The Ford B-MAX concept that debuted at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show had this nifty pillarless design that we assumed would never make it to production. Without a fixed B-pullar, the B-MAX concept had the type of seat access that parents (or others who need to load a lot of awkward things into the car) would kill for. Today Ford announced that the production B-MAX would have that innovative feature.
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Categories: Ford,Hatchbacks
There aren't a lot of new cars at this year's Chicago auto show. Sure, we've got the Acadia and the production ILX, but beyond that, everything here is something you've seen before. Or, in the case of this 1993 Ford SVT Cobra R, WAY before. 1992 before.
Ford debuted the SVT Mustang at Chicago in '92 and brought this museum-quality, 4,100-mile beauty back to coincide with the anniversary. It's one of 107 Cobra Rs produced. The Cobra R differentiated itself from the regular Cobra by a factory rear-seat delete, radio delete, sound-dampening material delete, adjustable Koni shocks, external oil cooler, an aluminum radiator and these neat 17-by-8-inch three-spoke wheels. It was powered by the same 5.0-liter V8 making 235 horsepower -- that was a big number in '93.
The only thing Ford could have done to make this a more special reveal would have been to bring out the F-150 Lightning, which also debuted at Chicago in '92.
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Categories: Chicago Auto Show,Classic Cars,Coupes,Ford,Sports Cars
As promised, Ford officially rolled out the 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible at the Chicago auto show today. And nothing from yesterday has changed.
The car still has 650 horsepower, still has a lower-than-the-coupe top speed, still is 3 seconds faster than the old coupe around Sebring, still is only available with a manual transmission.
More pictures and a surprise from Ford after the jump.
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Categories: Chicago Auto Show,Convertibles,Ford,Sports Cars
As you'll recall, Ford is offering two engines in the 2013 Mustang Cobra Jet -- a naturally-aspirated version of the 5.0-liter Coyote V8, and a blown version of that engine with a 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger. Recently, engineers from Ford Racing tested both versions on the dragstrip at Palm Beach International Raceway.
Astutely, they shot video of the burnouts and quarter-mile runs, and while it's not high-def, you can certainly hear the differences between the engines. Ample tire smoke, too.
(Mustang Heaven, Ford Racing)
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Categories: Coupes,Ford,Motorsports,Tuners and Modifications
Tomorrow during the first day of the 2012 Chicago Auto Show Ford, celebrating 20 years of SVT, will show off this: the 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible.
As you could probably guess, this is the same basic car as the new Shelby GT500 we've been seeing for a few months now. It's got a 5.8-liter supercharged V8 cranking out an unbelievable-in-a-production-Mustang 650 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque. (Rollin' in my 5.8 with the ragtop down so my hair can...abate? So much for my 90's rap career.) The
Ford says that the new Mustang is 3.5 seconds faster around Sebring International Raceway than the outgoing car when it is equipped with the Performance Package. The Performance pack includes SVT-designed Bilstein electronically adjustable dampers. A track pack is available on top of this wit an external oil cooler, rear diff cooler and a transmission cooler.
Once we got our heads around 650 horsepower in the GT500 coupe, we were thrown for another loop when Ford said it would do over 200 mph. The convertible won't do over 200; Ford has limited it to "only" 155.
Like the coupe, the only transmission available is a six-speed manual. We'll have more from the show floor tomorrow.
Categories: Chicago Auto Show,Convertibles,Ford,Sports Cars
It must be a bummer, being underappreciated. You shine and excel, and still you remain hidden in the shadows.
Just ask any of the six models listed after the jump. It's a story they know all too well.
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Categories: Audi,Ford,Hyundai,Nissan,Suzuki,Volkswagen
Perhaps there is hope for car culture after all. Citing consumer demand (and not just internet bickering), Ford will be offering a five-speed manual transmission option for the 2012 Ford Focus Titanium. "Buyers migrating from higher-priced import brands frequently prefer manual transmission," Ford said in a statement. Nearly 40 percent of trade-ins on Focus are imports.
