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Posted on May 18th, 2012 by admin
Ford Focus Battery Electric Vehicle review
News from Telegraph.co.uk:
It goes on sale in the US first and arrives in the UK this autumn. No prices yet, but expect to be paying at least £25,000 including the Government’s £5,000 subsidy. The driveline has been developed by Magna International and it includes a 23kWh, liquid-cooled, LG Chem-supplied lithium-ion battery pack, which gives a range of about 100 miles. The battery systems, inverter and cooling adds about 440lb to the all-up weight of a petrol-engined Focus and Mark Lucas, a Ford engineer working on the project, says that the cost of the battery installation is about a third that of the entire car.
It takes a few seconds for the systems check and the all clear light to illuminate on the dash. Then just pull the transmission lever through to Drive and the car creeps away without any throttle like a conventional automatic. Like most electric cars, the initial acceleration is startling as the electric motor delivers its maximum 245lb ft of torque virtually from a standstill. It falters away above 50mph, however, as the torque slopes off, although the 90mph top speed is…………… continues on Telegraph.co.uk
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Tuesday-Wednesday Log (5-15 to 5-16): Spousal Battery, Stolen Vehicle Found on …
News from Patch.com:
Petty Theft: On May 15, 2012 at 08:46 a.m. a resident from the 100 block of Bluebird Court reported the theft of her Coach purse which contained a matching Coach wallet and a bracelet. Total value approximately $ 800. The victim believes the purse was in a Trader Joes bag she forgot on the driveway of her home the night before. She didn’t realize her mistake until she arrived at work in Oakland this morning.
Spousal Battery: On May 16, 2012 at 2:26 a.m. Officers were dispatched to the 1000 block of Crepe Myrtle for an alleged assault. The victim called to report that her husband, a 41-year-old resident punched her in the mouth. Upon arrival Officers located the husband walking from the residence. After the victim was interviewed, her husband was placed under arrest on suspicion of spousal battery and transported to Martinez Detention Facility without incident.
Lost Property: On May 16, 2012, at 8:53 a.m. an Officer was dispatched to HPD for a lobby detail. A resident from the 100 block of Cardinal reported th…………… continues on Patch.com
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Posted on May 9th, 2012 by admin
Ford Nixes Summer Shutdown To Boost Output By 40000 Vehicles
News from Huffington Post:
DETROIT — Rising car and truck sales have prompted Ford Motor Co. to add a week of production at 13 North American factories so the company can make another 40,000 vehicles this year.
Ford said Tuesday that it would cut in half the normal two-week summer shutdown at six assembly plants and seven engine and parts plants. Auto plants normally close for two weeks around the July 4 holiday as they switch over to make vehicles for the next model year.
Through April, U.S. auto sales ran at an annual rate of more than 14 million, substantially higher than last year’s 12.8 million. Ford sales were up 5 percent. Tota…………… continues on Huffington Post
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Air-Powered Car Coming to India
News from Discovery News:
This car runs on the ultimate emissions-free fuel: air.
In 2007, Mumbai, India-based Tata Motors signed a licensing deal with Motor Development International, a French design firm. The idea was to build a car that could run on compressed air. Now Tata says it has tested two cars with the engines. The next step is setting up the manufacturing plants to actually build them.
BLOG: LED Handlebars Illuminate Bike Safety
DNEWS VIDEO: FUTURE OF CARS AND TRANSPORTATION continues on Discovery News
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Posted on May 8th, 2012 by admin
Ford Says Parts Shortages Curtail Ranger Output in Asia
News from BusinessWeek:
Ford Motor Co. (F) (F), working to reverse losses in Asia, remains hamstrung by auto parts shortages that are limiting production of the Ranger small pickup.
Flooding in Thailand last year delayed the start of production of Ford’s Ranger factory there by two months, Joe Hinrichs, the automaker’s Asia chief, told reporters in Dearborn, Michigan, today. The Ranger plant still isn’t operating at full production because Thai suppliers are struggling to recover from the floods, he said.
“The supply base is still fragile and overwhelmed in Thailand,” Hinrichs said. “On any given day, someone will be a little bit short.”
The new Ranger, which isn’t sold in the U.S., is a key model for Ford as it attempts to become profitable in Asia this year. The loss of Ranger production was a “significant contributor” to the $ 178 million in pretax operating losses Ford reported in the Asia Pacific…………… continues on BusinessWeek
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Bucks Co. Auto Parts Dealer Under The Microscope
News from MyFox Philadelphia:
Updated: Tuesday, 08 May 2012, 10:48 PM EDT
Published : Tuesday, 08 May 2012, 10:24 PM EDT
A Bucks county auto parts dealer is under the microscope by police. We first told you last night about a car stolen, just towed away and made into scrap metal!
