Ford Releases Videos of Its New Police Interceptors Taking on the Competition

Ford has released a series of six videos with the Taurus and Explorer-based police vehicles undergoing various tests performed by police officers. The performance, handling and durability of the Interceptors were tested in a series of real-world police maneuvers and driving conditions and then compared to those of the competitors. The six videos show Ford's police cars taking on the Chevrolet Tahoe PPV and Dodge Charger Pursuit in a series of tests to find out which are the most capable purpose-built police cars.

We will remind you that both models are available with all-wheel-drive and a choice of powertrains, all of them being at least 20 percent more fuel-efficient than the current 4.6-liter V8 of the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor – always according to Ford.

The Exlporer Interceptor has a 3.7-liter V6 engine mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox and delivers 300 horsepower and E85 compatibility, while the sedan is offered with two engine choices, a 280-hp 3.5-liter V6 that is E85 compatible or a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 twin-turbocharged engine with direct-injection developing 365 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque (475 Nm).

Both Police Interceptors will be built at Ford's Chicago plant from the end of this year right after the end of production of the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor.

By Dan Mihalascu

VIDEOS

Foxy Mustang vs. Tree: Tree 1, Mustang Nil [with Video]

What enterprising youth hasn’t hooned around an empty car park in a car? I think it’s safe to say that most motoring enthusiasts would have at one stage in their lives, before they had the bravado to exercise their “skillz” [sic] on the track (or, in some cases, a nasty accident that makes them take pause). Well, think of this video as the interim stage between, “Parking Lot Racer” and “Certified Track Demon”.

So we have this guy (it would have to be, yeah?) in a post-1987 Mustang. He’s participating in some sort of coned off track racing shenanigans. It’s all fun and games power sliding through the cones until the 1:05 minute mark. Then...BAM! On the plus side, the car hit on the passenger side, which appears from the video to be unoccupied.

One thing’s for certain; it’ll be a long time before this driver takes another Fox body Mustang around that tree-lined car park. Check out the video below and leave your piece in the comments section.

By Tristan Hankins

Via: Autoholics

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VIDEO: Ford Model T’s Assembly Process Still Looks Amazing Even Today

Few cars have revolutionized the automotive industry like the Ford Model T did. Besides being the first affordable vehicle, the “Tin Lizzie” is also known for its devilishly efficient mass assembly process, enabling Ford to build 15 million units in 19 years. Granted, it had a fairly simple design, but the rate at which workers were able to build one is amazing even today. The video we found shows how the front axle is built and attached to the frame. Hit the jump to watch the clip.

By Csaba Daradics

Source: Vintage Ford Facts

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Polish Ford Mustang Club Shows how to YouTube America's Original Pony Car

It’s no secret that I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Mustang man. Though I acknowledge the gorgeous styling, sweet-as-syrup handling and raw power of cars like the Chevy Camaro, I know at heart I’d take a ’67 Mustang fastback over one of them any day.

So when the chaps and chapettes at the Mustang Klub Polska (Polish Mustang Club) release a video that not only features a dozen great Mustangs but also the cinematography to do these cars justice, you know I’m gonna pounce on this quicker than the news pounces on any story about Lindsay Lohan.

There are so many Mustangs in this vid, it’s hard to keep track of them all, but you’ll surely pick out the 2008 Mustang Bullitt, Dark Highland Green ’67 GT Fastback, red ‘65 convertible with the white top, a handful of 2010 Shelby GT500 Super Snakes and countless others including a few Foose Mustangs and a handful of Gen 4’s.

It’s a Mustang orgy. It’s like Adam West dropping the ‘66 Batmobile off at your house. It’s like Hollywood making a movie adaptation of an old TV show that doesn’t suck. It’s like Justin Bieber and George Lucas retiring on the same day, promising to not record any more songs or make any more Star Wars spin-offs.

It’s that good. So check out the video and leave your mark in the comments section below.

By Tristan Hankins

Via: Motofilm

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Monster World Rally Team Unveils Ken Block’s New Fiesta RS WRC [with New Videos]

Despite stating that 2010 was his best year ever, Ken Block had a disappointing FIA World Rally Championship campaign and was often plagued with mechanical issues in Rally America as well. However, with the support of the Monster World Rally Team (MWRT), the American driver is hoping for a much better 2011 season, as he’s going to participate in more races and events at the wheel of his all-new Monster Energy Ford Fiesta RS WRC rally car.

