Ford was the best-selling auto brand in the country in 2011, and as a recent study by U.S. News & World Reports shows, there’s a good reason for that kind of performance: Ford also won the most categories in the publication’s recent rankings of the “Best Cars for the Money 2012.” [click to continue…]
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The big dogs were out in abundance during the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, but it was the completely redesigned Ford Fusion that AutoWeek named “Best in Show.”
“It’s very rare for a midsize sedan to win Best in Show,” said Autoweek editor Wes Raynal. “I think it’s the first of a lot of awards the Fusion is going to win this year.” [click to continue…]
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Wrapped in a sleek, flowing new exterior that draws on Ford’s award-winning global design language, the completely redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion is going to break fresh ground by being the first midsize sedan available with three different powertrains—gas, hybrid and plug-in hybrid—and it plans on achieving best-in-class fuel efficiency with all of them.
The Fusion actually will offer five different engines, including three that run strictly on gasoline: A standard, naturally aspirated I4 and two advanced EcoBoost four-cylinder motivators. Among that second pair will be a peppy 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine that is expected to achieve the segment’s top EPA ratings for a non-hybrid four-cylinder engine, ringing up marks of 26 mpg city/37 mpg highway; the second EcoBoost powerplant will be the hi-po choice for the Fusion, and while Ford didn’t discuss output, it’s worth noting that a similarly sized EcoBoost engine will be rated at 247 hp/250 lb.-ft. of torque in the upcoming Ford Focus ST.
For drivers who prefer a greener choice, the next-gen Fusion Hybrid receives an all-new 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle I4 engine and a lighter, more powerful battery pack now relying on lithium-ion technology. And again, Ford is planning to best all in-segment rivals with the Fusion Hybrid, which the company expects will return EPA ratings of 47 mpg city/44 mpg highway—those numbers would out-efficiency the Toyota Camry Hybrid by 4 mpg/5 mpg while trumping the Hyundai Sonata by 12 mpg/4 mpg.
Finally, gearing up to take its place at the top of the leaderboard as the most fuel-efficient mid-size car anywhere in the world, the Fusion Energi will debut with an innovative plug-in hybrid system that should break the 100 MPGe barrier—a benchmark the Chevy Volt misses by 8 MPGe and the Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid trails by 13 MPGe.
“Our vision for Fusion was clear—deliver the very best of what One Ford stands for,” said Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of Global Product Development. “We brought our global teams together around a blank slate with the charge to develop a midsize car with groundbreaking design and jaw-dropping fuel economy—one that featured technologies to help make our customers safer and better drivers. This car is the result.”
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Ford is continuing to push the envelope when it comes to automotive technology—all the way from its Motor City roots to Silicon Valley: The automaker recently announced it would open its very first dedicated research and development lab in California’s high-tech hotspot.
The new facility will be located in the San Francisco Bay area and open later this quarter, with efforts to be spearheaded by the automaker’s Ford Research and Innovation division. Combined with Ford’s Advanced Design Studio in Irvine, Calif., and the company’s presence in Redmond, Wash.—where Ford team members are working in collaboration with Microsoft, Ford’s “connectivity platform partner”—the result will be a comprehensive West Coast innovation network that will help Ford further advance its leadership role in transportation technologies.
“Silicon Valley represents a deep and dynamic technology neighborhood and is far from Dearborn [Ford’s home base],” said K. Venkatesh Prasad, senior technical leader for open innovation with Ford Research and Innovation. “With so many opportunities and so much potential, our new lab will allow us to scout new technologies and partners in their own environment and continue our expansion beyond the traditional automaker mindset to drive innovation for a better mobility experience.”
More specifically, Ford’s new Silicon Valley enterprise will focus on areas including:
“Ford integrates technologies, software and electronics at the same pace as the most innovative companies in the world—our platform just happens to be the car,” said Paul Mascarenas, Ford chief technical officer and vice president of Research and Innovation. “The new Silicon Valley lab will propel us further as we look at the many facets of life where mobility interacts with society and see how we can make those experiences better for millions of customers around the world.”
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The 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 is kicking off the new year the same way it ended the last—by kicking the competition to the curb: The automaker’s CEO—Chief Excitement Object—recently received a Popular Mechanics Auto Excellence Award as the top 2012 choice in the performance car category. And why not, when writers for the prestigious publication reported that, “The 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 is the kind of fully realized, perfectly crafted performance car that comes along only once a decade.”
Such perfection didn’t happen by accident, either.
