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Ford F-150, Toyota Tacoma top ASG list of most eco-friendly trucks

No one's going to confuse the massively popular Ford F-150 pickup truck with a green vehicle, but at least it performs well in an environmental sense when compared to its brethren. The Automotive Science Group (ASG) took on the odd (to us, at least) task of measuring which pickup trucks are friendliest to the environment and found that the big seller in the Blue Oval's flagship F-series came up big, while the Toyota Tacoma came up, well, slightly smaller. That's a good thing. Among the 245 light-duty trucks that ASG studied, the 3.7-liter V6-powered F-150 won ASG's award for full-size trucks for both regular and crew cabs. Meanwhile, the 2.7-liter Toyota Tacoma, with its fuel-economy rating of 23 miles per gallon combined, had smallest overall life-cycle carbon footprint and won ASG's two mid-sized categories. Finally, the Chevrolet Silverado won best all-around performance in the full-size extended-cab category. The ASG factored in eco-friendliness, price and social performance (which is measured by, "considering the rights of those charged with vehicle manufacture and assembly") to come up with its findings. Sales of Ford's F-Series trucks rose 8.4 percent last year to 74,592 units and accounted for more than a third of the total 2013 sales of Ford and its Lincoln unit. Check out the ASG's press release below. Truck Buyers Faced With "Eco" Options Galore Which 2014 full-size trucks warrant eco claims? 25 March 2014 [Santa Rosa, CA] – With a myriad of eco-branded trucks hitting the North American marketplace in 2014 – from Ford's EcoBoost and GM's EcoTec3 to Ram's latest addition, the EcoDiesel – the Automotive Science Group (ASG) was prompted to offer an objective, scientifically-based assessment to determine exactly which 2014 trucks actually earn their "eco" badge. According to ASG and the principles of ecological economics, a vehicle's eco-rating must be multi-faceted to include both environmental and economic considerations, and so the Group's proprietary rating platform – the Automotive Performance Index – does just that. Using a unique combination of vehicle data inputs that include conventional specifications as well as social, environmental and economic performance indicators, ASG's vehicle assessments empower consumers to make choices based on one's personal principles and financial requisites.

Ford announces bevy of recalls, 2 of which are recalls on recalls

Ford has announced five separate recalls, affecting 202,000 vehicles built between 2005 and 2014.
It's not been a great couple of weeks for Ford. On October 30, the company announced a 205,000-unit recall, and yesterday, it was revealed that the Ford brand's year-over-year sales were down over 5,000 units while the company itself was down 3,000 units over through October. Now, the company has announced five separate recalls affecting 202,000 vehicles built between 2005 and 2014.

Ladies Love It: Ford Fiesta wins Womens World Car of the Year

It's official: A panel of female automotive writers has chosen the Ford Fiesta 1.0-liter EcoBoost as the Womens World Car of the Year, and it beat tough competition like the Mazda CX-5, Range Rover and Porsche Boxster S for the overall top spot.
The CX-5 and Range Rover won the SUV and Luxury Car categories, respectively, and the Boxster S laid claim to the Sports Car category, beating the runner up Audi RS5 and third place Toyota GT86/Subaru BRZ (or Scion FR-S). The Audi Allroad was named the Family car of the year.
The panel consisted of 18 female automotive writers from around the world tasked with picking the best car in each of eight categories, including top vehicle overall, using criteria that women utilize when shopping for a car. That includes safety, value-for-money, aesthetic appearance, storage space, child-friendliness, ease-of-driving, color, sex appeal and environmental footprint.