During the tumultuous times that have plagued the auto industry over the last few years, punctuated by declared bankruptcies at General Motors and Chrysler early in 2009, the Ford Motor Company has used a product driven strategy in order to set themselves apart from the competition and make gains in the face of a downturn that has affected almost the entire automotive industry.
The Ford Motor Company has made and continues to make great strides in automotive technology, strides we've embraced and Krug Hilltop Ford. The most intriguing advances deal with fuel efficiency, occupant safety and in general the improvement of the ownership experience as a whole. These innovations combined with some crucial financial moves over the last several years have put Ford Motor Company in a position to succeed in the face of adversity. The financial maneuverings are better left for discussion amongst Wall Street Journal types; however, I will spend some time discussing some of the more innovative advances in automotive technology.
Fuel Efficiency
In the realm of fuel efficiency I will discuss two major trends, one that has been embraced by several manufacturers and one that is a specific advancement and product offering of only Ford.
The amount of Ford products offered with 6-speed automatic transmissions has been increasing significantly over the past several years. Transmissions in general are continuously being built with increasingly lighter and more durable components; this combined with a larger array of gears helps to increase fuel economy, not only by reduced rate but by shift strategy programs in the various powertrain control modules that put the vehicle into the optimal gear based on various vehicle system inputs such as speed and throttle position. The current 6F series of 6-speed automatic transmission is the product of a joint development venture between Ford and General Motors that was started in 2002.
Another great advancement in fuel efficiency has been the release of the EcoBoost family of engines. The current 3.5L V-6 EcoBoost, recently released in the Lincoln MKT and Ford Flex lines, produces the fuel economy of a comparable V-6 engine with the power of a V-8 engine. For example the 3.7L and 3.5L options on the all wheel drive Lincoln MKT both offer identical city and highway miles per gallon, 16mpg and 22mpg respectively. However with its advances in fuel-air mixing as well as being turbocharged, the 3.5L EcoBoost makes 355hp and 350lb-ft. of torque compared to the 268hp and 267 lb-ft. of torque of its larger 3.7L option. The 3.5L is only the first in what promises to be several offerings in the EcoBoost family of engines. There has been talk of one or more 4-cylinder EcoBoost offerings for future models and product lines. On another note, the EcoBoost line of engines is not the only powertrain offering that has people talking, the 2011 Ford Mustang will come with a 3.7L V-6 offering in its base model that makes over 300 HP and is reported to get 30mpg plus on the highway.
Occupant Safety
By way of driver and passenger safety Ford has also made some great strides and has a lot of very interesting options that are becoming standard on more models. Several new models have made changes in driver’s safety by enhancing the side view mirrors. Several models now have a smaller wide angled mirror in the upper outside corner of each side view mirror to help with blind spot safety; these are called Integrated Blind Spot Mirrors. Optional in some vehicles is the BLIS (Blind Spot Information System), which replaces the standard integrated Blind Spot Mirrors, this option integrates with the Cross Traffic Alert. Both systems use feedback from a sensor array on the vehicles to either illuminate an amber warning light in your side view mirror when your blinker is activated, indicating a vehicle or other object in your blind spot. The Cross Traffic Alert system notifies you through the audio system when there are objects coming from the right or left when the driver is backing up.
Adaptive Cruise Control mated with the Collision Warning system adds another level of occupant safety. Adaptive Cruise Control is not unfamiliar to drivers of higher end vehicles; however, Ford has started to offer it as an option on an increasing number of its vehicle lines. The system uses a radar array to maintain a safe distance between your vehicle and those in front of you, there are 3 preset distances that can be entered based on driving situations and traffic volume. The Collision Warning system mates with the Adaptive Cruise to add another level of vehicle safety, using the same forward radar array, the Collision Warning is active whether the cruise control is active or not. The Collision warning system works by sensing decreasing gaps between your vehicle and those in front of you, as these gaps decrease a red warning indicator flashes onto the windshield to alert the driver, if immediate braking response is noted recognized by the vehicle, the system preloads brake pressure to maintain maximum stopping power in a minimal amount of time. Although these are all fantastic safety features, it is important to remember that they work best when combined with alert, defensive and safe driving habits.
