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Former Cadillac boss Butler takes Ford tech job

When Don Butler made the surprising decision to leave his post as Cadillac's VP of global strategic development, it was a surprise. Citing a desire to "recalibrate, reassess my priorities" in that August announcement, it wasn't entirely clear where Butler - a virtual General Motors lifer after spending nearly 30 years with the company - would end up. Turns out he took a trip to Dearborn.
Butler has taken a position in the newly created position of Executive Director of Connected Vehicles and Services at Ford, where he'll be responsible for the Blue Oval's global connectivity strategy. "Not only does Don understand the connected car landscape, but probably just as important, he understands customer expectations," said Raj Nair, who, as Group Vice President of Global Product Development, is Butler's new boss. "Having a leader with technology experience both inside and outside the industry is a rare combination - we're excited to have Don join our team."
As Ford has received its fair share of flak for the sometimes recalcitrant MyFord Touch infotainment system and its Sync voice-controls, it appears that Butler has his work cut out for him.

Ford creates F-150 Sandcat to promote Halo 5: Guardians

Halo 5: Guardians is about to hit Xbox One, and Ford is celebrating with the reveal of this one-off F-150. Built by the Blue Oval specialists at Galpin Auto Sports, the Ford F-150 Halo Sandcat is designed for deployment by the United Nations Space Command. It's based on a 2015 Ford F-150 Lariat SuperCrew 4x4 with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 and FX4 off-road package. It's then upgraded with a Baja XTR package from Addictive Desert Designs, complete with FOX Racing shocks, Deaver leaf springs, a Currie floating rear axle, 17-inch wheels, and upgraded fenders, side steps, and chase rack. It's all capped by a custom Halo-themed body wrap, and fitted with an Xbox One hooked up to displays in the back of the headrests. Fans will be able to check it out at the LA Convention Center during the E3 video game show, and dream of driving it on some far-off planet to combat whatever space monsters the Master Chief has been assigned to eradicate. Jun 12, 2015 | LOS ANGELES Ford F-150 Halo Sandcat Lands at E3 to Promote Halo 5: Guardians for Xbox One Ford, Xbox, 343 Industries and Galpin Auto Sports are celebrating the release of Halo 5: Guardians for Xbox One with a special version of the 2015 Ford F-150 that is so awesome, it could have been designed by the Master Chief himself. The Ford F-150 Halo Sandcat is a one-of-a-kind vehicle inspired by Halo's United Nations Space Command vehicle design. It will be on display at E3 2015. Based on the all-new Ford F-150, the toughest, smartest, most capable F-150 ever, F-150 Halo Sandcat is special enough to have been officially designated the M552 codename by the United Nations Space Command – closely matching F-150's official Ford codename, P552. The F-150 Halo Sandcat started as a 2015 Ford F-150 Lariat SuperCrew 4x4 with 3.5-liter EcoBoost® engine and FX4 off-road package. To turn the truck into the Sandcat, Galpin Auto Sports added an arsenal of modifications to give it a United Nations Space Command militaristic style that Halo fans will instantly recognize. The F-150 Halo Sandcat starts with Addictive Desert Designs' Baja XTR off-road conversion kit, which includes custom FOX Racing shocks, Deaver leaf springs, a Currie full floater rear axle, ADD fenders, side steps, a chase rack and 17-inch wheels with off-road tires to go along with a full custom Halo body wrap. Inside, there's an Xbox One custom gaming system with displays mounted in the rear head restraints.

Hybrid, electric campers take center stage at Germany's motorhome trade show

Car companies from all over the automotive spectrum will make international headlines next week by presenting hybrid and electric cars at the biennial Frankfurt auto show. Camper van and motorhome manufacturers got a head start on the rest of the industry by presenting their green solutions at the Dusseldorf Caravan Salon. The show confirms electrification is present in the leisure segment, too. German camper experts Dethleffs introduced a plug-in hybrid, pop-top camper based on the full-size Ford Transit van. Called Globevan e.Hybrid, it relies on a 126-horsepower drivetrain built around a turbocharged, 1.0-liter EcoBoost three-cylinder engine. The system can power the camper on electricity alone for up to 31 miles. Adventurers who leave with a full tank and a full charge enjoy 310 miles of driving range, which is an impressive figure for the camper van segment. Charging the battery pack takes 5.5 hours when using a regular household outlet, according to the manufacturer, or three hours when hooking it up to a quick-charging station. Globevan production is tentatively scheduled to begin in 2020, and pricing starts at 75,000 euros, a sum that represents approximately $83,000. EFA-S took electrification a step further. Starting with a Fiat Ducato, a van known as the Ram Promaster in the United States, it yanked out the turbodiesel engine and replaced it with a 140-kilowatt electric motor fed by an 86-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. The company pegs the camper's driving range at up to 186 miles, a relatively low figure which hardly reflects how most vacationers use their van. The pack takes four hours to charge, Auto Motor und Sport learned. While sustainable, zero-emissions tourism is difficult to argue against, the Ducato-based camper suffers from two serious setbacks. First, the battery pack makes it so heavy that it can't be driven with a regular license. It's considered a heavy commercial vehicle. Second, its 160,000-euro (about $177,000) price tag makes it twice as expensive as a diesel-burning model, and puts it in the same price range as much bigger, more powerful, and more luxurious models. EFA-S will nonetheless move forward with production in 2020, though it plans to build no more than 30 units. The caravan Salon is not only about hybrids and electric cars, however.