| USAC News -- Headlines From Irwindale | | Posted Monday, November 27, 2006 12:46:38 PM by Blog57 Team | | IRWINDALE, Calif. - Tony Hunt put the whipped cream on top of the pumpkin pie with a 30-lap wire-to-wire win in the Western Sprint car portion of Turkey Night at Irwindale Speedway Thursday night. Aboard the championship-winning Alan Kaiser, Paul Oil, Thompson Toyota No. 4, Hunt ran away on the half-mile paved oval. Hunt had previously clinched the 2006 USAC Western Sprint Car driving championship. The battle behind Hunt was entertaining as teammates Mike Murgoitio and Bradley Galedrige fought with Tracy Hines for the runner-up spot. Murgoitio ultimately earned the position with Hines settling for third. Galedrige was fourth and Jessica Helberg completed the Top 5. Greg Anderson was scored sixth at the checkered flag followed by Rick Hendrix, Nick Green, Billy Wease, and Jason Meyers.... | |
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| | | Exclusive Video and Spy Photos: 2008 Ford Focus | | Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006 10:45:55 PM by Blog57 Team | | After years of being ignored in the compact segment, the 2008 Ford Focus is hoping to grab some attention with an all-new look. Our latest spy video and photos show various prototypes of the upcoming Ford Focus being tested on the streets of Michigan. Unlike the European Ford Focus which now rides on an all-new platform, the 2008 Ford Focus in the U.S. will remain on its current chassis. Most of the changes for next year will be cosmetic, with a new three-bar grille up front similar to the larger Ford Fusion midsize sedan. A new character line down each side will give the profile a slightly different look while reshaped taillights spruce up the rear. If there's any big news with this Focus refresh, it's the introduction of a new coupe body style similar to the old Ford Escort ZX2. Unlike the current Focus ZX3 hatchback, the new coupe has a traditional trunk, that cuts down on overall utility in favor of a sleeker profile.... | |
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| | | SPY PHOTOS: Ford Focus RS | | Posted Sunday, October 22, 2006 2:45:49 PM by Blog57 Team | | Don't be fooled by the looks of this test car. It is not the ordinary Ford Focus ST but the brand new Focus RS. Looking closer at the front end one can see the bigger air intakes and the driver helps drawing the photographers attention by giving him the finger and putting his foot down. The sound of the 300bhp engine was unmistakable, just like the car's fast acceleration with 4 wheel drive and the rally-like sound of that dump valve while shifting gears. Add some wide fenders, a more aggressive front end styling and you have the Focus RS, a true competitor to the upcoming EVO X. Pictures after the hop: Read Article .... | |
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| | | Ford, GM bring out big guns in Texas | | Posted Friday, September 29, 2006 6:46:09 PM by Blog57 Team | | DALLAS -- Under the Texas sun Thursday, General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. were preparing for battle, putting their new heavy-duty pickups into the nation's boxing ring for trucks: the Texas State Fair. Texas buys about 15% of the pickups sold in the United States, and the state fair -- with its floating cowboy blowups, lone star icons and 10-gallon hats -- is ground zero for automakers' trash-talk about whose trucks have more power, payload and pull. Both GM and Ford were trying to claim Texas as their own. In a straightforward media announcement under a tent, GM lit a big map of Texas into a small fireworks display and drove its new 2500HD and 3500HD versions of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra through the display onto a small stage. "We're striving to be the best value," Ed Peper, general manager for Chevrolet, told the Free Press in an interview.... | |
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| | | Ford Focus 2007: overview | | Posted Wednesday, August 30, 2006 12:45:57 AM by Blog57 Team | | According to Ford Motor Company research, the small-car market will continue to grow approximately 5 percent per year until it reaches one-third of all new-vehicle sales by 2008. This rising demand is fueled by consumers desire for more fuel-efficient transportation as the price of gas continues to climb, and consumers desire for smaller, more nimble transportation in increasingly urban settings. To meet this growing demand, Ford has further refined the award-winning Ford Focus for 2007. The Focus continues to be among the leaders in the small-car segment, thanks to its spirited driving character, contemporary exterior appearance and Smart interior. And, as it has from the beginning, it delivers award-winning quality, environmentally responsible emissions, superb passenger space and low cost of ownership.... | |