Block’s schedule includes more WRC rounds as well as the Summer X Games, Gymkhana GRID and select RallyCar rallies and RallyCross events held on U.S. soil.

“2011 is going to be really big for me and the Monster World Rally Team”, Block said. “We’re doing more WRC races this year, kicking off the Gymkhana World Tour, racing in Summer X Games, filming Gymkhana 4, plus hitting up a lot of other rally-related events worldwide. We even have a few top-secret projects in the works. I’m a lucky bastard to be doing all this, it’s going to be an amazing year!”

Aside from unveiling Ken’s new ride, MWRT also released three videos. The first one features the Fiesta RS WRC and some additional eye-candy represented by the lightly dressed Monster Girls. The second clip shows Block answering fan questions, while the third is full of sideways action from his pre-Rally Sweden test.

By Csaba Daradics

The Ken Block and Monster World Rally Team 2011 schedule:

WRC Rally Sweden: February 10-13

WRC Corona Rally Mexico:March 3-6

Goodwood Press Day: March 17

WRC Vodafone Rally de Portugal: March 24-27

WRC Rally Argentina: May 26-29

Weston Festival of Speed: June 3-5

Goodwood Festival of Speed: July 1-3

X Games 17: July 25-30

WRC ADAC Rally Deutschland: August 18-21

WRC Rally Australia: September 8-11

WRC Rallye de France: September 29-October 2

WRC RACC Rally de Espana: October 20-23

SEMA 2011: November 1-4

WRC Wales Rally GB: November 10-13

+

Select RallyCar events

Select RallyCross events

Gymkhana World Tour Australia

Gymkhana World Tour Los Angeles

Gymkhana World Tour Austria

Three top-secret events to be announced

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VIDEO: 83 Y.O. Drives Ford F-150 on the Opposite Side of the Highway, Crashes but Survives!

A freaky but luckily non-fatal highway accident that involved an elderly man driving a 2007 Ford F-150 on the opposite side of the road was caught on film last Friday. The incident took place on the Interstate 5 near Camp Pendleton in San Diego when passengers of a vehicle on the other side of the highway noticed the driver of the Ford, who was later identified as 83 year-old Clarence Kinney, going the wrong way at an unknown speed and then suddenly crashing into the median wall.

According to Police reports, the force of the collision was so strong that it tore the pickup truck in two sending the cab of the F-150 into another lane an onto a tractor, while a Land Rover and a Toyota Sienna were also involved in the crash. Amazingly, no one was seriously injured in the incident.

The police reported that the 83 year-old driver of the F-150 was cited for driving the wrong way as well as for driving on a suspended license., adding that his driving privileges will be examined by the DMV.

Via: Signon Sandiego

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Ford F-150 Video Parody: Presenting the Ballsy Ferd F-Teenthousand

Need a ride to make you feel four times the man you are? Look no further. The Ferd F-Teenthousand is here and it's the biggest and most awesomest pickup truck ever to walk the face of the earth. Ford people and F-150 owners that despise stereotypes and lack a whimsical sense of humor may want to skip this one. The rest can watch the video right after the jump along with a couple of original Ford F-150 ads that inspired the creation of this parody. [NSFW].

Source: Youtube via Jalopnik

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VIDEO: Ford Fusion Accident Leads to an Epic Landing

Now here's a scene you don't see every day. In fact, even if you tried to do it on purpose, we seriously doubt that you'd manage to pull it off no matter how hard and how many times you tried. The truly epic landing and vertical rest of this silver colored Ford Fusion (or at least it looks like a Ford') in the snowbank is the result of a multiple vehicle accident that took place on I-93 South bound just before Exit 3 in Windam in New Hampshire on Tuesday. Video follows after the break.

Source: Eagle Tribune

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VIDEO: Oops...Ford F-150 Steps Over Ferrari 458 Italia

The owner of a brand new Ferrari 458 Italia with some 500 miles on the odometer in Brandon Florida received a quick lesson on the disadvantages of a low slung sports car in the land of pickup trucks and SUVs when a Ford F-150 ran over its hood. We don't know if the F-150 driver mistook Maranello's creation for a red speed bump or if the Ferrari owner questioned Ford's 'Built Tough' slogan, but something tells us this video is going to become a hit. You can watch the clip after the break.

Via: Autoblog.nl

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Ford Vertrek Concept Live from Detroit [Photos and Video]

Unveiled at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show, the Vertrek Concept previews Ford’s next global compact SUV, set to replace both the European Kuga and North American Escape models. While it’s not so different compared to the Kuga, the concept car is certainly more modern than the current Ford Escape.