“The team at Ford wanted to offer their fellow Mustang enthusiasts something really special—a beautifully balanced factory-built race car that they could drive on the street,” explains Dave Pericak, Mustang chief engineer. “The Boss 302 isn’t something a Mustang GT owner can buy all the parts for out of a catalog or that a tuner can get by adding a chip. This is a front-to-back re-engineered Mustang with every system designed to make a good driver great and a great driver even better.”
This includes:
Plus, as Popular Mechanics points out, the Boss is one Auto Excellence winner that’s also an excellent value, showcasing an MSRP of $40,310 while still being able to outrun cars that cost twice that much.
The 2012 Mustang Boss 302 is available now—in limited quantities—at Ford dealerships across the country.
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While plenty of publications from around the world offer their opinions on the best vehicles of the year, the honor from the Detroit Free Press—one of the industry’s hometown newspapers—certainly stands out from the crowd. And so does the 2012 Ford Focus, the vehicle recently named the Freep’s “Car of the Year.”
Acclaimed auto journalist Mark Phelan, writing for the paper, said that “The sleek 2012 Ford Focus may be the most sophisticated small car ever sold in America,” and lauded the car for features including its refreshed Ford SYNC connectivity and infotainment system and PowerShift six-speed automatic transmission. According to Phelan, the former is unequalled in the Focus’ segment and “remains blissfully straightforward and easy to use.” As for the latter, Phelan noted that even though that transmission has received some criticism from other reviewers, “I think the problem is that Ford neglected to explain to owners that it can feel a little different from the automatic transmissions they’re used to. For my money, it more than makes up for its differences with responsive performance and EPA fuel economy.”
In fact, thanks as well to a high-efficiency 2.0-liter I4 engine with direct injection and twin independent variable camshaft timing, the Focus SFE sedan is capable of reaching 28 mpg city/40 mpg highway/33 mpg combined.
Then, on top of all that, “The Focus’ sporty handling, quiet ride, and roomy and practical hatchback model add to its standing as an exceptionally refined, advanced and enjoyable car.”
With an MSRP that starts as low as $16,500, the award-winning 2012 Ford Focus is on sale now.
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Falling asleep at the wheel can quickly turn into a nightmare when travelling, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that 1,500 people each year are killed, and 71,000 injured, due to crashes caused by drowsy drivers. But those kinds of numbers served as a wakeup call for Ford engineers, who designed the all-new 2013 Ford Fusion to be the first mainstream mid-size sedan in America to offer “lane keeping” technology to combat this problem. [click to continue…]
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Ford’s commitment to fuel-efficiency leadership has paid off once again. In determining which full-size pickup would merit a place on their list of Top 10 Winter Cars for 2012, the folks at Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com website reported that: “The 2012 Ford F-150 in 4WD configuration won our votes for its smart blend of style, comfort and, yes, even fuel economy, thanks to the available 365-horsepower EcoBoost V6—which has become the most popular engine in the entire F-150 lineup.” [click to continue…]
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It’s already a Happy New Year for Ford, as two of the automaker’s vehicles were recently named among the Boston Globe’s Top Drives of 2012—making Ford the only brand with multiple entries on the prestigious annual list.
Taking home blue ribbons for the Blue Oval were the Ford Focus and Ford F-150 EcoBoost.
The Focus wowed Globe writers, proving that “small cars can be great cars” and earning praise like:
And remember, the dynamic-driving Focus also is capable of up to 40 mpg highway in its thrifty SFE configuration, while also delivering 160 hp—that’s over 20 hp more than the Chevy Cruze and the most power of any 40-mpg compact in the country. That same combination of efficiency and performance is on display in Ford’s other Best Drive, too. The F-150 EcoBoost combines 365 hp and a best-in-class 420 lb.-ft. of torque to post best-in-class max trailer tow ratings (11,300 lbs.) and best-in-class payload capability (3,060 lbs.), while still returning up to 22 mpg on the highway.
That’s why, even though Boston Globe experts were impressed with the entire F-150 roster, they considered the EcoBoosted model to be “the gem in the lineup” and also lauded its interior finish, quietness and refined ride.
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The 1967 Ford Mustang Convertible was a true classic, showcasing the first major upgrade of the first-generation ’Stang that took the world by storm: After selling more than 1 million Mustangs in its first 18 months of production, Ford debuted all-new sheet metal on its sports car icon for 1967, as well as a fresh interior and engine choices that included a 427-cubic-inch V8 capable of 390 hp. Simply put, the 1967 Mustang is the kind of car they just don’t build anymore—but you can. [click to continue…]
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