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Will Ford's SUV blitz include the Bronco?

Ford announced this week it will add four sport-utility vehicles in the next four years, an ambitious bet on a segment the industry once shunned. This led to wild speculation about what form these utes will take. Here's what we know: They will be new nameplates, and Ford is thinking globally. That means at least one might not be a product with US intent. They will also be in segments where the company does not currently compete, Ford said. The Blue Oval isn't specifying exactly what's it's doing, so here are some of our theories. We think one will be called the Bronco, which is great news for enthusiasts. We hope it follows the Mustang playbook with some heritage styling, but a thoroughly modern execution. Ford needs an off-road Jeep Wrangler-fighter. Fuel prices are low and it's been 22 years since the infamous O.J. Simpson white Bronco chase. This is the best chance Ford will ever have to bring back this iconic name. Our man on the ground at the Chicago Auto show, Sebastian Blanco, reported that Ford sales and marketing vice president Mark LaNeve said a "mini utility" will also be one of the utes. This could be primarily an overseas play. We've also seen lots of spy shots of the EcoSport, a small crossover that Ford sells in India and other overseas markets, being tested on American roads. That is an existing nameplate. Maybe Ford adds a small ute related to the EcoSport in the United States, but calls it something else. We think Lincoln gets a three-row SUV out of the deal. It could slot between the MKX, which was new last year, and the Navigator. Lincoln is leaving money on the table by not being in this segment. The platform could be used for a Ford at some point, too. The Blue Oval brand does actually have a tweener three-row vehicle, the Flex, but this chassis might underpin a replacement. Or maybe Ford makes one of these a hybrid. The company laid out ambitious plans in December to ramp up its electrification strategy, something that could mean a dedicated hybrid SUV (Kia unveiled one of those right after LaNeve's speech in Chicago). It's also possible hybrid technology will be integrated into this new portfolio. The Escape used to have a hybrid sibling. Whatever form they ultimately take, Ford is betting heavily on SUVs. The company thinks they are what Baby Boomers and Millenials want and expects the segment will continue to grow. It's important to note: this will be a diversified strategy.

This Ferrari Superamerica Aerodinamico can be yours for $3 million

Introduced at the 1959 Turin Motor Show, the 400 Superamerica represented the finest and fastest grand tourer Ferrari had ever made. The Colombo-designed 3.0-liter V12 engine from the 250 GT was bored out to 4.0 liters, the drum brakes from the previous 410 Superamerica were replaced by disc brakes at all four corners, and the four-speed manual fitted with overdrive. The original convertible was followed by a svelte Aerodinamico coupe at the same show a year later, which was in turn succeeded by the longer version you see here. This was the first such long-wheelbase model Ferrari built, and was displayed at both the Earls Court Motor Show and Chicago Auto Show in 1962. It was one of only 18 made, of which 14 featured the highly desirable covered headlights. Chassis number 3931 SA was done up in silver with a black interior, has traded hands over the years between owners in the United States, Japan, and Europe. It is now consigned to RM Sotheby's for its upcoming sale in Paris on February 3, where the auction house expects it to as much as $3.6 million. The same auctioneers sold another such long-wheelbase Superamerica Aerodinamico for $2.86 million in Texas this past May, where it also sold a short-wheelbase convertible for a record $7.6 million. Sports Car Market also records that Gooding & Company sold an earlier short-wheelbase coupe for over $4 million in Scottsdale last January. Paris 3 February 2016 1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica LWB Coupe Aerodinamico by Pininfarina - Chassis no. 3931 SA - Engine no. 3931 340 bhp, 3,967 cc SOHC V-12 engine with three Weber 40 DCZ 6 carburettors, four-speed manual transmission with overdrive, independent front suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs and parallel trailing arms, and four-wheel hydraulic disc brakes. Wheelbase: 2,600 mm - 1962 Earls Court and Chicago Motor Show car - The first of only 18 second-series long-wheelbase examples - Previously of the renowned Yoshiho Matsuda Collection - Beautifully presented in its original colour combination of Grigio Argento over Nero - Matching-numbers example; a grand touring Ferrari par excellence THE 400 SUPERAMERICA AERODINAMICO By the 1950s, Ferrari had established itself not only as a world-class manufacturer of sports racing cars but also as a manufacturer of the world's best grand touring cars for the road.

LaFerrari Spider among Maranello's future product plans

Niche though its products may be, Ferrari typically rolls out a new model every year. 2009, for example, saw the introduction of the California. In 2010 came the 458 Italia, followed by the 458 Spider in 2011. In 2012 we greeted the FF, and in 2013 both the F12 Berlinetta and 458 Speciale. This year the hyper-exotic LaFerrari was joined by the California T, and you can bet that Maranello will keep up that pace by rolling out new versions of and replacements for each of these models in succession.
Among the plans which Car and Driver reports Ferrari has afoot will be an open-top LaFerrari Spider - something which the Prancing Horse marque hasn't done at the top of its range since the F50, which came exclusively with a removable hardtop. The 6.3-liter hybrid V12 will likely carry over unchanged, as will most of the other parameters, but for the joy of experiencing 1,000 horsepower with the wind in your hair - and the exclusivity of being one of the just 50 owners - we're told to expect a price tag roughly double that of the existing $1.35 million coupe.
Of course, Ferrari has more plans than simply chopping the roof off its hybrid hypercar. In Geneva next March, the House that Enzo Built is tipped to introduce a Modificato version of the 458 with a twin-turbo V8 producing around 670 horsepower - over one hundred horses more than in the new California T. A refresh for the all-wheel-drive FF is also said to be underway for 2016, when it will receive a less awkward roofline and the possible addition of a V8 base version alongside the V12 that will remain naturally aspirated. As it will in the updated F12 due the following year.