Archive for the 'fiesta ford' Category
By TOM KRISHER
AP Auto Writer
Ford Motor Co.
DETROIT –
For most drivers there’s a lingering doubt when changing lanes on the freeway: Did I miss a car in the blind spot?
Starting early next year, Ford Motor Co. will try to eliminate that doubt. It will begin installing side-view mirrors on its vehicles that show the blind spots in the outside upper corners.
The Dearborn-based automaker and several industry analysts say they know of no other automaker that currently offers such a feature, although some are considering it and auto parts stores sell small mirrors that focus on blind spots.
“Those blind spots, changing lanes, we’re always having some challenges seeing who’s there,” said Jim Buczkowski, Ford’s global director of electrical and electronic systems.
Ford says it will put the mirrors on a few Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models to start, eventually making them standard across most of its lineup. It also will offer an optional radar-based blind spot warning system similar to those marketed by other automakers, but with the ability to scan parking lot aisles and warn of oncoming vehicles as a driver backs out of a space.
The additions come from research Ford did on customer wants and needs and is part of its campaign to be more customer focused, said spokesman Alan Hall. The new low-cost mirrors probably won’t add to the sticker price of a car or truck, he said.
Of 450 people who took part in Ford driving clinics, 76 percent thought the mirrors improved visibility, Buczkowski said.
Ford had to figure out a way to meet a federal standard requiring driver’s side mirrors to be flat, said spokesman Wes Sherwood.
Tom Libby, senior director of industry analysis for the Power Information Network, a division of J.D. Power and Associates, said he has seen many drivers with small convex blind-spot mirrors affixed to their side mirrors. Ford, he said, is capitalizing on that consumer demand.
“It may seem like a trivial thing,” he said. “It’s obviously something in the direction of being customer-focused. I think that makes a lot of sense.”
The new feature is almost essential as automakers shrink the glass area on the side of vehicles to create new, sleeker designs, said Jack Nerad, executive market analyst for Irvine, Calif.-based Kelley Blue Book.
“The blind spot issue, I think, gets to be more and more an issue every day,” Nerad said, adding that some new crossover vehicles have small third-row side windows that make the blind spots even tougher to see.
Plus, families on vacation often pack their vehicles with so much luggage that it blocks the view out the rear window, forcing drivers to rely totally on side-view mirrors, Nerad said.
People won’t buy a car or truck solely because of the new mirrors, but they are a feature that could help sway an undecided buyer, Libby said.
“I think it’s sort of a cumulative thing,” he said. “It’s one more thing that would help. It’s a little thing, and those things add up.”
The federal government doesn’t track crashes specifically caused by drivers failing to see other vehicles in their blind spots. The closest it can come is a category called “failure to keep in proper lane or running off road,” said National Highway Traffic Safety Administration spokesman Eric Bolton. Those reasons were a factor for 16,470 drivers involved in fatal crashes during 2006, the latest year available, according to the NHTSA’s Web site.
In Michigan, state police recorded 27,294 collisions between vehicles heading the same direction in different lanes in 2006, about 9 percent of the total crashes in the state. In those, 12 people were killed and hundreds injured, said Lt. Gary Megge.
If all cars were equipped with the blind-spot mirrors, Megge said he is confident the number of crashes would be reduced.
“That tells me that potentially this could have an effect on nearly 9 percent of the traffic crashes in Michigan,” he said. “People don’t just change lanes when they know somebody’s there. When these sideswipe same (direction) crashes occur, people don’t see the other car.”
Ford isn’t alone in its pursuit of the new mirrors. General Motors Corp. and other automakers also are considering them, although GM hasn’t developed a timetable yet to put them in vehicles, said spokeswoman Angele Shaw.
“We have done some studies and we’re looking at where we’re going to use them,” she said.
· Ford catches Honda in initial quality, putting it in statistical tie at the top with Toyota and Honda.
· Ford’s vehicle quality improved 8 percent versus last year.
· Every new car and truck, including the 2008 Ford Focus, launched with improved quality versus its predecessor.
DEARBORN, April 7, 2008 – When it comes to initial vehicle quality, no automaker performs better than Ford.
The quality of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brand vehicles soared to the top of the charts equaling that of Toyota and Honda, according to the first quarter 2008 U.S. Global Quality Research System (GQRS) study conducted by RDA Group of Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
The study shows Ford’s domestic brands improved 8 percent versus last year with a combined average of 1,284 things-gone-wrong (TGW) per 1,000 vehicles during the first three months of ownership. This performance is statistically equivalent to the 1,250 TGW level of Honda and Toyota.
