MotorWeek | Road Test: 2016 Ford Edge

Let’s explore Ford’s latest cutting Edge crossover.

2016 Ford F-650/F-750

Ford, America's truck leader, reveals a new standard in medium-duty commercial work trucks with the all-new Ford F-650/F-750 -- the toughest, best value and work-ready Ford medium-duty trucks ever.

15 People. 8 Canoes. One Ford Transit.

It’s a harsh environment, but the Transit helps this business move its customers in comfort with plenty of room and power for their stuff. Even when their stuff includes boats.

The Ford Transit and Transit Connect offer the flexibility to fit any business like a work glove. To demonstrate, we loaned one to four very different businesses and got only one result: success. Take a look and see how the right work van can make any business move faster. Whatever your job, the Transit works.

All-New Ford F-150 Earns Top Spot Among Pickups in 2015 AAA Green Car Guide

The all-new Ford F-150 – the toughest, smartest, most capable F-150 ever – leads its segment as the greenest truck in the 2015 AAA Green Car Guide.

AAA selected the 2015 Ford F-150 SuperCab Lariat with EcoBoost® gasoline engine as its top choice. When equipped with the available 2.7-liter EcoBoost engine with standard Auto Start-Stop, the all-new F-150 4x2 returns EPA-estimated fuel economy ratings of 19 mpg city, 26 mpg highway and 22 mpg combined. Actual mileage will vary.

F-150 is part of Ford F-Series, America’s best-selling full-size truck for 38 straight years and America’s best-selling vehicle for 33 straight years.

Read more details at http://newsroom.aaa.com/2015/04/top-green-vehicle-2015-tesla-according-fifth-annual-aaa-green-car-guide/?sf37738971=1. AAA Green Car Guide winners were tested and scored by the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Automotive Research Center in 13 categories, including braking, fuel economy, emissions, handling and ride comfort.

The Camera That Sees Where you can’t | 2015 Ford F-150

Your cellphone may give you the best way to document your awesome catch, but the 360° camera on the 2015 F-150 gives you an even bigger picture.

Legendary fisherman Conway Bowman talks about the latest camera technology on and around the water. Like the 360° camera on the high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy body Ford F-150. Amazingly, it gives you a complete picture of the lay of the land around your truck.

All-new Ford Shelby® #GT350R Mustang Roars Off the Line at Flat Rock Assembly Plant

One of the most iconic performance Mustang nameplates of all time the all-new Shelby^® GT350R roared off the line today at Ford’s Flat Rock Assembly Plant. The new GT350R Mustang is the most athletic Mustang ever, designed to tackle the world’s most challenging roads and race tracks while creating an exhilarating experience for the driver.

“This is a special day for all Mustang enthusiasts,” said Bill Ford, executive chairman, Ford Motor Company.  “We have taken the GT350 formula to the next level of innovation, style and performance.  Today the legend continues.”

Improving Lives by Improving Access | Built Ford Tough Good Works

In this week’s episode we head to Seattle, Washington, home of Rob Carlisle, the owner of Carlisle Classic Homes.

With a little help from his Ford F-150, Rob is using the resources of his company to build wheelchair ramps for homeowners who are disabled and their families.

To learn more about Rob Carlisle and Rampathon, go to www.rampathon.org

All-New 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor Prototype Testing

Ford Performance engineers are busying trail testing prototypes of the all-new F-150 Raptor, the toughest, smartest and most capable Raptor ever.

The all-new Raptor is able to tackle even tougher hills, ruts and bumps along trails than the previous model. Here an early engineering prototype that combines parts from the 2017 Raptor with the 2015 F-150 climbs tight two track trails in Northern Michigan, where the team is testing the new truck’s components over challenging terrain.

The 2017 F-150 Raptor has better ground clearance than the first-generation Raptor and comes standard with new 3.0-inch FOX Racing Shox with custom internal bypass technology. The shock absorption technology works to damp and stiffen suspension travel over rough terrain. An all-new four-wheel-drive, torque-on-demand transfer case further improves Raptor’s trail performance. The new transfer case, which manages power distribution between the front and rear wheels, combines the best attributes of clutch-driven, on-demand all-wheel drive with durable, mechanical-locking four-wheel drive.