“It is a revolution compared to what is typically seen in this segment in North America and is a stylish evolution compared with products outside North America. This new design is sleeker and more fuel efficient and delivers the capability, including people and cargo volume, customers demand globally”, said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president of Global Product Development.

With the new model, the automaker is targeting class-leading fuel economy and low emissions, without forgetting performance. The Vertrek is powered by a 1.6-liter turbocharged Ecoboost four-pot with start and stop technology.

Outside the U.S., the new global compact SUV will also receive Duratorq diesel engines, such as the recently updated 2.0-liter motor, which delivers better fuel economy and CO2 emissions reduced by up to 7 percent, depending on application.

The key markets for the Vertrek-based series model are expected to be North America, Europe and China.

By Csaba Daradics

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Flashback: Steve McQueen Drives the 2005 Ford Mustang... 25 Years after His Death

In 1980, the world lost a cultural icon. Steve McQueen, the star of such films as Bullitt and Le Mans, had died. Metastatic cancer had claimed the life of the King of Cool.

Still, the legacy lives on. The actor’s love of cars and motorcycles was well known. McQueen competed in many motor races including the 12 Hours of Sebring and the Baja 1000. He also owned several semi-unique vehicles including a Jaguar XKSS, a Porsche 356 Speedster and a Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso. Here was a man who loved his cars almost as much as we loved his movies.

Flash forward 25 years. In 2005, Ford released this ad for the fifth generation Ford Mustang. In it, a farmer carves a racetrack through his cornfield in a non-too-subtle nod to the 1989 film, Field of Dreams. As in that movie, “If you build it, he will come.”, and Steve McQueen magically appears out of the cornfield (looking pretty good for someone who’s been dead and buried for a quarter of a century) and takes the wheel of the Mustang for one last turn around the track.

Through the use of a body double and some nabbed footage, McQueen is there in the cornfield and behind the wheel. Even five years on the ad is pretty impressive from a purely technical standpoint. But don’t take my word for it! Watch it yourself and let us know what you think.

By Tristan Hankins

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VIDEO: Sanitation Workers Wreak Havoc on a Parked Ford Explorer

Even if you know your winter driving ABCs and have properly equipped your car, sometimes there’s no way to avoid getting snowed in. Should that happen in a thriving metropolis, chances are that the sanitation “cavalry” will have your back covered. However, this wasn’t the case in New York, as a Sanitation Department loader got stuck and, in what can only be described as a very poor effort of trying to free it, the on-the-scene personnel seriously damaged a city owned - ah, the irony - Ford Explorer parked nearby.

Check out the video after the jump to see dumb and dumber at work.

By Csaba Daradics

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Flashback: Delta Lloyd's Epically Awesome Boomcar Commercial

Even though this commercial from Delta Lloyd, an insurance company with operations in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, has been making the internet rounds for quite some time now, somehow it slipped under our radar. Now, no thanks to a tip from one of our readers, we've probably wasted half of our day watching the clip over and over again... Yes, it's that awesome. Follow the jump to watch the Euro-tuned Boomcar ad along with a few more equally humorous commercials (all featuring the tag-line 'must be Delta Lloyd insured') from the Dutch insurer.

Hat tip to Nick!

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VIDEO: 800 hp Shelby GT500 Blows Up During Dyno Test

We don’t know if this is a factory 800-horsepower Super Snake or a privately tuned GT500, but something went very wrong during this dyno test... It might have happened due to insufficient cooling or a faulty component - we just don't know. Whatever the cause, the owner is one unhappy guy. Follow the break and watch the engine going up in flames and a cloud of smoke.

By Csaba Daradics

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VIDEO: Ford Shows Off 2012 Focus ST on the Road

For anyone secretly hoping that the Ford Focus ST Paris Show car would look better in motion, we're sorry to say it does not. Somehow this video makes that 'gaping mouth' grille look even worse, and all the odd creases and curves stand out even more. That 'Tangerine Scream' paintwork isn't doing it any favors either.

Admittedly, the Paris Show Car makes the old, pre-facelift ST look boring and understated by comparison, but is it really better to be garishly ugly than conservatively dull? At least things are better under the bonnet. A 2.0-liter turbocharged four cylinder good for 250 hp should make the new ST a real corker when it launches in 2012, as will the rumored dual-clutch Powershift 'box.

