Tag: Ford

The Ford’s F-Series full-sized pickup line, led by the F-150, could post sales of 900,000 units this year.

After decades as the top-selling vehicle in the United States, it will keep that crown with ease.

F-Series sales through November were 807,379, or about 73,000 a month. December is expected to be the best auto sales month of the year. Ford is pushing sales of its 2017 model year vehicles hard as it tries to clear lots for 2018 models. One of the sales incentives for the F-150 is very aggressive zero per cent APR financing for 72 months. Car companies rarely give these incentives for periods of longer than six years, so the press for F-150 sales is a particularly attractive hook to bring in year-end buyers.

Ford needs the F-150 to continue to do well in the final month of the year.

Through November, its sales are up 10.1 per cent from the same 11 months of last year. F-150 sales will be over a third of Ford’s total sales this year. Few car manufacturers rely so heavily on one product to bolster sales. Ford’s overall sales for 2017 through November were 2,334,290, a drop of 1.1 per cent. Ford’s total sales number is expected to drop in December, compared to December 2016.

The vehicles behind the F-150 in terms of total annual sales are also full-sized pickups, which show how important the segment is to the industry. General Motors Co.’s Chevy Silverado should reach sales of 560,000. While that will put it in second place among U.S. vehicle sales, it is still well behind its Ford competition. The Dodge Ram from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles should take third place with sales close to 500,000.

Last year, the F-150 celebrated its 40th year as America’s top-selling vehicle. It will make that 41 years in a row in 2017.

Ford Motor Corporation has announced its support for the second edition of a two-day capacity building in automobile industry reporting for journalists in Nigeria.

The American automaker said for the second year, it would be the lead sponsor of the annual event because of the benefits of the training to the development of auto industry in Nigeria through effective reporting.

A statement by the organisers of the event, Naja, said the training programme holding in Lagos last week, was “aimed at updating the motoring journalists drawn from the print, electronic and online media with the basic knowledge and practical details and recent developments within the local and global automotive industry.

It said the Corp Marshal, Federal Roads Safety Corps, Boboye Oyeyemi, and the Vice Chancellor of Caleb University, Prof Diji Aina, would be delivering lectures on critical industry issues at the event, with the acting Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Anofiu Elegushi, as a special guest.

It said the event could not have come at a better time in view of the nation’s shift from auto marketing to auto assembling.

The annual workshop was an avenue to continuously update the knowledge base of journalists covering the automotive sector in Nigeria.

Ford Motor Company has delivered two Ford Rangers to Riders for Health (Riders) in Nigeria as part of the motor company’s Project Better World, which provides support to grassroots efforts to drive sustainable community innovation around the globe. The Ford Rangers will be outfitted with Ford’s data-capturing OpenXC technology, a Ford Smart Mobility project, which collects vehicle performance, environment conditions, and location data that can be used to optimise delivery of healthcare services and supplies.
Ford Project Better World brings together multiple organisations such as Riders in Nigeria, and social entrepreneurs to deliver health education, medication, nutrition and basic services to thousands of underserved people in remote areas. The services will be accessed using enhanced mobility and connectivity technologies from Ford vehicles.
According to Country Director for Riders for Health Nigeria Ajayi Kayode the non-profit organisation seeks to make healthcare in rural African communities more accessible by providing motorcycles for medical practitioners to use for transport. For Riders, Kayode said, motorcycles allow for quicker and more affordable transportation to remote areas across hazardous terrain. The addition of two Rangers to the Riders’ fleet is invaluable to the programme’s operations in Nigeria as the new vehicles will also be used to deliver medical professionals and supplies in rural areas, as well as to support Riders’ fleet of motorcycles.
He said: “The Rangers guarantee extra capacity in mobility, allowing us more coverage.
“We are going to expand our patient monitoring and evaluation activities, saving a lot of money in the process that would otherwise go towards hiring a vehicle. We also hope to generate additional income by leasing the vehicles to humanitarian agencies in between our own schedules.”
The delivery of the Rangers supports a $75,000 investment from the Ford Motor Company Fund, the philanthropic arm of the Ford Motor Company. These funds support Riders in Nigeria with the education and training of local mechanics to service the entire Riders fleet of vehicles, which include a wide range of motorcycles and cars. Riders works with the Nigerian Ministry of Health and other health-related partners to manage their healthcare vehicles, maintaining a total fleet of 370 Ford and other vehicles. Riders for Health uses 77 Ford vehicles across six African countries – Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, The Gambia, Malawi, and Zambia.