Previously the manual transmission was only available in the S and SE version of the Focus with a six-speed automated manual being the only option on the top-trim Focus Titanium. Too bad, too, because the Titanium is the one that goes best with a manual. It gets 18-inch alloy wheels and a sport-tuned suspension. The only thing missing was a transmission that reacted as well as the chassis did.
Ford says that this decision was based on a manual take rate of 7 percent. That figure is 50% higher than Ford expected and surely has something to do with the complaints Ford is getting about the automated manual. You'll remember that Consumer Reports downgraded Ford's reliability rating due to complaints revolving around the automated manual transmission and MyFord Touch.
Related: 2012 Ford Focus Titanium vs. 2011 Hyundai Elantra Limited
Categories: Ford,Hatchbacks,Sedans
"The B-Max combines an exciting, innovative design with features that only previously have been found in bigger cars. It's a brand-new car that responds to the needs of an increasing number of customers who want much more from their small cars." Ford of Europe CEO Stephen Odell forgot to add "except Americans" to this statement about the new B-Max as it is extremely unlikely that this new MPV will ever make it to our shores. Ford also didn't come through with specific details on what these features that meet our needs will be.
The new big hatchback sports a cool, pillarless design with a trapezoidal face and will offer best-in-class cargo space. The B-Max will be powered by Ford's new 1.0-liter Ecoboost engine for the gas version and a diesel will be available.
More will become clear at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show when this car gets its official debut.
Categories: Ford,Geneva Motor Show,Hatchbacks
If you're a classic car nut, you've probably heard of Hagerty; the company is a leader in classic-car insurance and hosts the world's largest database of classic cars. Each year, the company publishes its Hagerty Hot List, a list that spotlights 10 new vehicles that its valuations experts see as having the best future collectability.
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Categories: Audi,Buick,Chevrolet,Dodge,Fiat,Ford,Jeep,Nissan,Porsche,Volkswagen
Ford has recently put up a teaser page for the 2013 Ford Escape that almost features pricing on the new crossover SUV. It would be easy to look at the page and think you're spec'ing out a new Escape, but up in the right hand corer is a disclaimer: "For Survey Purposes Only Prices and Features Subject to Change."
So we don't have an exact price, but we do have a ballpark guess into what Ford is thinking. The 2013 Ford Escape S which comes standard with a 6-speed automatic, a 2.5-liter I4, manual tilt/telescoping wheel with audio control and air conditioning will be priced right around $22,470.
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Categories: Crossovers,Ford,Future Vehicles
At the Charlotte Motor Speedway Media Tour today, Ford officially unveiled this, the 2013 Ford Fusion NASCAR Sprint car.
The racecar features a new silhouette and the face and headlights from the 2013 Ford Fusion we saw in Detroit. "We wanted Fusion to be the car that helped return 'stock car' to NASCAR. I Think fans, when they see the car, are just going to smile and cheer. It is going to reengage them with the sport and make the sport better because there is just something natural about seeing race cars that look like cars in their driveways," said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing in a statement echoing the "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" adage.
More than just a 2013 Fusion sticker package, Ford worked hard to make sure the proportions of the racecar were as close as possible to those of the road car despite the size difference. "This is a seminal moment in the sport where we had a chance to get it right once again and make sure the race cars are race versions of street cars. And I am proud because I believe we have accomplished just that," Allison concluded.
Look for the 2013 Ford Fusion to make its NASCAR debut at the Daytona 500 in February of 2013.
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Categories: Ford,Motorsports
Ford is serious about promoting their new race car on the internets. We've now heard from two racing drivers in Ford-provided videos about the Ford Focus ST-R the most recent being TV's very own Tanner Foust.
This time we've got the other side of race car development, the engineers. Here, Ford Racing Engineering Supervisor Mark Wilson and Multimatic Motorsports Team Manager Sean Masson talk designing a reliable, fast, affordable race car.
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Categories: Ford,Motorsports
A friend and I were driving the other day when we stumbled across a raptor out in the wilds of Santa Monica. It was one of the new ones I told them. I could tell because it had the front camera.
"Front Camera? What for? It's got a windshield."
