bzcat

He also owned a fleet Ford Model T. Doesn't mean anything really. The last Manchu Emperor is also not held in high esteem by the Han Chinese. The Qing dynasty was a Manchu court and not Chinese.

Lincoln in Mandarin is Lin Ken and it means Lincoln (as in President Lincoln).

No one is doing what VW did, which is to outright cheat. To put it in context I think this is how I would describe the situation: VW cheated by writing answers on the hand to ace a standardized test. Others memorized enough answers to pass a standardize test (because the questions were known). No one in class actually learned the subject material.

The only thing this shows is that EU6 emission test is a joke. The laboratory test doesn't emulate the real world driving conditions (e.g. the test has very few start and stop cycle and no sustained full load acceleration). So of course in real driving test, the cars pollute a lot more. Mazda and Honda both tried to Federalize their EU6 diesel in the US but they couldn't pass the EPA nor the CARB test because those tests have repeated start and stop cycle and sustained full load acceleration (i.e. more like real world driving conditions).

The theory of Buick being popular due to Pre-WW2 nostalgia in China is a homespun tale by GM. By the time GM was prepared to enter China, the population really has not much memory of Buick or know if from any other car brand names. At first, the plan was to go with Opel - because GM had intended to assemble and sell European sourced models in China (in deed, the first model slated for Chinese market was Opel Corsa - which became Buick Sail). But Opel, which was trans-iterated into "O Bao" - means "European treasure" in Mandarin. The name didn't particularly resonate with Chinese consumer because the joint venture was going to be known in China as "Shanghai GM" - people knew it was an American car company so GM's JV partner SAIC suggested GM use an American brand. Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Buick were all considered but only Buick was deemed feasible because it was easiest to trans-iterate into Mandarin. Buick has short and snappy name in Mandarin made up of two characters - "Bi'ar 'Ker" that means "distinguished gentleman". The other brands were all too wordy and had no meaning when trans-iterated into Mandarin. "She Pho Laan" (Chevrolet - 3 characters, roughly means snow Buddha jade), "Pon Dea Ya Ker" (Pontiac - 4 characters, roughly means big bulky junkie), "O Si Muor Bee Ur" (Oldsmobile - 5 characters, has absolutely no meaning at all) are all just random words in Mandarin and also too long. In case you are wondering, Ford is trans-iterated into "Fu Turr" in Mandarin, meaning exceptionally good fortune.

2-3 MPG improvement is probably achievable when Fusion switches to the 9 speed auto in a year or two. I don't think anyone has come up with a good turbo and CVT combo drivetrain in the US yet. The 2016 Honda Civic will be the first such beast (1.5 turbo + CVT).

Intentional erroneous click bait article title This is just how the internet works now days

Photos of Troller, follow up by a photo an International Scout... https://twitter.com/mrlevine/status/651557811235614720

A bespoked V8 EB engine for alumiGator seems unlikely. Especially since Raptor is ditching V8... it tells us that Ford is definitely betting on high end buyers sticking with 3.5 EB on light trucks. And 3.5 EB is probably going to get a healthy bump in power with 10 speed auto... just watch We already know 3.5 EB is held back to achieve decent fuel economy and durability benchmark - and it is already more powerful than the 6.2 V8. With 10 speed auto, Ford will be playing with house money on power... they will probably eek out enough improvements in MPG to allow them to bump up the power curve and still stay within CAFE goal and durability benchmark.

Maybe the workers at the plant in Brazil had a couple of caipirinhas at lunch... how do you say "that looks close enough" in Portuguese?

More leaked photos of Fiat Toro...

If they are going bring over T6, then they definitely should invest in a new tophat for the Bronco rather than just selling Everest as it. Everest is too conventional and just another "me too" utility. The people buying body on frame SUV in the US are looking to make a lifestyle statement so the vehicle has to look rugged and not like something soccer mom drives. Hummer H3 was a good attempt but bad timing. This is also why Toyota keep making the 4Runner more ugly and butch every year, and why FCA is very careful not to mess with Wranger styling too much. They are catering to a very small but dedicated niche.

I don't think the 5.0 V8 will be returning, unless as a cheap low end model. In fact, I predict the base drivetrain for the Expedition will be 2.7 EB with 10 speed auto. The power-up option will be 3.5 EB. Navigator will probably have 3.0 EB as the standard engine and 2 different power output 3.5 EB optional.

GMC and Chevy both sold commercial medium duty trucks back when GM owned 40% of the market. GM now has basically no market share in medium duty trucks so that's why GMC medium duty makes zero sense. They need to concentrate on making Chevy brand relevant in medium duty. Plus the old GMC commercial dealer network no longer exists so GM will have to build one from scratch while diverting marketing and sales resources away from launching Chevy medium duty. It's hard enough trying to launch one brand, why sabotage yourself with a duplicate GMC effort?