Well that may be just the tip of the iceberg. Police tell us the South End Auto Parts scrap metal yard would accept anything and everything in exchange for cash. Even if that stuff was stolen.
Turn in scrap metal and get cash. No questions asked. That’s how police say South End Auto Parts in Falls Township is doing business.
Guillermo Luna says this is video of a South End Auto Parts tow truck taking his car. The Buick that was worth more than $ 3000 was crushed for scrap metal for $ 500.
The problem Luna never gave permission he still has the title. Trenton police are still investigating.
So far no arrests have been made. But with at least 3 jurisdictions investigating this company charges may come this week.
…………… continues on MyFox Philadelphia
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Posted on March 18th, 2012 by admin
Ford, GM look to expand into Indian market
News from Washington Post:
Jan. 25, 2012
Indians pass a billboard ad for an American sports car in New Delhi. American car manufacturers are placing a new focus on India, the world’s sixth-largest car market.
Kevin Frayer / AP
March 6, 2012
Workers work on a car at General Motors’ vehicle assembly plant in the Indian state of Gujarat. The western state is emerging as a major new auto hub and attracting investment from U.S. carmakers eager to tap into the fast-expanding Indian market.
Simon Denyer / The Washington Post
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Honda Motors eyes India as hub for diesel engines for compact cars
News from Economic Times:
MUMBAI: Around the same time the finance minister was reading out his Budget speech, Honda Motors was applying the final touches to its long-term diesel game plan for India, which will culminate in India emerging a global hub for diesel engines for compact cars.
With Pranab Mukherjee steering clear of imposing a cess of diesel-engine powered cars in his budgetary proposals, Honda Siel, the Japanese carmaker’s Indian venture, can pursue its plans of creating a diesel engine portfolio, which is non-existent today.
The action has already begun at Honda’s R&D centre in Tochigi, where prototypes of diesel engines of 1.4 to 1.5 litres for compact cars are currently being worked on by some of the company’s best engineers from across the globe.
“Honda R&D is currently developing a small diesel engine. However, we do not have anything specific to share right no…………… continues on Economic Times
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Posted on March 13th, 2012 by admin
Feds probe complaints of stuck throttles in 1.9 million Ford Taurus and …
News from Washington Post:
DETROIT — Federal safety regulators are investigating complaints that accelerators can stick in Ford Tauruses from model years 2005 and 2006.
The investigation, opened Wednesday, covers an estimated 360,000 of the sedans. The probe could lead to a recall, but so far none has been ordered by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a federal safety agency. The investigation does not include a nearly identical car, the Mercury Sable.
NHTSA said on its website that 14 people have complained about the problem. No crashes or injuries have been reported. Drivers have reported that it was hard to stop the car with brakes. Several said they had to shut off the engine or shift into neutral to stop. One driver ran a red light and entered an intersection before the car could be stopped.
The agency says the cruise control cable may become detached and hold the throttle open.
Ford spokesman Daniel Pierce said the company is cooperating in the probe. He said the company was just notified of the investigation and he did not know why the Sable…………… continues on Washington Post
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Detroit Finds Small Is Beautiful as Compact Buyers Return: Cars
News from Bloomberg:
When the engine blew on his eight- year-old Toyota Matrix last year, Shane Wilson needed a new car fast and wanted something good on gas. He shopped the usual suspects: small Honda and Toyota models he’d owned in the past. Then he surprised himself by buying a Chevrolet Cruze.
“I thought American cars were pretty horrid and that they tended to fall apart,” said Wilson, 36, an accounts manager for the Internal Revenue Service in Seattle. “But the Cruze was fun to drive and the interior was light-years better than American cars used to be.”
Small cars, once the Achilles’ heel of U.S. automakers, are becoming a strength. Sales of Bloomberg
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Posted on February 9th, 2012 by admin
MotorWeek 2012 Drivers’ Choice Best of the Year: Ford Mustang Boss 302
News from Sacramento Bee:
CHICAGO, Feb. 8, 2012 – /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — A thoroughly modern muscle car that remains true to its legendary heritage, the Ford Mustang Boss 302 roars past the competition, capturing MotorWeek’s “Best of the Year” 2012 Drivers’ Choice Award. MotorWeek, television’s longest running automotive series, has presented its Drivers’ Choice Awards annually since 1983. The awards are among the auto industry’s most prestigious honors and are announced at the Chicago Auto Show. The Mustang Boss 302 took top honors for preserving its pony car roots, while delivering exceptional performance, power and comfort.
