Following Hybrid Ford Escape, Ford Announces Expansion of Hybrid Car & Truck Models

Ford Motor Co. announced at the 2005 North American International Auto Show in Detroit that it is planning to expand the selection of Ford gasoline-electric hybrid car models. The move is viewed to be a part of CEO, William Clay Ford Jr.'s, mission to create cleaner fuel burning Ford cars and trucks. A gasoline-electric version of the Mariner SUV is reported to be available to the public sometime this year. Ford also said hybrid versions of the new Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan will go on sale as early as 2008.

An auto industry expert explained the mechanics of hybrid car and truck engines as using an electric motor at lower speeds, which burns less gasoline and therefore less emissions. In 2004 the Ford Escape Hybrid was unveiled as the first such vehicle available from the company.

Industry analysts report that the 2004 Ford hybrid Escape SUV came after Toyota Motor Corp.'s launching of its line-up of hybrids by seven years and Honda Motor Co.'s hybrid car debut by five. Recently, GM and DaimlerChrysler announced they partnered up in a joint effort to design a gasoline-electric hybrid engine by 2007.

In May of 2004, Mr. Ford stated that improvement of fuel efficiency in Ford cars and trucks presents a 'business opportunity'. Ford also stated previously that it is planning to unveil a test fleet of hybrid Mazda Tribute SUVs on the road sometime in 2005 with production forecasted for 2007. Ford manufactures the Mazda Tribute for affiliate Mazda Motor Corp.

The Ford Escape, Mariner and Mazda Tribute all have several common components. The hybrid versions of each model will be produced in the same assembly plant in Kansas City.

Ford Fusion & Other Flagship Models' Ad Spend to Increase 15% for 2005

Ford Division President Steve Lyons recently announced at the 2005 Detroit North American International Auto Show that the company is planning to increase advertising spending by around 15%. A move it hopes will further promote its flagship Ford-brand vehicles, including the new mid-size Ford Fusion sedan that will be available to the public later this year.

Auto industry insiders report that Ford's 2004 ad spending reached a record high. Mr. Lyons stated that "We are increasing our advertising budget very substantially this year ... adding $50 million to $100 million. The increase will amount to a year-on-year rise 'in the 15% range'."

Ford is reported to have spent more than $150 million in 2004 fourth-quarter advertising, mainly to market the Ford Five Hundred car, Freestyle wagon and its other new or recently redesigned cars and trucks.

Ford Escape Earns Top Truck Honors at North American International Auto Show

A panel of journalists at the 2005 Detroit North American International Auto Show selected the Ford Escape Hybrid as the top truck, beating out the new Land Rover LR3 and the Ford Freestyle. To be eligible, panelists explained, the vehicles must be "all new" or "substantially changed" from the previous model release.

Stephen Lyons, Ford division president, stated that the automaker is currently experiencing trouble keeping up with high demand for the company's first hybrid model and the first American gasoline-electric hybrid, following on the footsteps of Toyota and Honda whom originally introduced the gasoline-electric engine concept to the US market. "It's the first SUV hybrid," Mr. Lyons explained. "It's unique. You get all the advantage of hybrid fuel economy and the practicality of an SUV."

Lyons added that he believes it is an advantage to be the first automaker to market a hybrid SUV, ahead of Honda, Toyota and General Motors. These companies report that they are planning to unveil their respective hybrid SUV models to the United States in 2005 and 2006. "Very clearly there's a demand way beyond what we thought," Mr. Lyons continued, explaining the 20,000 SUV trucks planned for US production in 2005 "won't be nearly enough."

This year marked the second year in a row that a hybrid car or truck was chosen for top honors by the panel. In 2004 the Toyota Prius was the North American Car of the Year. Since 1994 the selection committee, made up of automotive journalists representing newspapers, magazines and television, honors a new car and a new truck that it feels has achieved a standard in their sectors in categories including value, innovation, safety, ride and handling.

Ford Taurus to be Driven by Jourdain Jr. in 2005 NASCAR Busch Series

Race car driver Michel Jourdain Jr. has recently signed a deal with Ford Motorsports to drive a Ford Taurus for ppc Racing in the 2005 NASCAR Busch Series. He will be the first Hispanic to race a full NASCAR Busch schedule. ''I'm very excited about this chance,'' Jourdain said in a statement to the press. ''I've been wanting to come to NASCAR for a couple years now, and (Ford Racing director) Dan Davis worked very hard with me to find the right opportunity where I could have a chance to work and learn with a top team like ppc.''

Jourdain Jr. is the son of the well-known Mexican racer Michel Jourdain Sr. Jourdain Jr. became the youngest Champ Car driver at age 19 in 1996 and was the former CART series' Most Improved Driver in 1997. In 152 career Champ Car starts, Jourdain earned two wins, 25 top-10 finishes and nine podiums. In 2003, when he raced for Team Rahal, he had his best championship finish with a third. But Jourdain shifted to RuSport last season rather than go with Rahal to the IRL.

Because of his lack of superspeedway experience, it is currently unclear whether NASCAR will approve Jourdain to drive the Ford Tuarus at the February season-opener there. He is already cleared to race on many other tracks, including the Mexico City road course. The Busch cars compete there in March this year.

