Simple resolutions to help you drive smarter and be safe

Simple resolutions to help you drive smarter and be safer

Today's vehicles are filled with features and technologies to help keep you safer. Knowing how to use them properly can make you a better driver. Some features can help minimize injuries from crashes, while others can help you avoid dangerous situations all together. Ford offers a list of safety resolutions and tips for car owners who are safe and in control in the drivers' seat.

 --Click it -- Always buckle that safety belt. Isn't alone worth taking that extra two seconds to click on the belt when you travel -- and make sure your passengers do, too?

 --Keep your eyes on the road -- not on your cellphone. Avoid unnecessary distractions. That means no texting -- no message is that important.

--Read a good book -- like your owners' manual. Reading it will give you valuable safety information and could even save you some money.

--Scrape that ice -- On wintery mornings, don't be one of those people trying to negotiate the roads while peering through a tiny hole of visibility in the windshield. That's just plain dangerous.

--Use technology to keep you safer -- Today's vehicles are equipped with state-of-the-art technology that can help keep you safer, but it always helps if drivers understand these features. Take your anti-lock-brake system, for example.  ABS pumps the brakes automatically at a much faster rate than you could do it manually and allows better steering control.

 --Listen to your mother -- Sit up straight. Make sure your seat and headrest are adjusted correctly in your vehicle to give you the optimum support. Your legs shouldn't be overstretched to reach the pedals; you should be able to glance up and out at your mirrors with ease.

 --Check pressure on all four tires -- and the spare. Don't confuse the "maximum tire pressure" written on the side wall of the tire with the "recommended tire pressure" provided by the manufacturer -- that's found in that handy owner's manual you've resolved to read.

 --Take a cue from the Scouts -- Be Prepared. You never know what cold weather will bring, so make sure you're carrying the essentials in case you get stuck or stranded: water, blankets, granola bars or beef jerky, a few road flares, a good flashlight (and extra batteries), jumper cables and a bag of cat litter to help gain traction if you're stuck in snow.

 --Remember the two-second rule -- The vehicle in front of you should be passing a road marker two seconds before you to assure you're not tailgating.

Electric Focus charges faster than Nissan's Leaf

Electric Focus charges faster than Nissan's Leaf

Fri Jan 14 2011
Byline: Michael Bettencourt  

Ford will launch an all-electric version of its compact Focus hatchback by the end of 2011 in the U.S., and in Canada in 2012, Ford of Canada confirmed this week.  

Though Nissan's Leaf, which is scheduled to arrive this fall, will be the first battery electric vehicle available in Canada, the Focus BEV offers a strong Canadian connection, with the entire electric powertrain developed by Aurora.

 

The Focus Electric, as it is officially called, will be recharged through a port on the driver's side fender.

-It has a high-tech illuminated ring that flashes in quadrants as the battery is "filling up"

-Solid ring means a fully charged battery.

-A full charge will take about half the time of the Nissan Leaf's, at three to four hours

-It uses a 240-volt home charging station.  

-This charge time suggests that it has a smaller battery than the Leaf, which would also mean less range.

-Ford said this week it will match the Leaf's stated 100- mile (160-km) maximum range.  

   

Ford's five-door Focus BEV seats five, just like the regular Focus and one more than its Volt notchback rival, but sports a unique front-end design that could have come straight off an Aston Martin.

  

 2011 CTVglobemedia Publishing Inc.

2012 Ford CMAX- Exclusive Hands Free Liftgate

Ford to launch small minivan - C-Max features hands-free liftgate operation. Ford will sell the C-Max minivan in North America next fall, based on the Focus platform. They are launching a small minivan in 2011, marking its return to the North American minivan market.


Monday, December 20, 2010

The C-Max will have an exclusive feature when it goes on sale in the U.S. and Canada next fall — a liftgate with hands-free opening:
     -The C-Max liftgate can open with the wave of a foot under the back of the minivan. The van will only open for the person possessing its key.
     -Ford said the North American version of the C-Max will be the first vehicle on the market with this technology.
     -The C-Max has been on sale in Europe since 2003, although a seven-seat version wasn't sold there until this year.

Ford Focus platform
     -The C-Max is built on the underpinnings of the Ford Focus, and is part of the company's plan to build 10 Focus-based vehicles worldwide by 2012.
     -Ford will sell the seven-seat version of the C-Max in North America, a configuration that will make it unique in the small minivan market.
     -The Mazda5, its closest rival in size, seats six.
     -Ford provides an additional seat in the second row that can be folded away under the right-hand seat.
     -Buyers will be able to get the third row removed if they prefer to have five seats.
     -Ford tried to mask the twin sliding doors and also make the C-Max fun to drive, so it could overcome the minivan's reputation as a boring family-hauler.