Here's hoping Ford reconsiders the styling before then. Oh well, at least if you're driving it, you can't see that hideous gaping grille.

By Tristan Hankins

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What were they Thinking? Mercury’s ‘Wrist-Twist’ from the 1960s

Styling trends come and go, but if there's one thing that has remained relatively unchanged in the past 105 years of personal motoring: the steering wheel.

Although plastics have replaced iron and wood and airbags (1970s) and radio controls (1990s) have been added, the basic design remains the same: a circular ring with spokes connected to a central hub.

Some cars had horns in a ring circling the hub (Mercedes-Benz 300SL), others had oblong steering wheels (Austin Allegro) and a few had only one spoke (Citroen DS). At the end of the day though, they all had some sort of steering wheel... except this car.

At Mercury, engineer Bob Rumm produced this one-off 1965 Mercury Park Lane convertible with so-called "wrist-twist" steering controls. The standard steering wheel has been replaced by two 5-inch, wrist-operated dials, that the promo claims frees up knee room, improves visibility and makes parking easier. Now take a moment to consider why Mr. Rumm is an "ex-"missile engineer at the height of the Cold War.

The promo also cheerfully informs us that the wrist-twist can be used by, "a driver who promises to be about as non-technical as they come," by which they mean a woman. Carscoop is reliably informed they can vote now [...].

I suppose we should be thankful that a lot of these concepts, including the wrist-twist, never left Ford's Dearborn proving grounds.

It's the sort of thing that could only have been made in the 1960s, the decade that gave us the laser, manned spaceflight and Astroturf. Like everything else, cars were becoming more futuristic, and by futuristic we mean daft. And by daft we mean Modern Mechanix of the 1930s daft.

It's also the sort of thing the Ford Motor Company was coming up at the time. Just for fun, type 'Ford Nucleon' into Google, and see what other disastrous innovations motorists of the 1960s were spared.

By Tristan Hankins

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Real-Life Transformer Fulfills All Our Childhood Fantasies

This video of a real-life Transformer snapped rolling on Hollywood Boulevard has been making the rounds on YouTube for a few months. No, it's not a lame viral marketing attempt by Citroen or a trailer for a new shaky cam Michael Bay / Jerry Bruckheimer movie.

It's a guy in a transforming Transformers costume. How cool is that? Remember when you were a kid and you had that cardboard box that you used to hold around your waist, pretending to be a fire truck? This is like that, but a million times cooler.

The video says its Optimus Prime but come on; everyone knows Optimus is a big rig. Binaltech has a Mustang Transformer called Wheeljack, but that's pretty obscure even from a fanboy perspective. It could be Barricade from the 2007 movie but if so, where's the police get up?

The pièce de résistance of course is the vinyl roof. Well, it's either that or a convertible roof, but the former is much funnier.

By Tristan Hankins

2011 Ford Explorer SUV Development Continues in Dubai [with Video]

Ford has released some new pictures and video footage of the new Explorer SUV hot-weather testing in Dubai. According to the Dearborn automaker, with a 50 percent humidity factor and midday temperatures pushing over 125 degrees Fahrenheit, the desert climate provides "an ideal environment to test and validate vehicle performance in some of the world's most extreme conditions."

Chief Engineer for Vehicle Engineering Don Ufford adds one more reason to the list as to why Ford's trying out the new 7-seater Explorer in Dubai, and that is to listen to what local customers have to say about the SUV model.

"We regularly sell close to 10,000 Explorers per year in the Middle East market," Ufford says. "SUV drivers in this part of the world regularly use the broad range of capabilities these vehicles offer. Our rationale for testing in Dubai is simple: If we can perform well here, we can do well anywhere."

Along with numerous other tests, including for the effectiveness of the air conditioning system, Ford claims Dubai also offers unique terrain characteristics to validate the Explorer's four-wheel drive capabilities.

"Customers here regularly drop tire pressure and head off into the sand dunes for off-road vehicular recreation," said Ufford. "We wanted to make the terrain management system on the new Explorer easy and intuitive to use so customers have the confidence to go off-road without worrying about whether they have properly engaged all the vehicle systems."

The freshly revealed 2011 Explorer will be offered in the States with a choice of two engines, either a 290HP 3.5-liter V6 or a 235HP 2.0-liter EcoBoost Turbo four-pot. Sales in North America will begin later this year, while Ford plans to export the Explorer to more than 90 markets globally starting from early 2011.

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