''This is something that has been in the works for a couple years, and we've been looking for an opportunity like this to give a deserving driver like Michel the chance to succeed in NASCAR,'' Mr. Davis, the Ford Racing Director, stated. ''The fact that we've been able to get this program together this year when the series is going to have its first race in Mexico just adds to the excitement.'' The team will compete with cars in all three of NASCAR's premier divisions. John Andretti drives a Ford Taurus for ppc in the Nextel Cup series, Kenny Wallace in Busch and Terry Cook in Craftsman Truck.

Ford Explorer Sport Trac Concept to Debut at 2005 Detroit Auto Show

The Ford Explorer Sport Trac concept version will be shown off at the 2005 Detroit auto show in January. The design will still embody the Sport Trac part truck, part SUV characteristics, a Ford spokesman revealed.

Ford officials have hinted that the Sport Trac concept pushes both the interior and the cargo bed to larger dimensions, larger than the existing Explorer Sport Trac, which first launched in 2001. A version of Ford’s 4.6-liter V8 engine will power it, and it will ride on a version of the Ford’s newest Explorer platform that rolled out in 2003, with its independent rear suspension setup.

It will also be equipped with the automaker’s exclusive Roll Stability Control system. Ford Officials also insinuated the concept vehicle will keep the existing Sport Trac in the lineup, instead of being discontinued as was previously believed.

Ford Explorer & Excursion Sales Continue to Decline

Sources close to Ford declared sales of the Ford Explorer have continued to decline as the year ends in 2004. Sales of the Ford Explorer SUV fell 9% in November to 24,467 while sales of the larger Ford Excursion fell even more at 42% to 1,867. Both vehicles have experienced continued sales declines this year.

Ford has indicated it plans to cut one of two production shifts at its St. Louis Ford Explorer plant at the beginning of next year.

Industry analysts have reminded the public, however, that the F-Series truck sales have remained strong in 2004. Sales of Ford's F-Series pick-up truck line, which includes the Super Duty trucks built at the Kentucky Truck Plant, increased 2.7 percent to 66,477. F-Series sales have increased every month for the past 15 months. For the past three months, Ford has credited a new version of the Super Duty line for keeping sales up.

Ford F-150 Pickup Trucks Expected to Hit Record Sales for 2004

Ford Motor Co. has reported that it is nearing a record number of sales of the F-Series large pickup trucks in 2004. The truck market currently accounts for more than a quarter of Ford's domestic sales. It has edged out Nissan Motors line of trucks and and Toyota trucks as well.

Ford Trucks spokesman Jon Harmon said "Ford is very confident we'll break the record'' for full-size pickup sales. Sales of the F-150 Series pickup trucks until now were just 20,000 behind the peak of 911,597 in 2001, Harmon continued. Ford was the only U.S.-based automaker not to lose share in large pickups to the Nissans Titan and Toyota Tundra.

According to Autodata Corp. the F-Series trucks were overhauled and redesigned in the past two years, with Ford in 2003 calling the redesigned F-150, which accounts for 60% of the trucks' sales, its most important vehicle introduction that year. The F-Series boosted its U.S. market share for large pickup trucks 1.1 percentage points to 38.1% in 2004 through November.

Ford will also be counting on new and redesigned vehicles such as the Five Hundred sedan to stem a 14% drop in car sales this year, led by the Ford Taurus and Ford Thunderbird.

2005 Ford Freestyle to Offer Multitude of Options

The 2005 Ford Freestyle crossover SUV, with a chassis and certain styling characteristics similar to the Ford Five Hundred, has been officially launched by Ford Motors.

Descriptions of the new Ford Freestyle, as reported by a Ford marketing press release, include Ford Freestyle as a midsize crossover sport utility that could be described as a Ford 500 station wagon. It will be marketed to compete against the Toyota Highlander, which is also a crossover version of the Toyota 4Runner SUV.

Features of the Ford Freestyle are reported to include third row seating, foldaway seats, leather front bucket seats, 3.0-liter, 203-horsepower V-6 engine (similar to the Five Hundred) and continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT).

Fuel economy of the Freestyle rates at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 24 on the highway. Pricing is said to begin at at $25,595 for the two-wheel-drive base Ford Freestyle SE model and $27,295 for the all-wheel-drive version.

Freestyle options include power moon roof, 18-inch aluminum wheels, fog lights, rear climate control, factory Ford roof rack, DVD entertainment center with ceiling-mounted LCD screen, power and heated folding exterior mirrors, keyless-entry keypad on the driver's door, automatic headlights, backup sensing safety system, leather-trimmed seats, Audiophile AM/FM/CD stereo with in-dash, six-disc changer, eight-way power driver's and four-way power passenger's seat, dual-zone automatic climate control, side air curtain, and driver and passenger side air bags, anti-theft perimeter alarm, woodgrain interior accents, driver message center, heated front seats, power windows and door locks with remote, cruise control, four-wheel antilock disc brakes, power adjustable floor pedals with memory and power steering.