| Daring Ford TV ad shows divorced couple | | Posted Friday, December 01, 2006 12:46:03 PM by Blog57 Team | | CHICAGO - A mom and dad joke with their kids as their Ford Freestyle winds through scenic terrain. They stop at a roadside stand for a snack. They frolic on a beach at sunset. They look like the perfect, happy family until the Freestyle pulls into a condo complex and Dad gets out. ``Thanks for inviting me this weekend,'' he tells his ex-wife. Dad gives his kids a heartfelt hug and waves as the Freestyle crossover vehicle pulls away. A voiceover intones: ``Bold moves: They happen every day.'' The daring move here really belongs to Ford: showing a divorced couple in a commercial. Although millions of Americans have been divorced and millions of children no longer share an address with both parents, that truth is almost never reflected in the advertising that manufacturers and retailers use to woo consumers.... | |
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| | | J.D. Power and Associates Reports: The Pioneer Navigation System in the Lincoln Zephyr Ranks Highest in Customer | | Posted Wednesday, November 15, 2006 2:46:13 AM by Blog57 Team | | WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Nov. 13 -- The Pioneer navigation system supplied in the Lincoln Zephyr ranks highest in satisfying new-vehicle owners with their factory-installed navigation systems, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Navigation Usage and Satisfaction Study(SM) released today. The study, now in its eighth year, identifies six factors that contribute to overall customer satisfaction. They are (in order of importance): ease of use, routing, system appearance, speed of system, voice directions and navigation display screen. Making its debut in the 2006 study, the Pioneer system supplied in the Lincoln Zephyr ranks highest among all navigation systems included in the study. The Pioneer system performs particularly well in the ease of use, routing and appearance factors.... | |
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| | | Holt upholding family tradition | | Posted Sunday, October 22, 2006 6:46:08 PM by Blog57 Team | | Though Jon Holt didn't play organized football until his freshman year at Clearwater High School, it was inevitable the second oldest of four brothers would take to the game. This season marks his fourth at North Carolina State where he has excelled on the offensive line. Starting with his dad, who played at Furman, the offensive line has been the position of choice for the Holt males. "I was always too big to play youth football growing up, and played a lot of other sports instead," said Holt, 22. "My parents had us playing everything, and I especially played basketball and tennis. "I waited until my first year at Clearwater to play football, and then I wasn't the biggest until my junior year when I had most weight gain. It was natural for me to be on the offensive line." As the Wolfpack's starting right tackle, Holt prides himself in protecting the quarterback and helping the offense gain as many rushing yards as possible.... | |
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| | | Chicago's Ford assembly plant is one of two to continue producing autos | | Posted Friday, September 29, 2006 10:46:04 PM by Blog57 Team | | Under the company's restructured Way Forward plan, Ford's Chicago Assembly plant will be one of only two plants in the country producing Ford's automobiles. Chicago Assembly opened in 1924 and is the company's oldest operating facility worldwide. As part of the original plan, in March the company shuttered its St. Louis Assembly Plant located in Hazelwood and announced the October closing of its Atlanta Assembly Plant. The closing ceases production of Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable, which jump-started the company's fortunes in the mid-1980s. "Chicago is in the immediate plans for Ford Motor Co.'s future," said a top manger at the plant, who asked not to be identified. "It's one of the plants they're figuring will help them recover. Chicago Assembly and the products it produces have an important role in the future of Ford Motor Co." There are two main reasons for the survival of the plant, he said.... | |
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| | | Crash tests: Small SUVs, sedans | | Posted Wednesday, August 30, 2006 4:46:02 AM by Blog57 Team | | Again and again the crash tests conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) show that side air bags and well-designed head restraints are vital safety components. However, the latest vehicles tested by IIHS also demonstrate that air bags alone don't guarantee the best protection. Among that group--the Dodge Caliber, Hyundai Tucson/Kia Sportage, Kia Optima, Lincoln Zephyr, Toyota Camry, and Toyota RAV4--the Toyotas performed the best in the important front- and side-crashworthiness evaluations. The Caliber, Camry, and RAV4 all earned Good marks for front crashworthiness but Marginal scores for rear crash protection. However, Consumer Reports gives greater weight to the front- and side-crash performance because rear impacts are much less likely to cause life-threatening injuries.... | |
