Category: Ford

We’re signing off for the year but we’ll be back after the first of the year. Here’s to a Happy Holidays and a prosperous 2009 – more prosperous than the latter half of 2008, right?
In the meantime, we’ll leave you with this holiday gem: Car Magazine commissioned Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Nissan, and Ford to redesign Santa’s sleigh. This is one of the coolest ways we’ve seen Christmas and cars fused. Below is one of Bentley’s submissions.

Click here for the rest.
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

Despite the prevailing economic climate and unstable fuel prices, muscle cars are big news right now. The Camaro and Challenger are all new, but how about the facelifted Mustang? Though similar in profile to the 2005-2009 model, every panel bar the roof is brand new. Perhaps an even bigger story is inside, where the new materials soundly address one of the biggest criticisms of the outgoing model: its cheap, tacky, and plasticky interior.
Stephanie Brinley got an exclusive interview with Robert Gelardi, who was the chief interior designer for the 2010 Mustang. Is it any coincidence that he personally owns an Audi TT, which had one of the finest interiors anywhere in recent memory?

Ford unveiled the new Fusion Hybrid at the LA Auto Show. It’s a very nice piece of work that is able to achieve better fuel economy than the Toyota Camry Hybrid. Stephanie Brinley was able to get an exclusive interview with Gil Portalatin, hybrid propulsion integration manager at Ford. Watch below as Gil takes us on a tour of the car and some of its most innovative features.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has announced the winners of its 2009 Top Safety Picks. There are 72 winners in 2009; more than double in 2008 and more than 3 times as many as in 2007.

The Place: The Capitol, Washington D.C. The Players: Three captains of industry (Rick Wagoner of GM, Alan Mulally of Ford and Bob Nardelli of Chrysler), one union leader (Ron Gettelfinger of the UAW) and a big angry Congress.
And then there’s me, your humble chronicler, the only person left behind at Vehicle Voice World Internet Headquarters and Decorative Bamboo Plantation to tell this story, because everyone else is at the L.A. Auto Show. Follow me behind the cut, and let’s talk about the Detroit 3 (plus one)’s adventures in Washington.

That’s…ominious.

Before the 2010 Mustang galloped into view droves of Mustangs and a massive, passionate owner body converged on the tarmac to pay homage to the original pony car. VehicleVoice contributors were there outside Barker Hanger at the Santa Monica airport (the day before the LA auto show) to take in this Mustang-only car show… and we must admit the turnout was spectacular.

1964.5 and later

1995 – Present Day

With two new and important full-size pickup trucks this fall, at a time of extreme economic uncertainty, what do we see happening to the market in general? And how does the F-150 stack up against the Ram? Since our correspondent Jim Hossack attended both Ford and Ram driving previews, we asked him for some comments. Here we go!

 

2009 Ford F-150 XLT
What’s happening in the Full-Size Light Duty Pickup market?
Contrary to mass media reports, the full-size light duty pickup market is not dead. In fact, after a few tough months, it is coming back – in terms of share of industry if not actual number of units sold.
The auto industry is down by around 4 million units compared with 2007CY. Full-size pickup share of industry fell from 15.2 percent in August 2007 to as low as 8.6 percent on May 2008, [...]

VehicleVoice correspondent Jim Hossack attended a 2009 Ford F-150 driving preview – and reports that it was well worth it. The Dodge Ram is the other big truck news of this season, so we decided to bring you reviews of both trucks this week.
Hossack says Ford put on a very thorough, very professional series of presentation, with plenty of opportunity to evaluate the new F-150 and facing competition under a variety of circumstances. Hossack was about as impressed with the passion and enthusiasm of the guys working on the program as with the truck itself.

And turn that radio down!
Today’s teens have grown up in a world of fluid and ever-expanding technology, with their parents using everything from V-chips to internet blockers to teddy-bear babysitting cams to GPS trackers to keep better track of them. For many, it is simply part of their world. Parents and kids have the same trust issues to sort through, just the same as when I was a kid and didn’t think my mom had any right to go through MY dresser, but parents have more direct tools at their disposal now.
Add one more to the arsenal. Ford is introducing the latest electronic nanny next year (2010MY) across several model lines, including the Focus. The system will be a no-cost option or standard equipment, depending on model. It turns out to be an inexpensive way to help teens stay focused in early driving years, when they are the least experienced, and [...]

And turn that radio down!
Today’s teens have grown up in a world of fluid and ever-expanding technology, with their parents using everything from V-chips to internet blockers to teddy-bear babysitting cams to GPS trackers to keep better track of them. For many, it is simply part of their world. Parents and kids have the same trust issues to sort through, just the same as when I was a kid and didn’t think my mom had any right to go through MY dresser, but parents have more direct tools at their disposal now.
Add one more to the arsenal. Ford is introducing the latest electronic nanny next year (2010MY) across several model lines, including the Focus. The system will be a no-cost option or standard equipment, depending on model. It turns out to be an inexpensive way to help teens stay focused in early driving years, when they are the least experienced, and [...]