You’ll be able to test the all-new Raptor for yourself in Fall 2016.

Ford Transit is a Carnival’s Best Ride

This high-end, private carnival business is essentially a constantly moving construction company. With thousands of moving parts, keeping them organized is crucial to the bottom line. See how Transit helps make the rides run.

The Ford Transit and Transit Connect offer the flexibility to fit any business like a work glove. To demonstrate, we loaned one to four very different businesses and got only one result: success. Take a look and see how the right work van can make any business move faster. Whatever your job, the Transit works.

Going to Extremes: Ford's Cold-Weather Testing in the Sunshine State Leads to Enhanced Vehicle Quality Globally

• Ford vehicles of all sizes – from Focus to F-Series Super Duty – annually submit to subzero testing in the U.S. military’s all-weather laboratory designed to re-create nearly every weather condition on earth
• Extreme cold-weather testing at the Florida lab in the summer contributes to continuity, collaboration and efficiency in Ford’s product development cycle and, ultimately, to enhanced global vehicle quality
• Ford customers worldwide can approach winter with the assurance their vehicles are designed – through extensive testing – to start and run in frigid weather conditions

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fl., August 13, 2015  -- Each year, Ford brings global prototype vehicles and a team of engineers to the world’s largest climatic test facility – McKinley Climatic Laboratory at Eglin Air Force Base in the Florida panhandle – to push the limits of extreme cold-weather testing in order to improve vehicle quality and performance for customers.

In this sophisticated, all-weather facility used by the U.S. Air Force to test every aircraft in the Department of Defense inventory [1], Ford engineers can get temperatures down as low as minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit in a span of just 10 hours. The hot, humid climate of northwest Florida in August has no impact on conditions inside the lab – making it ideal for simulating winter in Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay or Canada’s Yellowknife region.

So when it’s the middle of a development cycle, or the middle of summer, and there’s no access to a natural environment where engineers can evaluate whether a vehicle is starting as robustly as it should in below-freezing temperatures, McKinley Climatic Lab allows Ford to simulate, calibrate and validate – all under one roof.

The opportunity to accommodate 75 global prototype vehicles of all sizes for rigorous testing – plus house a versatile team of 54 engineers and technical experts – creates efficiency in the company’s product development cycle that helps Ford learn in just three weeks what could take twice as long in a smaller facility. Collecting multiple data sets, analyzing results, and comparing and contrasting enables Ford engineers to quickly implement changes that enhance vehicle quality and ultimately benefit the customer.

Optimum performance in the most extreme weather conditions means different things for customers in different parts of the world. That’s why Ford engineers strive to account for all variables when seeking assurance that customers who live and work in cold climates will be able to reliably start and run their vehicles in subzero temperatures. Specific situations engineers test for include:

• In the oil fields of Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay, Ford F-Series trucks are not only a mode of transportation, but also a safety device for workers who need a warm cabin to retreat to on-site to prevent cold-weather injury on the job. Ford engineers conduct idle tests at the lab – running the engine week after week as temperature fluctuates from 40 degrees to minus 40 degrees, and examining the exhaust as it heats up then cools back down – to help ensure the needs of these customers are met
• For those customers who depend on their vehicles for work commutes and to transport their families around town, Ford testing at the lab ultimately seeks to provide them with the assurance that their vehicles are designed to start and run in the bitter cold. As temperatures in the lab drop to minus 22 degrees, Ford engineers examine the volatility of 13 different types of fuel commonly used by customers across the globe to calibrate the cold start

When running tests at such low temperatures inside McKinley Climatic Lab, engineers make changes daily to help ensure engine start and vehicle driveability, and that Ford is meeting the high quality standards its customers expect. Learnings from these cold-weather tests helped Ford engineers perfect the 6.7-liter engine that powers the current F-Series Super Duty. Engineers found that replacing metallic plugs with ceramic gold plugs enabled the engine to heat up more quickly, for a more robust start.

The Road to Cooperstown: Part 3 | SYNC 3: What Happens Next?™

While J.B. has an adventure in the Ford Escape, John and Frank contemplate what’s next after Cooperstown as they finish up their round.

