DETROIT — The Ford Fusion Hybrid was named the North American Car of the Year today, while Ford’s Transit Connect picked up Truck of the Year accolades in a poll of journalists.

 It is only the third time in 17 years that a single manufacturer has won both titles.

 “We’ve been focusing very relentlessly on our strategy around making sure our vehicles are world-class in the areas of fuel economy, safety, quality and smart technology,” Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas, said after the morning ceremony. “We’re just so glad we’re being recognized for that, both by the journalists but also, more importantly, by the customers.”

 In 2009, Ford posted its first full-year gain in U.S. market share in 15 years.The automaker sold 15,559 Fusion Hybrids last year.

 The Fusion Hybrid topped the two other car finalists, the Buick LaCrosse and Volkswagen Golf. It’s just the second time a Ford car has taken the award. The Focus won in 2000.

 The Transit Connect, a small cargo truck, came out on top over the Chevrolet Equinox and Subaru Outback crossovers.

“The Transit Connect is what we call a white-space vehicle — there’s nothing like it on the road,” Fields said. “When you see this on the road, your first reaction is, ‘What is that?’ ”

 As of mid-December, more than 600,000 Transit Connects have been sold over seven years in 55 countries. Ford has sold 8,834 Transit Connects since it entered the U.S. market in July.

Ford has dominated the domestics, winning the award five times. The F-150 pickup won in 2009, 2004 and 1996. The Ford Escape Hybrid crossover took home Truck of the Year in 2005, as did the Ford Expedition SUV in 1997.

“This is such a motivator for our team to be recognized by the Car and Truck of the Year jury,” Fields said. “These are the most demanding journalists, and we were in a set of very, very tough competitions. … I think it just shows that we’re headed in the right direction.”

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100111/OEM/100119988/1115##ixzz0cK66wdEd
As seen in Automotive News

See the Trans Connect here http://www.crownmotorsford.com/showroom/2010/Ford/Transit+Connect/Wagon.htm

See The Fusion Hybrid here

http://www.crownmotorsford.com/showroom/2010/Ford/Fusion+Hybrid/Sedan.htm

Check out our new web site at    www.crownmotorsredding.com

Excerpt from Autonews.com

Ford Motor Co. today said it will introduce nine new or re-engineered engines in North America this year as part of a five-year effort to boost fuel economy and cut emissions.

Additionally, Ford will introduce six new transmissions.

Crown Motors

We think this is really exciting!  As a product dealer we look forward to providing our consumers a variety of options.  Including increased fuel economy, cutting edge technology and high performance.  Some highlights include the 540hp supercharged 5.4L Shelby Mustang.

2011 Super Duty – First V8 Diesel Developed by Ford Motor Co.
Other Interesting Info from Automotive New and the Detroit Auto Show.

• The 2011 Fiesta gets a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and PowerShift six-speed dual-clutch transmission. Ford says the Fiesta will get 40 mpg. • The 2011 Mustang gets a 305-hp, 3.7-liter V-6 and new six-speed automatic. Ford expects the engine and transmission combination to deliver 30 mpg on the highway. A new six-speed manual transmission also will be offered.

• The 2011 Mustang GT gets a new 412-hp, 5.0-liter V-8 with 390 pounds-feet of torque. The car is expected to get 25 mpg on the highway. The new manual and automatic transmissions will be offered.

• The 2011 Ford Super Duty pickups get a new 6.7-liter turbocharged V-8 diesel and 6.2-liter gasoline V-8. The diesel engine was developed and will be assembled by Ford; the previous engine was provided by Navistar. Ford and Navistar terminated their nearly 30-year relationship in early 2009. The Super Duty pickups also will offer a new six-speed automatic.

• The 2011 F-150 gets a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged Ecoboost V-6. Ford says the engine will offer the power of a V-8 and the fuel economy of a V-6. Late this year, Ford’s new normally aspirated 2.0-liter direct-fuel injection EcoBoost engine will go into production. The engine will be offered on the redesigned 2012 Ford Focus. This will be Ford’s first application of direct injection in North America. A new six-speed PowerShift automatic transmission also will be available.

Ford also will introduce a new six-speed automatic transmission for its other models and a 2.0-liter Ecoboost engine.

This concept is not new, and was originally patented in 1957 by Englehard Corporation.

Diesel Exhaust Fluid is one form of “cleaning” NOx pollutants from diesel exhaust.  By adding a mixture of Urea and Deionized water to the catalytic reduction system you can reduce the bad stuff before it exits the tail pipe.

Ford recently sent out this FAQ on Motorcraft DEF.

FAQ

WHAT IS DEF?
A non-hazardous clear fluid (67% deionized water / 33% chemically pure Urea) that is injected into the diesel exhaust system to reduce NOx emissions.

WHY DEF?

