1966 Ford Ranchero Base 3.3l on 2040-cars

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Ford blows up Takata airbag recall by over 447k vehicles

Ford is the latest automaker to announce an expansion to its Takata driver-side airbag inflator recall, and the latest increase adds an additional 447,310 vehicles to the nationwide total. The company says that this expansion comes at the request of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The expanded recall campaign covers: The 2005-2008 Ford Mustang built between August 18, 2004, and June 25, 2007, at the at Flat Rock Assembly Plant The 2005-2006 Ford GT built between February 11, 2005, and January 30, 2006, at the at the Wixom Assembly Plant As of December 18, Ford knows of a total of 502,489 vehicles in need of replacement driver side inflators. Of those, 462,911 are in the US, 27,516 in Canada, 7,578 in Mexico and 4,484 outside of North America. The automaker is aware of one injury that may be related to these exploding parts. Earlier in December, the automaker issued an expanded recall covering passenger side Takata airbag inflators for the Ranger pickup and Ford GT. When taking this into account, the grand total of Ford products with inflators that need replacement for the driver or passenger side is 538,977 vehicles. Scroll down to read the company's full announcement of this enlarged safety campaign. FORD EXPANDS TAKATA DRIVER-SIDE AIRBAG INFLATOR SAFETY RECALL DEC 18, 2014 | DEARBORN, MICH. At the request of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ford is expanding its recall on Takata driver-side airbag inflators. This recall includes approximately 502,489 vehicles, an addition of approximately 447,310 vehicles. This brings the total number of Ford vehicles being recalled for Takata airbag inflators to approximately 538,977. This expanded recall includes 2005-2008 Ford Mustang vehicles built Aug. 18, 2004 to June 25, 2007 at Flat Rock Assembly Plant and 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles built Feb. 11, 2005 to Jan. 30, 2006 at Wixom Assembly Plant. As of Dec. 18, 2014, Ford is aware of approximately 462,911 vehicles in the United States and federalized territories, approximately 27,516 in Canada and approximately 7,578 in Mexico affected by this recall. Approximately 4,484 additional vehicles outside of North America are also included in this action. Ford is aware of one accident with an injury that may be related to this condition. Dealers will replace the airbag inflator at no cost to the customer.

2016 Ford Explorer First Drive [w/video]

I was still young and impressionable when Jurassic Park hit the big screen, and that movie forever imprinted the Ford Explorer in my mind. You remember the scene, but I'll describe it anyway: It's dark, raining and there's no power. The off-screen footsteps of a tyrannosaurus send shockwaves through the standing water in a plastic cup and the rain-soaked muddy roads. Seconds later, the toothy end of the movie's biggest predator crushes through the roof of a highligher-green-and-yellow Ford Explorer, causing all manner of mayhem to the SUV's occupants inside. It's not lost on me that the Ford Explorer used in the movie is, in reality, a dinosaur itself. When the seminal Explorer hit the scene in 1991 it was based on the guts of the Ranger pickup truck, which was no spring chicken itself. Ford's first real foray into the then-burgeoning SUV marketplace was meant to compete against vehicles like the Jeep Cherokee and Chevy Blazer, along with Japanese models such as the Nissan Pathfinder and Toyota 4Runner. In those early days, none of these vehicles were sold based on the merits of their car-like ride and handling or superior fuel economy. Nowadays, the discerning car shopper wants the looks of an off-road-ready SUV, but the inherent compromises and need for any serious rock-crawling capability faded away years ago. The current Ford Explorer is a prime example of this successful visual hypocrisy, with its SUV-like styling listed as the number-one reason for buying on customer surveys. SUV-like styling is one thing, SUV-like guts are another. In 2011 the Explorer went from its traditional truck-based chassis to Ford's D4 platform, based loosely on the Taurus and shared with the Flex. As with the rest of the unibody crossover world, that means the current Explorer offers an excellent ride, the higher seating position that buyers want, and a useful third row for growing families. None of that inherent family-car goodness goes away for 2016. With class-leading sales already in the bag, Ford hopes its latest Explorer will attract new buyers due to the availability of a 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine and an upper-crust Platinum trim level. Based on some time sitting inside and inspecting the high-content Platinum model (albeit without a drive in this trim level) I believe Ford's claim that this is most luxurious vehicle ever to wear a Blue Oval. Only not all its ovals inside are blue.

What an Atlas-based Ford F-150 might look like

Just ahead of January's Detroit Auto Show, surprising rumors pegged Ford as revealing some sort of F-150 concept, perhaps as a hurried effort to deflate some of the buzz building around General Motors' new Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra twins, which were also making their auto show debut. Those rumblings turned out to be true, as Ford rolled into the Motor City with its Atlas concept (inset, right), touting the truck's bold styling as a precursor to the next-generation F-Series.
The show truck featured all kinds of clever details, including active wheel shutters and a front air dam that raised and lowered to improve aerodynamics while preserving off-road ability. It also had a genuinely snarly face. And it's that pugnacious snout that may well be on its way to production. The good folks at TopSpeed have worked up the plausible-looking artist's rendering above by cross-referencing the Atlas concept with what little has been revealed from recent spy shots. The look is toned-down pretty dramatically from the concept truck, but its Atlas roots are clear, with a massive three-bar grille and bracket-shaped headlamps hiding a next-generation EcoBoost engine. In the rendering, the show truck's deeply contoured hood and roofline have been ditched and larger, more traditional side mirrors have been fitted - all likely concessions in the move to production sheetmetal.
While Ford has yet to officially announce when it will unveil the 2015 F-150, all signs point to next year's Detroit Auto Show - one year after the Atlas shrugged off GM's new pickups.