John admires Frank’s stylish Ford Escape while J.B. and “Little Hurt” hang out in the back. Will Frank figure out his Ford Escape saw a little more than the parking lot of the golf course?

Look Out! Here Come the Spidermen: Ford Engineers Use Arachnid Learnings to Develop Innovative Screen to Keep Creepy Crawlers Out

• Ford engineers developed an innovative spider screen to keep the creepy crawlers from nesting inside vehicles
• Screen prevents spiders from building cocoon-like webs dense enough to potentially block fuel vapor lines, which can damage engines and diminish vehicle performance   
• Now, an updated version of the spider screen is being implemented in Ford vehicles in North America; it will go global with launch of the all-new 2016 Ford Focus RS

DEARBORN, Mich., Aug. 5, 2015 – Arachnophobes may not know this, but there is a team of Ford engineers who developed an innovative spider screen to keep the creepy crawlers from nesting in Ford vehicles.

You’re welcome.

Cheiracanthium mildei and Cheiracanthium inclusum – more commonly referred to as yellow sac spiders – have been known to nest inside vehicles in North America, causing problems for car owners and automakers alike over the years. Instead of using webs to catch prey, these spiders build cocoon-like webs for shelter and to lay eggs. Their home is dense enough to potentially block fuel vapor lines, which can lead to engine damage and diminished vehicle performance.

David Gimby, Ford fuel systems engineer, began looking into how to keep spiders out of Ford vehicles back in 1999. Having no background in arachnology, he researched the life and science of spiders and in 2004 Ford produced its first spider screen, which has kept spiders from nesting inside Ford vehicles for years.

“These particular Arachnids are not sedentary – they are hunters and constantly roaming,” Gimby explained. “When it’s time to build a birthing cocoon or an over-winter cocoon, they seek a cavity or a depression, like a fuel vapor line opening, which allows them to maximize the use of their silk.”

“Spiders can be a nuisance for our vehicle owners,” said Gimby. “We studied these species to discern how they nest, then designed an effective device for excluding the larger, problematic spiders from nesting in our cars.”

The technology continues to evolve.  Ford engineers worked on an improved spider screen that is being implemented across the Ford lineup in North America. It will go global with the launch of the all-new 2016 Ford Focus RS.

Keeping fuel vapor lines clear is key to air and vapor circulation for a vehicle’s carbon canister, where fuel vapors are captured so they don’t enter the environment. The Ford-developed spider screen keeps spiders out of the line, but allows air and vapor flow for optimal vehicle operation.

“We are constantly improving and adapting, even when it comes to technologies that are already working,” said William Euliss, Ford fuel systems engineer. “There is a significant amount of engineering that goes into every detail of our vehicles, like the spider screen.”

Ford Donates Vehicles to DAV, Strengthens Efforts to Assist Disabled Veterans and Honor Their Service

 

• Ford Motor Company continues its long-standing relationship with DAV (Disabled American Veterans) by donating seven vehicles to the DAV Transportation Network
• Ford continues to invest in DAV scholarships and the Winter Sports Clinic, and adds support for DAV 5K events to honor veterans and raise funds for needed services
• Since 1974, Ford Fund has contributed nearly $9.3 million to veterans organizations

DENVER, Aug. 7, 2015 – Ford Motor Company is donating seven Ford Flex utility vehicles to the DAV, extending a strong relationship that has assisted disabled military veterans for 93 years.

The vehicles will become part of the DAV Transportation Network that enlists volunteer drivers to take sick and disabled veterans to VA medical centers across the country. They will be deployed to DAV locations in Little Rock, Arkansas, Iowa City, Iowa, Iron Mountain, Michigan, Omaha, Nebraska, Portland, Oregon, Salt Lake City, Utah and Seattle, Washington.  Since 1996, Ford has donated 199 vehicles to the DAV fleet.

“Transportation and community service are two important areas where Ford excels,” said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. “We are proud to be able to help these heroes of freedom get the critical services they need to make their lives better.”

In addition to the new Ford Flex vehicles, Ford Fund, the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company, is sponsoring DAV 5K walks this fall in Atlanta, Cincinnati and San Diego. Ford Fund also is continuing support for the Jesse Brown Memorial Youth Scholarship Program, which provides scholarships to deserving young men and women who have generously volunteered their time to help disabled veterans in their community.

