Ford Mustang Exotica Hides an Aston Martin Under its Hood

We’re pretty sure that, during the time Aston Martin was under the ownership of Ford, the thought of stuffing an exotic V12 powerplant under the bonnet of a Mustang must have crossed the mind of a few company engineers.

And while we never saw something of the sort officially from Ford, an independent custom shop actually realized the idea with the 2005 Ford Mustang 'Vanquishd' show car that was presented at the 2006 SEMA aftermarket gathering.

Built by Western Motorsports, this one-of-a-kind Mustang gets a 6.0-liter V12 engine with 600 ponies from a 2001 Aston Martin Vanquish. Power is sent to the chunky rear wheels through a 6 speed manual Tremec T-56 transmission.

Other modifications include a performance brake system, an upgraded suspension, 19-inch lightweight alloy wheels and more.

The Mustang 'Vanquishd' has since covered a mere 2,000 miles (apparently as a show piece) and is now up for sale in Canada at Kijiji with the asking price set at $79,000.

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2011 Australian International Motor Show Photo

Even though it’s not as famous as its Frankfurt, Paris, Tokyo or Detroit counterparts, this year’s edition of the Australian Motor Show, which takes place in Melbourne from July 1 to 10, has some interesting debuts including the Mad Max Concepts pictured above as well as a number of new production and prototype models from the local divisions of General Motors (aka Holden) and Ford.

You can take a look at all the vehicles in our comprehensive photo gallery right after the break. For those of you interested in learning more about the Ford-badged Mad Max Interceptor prototypes

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Ford Asks: What Should the Focus EV Looks Like?

So the all-electric Ford Focus EV is landing stateside in late 2011 to snub its nose at the likes of the Nissan LEAF and Mitsubishi i MiEV with its utterly conventional name that’s not even an acronym.

Now Ford is asking its most important shareholders (the general public) what the Focus EV should sound like, as there are members of the world community that think silent cars are a danger to the blind and the deaf.

Of course, those same persons probably think video games lead to criminal activity, alcohol to spousal abuse and atheism to the downfall of western civilisation, but that’s neither here nor there.

There are four choices which Ford has unimaginatively labeled A, B, C and D. I will label them Laser Eye Surgery, Vacuuming, Meet George Jetson and Thunderbirds Are Go.

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New Ford Fiesta Sport Special Edition Only for Europe

Building on the success of the European market Fiesta Sport + (called the 1600S in the UK and Sport S in Germany) that was launched this past February, Ford has unleashed a new Sport Special Edition that includes further enhancements inside and out.

The latest sporty Fiesta is available with two engine options, the most potent of which is the 1.6-liter Duratec Ti-VCT petrol unit delivering 134-horses and 160Nm torque at 4,250rpm.

Combined with a close-ratio gearing and a redeveloped exhaust system, the Fiesta Sport Special Edition with the petrol engine completes the 0-100km/h (0-62mph) acceleration in 8.7 seconds and has a top speed of 195km/h (122mph).

The other option is a less powerful but more frugal 1.6-liter turbo diesel producing 95-horses that returns 107g of CO2 and a combined fuel economy of 4.1lt/100km (57.4mpg US or 68.9 mpg UK).

The Sport Special edition is available exclusively as a three door model with buyers having a choice of seven exterior colors including a flat black finish.

A styling kit complete with lowered side skirts and spoilers for the front bumper and rear hatch as well as silver-colored front grille surround, aerofoil, fog lamp bezels and polished twin exhausts come as standard.

The exterior upgrades also include Panther Black 17-inch alloy wheels on the petrol model and 16-inch on the diesel, while silver alloy wheels are also available as an option.

Inside, the sporty Fiesta features Ebony Black heated leather sports seats with silver stitching and an identically upholstered steering wheel with gloss black spokes.

Standard features include air conditioning with automatic temperature control as well as a leather handbrake and gear knob, alloy metal pedals, gloss black instrument bezels, bespoke floor mats and silver scuff plates.

The Fiesta Sport Special Edition is available in most markets across the continent, including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and Switzerland.

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FPV’s Murdered-Out Falcon GT Concept with Supercharged Boss 5.0 V8

Not to be outdone by rival Holden Special Vehicles (HSV), Ford Performance Vehicles (FPV) unleashed its first-ever concept car at the 2011 Australian International Motor Show in Melbourne.
Unlike HSV and its Black Edition Clubsport and Maloo R8s, FPV went for an all-blacked out look for its bespoke GT muscle car, which is based on the local market, rear-wheel drive Falcon sedan.
Its sinister looks come courtesy of a Silhouette black paintwork combined with a unique matte finish stripe package on the bonnet, rear wing, bodysides and the rear diffuser. The same paint treatment is carried over on the 19-inch one-piece forged alloy rims shod in special Dunlop SP Sportmaxx GT tires.
In addition, the Australian sports sedan gains large brake ducts incorporated into the modified front facia, while black framing has been used to enhance the rear light graphics treatment..
The all-black theme continues behind the smoked windows with black leather trim throughout and an all-black dash treatment that includes the interior command centre (ICC).
Under the sheetmetal, there's a track-tuned suspension specification and a full stainless steel high-flow twin exhaust system exhaust finished with quad black exhaust tips. Furthermore, the performance brake package includes larger six-piston brake calipers up front and four-piston brake calipers at the rear, which are both also finished in black.
Power comes in the form of the FPV GT’s supercharged 5.0-liter Boss V8 churning out 335kW (449-horses) and 570Nm (420.4 lb-ft) of peak torque.
Even though the sinister looking FPV GT is a one-off show car, Ford Performance Vehicles General Manager Rod Barrett said that the company will gauge public opinion at the show.

