1998 Ford Expedition Xlt Sport Utility 4-door 5.4l on 2040-cars

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Ford adding second supplier for F-150 frames

Metalsa, the company that builds steel frames for the aluminum-bodied Ford F-150, is still having trouble providing enough frames to supply the two factories that build the pickup. The snafu is preventing Ford from selling as many of the country's best-selling truck as it could, and eating into profits - even though the bottom line is still breaking company records. According to The Wall Street Journal, Ford has picked Michigan company Tower International as a second frame supplier and expects to have inventory up to a proper level at the beginning of Q4 of this year. Neither Ford nor Tower would confirm the development - Automotive News got comments from a source and pieced together bits of info from Tower's financial statements and local press reports. Tower currently builds body structures for several vehicles, including the F-series, and the Bellevue, Ohio factory that will build F-150 frames previously manufactured frames for the Ranger and Econoline. According to a story in the local Sandusky Register, Tower will add one production line at the end of next month to begin shipping frames in October, and another line in April 2016. Something like 138 full-time workers and 364 robots are expected to carry out the work. Tower's most recent financial statement said that capital investment will be necessary to get everything set up, but the contract will be worth $140 million in yearly revenue.

2015 Ford Mustang renders reveal look of the real thing

This is, according to the pony-car obsessed kids over at Mustang6G.com, the closest, most accurate rendering of the new, 2015 Ford Mustang to date. Artis Chazcron used a combination of Ford CAD images and information from assorted spy shots to assemble a fairly handsome car, albeit one that conforms to the tired cliché of being more evolutionary than revolutionary.
Now, it's very important to note that these are still speculative renders, and that they only represent the base car - that could explain the lack of the Mustang's vestigial side scoops, along with other, newer styling cues that Mustang6G seems to think will arrive on production models. Those items include a new, double-bubble roof, although the Mustang aficionados claim that even if it were present, it'd barely be visible from these angles.
The front end is pretty spot on, compared to what we've seen from earlier spy shots, while the tail, with its interesting light design is something new. The louvered taillights look quite different from the current version, obviously, though Mustang has gone the whimsical route with taillights before. Also, note the new rear diffuser uses an integrated reverse light and rear foglight, the latter of which is required for sale in Europe.

Sunday Drive: Still thankful for supercars

The Thanksgiving holiday meant that last week was pretty short on stories, but apparently our readers are still thankful for supercars. The biggest news of the week was the new Aston Martin Vantage, which is clothed in a new look that Autoblog readers are still very much unsure of. It's a radical departure from past Aston Martin models, and while everyone seems to agree that the profile is lovely, the squinty headlamps are a particular source of contention. Its 503 horsepower and 512 pound-feet of torque cannot be argued with ... oh, and a V12 may be coming soon. Moving along is a nearly new 2006 Ford GT for sale that's expected to fetch around $300,000 at auction. It's so unused that it still has plastic wrap covering the leather interior. The Ango-American theme continues with the McLaren 720S, though not in road-going form. Still, renderings of the upcoming 720S GT3 racer round out this supercar-rich recap. As always, stay tuned to Autoblog for all the latest automotive news that's fit to print. All-new Aston Martin Vantage turns up the volume This 10.8-mile Ford GT could be yours McLaren 720S GT3 race car shown off in renderings Aston Martin Ford McLaren Coupe Luxury Racing Vehicles Performance Supercars aston martin vantage recap sunday drive