This past spring, Ford supported the DAV Winter Sports Clinic in Snowmass Village, Colorado. The company will again partner with Project SNAP to engage veterans and the public to draw messages of thanks to active military members that will become part of this year’s Operation Grateful Nation mural. The artwork from last year’s event is currently on display at the Pentagon.

“We are extremely proud of our long partnership with Ford Motor Company,” said DAV National Commander Ron Hope. “Ford is an American institution and we’re grateful they continue to support the men and women who preserve the American way of life we hold sacred. Without this donation many of these veterans would go without the medical care they earned.”

Ford Motor Company and the DAV have been working together to help the nation's wounded military veterans since Henry Ford organized a cross-country caravan of 50 Model T vehicles to take disabled veterans to the 1922 DAV national convention in San Francisco.

Ford’s support for veterans continues to evolve to meet their changing needs. Earlier this year, Ford collaborated with National Veterans Transition Services, Inc. on the Freedom’s Sisters REBOOT Workshop that helped women veterans address the unique challenges they face transitioning out of the military.

Ford Fund also sponsors Honor Flights to transport World War II veterans to the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. and featured a special salute to the nation’s military called Focus on Freedom during this year’s Ford Fireworks in Detroit. The event included a special reception for veterans and their families, plus a thrilling flyover by vintage World War II-era planes.   

Since 1974, Ford and Ford Fund have provided nearly $9.3 million to veterans’ organizations.
 
Ford today employs more than 7,000 veterans plus hundreds of active military personnel, reservists and guardsmen.

Ford Secures 1,000-Plus U.S. Jobs, Starts Production of All-New Ford F-650/F-750 Medium-Duty Trucks in Ohio

• Ford kicks off production of 2016 F-650/F-750 for the first time in the United States; medium-duty truck lineup – previously assembled in Mexico – now built at Ohio Assembly Plant
• All-new F-650/F-750 medium-duty truck production shift to Ford’s facility in Avon Lake, Ohio, helps to secure more than 1,000 UAW hourly jobs and $168 million U.S. plant investment                 
• 2016 Ford F-650/F-750 trucks, available this summer, deliver commercial-grade quality, capability and convenience, and feature segment-exclusive Ford diesel and gasoline engines, delivering strong performance at an affordable price

AVON LAKE, Ohio, Aug. 12, 2015 – All-new Ford F-650/F-750 medium-duty trucks roll off the line today for the first time in the United States. Production of the trucks at Ohio Assembly Plant, previously built in Mexico, helps secure more than 1,000 hourly UAW jobs and a $168 million plant investment in the United States.

2016 F-650/F-750 trucks, the toughest, smartest, best-value medium-duty trucks ever, anchor Ford’s commercial vehicle lineup – America’s best-selling commercial trucks for 30 straight years. Ford is the only truck manufacturer that provides vocational customers an unmatched one-stop shop to meet their needs – from the Class 1 Transit Connect cargo van to the Class 7 F-750 tractor rig.

“Our investment in Ohio Assembly Plant reinforces our commitment to building vehicles in America and to delivering best-in-class commercial trucks,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford president, The Americas. “Working with our partners in the UAW, we found a way to make the costs competitive enough to bring production of a whole new generation of work trucks to Ohio.”

Offered in Regular Cab, SuperCab and Crew Cab body styles and in straight-frame, dock-height and an all-new dedicated tractor model for heavy towing applications, the 2016 F-650/F-750 line features a bold new look inside and out.

Ford is the only medium-duty truck manufacturer that designs and builds its own diesel engine and transmission combination – ensuring the powertrain will work seamlessly with all chassis components and vehicle calibrations.

Along with its 6.7-liter Power Stroke^® V8 diesel engine option, Ford remains the only automaker to offer a gasoline-powered engine in the medium-duty truck segment. The 6.8-liter V10 with 320 horsepower and 460 lb.-ft. of torque now will be available for both F-650 and F-750 models with the heavy-duty TorqShift six-speed automatic transmission. The 6.8-liter can be factory-prepped for converting to compressed natural gas or liquid propane gas as cost-effective alternatives to gasoline.

