Monday, January 23, 2012

A Good Year at Ford


It’s been a good year for Ford. They did have to deal withsome recalls involving wheel bearing hub assemblies on some sedans and rustingfuel tanks containing fuel pump assemblies on trucks. However, like other autocompanies, Ford had a very strong year and will be giving out bonuses to theirworkers for the first time since the financial meltdown. Ford has gained steam thispast year selling more than 2 million cars for the first time since 2007, andthey show no signs of stopping with their completely remodeled 2013 lineup.

The Ford Escape, Fusion, Taurus and Focus will all show dramatic departures in styling from previous years in 2013. I’m really likingthe 2013 Ford Fusion whose front-end (to me) resembles that of an Aston Martin.The Fusion will come not only in a gasoline-powered model, but in electricplug-in and hybrid versions as well. The Ford Escape, which has kept its boxystyling since it was introduced over ten years ago, will now resemble more of across-over with its new curves and smoother lines.

What might be the coolest part of future Ford automobiles isthe technology that they will be equipped with. Ford’s MyFord Touch and SYNCsystem not only syncs all of your devices to the vehicle but takes it one stepfurther with voice-activated commands. You will now be able to tell your carwhat song to play, have it read you your text messages, and also reply to thosemessages through voice commands. New safety features include inflatable rearsafety belts and vehicle sensors used to monitor blinds spots and givecollision warnings. You can simply set a cruise control speed and the distanceyou want to maintain from the vehicle in front of you, and the car willautomatically slow down to avoid collisions. Other cool features includecap-less fuel tanks as well as the ability to control the color of dash and interior ambientlighting (blue, red, green, you name it!). Will 2012 be another great year forFord?


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