C-segment sales are on the rise overall. The big decrease is Chevy Cruze, which is under going model change over. Focus and Jetta are the only volume seller going down in significant numbers - coincidentally, both just received underwhelming facelift. At least the Jetta has new fuel efficient 1.4 TSI engine, which should will somewhat mitigate the stop sale on TDI going forward. Focus needs help. There is a new Civic, Elantra, and Cruze coming in a few months... The focus retail sales could get really ugly. Fleet sales should be stable but I'm sure GM will be attacking the fleet side with renewed vigor with Cruze Limited. YTD sales Corolla 278,742 +8% Civic 249,749 -1.5% Elantra 193,962 +19% Cruze 177,970 -14.5% Focus 163,864 -7% Sentra 154,270 +9% Impreza+WRX+XV 142,351 +20% Jetta (excluding wagon) 94,793 -4% Mazda3 82,300 +2.5% Dart 68,319 +12% Forte 63,300 +18% Golf (including Jetta wagon) 52,439 +41% Compass 46,886 -2% Verano 25,002 -27%

Focus is really a concern... the sales decline is accelerating. I think Ford needs to give it a 2nd update next year - 1.5 Ecoboost and 6F35 needs to be fast tracked before sales completely collapses. There are all-new Civic, Elantra, and Cruze coming next year - the uncompetitive drivetrain is really going to give Focus a rough time in the market in 2016 and beyond if Ford doesn't address it ASAP. Escape is showing really good strength ahead of mid cycle refresh, which is a good sign. I'm not sure what is going on with Fiesta... maybe last year the supply was really low in September? The YTD number is flat...

That fender flair

So this is going to be a new Class 4/5 conventional truck to be shared by Navistar and GM. I guess this adds to further pressure for Ford to finally get going on an E450 replacement.

The 1999 Focus and 2000 Escape were the worst US launch for Ford ever. The cars were recalled 10 times each in the first 18 months and had 3 separate stop sales before 2001 model showed up. It was an epic disaster.

It remains to be seen how much sheetmetal will Expedition share with F150. But you are quite right that this is an engineering mule, not a prototype.

Leaked image of the new Fiat Toro... roughly the same size as the possible unibody Ranger we've been talking about... and magazine rendering... And official FCA teaser

I know what you mean... but that's probably a butt dyno reaction :peelout:I had a 3.0 V6 Escape and have plenty of seat time in my parent's MKC to compare. Escape FWD (both the 2.0 EB and the old 3.0 V6) does feel pretty lively but it is up to 400 lbs lighter than MKC 2.3 EB which is AWD only. The AWD MKC (Escape for that matter) doesn't spin the front wheels either so you don't feel the power as readily experienced in the FWD.

My parents has MKX 2.3 EB and I have Q3 3.0T. My butt dyno says they are about the same. But my Audi has the magical ZF8H transmission which makes better use of all that power vs. Ford's 6F35. That makes a huge difference in how the car drives. I think that MKC will see significant performance improvements with the new 9 speed auto. Ford lists MKC FWD at 3,771 lbs and AWD at 3,952; and for Escape: FWD 2.5L i-VCT 3,515 lbs FWD 1.6L EcoBoost 3,502 lbs 4WD 1.6L EcoBoost 3,645 lbs FWD 2.0L EcoBoost 3,592 lbs 4WD 2.0L EcoBoost 3,732 lbs So about 200 lbs difference between Escape 2.0 EB and MKC. However, no mention of the trim level on either model. I'm guessing the Escape weight is based on the SE model, which could mean Escape Titanium is close to 200 lbs heavier than SE due to the extra standard equipment - making it roughly the same as MKC. MKC Premiere is roughly Escape Titanium MKC Select is roughly Escape Titanium with technology package MKC Reserve is roughly Escape Titanium with technology package, sunroof, plus air-cooled seats not available on Escape To make a Escape Sport, I think the 2.3 EB as is is plenty. A slightly more powerful tune wouldn't hurt either.

At least for the time being, the "ST" sub-brand in the European context means manual transmission, highly tuned suspension, and very sharp handling. Ford's SUVs are lacking on all three fronts - doesn't mean that Ford can't make a "ST" worthy SUVs but something like that will not sell very well in the US. In the future, when "ST" becomes more Americanized, we will probably see automatic transmission and AWD, which may materialize in an Escape or Edge ST.

The EU test cycle is kind of a joke. We've known that for a while. That applies not just to gasoline and diesel cars but EV too. For example, 2016 Nissan Leaf has 50% (FIFTY PERCENT!) more certified range in Europe than in the US under the EPA test cycle. The cars are identical... same size battery and similar equipment level. The difference in entirely in the test cycle (EU cycle is very gentle without sustained full load condition) and the car companies are allowed to "cheat" in the European test by removing exterior mirrors and cover up panel gaps with tape etc.