Ohio Assembly Plant investment
 
In 2014, Ford announced a $168 million investment to shift production of F-650 and F-750 from Mexico to Ohio Assembly Plant, in addition to adding new body shop equipment and other tooling needed to produce the medium-duty vehicles. The production shift from Mexico is part of the collective bargaining agreement Ford and the United Auto Workers negotiated in 2011.

"Through collective bargaining, we were able to secure production of the Ford F-650/F-750 to Ohio Assembly Plant,” said Jimmy Settles, UAW vice president and director, National Ford Department. “Building these world-class vehicles in America helps secure jobs for more than 1,000 UAW members and provides economic growth for the Avon Lake community. Strengthening the economy through job creation continues our efforts to rebuild the American middle-class and communities all across this nation.”

Opened in 1974, Ohio Assembly Plant employs nearly 1,400 people and is one of the largest employers in Lorain County. In addition to now producing all Ford F-650 and F-750 models and configurations, the plant also produces Ford E-Series cutaway vans and stripped chassis.

Toughest, smartest, best-value Ford medium-duty truck ever
 
2016 Ford F-650/F-750 trucks are the toughest, smartest, best-value Ford medium-duty trucks ever – providing the ideal combination of value, capability and upfit readiness in the segment.

These attributes underscore the F-650/F-750’s position as the future of medium-duty trucks:

• Toughest: Fully designed and developed by Ford truck engineers in Dearborn, Mich.; robot-tested on taxing durability courses; 500,000-plus miles of harsh dynamometer engine testing at extreme power levels and temperatures; Ford-built in the U.S.
• Smartest: All-new upfit-friendly chassis developed in cooperation with leading industry body makers; clean chassis capable of accommodating vocational bodies with little to no modification; all-new dedicated tractor model for heavy towing
• Best value: Choice of segment-exclusive 6.8-liter V10 gas engine or 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 diesel – both backed by Ford’s heavy-duty TorqShift six-speed automatic transmission enhanced for medium-duty use with great power, performance and fuel economy; includes unsurpassed five-year/250,000-mile warranty and national network of Ford service centers

The Road to Cooperstown: Part 2 | SYNC 3: What Happens Next?™

When J.B. is left out of a day of golf with MLB Hall of Famers John Smoltz and Frank Thomas, he decides to take the Ford Escape for an adventure.

J.B. gets a first-hand look at the convenience of the hands-free calling and the SYNC 3 navigation system in the 2015 Ford Escape, while John and Frank relive their memories of the big leagues.

The Road to Cooperstown: Part 1 | SYNC 3: What Happens Next?™

Unwelcomed guest, J.B. crashes a relaxing day of golf for Frank Thomas and John Smoltz.

J.B. isn’t allowed to join in the Hall-of-Famers-only golf game, so he decides to have his own fun in Frank’s new Ford Escape on a one of a kind adventure.

Ford Fusion Sales Jump More Than 100 Percent Since 2005 Launch

• Annual Ford Fusion sales jump from 142,000 vehicles in 2006, the popular midsize sedan’s first full year on sale, to 306,000 in 2014
• Over the same period, Honda Accord went from 354,000 vehicles sold to 388,000, while Toyota Camry sales fell, from 448,000 vehicles sold to 428,000
• Radical 2013 Ford Fusion redesign forced other automakers to reconsider “vanilla” styling in midsize segment

DEARBORN, Mich., Aug. 12, 2015 – Since its 2013 model year redesign, the widely acclaimed Ford Fusion has not only brought sexy back to the midsize sedan segment, it’s also brought back sales.

2015 marks 10 years since launch of Ford’s then all-new midsize sedan, and three years since Fusion’s radical redesign that reset expectations for aggressive styling in a historically staid segment of family vehicles.

Long dominated by Japanese offerings, Ford Fusion has been chipping away at sales and market share in the midsize sedan segment – largely on the strength of its styling.

In 2012, the last model year for the first-generation model, Ford sold 241,263 Fusions compared with Honda’s 331,872 Accords. Through June 2015, that gap closed considerably – Ford selling 178,263 Fusions to Honda’s 190,242 Accords.

