2000 Ford Ranger Xlt Extended Cab 4x4 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2014 Holman & Moody 50th Anniversary TdF Ford Mustang

If you're a fan of Ford racing history, a Mustang worshiper or even just an avid follower of our yearly SEMA coverage, you may have heard the back story on the Race Red Mustang you see above. Back in 1964, Holman & Moody was tapped by the English Alan Mann Racing Team to race-prep three Mustangs for competition in the incredibly arduous 4,000-mile Tour de France Automobile rally. Competing mainly against Jaguar MkII saloons over 10 days and 17 stages, the H&M Mustangs took the top two places in the Touring class and the first-ever racing win for Ford's pony car.
Though the history of that first Mustang win hasn't been incredibly well known here in the States, the subsequent decades have seen plenty of racy versions of the car come and go. Last year at the SEMA show, we covered the brief debut of this living tribute to that piece of racing lore, the Holman & Moody 50th Anniversary TdF Mustang.
This limited-edition Mustang represents a kind of new venture for H&M, as the legendary racing shop has spent the last few decades earning its keep largely by restoring vintage racing cars. The urge to get back into the world of Ford and Mustang was powerful, however, what with the car's 50th anniversary looming and the current generation of 'Stang just about out the door.

Ford Mondeo with 1.5-liter EcoBoost debuts in China

Does the car above, posing fancifully in white, look familiar? Well, it should. Although it wears Mondeo badges in the form you see above for the Chinese market - as it does in Europe - the car is basically the same thing sold in the US as the Ford Fusion. Of course, it's what's under that shapely skin that counts.
Ford has chosen the Shanghai Motor Show as the venue with which to unveil its 1.5-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine. We'd heard about the engine before, but now we have a few performance estimates to share: 133 kW of power (about 178 horsepower) and 240 Nm of torque (about 177 pound-feet).
Those numbers pretty much confirm previous rumors indicating about 177 in each category, and it's right on par with what Ford's own 1.6-liter EcoBoost produces. Ford is claiming best-in-class fuel economy as well, but no specific figures have yet been provided. In any case, we'll surely have all the data soon enough, as the 1.5-liter mill is destined for the US Fusion in 2014.

Autoblog joins Elon Musk and Danica Patrick in accepting ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

Unless you've been living in an off-the-grid cabin in the woods for the last couple of weeks or abstain entirely from social media activities, you've probably seen someone you know dump a bucket of ice and water over their own head recently. While the origins of the so-called Ice Bucket Challenge are shrouded in a history typical of Internet memes, its effectiveness in raising money and awareness for the ALS Association has been astonishing.
Celebrities from the worlds of entertainment, sports, technology and more have generated untold millions of video views in support of the organization that is helping patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig's Disease), and generated a much needed influx of cash, as well. Recent reports have some $15.6M raised in the last two weeks.
Of course, the big-hearted world of automotive celebrities has taken part in the drenching charity effort as well. Follow on below for some of the biggest names on four wheels getting iced for charity, with a smattering of your favorite Autobloggers thrown in for good measure.