Entries Tagged 'ford' ↓
February 14th, 2008 — Auto show / Motor Show, ford
COLOGNE, Germany, Feb. 14, 2008 – Ford’s new small car family will use the Fiesta name around the world, the company confirmed today.
Designed and developed in Europe for customers in Europe, Asia, South Africa, Australia and the Americas between 2008 and 2010, the new Fiesta is the first major product of Ford’s new global product development process. This new small car keeps alive a name synonymous with more than 30 years of success and strong driving dynamics in Europe and is already well known in markets across Asia, Australia and South America. The Fiesta also was offered in the U.S. from 1978 to 1980.
“The new Ford Fiesta captures every aspect of what’s defined Ford as a small-car leader in Europe and builds on it in terms of driving dynamics and design,” said Mark Fields, president of the Americas, Ford Motor Company. “When it arrives in North America in 2010, the Ford Fiesta will set a new standard in the small car segment. Even before it arrives in this market, though, the new Fiesta demonstrates how leveraging our global strengths can yield attractive benefits for customers around the world.”
The dynamic new look for this global family of small cars was previewed in three Ford Verve Concept vehicles which made their debuts at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2007, the Guangzhou Motor Show in November 2007 and the North American International Auto Show in January 2008.
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February 14th, 2008 — ford
January 16th, 2008 — Auto show / Motor Show, ford
DETROIT, Jan. 13, 2008 – Ford Motor Company is revealing the Verve, a concept vehicle that makes clear the vision for the new small cars Ford soon will introduce in North America.
The Verve is bold and sophisticated – to help it clearly stand out from other small cars on the road. Ford is building on decades of small car leadership in Europe as it develops new small cars for North America to appeal to increasingly savvy customers who value technology, design and fuel efficiency.
Both four- and three-door Verve body styles are being unveiled at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, as curtain-raisers to a new global family of small cars set to debut in Europe and Asia beginning later this year and in North America in 2010. The four-door is the basis for the production vehicle that will be sold in North America. The European three-door is being shown to test market reaction to the bodystyle – as a possible additional small car for the North American market.
The Verve concept has been developed with Ford’s new global product development strategy that better leverages the company’s global strengths. Globally, Ford is building on its European small-car expertise to stake a bigger claim in this critically important segment. Ford’s celebrated small car lineup in Europe includes such top-sellers as the Ford Focus, Fiesta and Ka.
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November 20th, 2007 — Auto show / Motor Show, ford
GUANGZHOU, China, November 19, 2007 – Ford is revealing more about its vision for a new global small car family at Auto Guangzhou. Ford today revealed the second Verve Concept – a four-door notchback.
The dynamic Ford Verve Concept four-door notchback is a star of the fifth annual Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition. The fact that Ford staged the global reveal of the four-door Verve Concept at Guangzhou signals the importance of Asia in Ford’s global plans.
Sporty and coupe-like, the Verve Concept notchback provides a very clear vision about Ford’s future small car design direction. The three-door hatchback Verve Concept was a star of the recent Frankfurt Motor Show in Europe, and it too is also under the spotlights at Guangzhou.
Ford will unveil the third and last Verve Concept in January at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
“With this new four-door Verve Concept, the picture of Ford’s big plans for the small-car segment is becoming clearer,” said Phil Spender, Chief Operation Officer of Ford Motor (China) Ltd. “Our future small car is being developed as a global car. It will be designed in Europe, engineered in Germany and manufactured globally. These two Verve Concepts demonstrate how confident Ford is in its direction and its appeal to consumers here in China.”
Ford’s European design team created the Verve Concepts, which successfully apply Ford’s kinetic design philosophy for the first time to a small car. The two Verve Concepts clearly display a European flair and premium touches not expected in this segment.
Once all have been revealed, the trilogy of Verve concept cars will provide an advanced indication of Ford’s design vision well in advance of the production models. This approach is similar to the way in which the iosis Concept preceded the new Ford Mondeo.
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November 19th, 2007 — Auto show / Motor Show, ford
November 7th, 2007 — ford
Ford Thailand today introduced the new Ford Focus line-up, featuring Ford’s renowned 2.0-litre Duratorq TDCi turbo-diesel common-rail injection engine. The newest member of the Ford Focus family, the Focus TDCi delivers exceptional class-leading performance and responsiveness, resulting in a unique driving experience for Thai drivers. It also makes good on the promise of exceptional fuel efficiency with an impressive 5.6litres/100km.
