1999 Ford Taurus Se Wagon 4-door 3.0l, Gray\blue, Solid 29 Mpg, Very Clean on 2040-cars

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Muscle wins big at 2013 Amelia Island Concours as 1936 Duesenberg, 1968 Ford GT40 take top honors

The 18th-annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance took place this past weekend, and in one of the show's biggest years yet (bringing in more than 25,000 spectators and attracting more than 300 vehicles), two powerhouses ended up winning the judges' hearts. The top Concours d'Elegance award went to a 1936 Duesenberg SJN, while the Concours de Sport went to one of the celebrated marques, a 1968 Ford GT40.
Owned by Helen and Jack Nethercutt of Sylmar, CA, this flawless Duesy is described as "one of the most powerful open cars of the 1930s," and it displays design cues of the era like rolled fenders and a tapered rear end. The SJN's supercharged straight-eight allowed it to accelerate to 100 miles per hour in just 17 seconds - surely not a disappointing feat for its day.
On a much different level of performance and timelessness, this Gulf-livery GT40 from the Rocky Mountain Auto Collection is not outdone by the elegance of the big Duesenberg thanks to some well-documented racing history. This not only includes winning at LeMans in both 1968 and 1969 - Chassis No. 1075 also managed to win a total of six times in just 11 races.

Shelby boosts production of 575-hp Raptor on early demand

Shelby American unveiled its all-new Shelby Raptor at the New York Auto Show last month, saying that it would build just 100 examples of its off-road bad boy, a pickup priced at $17,995 over the cost of the donor Ford F-150 SVT Raptor. But the Las Vegas outfit apparently underestimated just how popular the supercharged 575-horsepower 4x4 would actually be.
Strong early demand reportedly has Shelby singing a whole new tune, as the company is now saying it will build upwards of 500 units annually. While the increased production will likely make for at least 400 more happy owners, those who were on the original short list - possibly speculating on future values - might not be grinning as much. Needless to say, the company has assured everyone that each and every one of the modified Raptors will still be listed in the official Shelby registry.
Keep in mind that Ford isn't sitting idle on its trophy-truck-for-the-street, either. The company will reveal its own 2014 F-150 SVT Raptor Special Edition this month.

Ford, Toyota clean up in Best Car For The Money Awards

The U.S. News Best Cars for the Money Awards picks winners by looking at the average transaction price, five-year total cost of ownership, the regard a car has from the automotive press, reliability figures from J.D. Power and Associates and safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The result, according to the magazine, is "the best combination of critical acclaim and long-term value."
Ford nabbed six of the 21 categories that received awards this year, the Focus, Fusion, Fusion Hybrid, Taurus, Escape and Edge getting trophies. Toyota and its Lexus and Scion sub-brands took another five, the Tacoma and Tundra owning the two categories given to pickup trucks. The other ten awards were split between Honda with three, Buick with two, and one each for Subaru, BMW, Hyundai, Chevrolet and Mazda.
Follow the link to see all the winners and read about why they were chosen.