“Last year we tied with Toyota, and this year our quality performance is as good as industry-leading Honda’s too,” said Mark Fields, Ford’s president of The Americas. “Our world-class quality is one of the most important aspects of our turnaround in North America. This consistently strong quality improvement should offer today’s customer renewed confidence, setting the stage for important new products like Ford Flex, which is launching this summer.”
Ford’s dramatically improved vehicle quality will be highlighted in a sweeping new marketing campaign called “Drive one” that officially debuts Tuesday. The campaign tells the story behind Ford’s rise to the top of the industry in initial vehicle quality as well as underscoring safety, smart technology and improved fuel efficiency.
The company earned best-in-class honors in two important engineering functions: interiors, which includes such areas as trim, seats and instrument panel appearance; and electrical, which includes entertainment systems. Ford tied for best-in-class in two other functions, paint and vehicle engineering, which includes such areas as ride and handling and cabin quietness.
Additionally, Ford’s domestic brands pushed customer satisfaction up one point to 77 percent.
“There is an unprecedented level of teamwork at Ford. Everyone from the top floor to the plant floor is working together to deliver the highest quality vehicles for our customers,” said Bennie Fowler, Ford’s group vice president of Global Quality. “We are extremely proud to be among the industry’s quality leaders. But that’s not why we’re in the game. We want sole possession of first place, and we will keep working to earn it.”
A total for 15 Ford, Lincoln, Mercury vehicles are ranked in the top three of their respective segments for either TGW performance, customer satisfaction or both.
The following models are segment leaders:
- Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 – TGW for sports car
- Ford Taurus – customer satisfaction for large car
- Ford Sport Trac – customer satisfaction for medium traditional utility
- Mercury Milan – TGW for midsize car
- Lincoln Navigator – TGW and customer satisfaction for large premium utility
The new 2008 Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable both recorded quality levels that equate to less than one problem per vehicle, as did the Volvo S80 (947). The Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ were close, with 1,030 TGW and 1065 TGW, respectively.
The Taurus also led a string of impressive new vehicles launched in 2007. Taurus showed a 33 percent quality improvement compared with the product it replaced. The new Ford Escape improved 16 percent over the out-going model, and the new Ford Focus improved 13 percent.
In fact, 36 of 40 Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda nameplates improved this year versus 2007.
The 2008 first quarter U.S. GQRS study, which RDA Group conducts for Ford, asks customers of all major makes and models to comment on troubles and rate their overall satisfaction with their three-month-old vehicles. The survey includes vehicles registered from September 2007 through November 2007.
The April 2008 issue of Consumer Reports won’t hit newsstands until Tuesday, March 4th, but information on the well-read new car review has already been released. And the news for Ford Motor Company is good, continuing the positive trend seen in recent years.
Ford Motor Company “has been making significant progress recently,” said David Champion, senior director of auto testing for Consumer Reports, in a speech to the Washington Automotive Press Association on Thursday. Specifically, the company was called out as “the best among the domestics and gaining on the industry’s best.”
Recommended Buys
Lincoln and Mercury retained seven Recommended Buys, including:
Lincoln MKX Mercury Milan
Lincoln MKZ Mercury Milan V6
Lincoln Navigator Mercury Sable
Lincoln Town Car
New Cost-of-Ownership Ratings
A new feature in the annual auto issue is an in-depth look at five-year ownership costs. The new Consumer Reports cost-of-ownership ratings comprise six main factors, including depreciation, fuel and maintenance & repair costs.
Here, as well, the news for Lincoln and Mercury is good, with the Milan, Lincoln MKZ and Town Car singled out in their respective categories as among the least expensive vehicles to own over a five-year period.
Lincoln MKZ scheduled to appear on NBC TODAY show
On Friday, as part of ongoing promotional tour, Consumer Reports will be highlighted in a segment on NBC’s TODAY show. A Lincoln MKZ is scheduled to be featured on the show, singled out as a smart buy in the “Upscale Cars” category thanks to low five-year ownership costs.
It is noted in a CR press release that “the Lexus ES350 racks up an average of $2,300 in maintenance and repair in the first five years, about twice what a consumer would pay for a Lincoln MKZ.”
Please note: Consumer Reports maintains a strict No Commercial Use policy that prohibits its published information on any product or service from being printed, redistributed or otherwise used by others in advertising, promotion or any use in any form of media without its written permission.
Brett Wheatley
General Marketing Manager
Lincoln Mercury Division