“Fusion is achieving growth in all the right places, especially in California, the largest midsize sedan market in the country, followed by Texas,” said Erich Merkle, Ford sales analyst. “Since its introduction, Fusion – in style-conscious California – has grown at almost six times the rate of the overall segment.”

Fusion sales almost tripled in California since launch, while the midsize sedan segment grew 29 percent.

Texas is the next largest contributor to Fusion sales growth. There, the car’s sales have increased at twice the rate of the overall segment – representing 14 percent of Fusion retail sales growth in the United States based on registration data.

In its short life, Fusion has accumulated multiple awards, including Motor Trend 2010 Car of the Year, J.D. Power and Associates Most Dependable Midsize Car and Best Car for the Money in the 2012 U.S. News and World Report, among many others.

2015 Ford Escape vs. 2015 Toyota RAV4

Check out this video to see what the 2015 Ford Escape offers that the Toyota RAV4 doesn't!

2015 Ford F-150 Honored for Innovation in Lightweighting with Altair Enlighten Award

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich., Aug. 3, 2015 – The all-new Ford F-150 – Ford’s toughest, smartest, most capable F-150 ever – earned recognition as the winner of the third annual Altair Enlighten Award from Altair and the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) for the truck’s use of lightweight materials to minimize weight.

The 2015 F-150 – with best-in-class towing, payload and EPA-estimated gasoline fuel economy plus five-star top government crash test ratings for every cab configuration – is being recognized for its total weight reduction of up to 700 pounds.

Starting with the signature fully boxed frame, Ford engineers increased the use of high-strength 70,000-psi steel – from 23 percent to 77 percent of the frame – to improve stiffness and durability while reducing weight. The new frame is up to 60 pounds lighter than the current frame. High-strength, aluminum alloys, already used in aerospace, commercial transportation, energy and many other rugged industries, are used throughout the F-150 body for the first time, improving dent and ding resistance, and also saving weight.

“We are excited to present Ford with the 2015 Altair Enlighten Award,” said Dave Mason, Vice President of Global Automotive at Altair. “The judges recognized Ford’s best-in-class innovation with the company’s approach to weight reduction by incorporating advanced materials and design technologies for the F-150.”

The Altair Enlighten Awards highlight industry examples focused on minimizing the weight of products through innovative design techniques, materials technology and manufacturing processes. It also looks at products that improve industry best practices to respond to the challenges of mass management and meeting fuel economy targets, and addressing increasing vehicle safety requirements.

Could Gamers Hold Key to Future Mobility? Ford Challenges Developers to Revamp Journey Planning and Urban Travel

• Ford invites gaming community during Gamescom to create online games that could inspire real-life solutions to global mobility issues
• Ford Smart Mobility Game Challenge, produced with Cologne Game Lab, challenges developers to gamify urban commutes and integrate transport modes for smoother, less-stressful journeys
• Panel of experts will choose five finalists; winning developer team will receive €10,000 and have their work presented at Mobile World Congress 2016 in Barcelona
• All-new Forza Focus RS with an exterior designed by players of the Forza Motorsport racing game for the Xbox unveiled in Cologne

COLOGNE, Germany, Aug. 6, 2015 – Ford Motor Company announced today during Gamescom a competition that challenges video game developers to create solutions for global mobility issues.
The Ford Smart Mobility Game Challenge, developed with Cologne Game Lab, encourages developers to turn the challenge of integrating different transport modes within a city into fun and engaging online games. Gamescom 2015 – the largest interactive games trade fair in Europe – is taking place this week in Cologne.

Gamification has proven to be an effective way to solve real-life problems in many areas. The learnings from the Ford Smart Mobility Game Challenge could lead to innovative solutions and new approaches to integrating urban transport, with joined-up door-to-door journeys. For instance, the games developed could reward participating commuters for successful journeys, based on criteria such as time-taken, cost, comfort and convenience. They also could utilise personal data and technology including smart phones and watches.

