Category: Ford

The rising gas prices combined with the debt crisis make another victim. After the pickup models, Ford has announced it will decrease the production of the V8 Mustang.

The announcement is surprising as the V8 engine represents 52% of the sales compared to 30% originally planned, but Ford expects 2008 to be gloomy and doesn’t want to end giving discount to get rid of unwanted stocks.

In November, sales decreased by 28.1% from 10,230 to 7,352 over the same period last year and since the beginning of the year, sales decreased by 18.1%. The November fall might be explained by the pre-orders taken by Chrysler for the new Challenger.

The next-generation Mustang will be unveiled in 2009 and some development mules have already been spotted.

Expected to be launched in 2090, a face-lifted Ford Mustang’s development mule has been caught under winter testing. One does not expect to see a revolution as the current still meets a big success.

Ford designers will focus on modernising the current lines and making them a bit sportier to fight the future competitors such as the new Challenger. The front face and grille, and the taillights will be revamped. The interior styling will also be revamped.

Secrecy surrounds the pony icon’s specs at this early stage but it is thought that the car will remain the same with a small V6 4.0-litre petrol engine and the range-topping V8 4.6-litre petrol unit.

Source: Car & Driver

The picture you see here is the undisguised future Ford Kuga, which will be on sale next spring. The production model will not strongly differ from the concept car , Iosis X, already unveiled at the last Frankfurt Motor Show in September.

The European Ford’s first crossover will feature the ‘kinetic design’ look and feel. It will be powered only with a 134bhp 2.0 -litre oil burner for launch. Associated with a six-speed manual gearbox, Ford expect the diesel unit to be the biggest seller. Nevetherless, the carmaker might add a petrol engine if there is a demand for petrol powered crossover.

Like the S-Max, the Kuga will offer the Ford Individual programme, which enables customers to personalise the interior and exterior of the small SUV and will surely adds millions to Ford’s bottom line.

The Kuga will be based on the C1 platform, which is also used by the Land Rover Freelander. While the Freelander features an all-wheel drive system, the Kuga will be more road-biased. It will offer front-wheel drive as standard and a four-wheel drive system will be available as an option.

The Kuga will be built at Ford’s Saarlouis in Germany, which makes the Focus. Ford plans to build 65,000 cars here every year.

Source: Autoblog

According to Automotive News, Ford will cease the production of the Ranger model. The American car maker will close its Twin Cities factory in 2009 and its Cleveland engine plant later at the end of that year.

Built in the Twin Cities factory, Ford did not say whether it would build the Ranger in another plant or not. According to company sources, the manufacturer wants to focus on the next F-150 due to be unveiled at the next Detroit Motor Show.

The first Ranger was on sale for the first time 26 years ago.

For its 60th birthday, the Ford’s cash cow will likely be renewed at the next Detroit Motor Show and spy photographers shot a prototype almost completely undisguised.

Surprisingly, the next generation features a lightly revised exterior. The goal is to adopt the Ford’s new design and reinforce the ties with the Edge and Flex models. The fascia gets the new three bar grille, new headlights, new taillights and new rear-view mirrors.

There is no information regarding the engines, although it is understood that the next F-150 will likely be powered by the new 6.2 litre Boss engine. This big V8 will replace the current V8 Modular engine. It is rumoured to develop around 425 bhp.

Source: TheCarConnection

Ford has unveiled a Verve saloon concept car at the Guangzhou Motor Show in China. The production version is destined for Asian markets and will be introduced there next year. However, Ford might consider importing it in Europe if there is demand for a small saloon.

The four-door Verve is very similar to the three-door hatchback unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show and features the Verve’s aggressive egg-crate grille, the radically raked windscreen, the coupe-like roofline and the fascia design. Like the future Fiesta, it is based on the Mazda 2 platform. Curiously, the Japanese subsidiary also unveiled a Mazda 2 saloon on Monday.

The Verve saloon concept car is the second of the three Fiesta concepts unveiled or to be unveiled. Ford will show a SUV variant at the next Detroit Motor Show. The SUV will be a larger five-door model destined for the American market. As Ford China COO said “Our future small car [Fiesta] is being developed as a global car. It will be designed in Europe, engineered in Germany and manufactured globally.” It was not mentioned if Ford plans to also import the SUV in Europe. The Fiesta’s main rival in the UK, the Peugeot 207, features estate, coupé/cabrio and soon a SUV in its range.

With the expected sales (launch?) of Jaguar and Land Rover over the coming months, Ford will lose its tiny premium brand market share. Lincoln appears to be the only brand able to fight the German clique, but Ford has no plan to move the American icon upmarket.

Instead of losing money in the upper segments, Ford wants Lincoln to focus on the segments that are below the £30,000 tag. The brand will expand its line-up. This week, it will unveil its new MKS flagship at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

Internally dubbed D385, the MKS is a saloon based on the Ford D3 platform, which in turn is based on the Volvo P2 platform used by the current S60 and XC90. The new saloon is expected to be powered by the Duratec 35 3.5 liter V6, but in bigger version up to 3.7 liter.

Ford will release a 4×4 version of its Verve concept car at the next Detroit Motor Show in January. Like the original Verve concept car, it will share its platform with the next Fiesta, which shares its underpinnings with the recently launched Mazda 2.

The SUV will feature a small-capacity turbocharged engine and is planned to go on sale in 2009.