Lastly, Ford recently announced a seatbelt mated air bag system that will first be offered on the redesigned 2011 model Ford Explorer, this promises to be a cutting edge advancement in safety technology as most recent air bag advancements have dealt mostly with side impact and roll over situations. Passengers in the rear seats have always had to rely only on vehicle design and rear seatbelt usage when involved in head on collisions.
Ownership Experience
For several years Ford Motor Company has been adding several vehicle options to improve general ownership and satisfaction with new vehicles. Items such as SYNC, My Key, Work Solutions and Auto Parking serve to improve customer satisfaction with their vehicles for all aspects recreational and commercial.
By now most people are familiar with the SYNC system; this is a joint audio system enhancement that is a partnership between Ford and Microsoft. The SYNC system allows for hands-free phone usage with almost all newer Bluetooth capable phones. This is not all SYNC does, it also allows for hassle-free use of MP3 players such as iPods or flash drives and the like. The system allows the radio in the car to pair with and sync audio files for listening through the car system, without the need to purchase expensive adapters. Some of the recent advancements to SYNC include the Vehicle Health Report, 911 Assist and turn-by-turn directions on properly equipped vehicles. The VHR allows drivers to receive maintenance reminders and flash emergency transmission to an e-mail address or as a text message on equipped hand-free mobile devices. The 911 Assist function automatically dials 911 if the vehicle registers an air bag deployment, it does this with properly paired phones and uses your existing cell phone service, and it also sends a GPS ping so that if you are incapacitated after an accident, emergency vehicles can still be effectively dispatched to your location. The turn by turn directions function is an enhancement to some 2010 models, even those not equipped with factory navigation radios. The most important thing for present and future SYNC-equipped vehicle owners to remember is that the experience is far more enhanced when you have registered your vehicle on www.syncmyride.com. This is also an excellent resource to learn more about the product and to check and see if your phone or MP3 player is compatible with the SYNC system.
The MyKey option is a very new system on Ford products. The system is for restricting the driving habits on vehicles where multiple people in the household share the same vehicle. MyKey allows speed limitations, radio volume and items like the distance until empty that will be allowed until the vehicle starts a warning reminder. The MyKey system also has valet settings for added security in those types of situations. The MyKey system is tailor made for households with new drivers or adolescent first time car buyers or owners.
The Ford Work Solutions package is a robust offering of vehicle options for small and large fleets alike. Ford Work Solutions offers a wide array of packages from upgraded radios with hard drives and internet capabilities, to fleet tracking and jobsite tool and equipment monitoring. The system allows contractors to mark and catalogue tools and equipment into the radio unit. If a jobsite is left without say a compressor or ladder, the radio marks these tools or equipment in the red to indicate that the item is not loaded into the bed of the truck. The system also allows for fleets to monitor vehicle location, vehicle speed and whether or not the vehicles are running properly, it also will notify the fleet manager or owner if any of the vehicles have been in an accident; it does all of this in real time through a link with the Sirius satellite radio network. The system also allows owners to link with remote computers in order to access and print estimates, work orders or invoices, this is capable with an optional wireless Bluetooth keyboard and printer. Lastly there is a cable locking system and a host of bed accessories that allow for the flexibility most small business owners need to succeed.
The new Active Park Assist function available currently on the Lincoln MKT and hopefully on more vehicles in the future, allows for hands –free parallel parking in as little as 24 seconds. The vehicle scans, measures and then completes the parallel parking maneuver all without the driver even needing to have their hands on the steering wheel. As one who took driver’s training from our high school’s wrestling coach, parallel parking has always been one of my weaknesses, give me a car length and a half and 10 minutes and I am usually good to go, this for me personally is an option I hope comes to more vehicle lines than just the top end offerings.
In closing I hope you will agree that Ford’s product driven approach has helped to raise the bar for domestic automobiles. These options combined with Ford’s noticeable and reported quality gains will help to continue to improve Ford’s perception amongst car buyers and help propel Ford back to the top of the automotive food chain.http://krughilltopford.com/INVENTORY/SearchNew.aspx
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