Ford Motor Co has said it will spend $1.2 billion on three Michigan facilities, including investments related to bringing Ranger and Bronco trucks back to the United States market.
The company will spend $850 million at its Michigan assembly plant in Wayne, to prepare the factory to build the new Ranger at the end of 2018 and the Bronco in 2020.
Also announced was a $150 million investment at Ford’s Romeo engine plant, expanding its capacity to accommodate engines for Rangers and Broncos — a development that will “create or retain” 150 jobs.
Ford said it will also be spending $200 million on a data centre in Michigan.
The Michigan assembly plant currently produces the Focus small car. The next-generation Focus will be assembled at a Ford plant in Hermosillo, Mexico.
The company had originally planned to build a new $1.6 billion plant in Mexico for the Focus, but cancelled the project following criticism by President Trump.
This latest round of investment is in addition to a $700 million investment at the company’s Flat Rock plant to build autonomous and electric vehicles. The money for Flat Rock is coming from funds that had been earmarked for the now-cancelled Mexican plant.

Ford has partnered Vodafone to bring 4G LTE connectivity to vehicles in Europe via the new FordPass Connect built-in modem and Wi Fi hotspot capability.

Incorporating an external aerial, the Wi-Fi hotspot enables up to 10 devices to connect to the network at once. This will enable passengers to surf the internet with improved connectivity.

With FordPass Connect, the FordPass app will enable drivers to remotely lock and unlock their car doors from virtually anywhere in the world; and check information including fuel and oil levels, tyre pressure, battery life, the odometer, whether the alarm is sounding and the vehicle’s location on a map. The Live Traffic feature will offer drivers real-time updates and re route them away from congestion.

“The future of mobility is enabled by connectivity, connectivity between you and the vehicle, between your smartphone and vehicle, and between the vehicle and its surroundings,” said Don Butler, executive director, Ford Connected Vehicle and Services.

“With FordPass Connect, our SYNC platform is transitioning from being device-centric to become cloud-connected. FordPass Connect with Wi-Fi powered by Vodafone lets kids watch movies, listen to music or even do homework while travelling; and people working from the road can easily access corporate resources from wherever they are,” Butler said.

Across Europe, connectivity is more important than ever. In the United Kingdom (U.K.), 33 percent of children under five now have their own tablet.

From 2014 to 2015, the number of Europeans paying for streamed TV and film content increased by 400 percent, while streaming music is expected to surpass music downloads by next year.

Ford made the announcement at Mobile World Congress, the world’s largest gathering for the mobile industry.

Vodafone Internet of Things Director Ivo Rook, said: “Vodafone and Ford have worked together for over a decade.  Now we are addressing drivers’ and passengers’ expectations of staying connected to the rest of their digital world while in their vehicles. The range of services that a robust, secure connection can bring to the consumer is growing every day, from information on the health of your car and alerts on traffic conditions to passengers streaming movies to enjoy on long journeys.  Ford and Vodafone are creating more opportunities for customers to live a smarter and more connected life.”

The company will use Vodafone’s global SIM and Internet of Things platform to bring enhanced safety, security, diagnostic and infotainment services to Ford vehicles across Europe and ensure compliance with strict new EU regulations.

