2011 Ford Fusion Se on 2040-cars

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2015 Ford Focus ST gets sleeker style, improved dynamics

The Brits don't really have a major auto show these days. Not in a conventional sense, anyway, with stationary vehicles under floodlights in a closed exposition space. What they do have, you could argue, is much better: the Goodwood Festival of Speed, where the public can view the latest machinery not only under an open sky, but in motion as well, speeding up Lord March's front lawn. And this year, British automakers are rolling in with some very enticing new metal.
In the past few days alone we've confirmed the McLaren 650S GT3 and MSO, Jaguar F-Type Project 7, Range Rover Sport SVR and Ariel Ace will all be revealed for the first time at Goodwood this weekend. Ford isn't, strictly speaking, a British automaker, but for all its history in the UK, it might as well. So it's chosen Goodwood as the site to unveil its refreshed Focus ST.
The upgraded Blue Oval hot hatch still packs a 2.0-liter turbo four with 252 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque driving through a six-speed manual to the front wheels, so we're not expecting much change in measurable performance. But Ford has given the new Focus ST a new front suspension setup and a new electric power-assisted steering rack that combine to promise improved handling.

Ford Australia reveals updated Territory, Falcon via Twitter

Ford may have tied together much of its global lineup under the One Ford campaign, but one market where it still offers unique products is Australia. That will soon draw to a close as well, but before it does, the Blue Oval's Aussie operations are rolling out refreshed versions of its two unique products. For the moment, Ford isn't revealing much in the way of powertrain details, but it has shown off a couple of snaps of the revised products on its in-market Twitter feed.
First up is the new Territory. The SUV is neither based on a front-drive crossover platform nor on a truck frame, but shares its rear-drive underpinnings with the Falcon, taking it a step beyond the Falcon wagon alongside which it sits in Ford's Aussie range. Like the outgoing third-generation SZ Territory, the facelifted version is dominated by a narrow grille and larger front air dam, but further punctuates its big-chinned look with more rugged lower cladding and other metallic inserts that bring its look up to date.
And there's the Falcon, which Ford revealed in XR8 trim just last week and is now presenting in G6E spec. If the XR8 is the performance model, the G6E is the luxury version, swapping in more refined trim like a chrome-slat grille (instead of a black honeycomb), chrome foglamp surrounds, less-aggressive multi-spoke wheels (instead of five-spokes) and a flatter hood (instead of a power bulge). Otherwise, it looks essentially the same as the one we saw last week, its facelift bringing it more in line with the smaller, front-drive Mondeo (which we know here as the Fusion) and other members of the Ford family.

Weekly Recap: Auto execs face life in prison for recall delays under proposed legislation

The stiff punishments are part of broader transportation legislation, but clearly McCaskill has automakers in her sights.
Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill threw down the gauntlet this week, proposing a bill that could send auto executives to prison for life if they were found to have delayed a recall. She also wants to eliminate the limit for fines for auto safety violations, which are currently capped at $35 million.