"Rock crawling. Not hitting stuff when parking."
"Rock crawling? In a Raptor? It's not made for that. What a stupid thing."
I kindly direct him, and everyone who doesn't think Raptors can tackle the tricky stuff, to watch this video of some Raptors taking on Hell's Revenge trail in Moab, Utah.
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Categories: Ford,Trucks,Videos
If you've got a spouse and a bouncy castle full of kids, the siren call of a minivan can be a tempting one. Still, minivan ownership need not be as inevitable as some would have you believe.
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Categories: Buick,Chevrolet,Dodge,Ford,GMC,Mazda
The life of a prototype isn't an easy one. First, you're subjected to a new powertrain that everyone's pretty sure, on paper, works just fine. Then you're sent out to make sure it actually works. This means deserts, racetracks, frozen tundras and nightmarish traffic situations -- all intentionally. And then, if you don't burn down or explode, you're either forced into a museum holding pen or, more likely, dismantled, studied and then crushed into a cube.
This 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 durability prototype, however, has a different future; it will be in the hands of a private collector. Ford is auctioning off the car to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation at Barrett-Jackson this Saturday at 8:30pm.
Originally built in 2007, this car was converted to 2013 specs (5.8-liter, 650-horsepower) and tested for 24-hours at Sebring. During testing the GT500 reached top speeds of 150 mph -- 50 mph shy of the claimed top speed.
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Categories: Coupes,Ford,Sports Cars
We've been following the Ford Focus ST-R since about the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show. Recently we got a walkaround of Ford's $98,995 turn-key racer by Ford Racing's Andy Vrenko.
Vrenko was a good host, but he's no Tanner Foust. You know who is Tanner Foust? Top Gear USA's Tanner Foust. (Think the SEO gods know Tanner Foust is in this video? I've said Tanner Foust frequently enough.) This video is mostly talk from the RallyCross champion, but we get some action and a good deal of insight on what it actually takes to field a racecar.
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Categories: Celebrities,Ford,Motorsports
Earlier this month Ford rolled out the EcoSport at the New Delhi Auto Expo. While the compact crossover isn't bound for our shores -- especially not with the 1.0-liter three-cylinder -- it's still an interesting little car both stylistically and mechanically. So here's Ford Group VP J Mays discussing the product.
Again, this one isn't set for the US, but you have to assume Ford will be watching the Buick Encore very, very closely.
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Categories: Crossovers,Ford
Detroit isn't necessarily the kind of city that most people want to visit, but each year in early to mid-January, it becomes a prime destination, at least as far as the global automotive community is concerned.
Of course, this has everything to do with the annual North America International Auto Show, which beckons car lovers far and wide with the good, the bad and the ugly of the latest automotive offerings.
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Categories: Acura,Dodge,Ford,Toyota
Almost a year ago to the day Icon Motorsports released the first in what is turning into an annual tradition of bike vs car drift specials.
That time they had a stretched '05 ZX-10 drifting against one of my personal favorite toys, an LS powered RX-7. This time they've taken things a step further with two bikes -- Triumph Speed Triples -- and a 550 horsepower Mustang Cobra. They've also nearly doubled the original video's 4:54 run time.
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Categories: Ford,Motorcycles,Motorsports,Videos
While we're all still reeling from our recent adventure at CES and the Detroit Auto Show, we've realized we completely missed the Autosport International Racing Car show in Birmingham England. It was at this show where Ford officially pulled the wraps off of the new livery for the 2012 Fiesta RS World Rally Car you see above.
Castrol Edge remains a sponsor of the car which features a 1.6-liter EcoBoost inspired engine. Drivers are Jari-Matti Latvala, Miikka Anttila, Petter Solberg and Chris Patterson.
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Categories: Ford,Motorsports
The Ford B-MAX concept that debuted at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show had this nifty pillarless design that we assumed would never make it to production. Without a fixed B-pullar, the B-MAX concept had the type of seat access that parents (or others who need to load a lot of awkward things into the car) would kill for. Today Ford announced that the production B-MAX would have that innovative feature.
