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Shelby to auction 2012 GT350 No. 1 in Vegas

With Shelby preparing to wind down production of its brutal GT350, a 624-horsepower Mustang that's meant to go up against the Roush Stage 3 in the world of tuned Ford ponycars, the Las Vegas-based tuner is looking to give back to one lucky customer. It'll auction off the very first GT350 ever produced, at the 2013 Barrett-Jackson auction in Las Vegas, a three-day event that runs from September 26 through September 28.
The GT350 is a monster, with a 5.0-liter, supercharged V8 that's been tuned well past 600 horsepower in a time when Ford's own Shelby-branded GT500 barely reached 550 horsepower. The GT350 is much louder than Ford's effort, too, both visually and audibly. The wide body look isn't what we'd call conventional, but on a car that sounds and goes like this, something extreme is needed. According to Shelby American's vice president of production, Gary Davis, "Carroll was very excited about the new wide body option, so that was included on this car. It's the first 2012 GT350 serial number from our anniversary year. It is a very special car." Wilwood brakes, a massaged suspension, and some very fat, sticky tires add to the Shelby experience.
This particular GT350 will be lot number 750, and will cross the Barrett-Jackson stage on Sunday, September 28.

Ford cuts F-150 fuel use through CNG-capable fleet sales, EcoBoost

The possibility of $1-a-gallon fuel would make a lot of US governmental entities sit up and take notice. The state of Oklahoma and the city of Dallas are making that happen. Those two entities are buying up a bunch of Ford F-150 pickups retrofitted to run on compressed natural gas (CNG), all in the name of cost savings and emissions reduction. Oklahoma is buying 256 of the F-150s, while Dallas is buying another 65. The trucks, which cost between $6,000 and $9,500 to retrofit (on top of the original price), can run on either CNG or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). And while that's a substantial hit, conversion costs are typically paid back in three years thanks to lower refueling costs. CNG prices are as low as $1.07 a gallon in parts of Oklahoma. How much lower? The national average price for CNG is about a buck and a half less than the $3.67 average per-gallon cost of gasoline. And CNG prices are as low as $1.07 a gallon in parts of Oklahoma, where CNG is plentiful. CNG also cuts tailpipe greenhouse gas emissions by about 20 percent compared with gasoline, while the retrofitted trucks can go as far as 450 miles from their CNG tanks in addition to the 300-mile range from their conventional tanks. That's useful in a bit state like Texas. This week, the US Energy Department trumpeted a $5.9-billion loan program that Ford accessed to upgrade its factories for production of its EcoBoost engines, noting that Ford has sold a half-million F-150 trucks with EcoBoost engines. Those trucks have collectively cut fuel use by almost 57 million gallons of gas during the past three-plus years. Check out Ford's press release on the F-150 purchases below and the Energy Department's statement about its loan program here. OKLAHOMA, DALLAS ORDER 300-PLUS CNG-CAPABLE FORD F-150 PICKUPS AS DEMAND GROWS FOR ALTERNATIVE FUEL OPTION The state of Oklahoma and its agencies to buy 256 Ford F-150 trucks prepped to run on compressed natural gas; Dallas orders 65 for its fleet 2014 F-150 available with gaseous-fuel prep option on 3.7-liter V6 engine; can run on CNG or liquefied petroleum gas (also called propane autogas) By summer, Ford will offer eight vehicles that can run on clean-burning, affordable CNG; the company is on track to sell more than 15,000 such vehicles in 2014 The state of Oklahoma, its agencies and the city of Dallas have ordered a total of 321 Ford F-150 pickups that can run on compressed natural gas.

2014 Ford Fiesta 1.0L EcoBoost to hit 45 mpg for $16,445*

When Ford first announced its plan to put the 1.0-liter EcoBoost three-cylinder engine under the hood of the 2014 Fiesta, it promised hybrid-like fuel economy without a hybrid-like premium. We're still waiting for official specs on this engine, but thanks to the EPA's fueleconomy.gov website and Ford's retail site, we now know what customers can expect in terms of both fuel economy and price.
All along, Ford has said that it expects the 1.0-liter EcoBoost to get more than 40 miles per gallon on the highway, and now the EPA backs this up with official ratings of 32 mpg in the city and 45 mpg on the highway. These numbers are an increase of two mpg city and four mpg hwy compared to the current fuel-sipping Fiesta (the 1.6 SFE), and it also beats other three-cylinder cars for highway mileage like the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage (44 mpg highway) and 2014 Smart Fortwo (38 mpg highway); the Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost is lower than both three-pot rivals, though, in city fuel economy with the Mitsubishi getting 37 mpg city and the Smart rated at 34 mpg city. This model handily beats high-volume small cars like the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and Chevy Spark in both city and highway numbers.
As for pricing, the 1.0-liter EcoBoost is offered on both the sedan and hatchback as a $995 option called the SE Manual EcoBoost package, which is aptly named since it's only offered on SE trim-level Fiestas equipped with a manual transmission. Along with the engine, the package also comes with 15-inch steel wheels, regenerative brakes and a decklid spoiler on the sedan. This means the four-door Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost will start at $16,445*, or $17,045* for the hatchback (*not including $795 for destination).