Since 2012, Ford vehicles have offered Emergency Assistance through the SYNC connectivity system. In the event of an accident where the airbag has deployed or fuel shut off has occurred, this technology utilises a Bluetooth paired and connected mobile phone to help vehicle occupants initiate a direct call to Emergency Services in the correct language for the region, alerting first responders with the vehicle location.

Ford will now build on that capability by leveraging the built-in modem to provide eCall service which can automatically dial emergency services after an accident, communicating vehicle location and enabling emergency call takwers to infer whether the driver is conscious or not.

Nigerians learn a host of defensive driving rules and techniques when they are first taught to drive for their driver’s licence test. Most of this tends to be forgotten once the test is passed and daily driving becomes a combination of accelerating, braking, steering, and generally trying not to hit anything. But there is more to being a great driver.
Some of the best drivers in the world can be found in motorsport. Tackling the world’s toughest racetracks in vehicles like the 500hp, Le Mans-winning Ford GT race car requires a specific set of driving skills that is not only efficient and fast, but safe as well. We call this defensive driving.
“Defensive driving is to drive so as to prevent a collision in any road or weather conditions,” says Derek Kirkby, Training Director for advanced driving at MasterDrive and Ford’s own Driving Skills for Life – which is a comprehensive driving programme that teaches drivers techniques for defensive driving. Ford’s Driving Skills for Life programme was part of the Nigeria Auto Journalists Association’s (NAJA) annual training in 2016. Kirkby offers a list of driving tips straight from the race track that will make you a better driver on the road:

Hold the steering wheel like a racing driver

Conventional driving instruction teaches us to imagine the steering wheel as a clock-face and to keep our hands at 10 and 2 o’clock. Don’t do this, advises Kirkby. This convention is outdated. An airbag can inflate in 0.03 seconds, how quickly can you move your hands and arms out of the way?
Here is a very simple habit you can get into right away, use nine and three o’clock. It is safer if an airbag inflates and should you lose control even for a second, you will know how to get the car pointed straight ahead instantly – just return your arms to their resting position. This position is also more responsive for quicker turns.

Do only one thing at a time

Racing drivers have to make split-second decisions, and you can too if you concentrate on doing one thing at a time – either accelerate, brake, or steer. Remember that anything you do that changes the direction or speed of your vehicle can break traction, and loss of traction can mean loss of control. Smoother is safer and faster – brake before you turn into a corner, not while you are in it. Braking during a turn can either lead to spinning the car or not turning enough and skidding straight ahead.

Don’t follow

Have you noticed that Formula 1 race cars don’t have brake lights? Yet the drivers manage to not crash into each other at every corner. This is because they do not follow the car in front, and neither should you. We instinctively do what the car in front of us does, but you should never allow your decisions to be made by the guy in your path, it is downright dangerous. Why put all your trust in a stranger? Kirkby advises to rather look ahead, through their car and their windshield if possible and in between the spaces of the car ahead.

Use your tongue to balance

Here is a fun one. According to Ross Bentley, former racing driver and author of the popular Speed Secrets series, pressing your tongue to the roof of your mouth activates the same area of your brain that is responsible for balance and your balance while driving is directly related to how you sense the movement of the car. Essentially, by doing this you are increasing your concentration, as well as your response time to any movement that your car makes.

Steer with the
corresponding hand

When steering, the direction you chose to go should correlate with the corresponding hand. So, turning left? Use your left hand to guide the steering wheel. Going right? Use your right hand. Essentially, it should feel like you’re pulling your steering wheel down, rather than pushing it up. Kirkby explains that now you are now using your fast twitch muscle fibres, which mean you have more dexterity and you can make quicker steering adjustments, ultimately giving you more control.

The car will go where you are looking

Ever notice how your car will wonder in the direction you are looking when you get distracted or take your eyes off the road for just a moment? That’s hand-eye coordination, and it also works for where you want to go. Instead of focusing on the road right in front of you, focus on where you want to go. Essentially Kirkby advises you to look up ahead through the top half of your windshield. Your hands and feet will take you there without you having to even think about it.