Thanks for all the input guys. My descision is still difficult at the moment, and Im sitting here mulling over the small bits now.

Unfortuneately, the stupid descision to no no longer import Civics Type R's from Europe in 2010 because Honda Europe will not make a profit (our exchange rate is so high they wont) is hurting them.... thats one of the reasons I jsut ditched the R for the XR5. HOWEVER, one savy dealer in Canberra said he can get one for me in January cause Honda Euro still allocates about a dozen to Australia in 2010... so they are trickling through, maybe as a "lets see if we can still make some money" experiment.

I've driven both, so these are the issues I have with both cars.

Honda:
- Its a bit cramped evan as a small asian dude, I still think that a bit of luxury rather than "I feel like Im in a race car" would be nicer. But damn the seats are nice.
- WTF is up with the seats? I fold it and it doesnt go back to where it was before
- It crawls at low RPM, only lurches forward after 4000-5000 RPM (I wont be doing this on normal roads and this will end up hurting my fuel if I want to make the most of it.) In other words, it doesnt feel like an R unless I wanna break the law. (But then, maybe thats a plus? Vtec jsut kicked in yo!)
- I hope the person that put the Spoiler there was fired.
- Not enough toys like voice control, bluetooth, ipod connection all comes standard.
- I wish it was a 5 star safety rating
- It doesnt have enough torque

Ford:
- Theres no left footrest... ouch. I drive sydney to canberra then back about 6 times a year. The XR5 is a nice cruiser, but my poor left foot
- No cruise control... its $900 for a dealer fitted aftermarket system, but Im not 100% sure about how reliable it is and how safe.
- Rear seats dont fold all the way down.
- Its a 5 Door.... I know its stupid, but, I was hoping to get a car that looked like a fast car, not a fast car that KINDA looks like a fast car ... but then again, it will be useful for taking my mates out for a spin.
- the Orange paint option is $1800 ontop of the car making it more expensive than the Honda.
- Interior is boring, other than the faux carbon fibre look, although I can buy little LED lights I can install in the footwells to liven things up at night.

Ok, in other words, I wish I had the Honda interor and exteror styling with the Ford (Its actually a Volvo) engine with the value and safety of a ford. *cry* stupid honda dealer, why did he have to be so savvy?

LOL, cheers eveyone.... if anyone has any opinions Id LOVE to hear them. I know some of these niggles I have are small, but they are significant enough for me to notice because Im seriously wanting to buy both cars. But the first thing I'll do if I buy the honda is smash that damn spoiler off the back with a sledgehammer.