Five finalists will be chosen by a panel of gaming and mobility experts, including:

• Bjoern Bartholdy, professor for media design and co-director, Cologne Game Lab
• Will Farrelly, User Experience Innovation, Ford Smart Mobility, Ford of Europe
• Tracy Fullerton, director of the USC Games Program and chair of the Interactive Media & Games Division, University of Southern California
• Dan Greenawalt, creative director at Turn 10 Studios in Redmond, Washington, U.S.
• Prof. Paolo Tumminelli, Design Concepts, Köln International School of Design
  
  

The winner will receive €10,000 and the opportunity to show their work at the 2016 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

“The Smart Mobility Game Challenge is designed to harness the creativity of the gaming community and empower gamers to take a fresh approach to tackling today’s global mobility issues,” said Ken Washington, vice president, Ford Research and Advanced Engineering. “Applying the fun, engaging and rewarding aspects of games to journey planning can allow people to improve their commutes, track their success and become aware of how their behaviour impacts the transport infrastructure as a whole.”

The Smart Mobility Game Challenge is part of Ford Smart Mobility – Ford’s effort to help change the way the world moves through innovation. The challenge follows a recent Ford-commissioned survey of 5,500 commuters in major European cities that showed a majority of people consider their journey to work more stressful than their actual jobs.* The finalists will be asked to incorporate the key insights from this survey into their game development plans.

Ford has embraced gamification to accelerate the development of autonomous technologies and to enhance the Ford ownership experience. Ford’s SmartGauge technology rewards drivers for fuel- and energy-efficient driving, and the MyFord Mobile app enables drivers to remotely manage the charging of their electric vehicles and shows CO₂ savings as exercise balls or hot-air balloons. Ford also is using gaming elements in developing MoDe:Link, the prototype journey-planning app that is part of the Handle on Mobility electric bike experiment.

“Gaming offers a degree of user engagement and empowerment that you don’t get from other mediums,” Washington said. “By utilising these qualities the Smart Mobility Game Challenge can help develop solutions that enable travellers to take control of their journeys.”

Games could reward commuters for walking or cycling in good weather, and connect them to services beyond public transport, such as Ford’s GoDrive car-sharing service. By encouraging commuters to take under-utilised routes, games also could help ease congestion.

Gamification has proven a powerful problem-solving tool in research fields including the search for a cure for AIDS, where a significant breakthrough was achieved through the creation of an online video game called Foldit.** Gamification also is helping researchers study cancer,¹ and is incentivising energy efficiency² and recycling initiatives.³

Ford has developed the Smart Mobility Game Challenge with leading academic institute and think tank Cologne Game Lab, part of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences at the University of Cologne. Developers can submit their entries at www.ford-smart-mobility-game-challenge.com until Oct. 1, 2015.

“Games are designed to entertain, but for the developers it’s a serious business that requires astute problem-solving abilities as well as creativity – exactly the qualities needed to tackle the challenge of integrating existing transport systems,” Bartholdy said. “We’re excited to partner with Ford in putting the talents and know-how of the gaming community to great use with Ford Smart Mobility Game Challenge.”

A unique all-new Ford Focus RS featuring an exterior designed by players of the Forza Motorsport racing game also was this week unveiled at a special Microsoft event ahead of Gamescom. Ford also has joined with Microsoft to feature the all-new Ford GT in the new Forza Motorsport 6 game for the Microsoft Xbox One console. Visitors to the event will be able to view the Ford GT ultra-high-performance supercar – the game’s cover star.

# # #
* Survey conducted for Ford Motor Company by Opinion Matters during April 2015 https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/feu/en/news/2015/04/27/for-europeans--the-journey-to-work-causes-more-stress-than-their.html
** Foldit players competed to predict the structure of protein molecules and in less than three weeks cracked the code of a retrovirus enzyme that had stumped scientists for more than a decade

F-150 Performance Enhanced by New Sport Mode

• 2015 Ford F-150’s 700-pound weight savings, its choice of four high-output, more fuel-efficient powertrains, and – for the first time ever – an on-demand sport mode combine to enable an improved driving experience for truck customers
  
• Six-speed automatic transmission with sport mode is standard across F-150 lineup; system operates in two-wheel drive, four-wheel-drive automatic and four-wheel-drive high settings
• Automatic transmission technology used for both Mustang and F-150 was jointly created – allowing some performance advantages of the pony car to be applied to the pickup truck for a more responsive driving experience

DEARBORN, Mich., Aug. 5, 2015 – Crazy-smart Ford engineers have struck again – this time blending the sport mode feature borrowed from the all-new Mustang with the reduced weight of the all-new F-150 to deliver an engaged, dynamic driving experience with any of the four high-output, fuel-efficient powertrains available to truck customers.

