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UAW prepares for more strikes in the U.S. as Ford Canada talks extend

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union said it would announce on Friday more U.S. plants to strike if no serious progress was made in talks with the Detroit 3 automakers, as a Canadian union held off on an immediate walkout at Ford's operations in Canada. The UAW last week launched a strike against Ford, General Motors and Chrysler parent Stellantis, targeting one U.S. assembly plant at each company. "We're not going to keep waiting around forever while they drag this out," UAW President Shawn Fain said in a video message late on Monday setting the new deadline after complaining about a lack of progress in recent talks. "We're not messing around." Ford's contract with Canadian union Unifor, which represents about 5,600 workers at three plants in Canada, expired at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Monday (0359 GMT on Tuesday). The union said early on Tuesday that negotiations had been extended for 24 hours after it received a "substantive offer" from Ford. "Unifor members should continue to maintain strike readiness," it added. Ford said in a statement it had agreed to continue negotiations beyond the contract deadline in hopes of reaching a tentative agreement. The company has two engine plants in Canada that build V8 engines for F-Series and Super Duty pickups assembled in the United States. It also has an assembly plant in Ontario. Any walkout by Canadian workers that would shut down those engine plants could cripple U.S. production of Ford's most profitable vehicles, even if the UAW decides not to order walkouts at truck plants in Kentucky; Dearborn, Michigan; and Kansas City, Missouri. "Ours is a small but highly consequential footprint for Ford operations in North America and this is our leverage, and we will use it," Unifor National President Lana Payne said in a video message earlier on Monday. Unifor has been seeking improved wages and pensions, as well as support in the transition to electric vehicles and additional investment commitments by Ford. Once the Ford deal is completed, Unifor will turn to getting agreements with GM and Stellantis, whose deadlines were extended during the talks with Ford. U.S. NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE Talks between the UAW and the Detroit automakers continued on Monday as the U.S. strike dragged on for a fourth day with little sign of progress toward a deal. Some 12,700 workers are striking at the three U.S. plants. The union and companies are at loggerheads over pay and benefits for workers.

Focus STs for SEMA include Lotus and Gulf liveries, rally-fied police car

Ford, as we mentioned on Saturday, is pulling out all the stops for November's SEMA show, bringing 57 vehicles to the Las Vegas event. Ford will be staggering the release of its SEMA flotilla, though, so expect to hear a lot about the new additions to the fleet in the weeks to come. We already showed you the Fiesta, Fiesta ST and Mustang models that made up the first batch of SEMA cars. Next up, we have a quartet of modded Focus STs joining Ford's SEMA roster.
Our first Focus ST (pictured above) sports the legendary livery of Gulf Racing. The orange-on-blue scheme, which Ford helped make famous at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, has been updated for 2013, with a more vibrant blue. This ST was built by Universal Technical Institute, while the exterior was done by Neil Tjin of Tjin Edition. Side exhausts, a Vortech supercharger and a Motiv Concepts high-flow cat allow the ST to breathe a bit easier, while Forgestar wheels contrast well with the iconic paint scheme.
Focus ST number two has been done-up by PM Lifestyle and is inspired by "Southern California car culture." Sporting a sleek, pale blue paint job, there's also no shortage of carbon fiber on the car's exterior. The 2.0-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine has been massaged by the likes of Banks Power, COBB Tuning and Ford Racing, while the suspension is wearing a shiny, new set of coilovers and sway bars. The meaty brakes, tucked behind 19-inch, Rotiform wheels, come from Wilwood, while the cabin has been fitted with a pair of Sparco Chrono seats and five-point, Schroth harnesses.

Ford announces recall of 220,000 units in three different actions

Ford has announced three separate recalls affecting 220,000 vehicles built between model years 2011 and 2015. By far the biggest affects just under 213,000 Ford Explorer and Police Interceptor Utility SUVs from MY2011 through 2013. In these vehicles, a spring in the doorway handle could be come unseated, Ford reports, causing the doors to open in a side-impact accident. The affected vehicles were built over a wide range of dates, starting with February 1, 2011 and November 30, 2012. As usual, the majority of the 212,911 vehicles were sold in the US market – 194,484 vehicles, in fact, while Canada and Mexico split the remainder, with 12,392 and 6,035, respectively. The other two recalls focus on specialty vehicles, with Ford recalling 6,500 F-Series Super Duty ambulances and emergency trucks from model years 2011 to 2015. In the case of the 2014 and 2015 F-Series, only trucks with the 6.7-liter turbodiesel are affected. These trucks may have faulty exhaust gas sensors, which according to Ford, could cause the trucks to think they're in a high-temperature situation. The trucks in questions were built at Ford's Kentucky truck plant between February 22, 2010 and February 1, 2015. Finally, the Blue Oval is recalling 1,725 specialty Lincoln MKT crossovers from MY2013 to 2015. These include limos and hearses built between March 6, 2012 and March 4, 2015. Affected MKTs may have a faulty vacuum pump relay that could cause a fire under the hood. In the case of the Explorers, dealers will inspect all four door handles and repair them as needed. The Super Duty's will get software updates, while the MKTs will have the vacuum pump relays replaced outright. A pair of MKT fires has been the only reported incident caused by the recalled components, while the company is unaware of any injuries or deaths. Scroll down for the official press release from Ford. Related Video: FORD ISSUES THREE SAFETY RECALLS IN NORTH AMERICA DEARBORN, Mich., March 25, 2015 – Ford is issuing three safety recalls in North America. No accidents or injuries are attributed to these conditions. Details are as follows: Ford issues safety recall for certain 2011-2013 Ford Explorer and Ford Police Interceptor Utility vehicles for interior door handle issue Ford is issuing a safety recall for approximately 213,000 2011-2013 Ford Explorer and Ford Police Interceptor Utility vehicles in North America (actual 212,911) for an issue with the spring that controls the interior door handles.