• Required for the 2011 model year F-Super Duty 6.7L Ford diesel to meet 2010 EPA emission regulations
• For use with competitive make vehicles using a SCR (selective catalytic reduction) system
• The majority of diesel (light and heavy duty) manufacturers will use DEF to meet the new requirements

Read more…

2010 Ford F-150 Raptor  1st to visit Redding

What a treat to come in to the dealership today and have a Ford Raptor and a trainer from Ford visiting Redding for a product demonstration!  After reviewing the product enhancements that make this F-150 the meanest baddest 4×4 on the road we had to take some photos to show our customers.

We are eagerly anticipating the Raptors arrival for sale in Redding.  If you want to be notified when one arrives please email me.  mark@crownmotorsredding.com

Below is some facts about the Raptor recently written by poplar mechanics.

Ford’s 2010 F-150 SVT Raptor simply looks ferocious. With its swollen flanks, carved-in headlights and taillights, aggressive stance, visibly rugged suspension pieces and thumping 35-inch-tall BFGoodrich off-road tires, this nearly 3-ton, four-wheel-drive pickup is brutally gorgeous. It looks tough enough to run straight down the Baja Peninsula at full speed, jump across the Gulf of California, invade the Mexican mainland and then continue rampaging down through South America until it plowed over Antarctica and started up north across Africa. With that much visual firepower, the obvious question is this: Does the substance match the style? Let’s find out.

SVT Gets Dirty

The Special Vehicle Team (SVT) has been Ford’s hardcore performance division for nearly 17 years and gets credit for delectable road machines ranging from the 2002-to-2004 SVT Focus to the current GT 500 version of the Mustang (yeah, it did the Ford GT too). But until now, its concentration has been on pavement-based ability. And after two successful generations of the F-150-based SVT Lightning performance street truck, there was every reason for the team to do a third one. But the 2WD sporty truck market is a fickle one. And so this time SVT turned to high-speed, Baja 1000-style, off-road desert racing for inspiration. In particular they looked at “prerunner” trucks used by race teams to scout courses. The pre-runner look is jacked up, hogged out and explicitly mechanical. And that’s a function of what a prerunner is asked to do: skitter along the desert at high speed with its suspension soaking up ruts and the occasional armadillo strike without slowing. So SVT decided to concentrate on the F-150’s suspension and produce the most capable desert truck possible—while retaining civilized on-road manners and the necessary utility. 

The SpecsAltogether the Raptor’s track width is up 7 full inches, and that allows the front suspension to travel 11.2 inches (total rebound and compression) while the rear can move 12.1. In fact, the Raptor is so wide that it’s legally required to run with amber marker lights to demarcate its breadth. For this, SVT has cleverly integrated the appropriate LEDs into the front grille and across the tail.SVT has kept most of these new suspension pieces visible to anyone looking even casually at the Raptor. Wise move, because as tough as these new components seem to be, they look wicked too. The control arms are perfect castings that could be mistaken for an F/A-18’s landing gear, the shock bodies are polished aluminum and the diameter of the biggest branch on a redwood, and the wheel-and-tire package has the savage purposefulness of a bear’s claw. There’s an argument to be made that the only way to make the new Raptor tougher-looking would be to strip off its body entirely.To cover the additional width, all the bodywork forward of the cab’s firewall is new, and the cargo box gets its own set of flared fenders as well. Viewed from above, the Raptor has a Rubenesque hourglass figure with a healthy chest and seductively plump hips. From the ground it just looks awesome with open wheel wells, functional hood and fender vents, ready-to-pounce stance and a grille big enough to consume an entire Golden Corral buffet in a single gulp. The Raptor is an almost freakishly attractive pickup—the Megan Fox of half-ton trucks.

Article from http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/new_cars/4328691.html

Jim Farley, group vice president of global marketing, said today that Ford is gaining 1 percentage point of retail share in the crucial California market, but in surprising segments. While sales of crossovers and the F-series pickup have been strong, most of the share gains have come with the Escape crossover, Fusion sedan and Fusion Hybrid. And despite the launch of the newer Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger, share for the Mustang pony car is up in California. Farley expects the new Taurus sedan to add to those gains, although he cautioned: “Our business plan was never to count on share growth. The share gains have been a bit of a surprise.” Asked whether the gains were a swap with lagging Chrysler, Farley said, “We’re not gaining from Nitro and Sebring.” Ford’s share gains have declined somewhat of late, as GM’s marketing spending has increased. Said Farley: “We do foresee future months like February, with the Chrysler sell-down. We are completely transitioned to 2010s, while some of our competitors are still in 2009s and in sell-down mode. We’re not going to chase them down the drain hole.” Ford’s longer-term marketing plan will be to avoid direct comparisons to other domestic brands. Instead the company will target large international players such as Toyota and Volkswagen with a value and pricing message. Farley said the content levels of base-model Fords will increase so that there are no stripped-down price leaders. He predicts the average purchase price for Ford vehicles will increase.