Unveiling of the New Electric/Hybrid Concept

Tue Jan 11 2011
Byline: Tony Van Alphen  

Automakers unleashed more electric models and hybrids in efforts to gain an edge in the emerging trend away from the internal combustion engine.

Surging Ford Motor Co. muscled into the market with the release of two more models at the North American International Auto Show after unveiling its electric version of the Focus at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week.  

Toyota, the world's current hybrid leader, introduced more members of its Prius "family," while other automakers dotted the show with "green" models, that feature the latest advances in fuel economy and distance capabilities without recharging.  
  Ford spent its entire presentation showing off 10 small fuel-efficient cars, including the C-Max Energi, plug-in hybrid electric "multi-activity" vehicle, and the C-Max hybrid.   Both vehicles will be available in North America next year.  
In addition to the Focus electric car, which Ford developed with Aurora-based Magna International, the company said it will sell a seven passenger Ford C-Max that has the industry's first hands-free lift gate and looks like a small minivan. 


Begley noted the Focus' much faster recharging prowess of three hours and Ford's assistance in setting up home plug-in facilities.  
  
As thousands of paper butterflies floated from the ceiling of the Cobo Hall at the end of the Ford presentation, Begley remarked: "Who is the company that brings you those butterflies?"  

On the floor of the show, other automakers ranging from Honda to Mercedes-Benz displayed electric concept cars. One Mercedes car was emblazoned with the message "zero-emission, e-cell, Blue efficiency."  

Illustration: William Clay Ford Jr. addresses reporters at the Detroit auto show. David Cooper/Toronto Star 
© 2011 Torstar Corporation

2011 Ford Fusion Sets the Standards

Airdrie City View

Fri Jan 14 2011
Page: 14  Section: News
Source: Rocky View Publishing

Ford claims its redesigned Fusion was the best-selling domestic car in 2009, and feels very confident in its abilities going forward.

 

The current 2011 model features:

• bold, aggressive attitude
• well-judged suspension, braking and steering systems
• Much of the interior features a soft-touch skin that looks and feels upscale
• Seats have plenty of side support and the coverings are also richer in appearance
• The gauges are well lit using an easy-to-read three-dimensional effect
• Ambient lighting that brightens up the footwells and floor-console.
• Capless fuel-filler system automatically opens and closes when you insert and then remove the pump nozzle.
• The optional blind-spot warning system puts lights in the side mirrors to warn of approaching traffic
• SYNC, Ford's voice-activated communications system, operates cell phones, audio programming, vehicle diagnostics and emergency-call placement.
• Ford claims the Fusion Hybrid achieves 4.6/5.4 l/100 km, city/highway.
  

It can comes in a variety of engine sizes like:

• The base 175-horsepower 2.5-litre four-cylinder remains in most models
• Or the optional 3.0-litre V6 returns with 240 horsepower
• The all-wheel-drive Sport model features a class-competitive 263-horsepower 3.5-litre V6
• The Hybrid combines a 156-horsepower 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine with a 106-horsepower electric motor for a net output of 191 horses.  

2006 Ford GT at Koch Ford

2012 Focus is to move like a Skier

Published: January 11, 2011
http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/

The new 2012 Ford Focus
Engineered to increase novice-driver confidence by adding a finer sense of control in curves, the next-generation Focus will please enthusiast drivers as well with the addition of a vehicle-stability control system previously reserved for premium sports cars.

Just as a downhill skier or board rider shifts weight to their outside edge in transition from schuss to edge — adding balance and stability to carve through a turn — torque-vectoring control provides slight braking force to the wheel and tire that is subject to potential slippage to help the driver and vehicle gracefully negotiate the curve.

The pressure applied is imperceptible.

Torque-vectoring control uses the Focus braking system to imitate the effect of limited-slip differential, constantly balancing the distribution of engine output between the driven front wheels to suit driving conditions and road surface.

When accelerating through a tight corner, the system applies an imperceptible degree of braking to the inside front wheel, so that more engine torque goes to the outside wheel, providing additional traction, better grip and improved vehicle handling.

The system is designed to delight experienced and enthusiastic drivers but also to provide less- experienced drivers with confidence and a better sense of vehicle control, especially in difficult driving conditions.