“We are honored to receive this award for the Boss 302,” said Dave Pericak, Mustang Chief Engineer. “Our goal was to pay homage to the heritage of this vehicle while transforming it into a world-class sports car recognized for its handling and track capabilities. It’s a fun job and I attribute the product’s success to the Mustang enthusiasts and fans who help us improve with each and every model.”
…………… continues on Sacramento Bee
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Burning car ignites tires, causes $ 250K in damages
News from Carwash Online:
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Posted on November 3rd, 2011 by admin
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The Ford Focus Electric is priced a few thousand dollars more than the Nissan Leaf.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Ford has begun to take orders for its first plug-in passenger car, the Focus Electric, in New York, New Jersey and California.
The car’s price will start at about $ 39,995, about the same as General Motors’ (GM, Fortune 500) Chevrolet Volt. But unlike the Volt, the Focus Electric is a purely electric car. While the Volt can only go about 35 miles on a fully charged battery, according to EPA estimates, it has a gasoline engine to provide power for driving longer distances.
Because purely electric cars’ driving range can vary depending on weather conditions and driving style, drivers may worry about getting stuck without a charge, something that has been called “range anxiety.”
Ford has said the Focus’s range will be “competitive” with that of the fully electric Nissan Leaf, which can go about 73 miles on a charge, according to EPA estimates. Prices for the Leaf start at about $ 35,000.< …CNN
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Posted on October 26th, 2011 by admin
div id=”byline” class=”txt vcard author contributor” typeof=”v:Person vcard:VCard” rel=”dc:creator” itemscope=”" itemtype=”http://data-vocabulary.org/Person”>By Bernie Woodall and Ben Klayman
updated 17 minutes ago 2011-10-26T17:25:14
DETROIT — Ford Motor Co posted lower third-quarter earnings after misjudging the threat of higher commodity costs and writing down the value of hedge positions.
But it was the 10th consecutive quarterly profit for the No. 2 U.S. automaker and topped Wall Street forecasts, extending a recovery expected to clear the way for a resumption of dividends.
Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth told reporters Ford would not be addressing the timing of reinstituting a dividend yet. It last paid a dividend in September 2006.
The company on Wednesday posted third-quarter net income of $ 1.65 billion, or 41 cents per share, down from $ 1.69 billion, or 43 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose to $ 33.1 billion from $ 29 billion.
…MSNBC
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Posted on October 26th, 2011 by admin
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Chrysler Group, which makes Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles and which has lagged competitors in quality for years, enjoyed a rise in the rankings. The Dodge Durango was rated as the most reliable large SUV.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Ford Motor Co., long the standard bearer for quality among Detroit automakers, slipped in Consumer Reports’ most recent quality survey, apparently undone by a string of challenging new vehicle launches and the introduction of increasingly complex new technologies.
“When you look at Ford, being the darlings for reliable cars, they’ve dropped 10 places,” said David Champion, head of auto testing for Consumer Reports magazine.
In recent years Ford had earned a place among the most reliable automakers, but recent introductions and new technologies have caused problems.
Ford (F, Fortune 500) has released a complex new stereo interface for its cars called MyFord Touch. The system has suffered from a number of problems, including computer crashes, said Champion, especially in cold weather.
It has also launched a number of new and redesigned models, including the Explorer, Fiesta and the Focus. The Focus and Fiesta, in particular, h …CNN
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Posted on October 21st, 2011 by admin
div class=”txt timestamp” content=”2011-10-21T16:56:50″>updated 10/21/2011 12:56:50 PM ET 2011-10-21T16:56:50
DETROIT — With a key debt rating agency giving it the thumbs-up – and further hikes anticipated – Ford Motor Co. is signaling it may soon restore its dividend, a move that could, in turn, help revive the maker’s flagging stock price.
With Ford now indicating its new contract with the United Auto Workers Union will actually lower its labor costs, Fitch Ratings bumped the carmaker’s credit rating up a notch to “BB+” on Thursday, S&P taking the same step on Friday while also removing Ford from its CreditWatch. Those upgrades fall just one step short of reaching the investment grade targeted by Ford CEO Alan Mulally.
In the past, it had been expected that Ford would wait until getting that investment grade status before restoring the dividend but, during a meeting with investors, Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth indicated the additional upgrade, “is not an absolute necessity to pay dividends.”
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…MSNBC
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