield attractive benefits for our customers in markets around the world," he added.

The Ford Verve is aimed by the automaker towards the younger generation of auto buyers they call the Millennials. "Millennials will be the defining group of customers in the future, driving all types of consumer trends," said Jim Farley, Ford's group vice president for Marketing and Communications. "Ford's European-based cars are a great fit for this generation of drivers, who have grown up with the Internet and mobile phones as necessities, not luxuries - believing that bigger isn’t necessarily better, precision is everything and technology rules."

When the Ford Verve reaches production, experts are expecting it to be equipped with auto parts reliable and safe such as Acura CL brake calipers.