“The Ford Focus TDCi is a powerhouse of a vehicle, and one that we’re proud to feature in our new Ford Focus model line-up,” said Saroj Kiatfuengfoo, senior vice president, Ford Thailand. “It represents our promise to continually introduce Ford vehicles to the Thai market that are exciting, safe and affordable.”
To highlight the turbo-diesel TDCi engine’s power and performance,
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October 23rd, 2007 — Auto show / Motor Show, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, ford, mitsubishi
Newsletters don’t normally float our boat here at the Cars.com offices, but the latest from the 2008 North American International Auto Show (2008 NAIAS), aka the Detroit auto show, has our interest piqued two and a half months before the annual event. A number of the cars that will debut there are mentioned, including:
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October 16th, 2007 — ford, mazda
NANJING, Oct 16, 2007 (SinoCast China Transportation Watch via COMTEX) — F | charts | news | PowerRating — Chang’an Ford Mazda Automobile Co., Ltd., Ford Motor Company’s joint venture in China, finished building its Nanjing plant and will bring the new factory into massive production from October 30.
With an investment of USD 510 million, the new plant is located in Nanjing, the capital city of eastern China’s Jiangsu Province, and will have an annual production capacity of 160,000 units during the initial operations.
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October 9th, 2007 — ford, mazda
TOKYO (AFP) — US auto giant Ford and its Japanese partner Mazda said Tuesday they will develop a 500 million-dollar plant to build passenger cars in Thailand, eyeing the growing market in Southeast Asia.
The plant is expected to be operational in 2009 and create 8,000 jobs, 2,000 of them directly and the rest through suppliers and related businesses, Mazda Motor Corp. said in a statement.
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September 27th, 2007 — ford
The Escape, which competes with Honda’s CR-V and the Nissan X-Trail, has a new look that includes an updated front grille and interior. The grille mimics those on the marque’s higher-priced SUVs like the Territory, which is assembled in Australia.
The Escape comes with a 2.3-litre engine. Ford, like Honda, now produces its SUVs with a two-wheel-drive (2WD) option.
“The 4×2 model is for customers who enjoy the ride height and benefits of an SUV but do not need 4×4 capability as they spend most of their lives in the city. The 4×2 Escape will appeal to a new set of drivers who are sedan users and more economical.
“The Escape will attract customers through its attractive pricing of Bt1,099,000 for the entry-level model and Bt1,399,000 for the 4WD model,” said Ford Thailand president Tom Brewer.
It expects to sell an equal amount of the 2WD and 4WD versions.
The Escape is imported into Thailand from the Philippines, along with the Focus, and Thailand sends Ranger pickups in the other direction. This allows the vehicles to qualify for tariffs between zero and 5 per cent under the Asean Free Trade Agreement.
Ford has not released expected sales figures for the new Escape for this year, but stated they would be better than the old version, of which about 400 have been sold this year.
“For the Escape we plan to use direct marketing. We want customers to come and experience the vehicles by test-driving them at our showrooms.
“Our high customer satisfaction ratings, as stated by JD Power and Associates, show we really care for our customers,” Brewer added.
Brewer stated that planning for the Ford Escape had been done before the government announced a cut in excise duty for vehicles capable of running on 20-per-cent-ethanol fuel.
“The new Escape is capable of running on 10-per-cent-ethanol fuel, although we are considering an E20 version in the future. This is a clear example of how government long-term planning could have benefited customers. The Escape could have incorporated E20 capability if the decision by the government had been known earlier. But, we are constantly working with the government and doing what is good for the customer,” Brewer added.
Besides the new Escape, Ford will launch a diesel Focus at the Bangkok International Motor Exposition.
It will have a 2-litre engine and will be the first in its segment in Thailand to run on the fuel.
Premium brands in Thailand already offer diesel options - namely the Mercedes-Benz E220 Cdi, BMW 520D and the Volvo S80 D5.
Ford is studying the eco-car project, although has reached no decision as yet.
Brewer said the car would have to be good for both Thailand and motorists in other countries.
Although there are no fixed plans for expansion at its Rayong plant, Brewer said capacity would be increased if there were demand.
It runs at 175,000-180,000 units at present, 80 per cent of which are exported.
Brewer expects local demand for all vehicles except heavy lorries will be between 615,000 and 620,000 units. Ford will retain a 2.7-per-cent share of the market, or 16,600 vehicles, he said.
Source : Vijo Varghese - The Nation
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