1999 Ford F-350 on 2040-cars

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Ford offering $10,000 in incentives for new F-150

Not two months ago, Ford posted lower-than-expected first quarter earnings partly because of production issues with the new F-150, but raised the year's profit outlook thinking the production issues were over. A month later we got word of more manufacturing problems due to a shortage of frames, leaving the company unable to fulfill demand. The problems not only ate into Ford's bottom line, but also its market share, since the F-Series truck has been the best-selling vehicle for the past 33 years. Inventory still isn't where Ford wants it, and won't be until the end of September. The pipeline is stocked enough, however, that Bloomberg reports The Blue Oval is putting up to $10,029 on the hood in some parts of the country, and only on certain trims, as a way to stay competitive with rival truck makers. Ford lost 100,000 units of production during the changeover of the two plants that build it. The frame shortage compounds that, which has led to F-150 sales that are down 2.4 percent through the first half of the year. F-150 market share in June 2014 was 33 percent, this June it was 28 percent. Meanwhile, sales over at General Motors and Ram are climbing - Chevrolet Silverado sales were up 18 percent year-on-year in June. Ford said its incentive spending on the F-150 is down overall this year, and its average transaction price of $44,100 remains the highest in the segment. Still, it will look forward to solid footing to take on rivals. Related Video:

Ford wants to double hybrid offerings by 2020

The Blue Oval is looking for folks on the other side of this Big Old Sphere to get on board with its hybrid offerings. Ford executive Raj Nair, speaking at the Detroit Auto Show this week, said the US automaker wants to double the number of hybrids models it offers by the end of the decade, Reuters reports. Details of what that actually means is anyone's guess, as it was unclear how many of those models would be in the US and how many would be overseas. That said, Nair did say that prospective customers in regions such as China and Europe would drive the expansion of offerings. Ford got off to a great start in the US last year on its hybrid sales, but then tailed off towards the end of 2013. Ford more than doubled its green-car sales in 2013 to almost 88,000 units. In that number were more than 37,000 Fusion Hybrids and more than 28,000 C-Max Hybrids sold domestically. The company also sold almost 7,500 Lincoln MKZ Hybrids. Ford's green-car totals for 2013 were up fivefold at the mid-year point, hinting that Ford's hybrid sales plateaued, at least temporarily, in recent months.

Hertz Penske GT latest hot Ford Mustang at the rental counter

Just a couple days after announcing the resurrection of its Rent-A-Racer program, Hertz has revealed a new car being added to its Adrenalin Collection of rental cars. To signify its new partnership with Penske Racing in NASCAR, Hertz introduced a limited-edition version of the Ford Mustang GT, officially called the Hertz Penske GT, at last weekend's NASCAR races in Daytona. If you're like us, the rental specials remind with the original 1966 Shelby GT350-H and its later homage, the 2006 Shelby GT-H.
Visually, the Hertz Penske GT starts out with a black and yellow paint and graphics scheme as well as identifying badges, and Hertz has raided the Mustang parts bin for bits and bobs like a Boss 302 front splitter and Shelby GT500 rear valence to give the coupe its own unique look. The model has also receives performance improvements including upgraded suspension and exhaust, Brembo brakes, a retuned ECU and Recaro bucket seats. As a bonus, Penske Racing's Nationwide Series No. 22 Ford Mustang has been painted to match the new Hertz Penske GT. Other cars in the Hertz Adrenaline Collection include the standard version of the Ford Mustang GT, Chevrolet Camaro SS, Chevrolet Corvette convertible and Dodge Challenger R/T. Scroll down for the official press release for the Hertz Penske GT, or you can always head to your local Hertz airport location to see if they have one on the lot.