1997 Ford F-150 Xlt on 2040-cars

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Jurassic Park made a big impact on these Jeep drivers

For a certain cohort of young folks, Jurassic Park is a touchstone film from their childhood. Not only did it play into practically every little boy's love of dinosaurs, the movie included some great action scenes and special effects that still hold up today. In its latest video, The Aficionauto takes a look the Jurassic Park Motor Pool, a California car club with over 40 fans who created replica vehicles from the iconic film.
The club is made up of an interesting cross-section of people. Many of them were Jeep Wrangler fans that already loved off-roading and Jurassic Park, and liked the idea of bringing them together. Like any close-knit club, it ends up being about community and people coming together to share their interests. It's quite a heartwarming video. Also, be sure to stay until the end because The Aficionauto teases a future Jurassic Park-themed vehicle. Scroll down to check out the motor pool.

Ford C-Max spied with fresh updates

The Ford C-Max hatchback looks to be getting a few cosmetic updates, as evidenced in this latest set of spy photos. Like the smaller Focus, which also received a nip/tuck for the 2015 model year, the C-Max appears to be getting a revised front fascia with slimmer headlamps and a more, shall we say, Aston Martin-like grille. Around back, there looks to be a new bumper with redesigned taillamps, as well.
In other markets, the C-Max people-mover is available with a range of powertrains, but here in the US, it exists either as a traditional gas-electric or plug-in hybrid. The C-Max's fuel economy has been a particular topic of interest lately, with its official fuel economy ratings having been lowered twice since the vehicle's launch. Sales initially suffered a bit following this fiasco, though numbers have since leveled out. It's unclear if Ford is working on any powertrain tweaks for the updated C-Max seen here, however.
Ford has likely spruced up the hatch's interior, as well, though we don't have photos of that at this time. Mum's the word on when we'll see the new C-Max, but our best guess is that it'll arrive sometime in the next year.

Ford surges with record 2Q profit

We already knew that the second quarter of 2015 has been good to General Motors. For Ford, though, it's been even better. The Blue Oval saw a net income of $1.9 billion, $800 million more than its larger cross-town rival. Pre-tax profits were even more impressive, at $2.9B. Those figures aren't only more impressive than what GM could conjure up, they improved handily over the same period in 2014. Net profits were up by $574 million, or a staggering 44 percent, while pre-tax profits saw a 10-percent bump over 2014. Ford Credit also had a strong quarter, raking in just over half a billion dollars before taxes. So yeah, Ford calling Q2 "outstanding" in its press release is no exaggeration. The vast majority of Ford's positive Q2 can be attributed to the North American market, which made up $2.6 billion of the company's pre-tax profits. South America, the Middle East, and Europe were all down, although Asia delivered some relief, making $192 million before taxes. Scroll down for the official press brief from Ford. JUL 28, 2015 | DEARBORN, MICH. FORD REPORTS STRONG SECOND QUARTER RESULTS; PRE-TAX PROFIT $2.9 BILLION; NET INCOME $1.9 BILLION DEARBORN, Mich., July 28, 2015 – Ford Motor Company [NYSE: Ford] today reported its 2015 second quarter financial results. View the press release here and visit shareholder.ford.com to view the slide presentation and access the webcast to Ford's second quarter earnings call, which begins at 9 a.m. EDT with Mark Fields, president and chief executive officer, and Bob Shanks, executive vice president and chief financial officer. Highlights Include: Outstanding second quarter; company on track for a breakthrough year Pre-tax profit of $2.9B, up $269M or 10 percent from a year ago excluding last year's special item charges Net income of $1.9B, up $574M or 44 percent from a year ago After-tax earnings per share of 47 cents, up 7 cents from a year ago excluding last year's special item charges Best Automotive quarterly profit since 2000 Wholesale volume up 2 percent, driven by North America and Europe Automotive revenue about equal, with higher net pricing and volume offset by unfavorable translation effects of the strong U.S.