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| | | (AFX UK Focus) 2006-08-25 22:36 GMT: UAW leaders plan to meet on Ford posture | | Posted Monday, August 28, 2006 2:46:17 PM by Blog57 Team | | DETROIT (AFX) - Top officials from union locals that represent workers at Ford Motor Co. plants are meeting next week to discuss potential employee buyout offers, one labor leader said Friday. Ford has been offering employee buyouts on a plant-by-plant basis. A Ford spokeswoman called recent reports that it is considering across-the-board buyouts "speculative." The United Auto Workers has summoned local presidents and chairmen to Detroit on Tuesday for "a special meeting for buyout strategy discussions," said Chris Kimmons, president of UAW Local 919 in Norfolk, Va. Kimmons said he believes the discussions will center on possible buyouts throughout Ford, similar to the ones offered by rival General Motors Corp. earlier this year. However, he said he had no information as to whether Ford was actually making such an offer.... | |
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| | | Ford Focus on the environment at British Show | | Posted Monday, August 07, 2006 4:46:21 AM by Blog57 Team | | The British International Motor Show which opened at its new location in London's docklands last week is a significant step up from the Birmingham-based one it replaces. Though a number of key manufacturers declined to participate -- Fiat and Volkswagen, for instance -- it still attracted no less than 13 international debuts, several of them very significant. And there were a few clever gimmicks too. Ford were rightly able to claim they had the coolest car at the show with their Focus coupe-cabriolet ice sculpture. The exhibit symbolised a parallel announcement from Ford intends spending 1 billion in environmental technologies to cut CO2 emissions by a fifth and deliver a Ford Focus capable of achieving 70mpg. But the other concept on the stand was a real-life version of the Focus folding hardtop in the livery of the FFV environmentally friendly Ford programme.... | |
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| | | (AFX UK Focus) 2006-08-03 22:10 GMT: Ford trying to accelerate turnaround | | Posted Saturday, August 05, 2006 2:45:49 PM by Blog57 Team | | DETROIT (AFX) - Amid setbacks including the expansion of a major recall on Thursday and restating its second-quarter losses to about twice the original amount, Ford Motor Co. is trying to speed up its North American turnaround. Hence the hiring of a former Wall Street merger and acquisitions whiz as a strategic adviser, cementing the idea that everything is on the table as the nation's No. 2 automaker battles sluggish sales, rising costs and ferocious competition from Asian rivals. On Tuesday, industry figures for July showed that for the first time, Ford sold fewer vehicles than Toyota Motor Corp. in the United States -- underscoring its woes. Last month, Ford pledged to speed up and possibly deepen its North American turnaround plan. And analysts say the hiring of Kenneth Leet to advise Bill Ford, the automaker's chairman and chief executive, increases the possibility that the company may try to sell some operations as part of its restructuring.... | |
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| | | One millionth Ford Focus stars at British show | | Posted Saturday, July 15, 2006 4:46:09 AM by Blog57 Team | | Sales of Britain's top-selling car have broken seven figures, with car number 1,000,000 on display at the British International Motor Show. The 1,000,000th Focus sold in Britain is a five-door, bio-ethanol flexi-fuel vehicle (FFV), and will be handed to its new owner by Ford of Britain chairman Roelant de Waard at the British International Motor Show on Tuesday. Roelant said: "Ford has developed a real winner with the Focus. Top of the bestsellers list for eight years proves its amazing popularity with British motorists. The Ford Focus was first with a flexible fuel vehicle in its range. I'm delighted we have found another Ford Focus FFV customer who will be joining us on motor show press day." The Ford Focus has been Britain's best-selling car for its entire lifetime.... | |
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| | | CARkeys - Millionth UK Focus On Display | | Posted Thursday, July 13, 2006 6:46:18 PM by Blog57 Team | | The one-millionth Ford Focus sold in the UK will be presented to its new owner by Ford of Britain Chairman Roelant de Waard next Tuesday. The handover will take place at the British International Motor Show, and by a spooky coincidence the car just happens to be an eco-friendly flexi-fuel version which can run on either petrol or bioethanol. "Ford has developed a real winner with the Focus," says de Waard. "Top of the bestsellers list for eight years proves its amazing popularity with British motorists. The Ford Focus was first with a flexible fuel vehicle in its range. I'm delighted we have found another Ford Focus FFV customer who will be joining us on Motor Show press day." Visitors to the Show will be able to find out a lot about the whole FFV story, and to view the new Focus Coupé-Cabriolet which is making its UK debut.... | |
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