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| | | 7-Eleven clerk is killed over taco | | Posted Monday, August 28, 2006 6:45:42 PM by Blog57 Team | | STERLING HEIGHTS -- A 7-Eleven clerk who was fatally shot by a customer early Thursday morning may have lost his life over a $1.16 taco. Sterling Heights police say they have identified a prime suspect in the shooting as Kenyatta Khuru Davis, 35, of Shelby Township. "We are engaged in a manhunt," said Capt. Dave Vinson, acting Sterling Heights police chief. Authorities said a videotape shows the suspect leaving the store, then coming back and shooting Utica resident Wajed Baig four times after an argument around 1 a.m. Thursday. Store employee Lori Hipwell said she had heard that the dispute was over a "taquito" -- a small taco that 7-Eleven sells. Police acknowledged that Hipwell's version of events was correct, based on what eyewitnesses told them.... | |
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| | | Weather or not to buy a minivan | | Posted Monday, August 07, 2006 8:46:04 AM by Blog57 Team | | I am beginning to look for a new car, a minivan. I currently drive a 1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport, which I love, but I need something bigger. I like having four-wheel drive, since I often travel in lousy weather. Should I get a van with all-wheel drive? Someone told me that all-wheel drive on a minivan really doesn't matter because the body of the car sits low on the wheelbase (unlike SUVs, which sit high), and a van with front-wheel drive is all I really need. What do you think? - Jody TOM: One option might be a front-wheel-drive minivan. In moderately bad weather, minivans do quite well, as your friend suggests. They're heavy and have the engine right over the front wheels, and they have enough ground clearance to get you through a modest amount of snow with no problem. So if bad weather is just an occasional problem for you, front-wheel drive might be enough.... | |
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| | | CAR TALK: The Sienna can brave elements | | Posted Saturday, August 05, 2006 6:45:45 PM by Blog57 Team | | D ear Tom and Ray | I am beginning to look for a new car, a minivan. I drive a 1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport, which I love, but I need something bigger (I do a lot of things with my Westies, and I need more space to be able to stack the dog crates in the back, plus have room for my stuff). I like having four-wheel drive because I often travel in lousy weather or have to drive through muddy fields at various dog events. Should I get a van with all-wheel drive? Someone told me that all-wheel drive on a minivan really doesn't matter because the body of the car sits low on the wheelbase (unlike sport-utility vehicles, which sit high), and a van with front-wheel drive is all I really need. What do you think? Also, do you have a recommendation for a minivan? I'm leaning toward a Toyota Sienna right now.... | |
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| | | Local family reaches West Coast on Oregon Trail | | Posted Saturday, July 15, 2006 8:45:54 AM by Blog57 Team | | A little more than a month into their cross-country trek, West Ashley's Bradenday family has reached the Pacific Coast. "In general, spirits are high," says Twain Braden, who is on a two-month journey with his wife, Leah, and their four children, who go by the last name Bradenday. "We're dirty but healthy." That's not to say the trip hasn't taken a toll on them. "We're feeling the effects of the road," Braden admits. "It's been five weeks, and we are indeed weary. We spent a week on a wagon train in southern Wyoming, and our backs are still a little sore from the rattling." The family left Charleston on June 4 to follow the Oregon Trail, a route taken more than 160 years ago by thousands of Americans heading West in search of open land.... | |
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| | | Searches for Hyundai Vehicles on Cars.com Heat up in June | | Posted Thursday, July 13, 2006 10:46:28 PM by Blog57 Team | | Hyundai, which was recently listed among the top three nameplates in J.D. Power's Initial Quality Study for the first time ever, had several cars see a significant increase in search activity on Cars.com last month. According to the June Cars.com Consumer Search Index, Hyundai's Tucson, Santa Fe, Sonata and Azera all cracked the list of cars with the largest increase in searches last month. "While the increase is due in large part to Hyundai's latest round of incentives and an aggressive new ad campaign, consumers are starting to key in on what studies like J.D. Power's Initial Quality Study have discovered: Hyundai has a quality product and is certainly a force to be reckoned with in the future," said Cars.com editor David Thomas. Fuel-Efficiency Searches Start to Slow Despite gas prices that continue to climb toward near-record levels, consumer searches for the most fuel-efficient vehicles on Cars.com have started to cool off.... | |
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