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Ford to Baby Boomers: We Get that You’re Old and Can’t Read Small Fonts

From next year, the fonts in Ford’s Edge and Explorer SUV models will be some 40% larger as well as thicker. The reason? Baby Boomers have poor eyesight. No, really, Ford’s done a study and everything. The bigger fonts will extend to interior display screens control and A/C controls, and will gradually be rolled out onto other models in the Ford range in coming years.
In a statement on their website, Ford expressed its desire to make it, “easier for people of all ages, particularly aging Baby Boomers, to read display fonts.” Ah, like the little boy or girl who flat-out tells his grandparents that they’re old and wrinkly, Ford has snagged upon that babying / slow and loud way anyone under the age of 30 speak to anyone over the age of 50:
“YES, MRS. JOHNSON. THE WEATHER IS NICE TODAY. DO YOU THINK YOU’LL GO DOWN TO THE PARK?”
Or to your local Ford dealership, perhaps? Ford continues its onslaught on the not-elderly as their statement continues:
“Today, aging consumers are of great interest to companies including Ford. For the first time, people age 65 and over will outnumber children under the age of 5. It’s a transformation that’s changing the world, along with all kinds of products in it.”
Ouch. Maybe they should just go all out and put a catheter under the front seat and a folding Zimmer frame in the boot. Ooh, and a radio that only plays music from before 1970! Whether or not this will be as big an upset as SmartMoney’s Catey Hill predicts, I can’t say. We will wait and see.

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Ford Gives Japan Special Edition Mustang V6 Sport

America’s second favorite muscle car after the Camaro (in terms of 2011 sales as Chevy’s model has outsold Ford’s pony car by around 33 percent through May, according to the latest data), is being offered in Japan in a limited edition version called the “Mustang V6 Sport Appearance”.
More often than not, the words “Mustang” and “Special” usually point to a different paint job and added extras, and sure enough, that’s the case with the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) version of Ford’s Mustang V6 Sport Appearance.
On the outside, Japanese buyers can choose between two colors, “Performance White” or the 70’s style “Grabber Blue”, both of which come with special pin stripes on the sides and the bonnet bump.
There’s also a rear boot lid spoiler and 18-inch chromed alloy wheels wrapped around chunky 235/50 R18 tires, while inside, we can see that Ford added leather seats
The package is available on both the coupe and convertible models with the 3.7-liter V6 engine, which is rated in Japan at 309-horses and 378Nm (278.8 lb-ft) of peak torque.
Production is limited to 25 pieces for each body style with prices set at a hefty 4.35 million Yen for the Coupe and 5.05 million Yen for the soft-top Convertible (equal to US$54,250 and US$63,000 respectively at the current exchange rates).

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Ford’s European Sales Up To 10.5 % in May

Ford’s auto sales across its 51 European markets (including Russia, Turkey and certain countries from North Africa) in May rose 13 percent to 143,800 units, up by 16,600 units from a year earlier. May sales in the firm’s traditional 19 European markets rose by 10.5 percentage points to 116,500, up by 11,100.

Year to date, the company’s sales across its total 51 markets across Europe in the first five months of 2011 were up 0.6 percent to 684,000 vehicles compared to the same period in 2010, while in its traditional 19 European markets, Ford saw its sales drop 4.6 percent to 570,400 units.

Ford said the lower sales in the 19 European markets were due to the scrappage schemes that were still in place in the early part of 2010 as well as the company’s decision to selectively reduce participation in low margin business.

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Ford Says" No to 7-Seat Grand C-MAX , Yes to Hybrid 5-Seat C-MAX for the USA "

Earlier today, we told you about Ford’s decision to increase production of the Focus-based C-MAX minivan at its Valencia plant in Spain to meet strong demand from European customers. We also noted that Ford was planning to launch the longer and more spacious 7-seat Grand C-MAX in the United States.
Well, it turns out there’s been a slight change of plans as the Detroit automaker just announced it won’t be bringing the petrol-powered Grand C-MAX to the U.S. after all. But not all is lost for fans of the Focus-based minivan as Ford will focus on the five-seat C-MAX in both hybrid and plug-in hybrid formats. The C-MAX Hybrid and C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid vehicles were previewed at the Detroit Auto Show this past January.
Ford’s plan it to compete head on the forthcoming Prius V minivan and possibly steal some customers away from GM’s Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf with the plug-in hybrid version.
The company said the pure hybrid version of the C-MAX is targeted to deliver better fuel economy than Fusion Hybrid and travel at a higher all-electric speed than Fusion Hybrid’s 47 mph. It will also be the first of two new Ford Hybrids to use lithium-ion battery technology.
The C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid will be equipped with a 240-volt charging system allowing it –according to Ford- to fully recharge faster than Chevy Volt. Ford added that it is being engineered to “deliver more overall driving range than any other plug-in or extended range electric vehicle”.
Both variants of the North American C-MAX minivan will be built alongside the all-new 2012 Focus and Focus Electric at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant.
U.S. sales are expected to begin late next year.

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