truth about domestics

Ford Motor Company has been making huge strides the last few years to improve everything from quality and safety, to technology and fuel economy.  On the last front, Ford has been pushing its EcoBoost technology.  EcoBoost is the combination of direct gas injection and turbocharging.  I know what you’re thinking, doesn’t turbocharging increase power and performance, thus decreasing fuel economy?  Well the direct injection allows a cooler charge, allowing for higher compression ratios, which helps enable more power and reduced emissions.  On top of that, the extra power generated will allow downsizing of the engine.  Once you take weight out of the engine, you can take weight out of the car, and the cycle repeats itself.

The first applications of EcoBoost are on the Ford Flex and Taurus SHO, and Lincoln MKS and MKT.  They feature a 3.5L V6 that produces the power of a V8 but the fuel economy of a V6.  Soon Ford will be installing the 3.5L into the F-150 and a new 2.0L inline-four cylinder EcoBoost into the 2011 Edge and upcoming Explorer.

Why am I telling you all this mostly well-known information?  Simple.  To give you background into an independent survey of EcoBoost owners.  You see, the RDA Group of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan has conducted a survey of the 10,000 or so EcoBoost owners and the results are nothing short of amazing.  Ford scored nearly 100% customer satisfaction on EcoBoost equipped vehicles.  Those vehicles are also exceeding market projections.  Having driven all of the EcoBoost vehicles myself I can tell you that this is no fluke.  These powertrains are the real deal; they deliver improved performance and fuel economy.  For more details, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: Ford)

The Ford Edge crossover has just been named the Pet Safe Vehicle of Choice Top Dog award from Bark Buckle UP!  Things like ease of ingress/egress, ventilation, and the space a vehicle provides.  Along with the Edge, 3 other Ford Motor Company products took home awards including the Ford Transit Connect, the Flex and the Lincoln MKT.  For the full story, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: Ford)

I recently came across a site that offers an interesting view point on automobiles.  That is the viewpoint of a mom.  A mother.  Mommy.  That site is Motherproof.com.  The reviewer, Lori Hindman, has 2 kids and was recently given a Ford Flex with Ecoboost to try out and she loved it.  She mentioned the extra power you get with Ecoboost and the fact that it doesn’t cost you more when you fill up at the pump.  Active Park Assist was also mentioned.  It’s the system that parallel parks your so equipped Flex for you, all you do is control the brake and throttle.  Well Lori here said the system worked like magic, and it’s true, I have seen Active Park Assist in action and it is really impressive.  For the full review, head on over to Motherproof.com!

(Image source: Ford)

And people say the domestics don’t build cars people want to buy!  Kelly Blue Book, a third-party car value rating company, has compiled a list of the Top 10 Family haulers of 2010.  The list includes some big names, but the shock to me is that the domestics had a whopping 6 cars make the list!  The list is as follows:

• Chevrolet Suburban
• Chevrolet Traverse
• Chevrolet Equinox
• Ford Flex
• Ford Taurus
• Ford Fusion hybrid
• Honda Odyssey
• Honda Accord Crosstour
• Subaru Outback
• Hyundai Elantra Touring

The domestics had home runs in this list with vehicles ranging from a 9 passenger SUV to crossovers to hybrids to sedans.  Looks like the domestics can do it all.  For more details on these great vehicles, head on over to KBB.com.

According to an article in The Detroit News, some Lincoln dealers are a bit upset about how long the Lincoln transformation is taking.  They are also upset about the fact that an MKS costs $10,000 more than its sibling D-car, the Ford Taurus.  Many dealers complain that the cross shopping isn’t happening between Lincoln and Audi/Mercedes/BMW/Lexus, but instead people are cross shopping Lincoln with Ford.  I for one am glad that vehicles like the MKS/Taurus and MKT/Flex have different top hats completely, but I think the other vehicles in Lincoln’s lineup need to follow suit.  The 2011 Ford Edge and MKX didn’t go far enough in my book to separate the two models from each other.  Customers want to feel like they got a car that is more special than a fancy Ford since they paid a good deal more for it.  For the full story, head on over to The Detroit News.

(Image source: Lincoln)

Man!  The hits just keep on coming for Ford!  All of the 15 second long “Drive One” ads were created without the customers knowing they were being filmed for a Ford commercial.  They were just asked to talk about what they loved on their new Ford and the praise just started flowing!

Ford Motor Company has a lot to be proud of this year.  The automaker was the only one of the Domestic three to avoid bankruptcy and they passed on the government bailout.  The 2010 Ford Fusion won Motor Trend’s car of the year, and now it appears they have something else to celebrate.  According to the results of the ALG January/February 2010 Residual Value Forecast, the average residual value of a Ford, Lincoln or Mercury vehicle is up an average of $1,310 versus the same period in 2009!  That’s the biggest jump amongst any automaker in the industry!

Ford has passed Toyota for best in initial quality, and the Fusion hybrid surpassed the Camry hybrid by 8 mpg in the city.  Now they have another award to add to their portfolio; the Fusion is worth $687 MORE than the Camry after 36 months!  The Flex also knocked the Toyota Highlander hard, being worth $1,800 more than the Toyota in three years!

The Ford Taurus and Super Duty trucks won the Kelly Blue Book Best Residual Value awards for their segments.  Ford also posted the highest customer consideration, even besting Toyota for the first time since the survey started in 2002.  For more details, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: Ford)

Automobile magazine named it’s list of 2009′s All-Stars and the list has some big names on it.  Cars from Audi, BMW, Porsche, and Jaguar all made the list.  The surprises are the 4 domestic cars that made the list!  The Dodge Ram 1500, Chevrolet Camaro, Ford Flex and Fusion all made the list!  This just shows you how good these cars really are!  What I can’t seem to put my finger on is which automakers are not in the 10 All-Star list…lets see…oh wow, NONE of the Japanese automakers made the list!  That’s SOO weird!  I thought their cars were the best of the best???  This surely must be a mistake.  Or the magazine just knows what true car fans know, that the Japanese cars are too boring to be All-Stars.  For more on the list, head on over to Automobile magazine.

(Image source: Automobile magazine)

Ford rolled out some interesting vinyl graphics on the 2011 Fiesta at the LA Auto Show this December and announced that these graphics would be available from the factory.  Now word has come out that Ford will be offering graphics packages on every single Ford family vehicle.  Head on over to Autoblog to see a gallery of just some of the graphics available.

(Image source: Autoblog)

Ford’s 15 second Drive One ads seem to be working out well for the automaker…or at least that’s what I would guess seeing as how they have come out with 5 sets of new ads.  Let us know what you think of the videos above!