Since the all-new 2015 Mustang and F-150 were developed on a similar time line and share certain automatic transmission technology, powertrain engineers often drove both vehicles on the same trips used for testing.

“Our team realized how well the new F-150 handled and responded to acceleration due to its reduced weight,” said Karl Jungbluth, Ford transmission calibration engineer. “So we decided we could adapt the sport mode capabilities of the six-speed automatic transmission from Mustang to F-150 to enhance the overall driving experience for truck customers.”

Sport mode on F-150 is activated by pushing the tow/haul mode button twice. An amber S appears in the lower-right portion of the tachometer indicating sport mode is active.

The feature works by changing the frequency of gearshifts, so the truck stays in the “sweet” spot of the powerband and holds lower gears longer to make driving more fun. That means less shifting on engaging drives, such as twisty roads with rolling hills. Instead of shifting gears up and down for peak efficiency, the transmission holds a specific gear longer to make driving more responsive and spirited.

Sport mode reduces the frequency of having to step on the gas pedal to reach peak torque – resulting in quicker acceleration with less pedal travel. The truck feels more responsive to the driver’s pedal inputs. When combined with the transmission changes, the result is an on-demand performance feel similar to what an aftermarket modification might add to the truck, but with the benefit of maintaining the Ford vehicle warranty.

An advanced feature of F-150’s six-speed automatic transmission is its ability to match engine rpm as it downshifts in slowing for a corner. Electronics calibration for this feature comes straight out of Mustang.

“Sport mode keeps the engine operating in the desired power and torque ranges, or what we like to call the ‘sweet’ spot,” explained Jungbluth. “It makes Mustang come alive, and we feel it does the same thing in F-150.”

Sport mode is similar to F-150’s tow/haul mode, which also changes shift points under acceleration, keeping the truck at a higher rpm and further up in the power range while driving over rolling terrain for an improved towing experience. The technology limits the transmission from shifting up when the vehicle crests a hill, and provides downhill brake support that allows engine-compression braking to slow the vehicle and maintain a steady speed.

Sport mode is standard with every F-150 engine and can be activated in two-wheel drive, four-wheel-drive automatic and four-wheel-drive high settings.

SYNC® 3 | Find That Street

We've found some crazy street names...can SYNC 3 find them using voice command?

2015 Ford F-150 Leads Light-Duty Truck Segment in Safety Ratings

DEARBORN, Mich., July 30, 2015 – Ford’s all-new F-150, the toughest, smartest, most capable and safest F-150 ever is the first pickup in America to earn an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick for its SuperCrew model.

The new Ford F-150 is also the only full-size, light-duty truck in the industry to earn the government’s highest possible 5-star rating for the driver and passenger for all crash test modes and cab configurations – SuperCrew, SuperCab and Regular Cab.

The excellent crash test performance of the new Ford F-150 is enabled by its up to 700-pound weight savings through the use of high-strength steel in the frame; high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy in the body; and smart engineering.

A cross-functional group comprised of Ford truck product development veterans and researchers worked to optimize vehicle weight savings and manufacturing design to deliver improved durability, capability, fuel economy and crashworthiness. The team created 31 safety-related innovations including new structures, materials and joining methods that were tested virtually with supercomputer simulations, then retested in Ford’s advanced laboratories to engineer the safest F-150 ever.

Breakthrough innovation also applies to the reparability of the new F-150, thanks to its innovative modular structure that simplifies repairs.

Ford does not agree with the reparability costs and findings by IIHS and other stunts.  Ford’s view is based on real-world accident repair data. In fact, real-world repair costs on the new 2015 Ford F-150 average $869 less than last year’s F-150 model, according to Assured Performance, an independent body shop certification company that works with leading automakers.

Insurance companies also agree with the new F-150’s repair costs – with both Allstate and State Farm saying insurance costs for the new F-150 will remain comparable with 2014 models.

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