2002 Ford Taurus Lx Sedan 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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NHTSA investigating 725k Ford, Mercury vehicles for stalling issue

Owners of Ford Escape, Mercury Mariner, Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan models, listen up. According to a report on Automotive News, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened an investigation into these four vehicles totaling an estimated 725,000 units. The investigation appears to center around a malfunctioning throttle body on non-hybrid models of the 2005-2012 Escape and 2011-2012 Fusion. With Mercury dying off after the 2011 model year, this probe will also apply to the 2005 through 2011 Mariner and the 2011 Milan. There has been some discussion around the Escape stalling issue for some time now, but this investigation appears to be larger in scope than before.
Though not a recall yet, NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 123 complaints of stalling or surging vehicles, while Ford itself has logged 1,472 complaints. The investigation report, which is posted below, seems to indicate that a faulty circuit board for the throttle body could cause the vehicle to go into limp mode, which, according to NHTSA, could cause complaints of both stalling and surging.

2020 Toyota Highlander vs other 3-row crossovers: There can only be one!

We've done quite a few spec comparison posts involving three-row family crossovers, and when included, the Toyota Highlander has always been the runt of the group. While the rest increasingly seemed to be benchmarking each other toward greater girth, the Highlander was the outlier.  That changes a bit for the 2020 Toyota Highlander, but only a bit. It's now larger and more competitive, specifically in regards to the amount of cargo space aft of the third-row seat. As you can see below, this aligns the Highlander most closely to its long-time competitor the 2020 Honda Pilot. However, let's see how it stacks up to others in the segment, which is heavily populated now, so for the sake of space, we've selected the newest entries: Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade, Subaru Ascent and Ford Explorer. The order in which they are presented is random.  Performance and fuel economy The 2020 Highlander is more than 200 pounds lighter than its predecessor, but has the same 295-horsepower V6 engine that was already one of the strongest in the segment. We'd say that would give it a leg up, but the Pilot and Explorer have proven to be sprinters, delivering 0-60 times in the low-6 range by some publications' stopwatches (or VBoxes, whatever). We don't expect the Highlander to beat them, but it may dip into the 6's. The heavy, less-powerful Subaru Ascent is most likely to take up the rear. It's fuel economy of 23 mpg combined also matches the Highlander and Explorer for segment-best. Remember, however, that the Explorer's turbocharged inline-four engine is likely more susceptible to differences in driving style (read: a heavy foot).  Of course, if you're really interested in fuel economy, the Highlander and Explorer are the only vehicles in the segment to offer hybrid versions. The Ford Explorer Hybrid puts a greater emphasis on performance, however, resulting in lower estimates of 25 mpg combined (AWD) and 28 mpg combined (FWD). By contrast, the new 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid is estimated to return 36 mpg combined.  Passenger and cargo space According to Highlander chief engineer Yoshikazu Saeki, he had a choice of two directions with the new Highlander. He could have indeed made it bigger, matching these very competitors, especially in terms of third-row and cargo space. Or, he could have maintained a smaller-than-average size. He obviously chose the latter. First, it was the size customers had come to expect. Would they be put off by something bigger?

This woman owns the first Ford Mustang sold in the US

As Ford celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Mustang with the unveiling of the all-new sixth-gen design, one Chicago women can lay claim to a piece of Mustang history. According to CBS Chicago, Gail Wise was the first person in the US to buy a Mustang in 1964, and she did so two days before the car was even unveiled to the public.
Wise, then a 22-year-old teacher, went into the Chicago Ford dealership wanting to buy a convertible, and a salesperson ushered her over to car covered by a tarp. That car was a baby blue Mustang convertible, which she still owns today - along with the documentation. After sitting for almost 30 years and undergoing a full restoration, the car now looks to be in original condition. The report says that this $3,400 purchase could be worth anywhere between $100,000 and $250,000. While this worked out well for Mrs. Wise, we wouldn't recommend anyone going into a dark, back room of a dealership hoping to get a jump on the purchase of a 2015 Mustang.
Scroll down to watch the video report.