Category: Ford

I drove Ford’s New Maverick in late September in Nashville, Tennessee. Ford describes Maverick as “Unibody SuperCrew Pickup”. This means it has four doors and a spacious interior capable of carrying 5-adults. The cargo bed is a short 4.5 foot affair, but Ford has designed the bed with great flexibility.

The new Maverick is the latest vehicle to be spun off of Ford’s excellent and flexible C2 unit body platform. Others on the platform include the Ford Escape, Lincoln Corsair, Ford Bronco Sport and now the Ford Maverick. This platform gives Ford “go-fast” product development capability and also helps with cost efficiencies.

People will call the Maverick a small pickup, but it is not. It rides on a 119-inch wheelbase and has an overall length of almost 200-inches. A typical mid-size car has a 110-112-inch wheelbase and overall length of between 180 and 185-inches.  The Maverick is about a foot shorter than Ford’s Ranger mid-size [...]

The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz is a Sports Adventure Vehicle establishing a new niche for Hyundai in the USA. Distinctively styled with a four-door cabin and short pickup bed, the Santa Cruz will appeal to a wide range of people wanting head turning looks, good utility and ease of use.

The all new 2021 Ford Bronco Sport is an impressive, and affordable, small crossover SUV with Bronco styling cues. It is very capable off road. It is easy to drive and live with off-road, on city streets and cruising on the freeway. It turns heads and gets smiles.

AutoPacific had a recent opportunity to spens some time in a 2021 Lincoln Nautilus Reserve.  Does the 2021 Lincoln Nautilus achieve Lincoln’s objective of “Quiet Flight” and “Sanctuary”.  Pretty darn close.

Lincoln Motor Company, the luxury brand for Ford Motor Company is now an all SUV brand:  Navigator, Aviator, Nautilus, Corsair.  The Lincoln lineup is a demonstration of strong group of products.  Even though the 2021 Nautilus is its latest update, in reality it is the oldest vehicle in the lineup.  Back in the bad old days when Lincoln thought alphanumeric naming was “the bomb”, the Nautilus was the MKX (the Corsair was the MKC).  (Funny, they never changed the Navigator’s name because it is “too strong” – Cadillac made the same decision with Escalade).  But I digress, back to the Nautilus.  [...]

The 2020 Ford Transit van has become the ubiquitous delivery vehicle across America. AutoPacific was given the opportunity to drive one for a week. Here is a brief review of this outstanding commercial vehicle.

The 2021 Ford F-150 is Ford's most important product. Competition is gaining fast, so Ford is launching a new F-150 for the 2021 model year. The sheetmetal is new, but the styling is familiar. The interior is all new, substantially upgraded. It should be more comfortable, higher technology and more functional. This iteration of the F-150 keeps Ford in the lead over the Ram 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado.

The 2020 Lincoln Corsair is an excellent compact luxury crossover SUV. It is the right size. It looks good. It goes fast. It is very quiet. It's not perfect. Getting ALL THE OPTIONS turns out not to be a good move. Some extra features are not as good as standard features.

Ford Sedans Gone  When Ford announced years ago that it was dropping sedans, the industry gasped.  In the November 18, 2019 issue of Automotive News the monthly summary of North American production showed goose eggs for Ford sedans for the first time.  Zero for Fiesta.  Zero for C-Max.  Zero for Focus, Zero for Fusion, Zero for Taurus.  Since the Lincoln MKZ is built alongside the Fusion, it too shows Zero.  The only 4-door sedan left in the Ford Motor Company lineup is the Lincoln Continental.  One interesting data point on the chart is a last gasp surge in production for the Ford Flex.  Ford produced almost 3,000 Flex XSUVs in October.   That is more than twice the rate in September.

Using 2018 production as a comparison, Ford has dropped 365,345 units from its production.  All are [...]

The Mustang Mach E adds a needed electric vehicle to the Ford lineup. It uses iconic Mustang DNA to give it emotional appeal. It is more than an appliance, it is a fun to drive sporty crossover SUV.

The reveal of the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach E shows that Ford is finally serious about entering the electric vehicle space. They have chosen to introduce an electric crossover SUV with the styling DNA of the Ford Mustang pony car. The performance specifications and price positioning of the vehicle appear to be spot on. At first, the Mach E will be eligible for the federal $7,500 tax credit for electric vehicles. It appears that Ford has not missed a trick with its new electric XSUV.