Ford and G.M. Make Strides in Fuel Economy

[Doctor_K]

Good news on the homefront for a change!

Courtesy the NY Times  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/07/business/07green.html

The Downsizing in Detroit
WAYNE, Mich. â€" Ten years ago, the Ford Motor plant here churned out giant Expedition and Navigator sport utility vehicles that got 12 miles to the gallon â€" and it was one of the most profitable auto factories in the world.

Today, after a $550 million renovation, the 140-acre plant is a symbol of a very different Detroit: a greener, leaner industry focused on smaller, energy-efficient cars. The factory will now build Ford’s newest compact car, the Focus, in four different and progressively more fuel-efficient versions, including an all-electric one that will be unveiled on Friday and go on sale this year.

Prodded first by rising federal fuel economy standards, then shocked in 2008 by $145-a-barrel oil and a global credit crisis that forced General Motors and Chrysler to seek federal bailouts, Detroit is making a fundamental shift toward lighter, more fuel-conscious cars â€" and turning a profit doing so.

Japanese automakers still hold a lead in overall fuel economy, and Toyota, despite its recall troubles, remains the top seller of hybrids with its Prius.

But Detroit has closed the gap significantly. Last year, passenger cars made by Ford and G.M. averaged more than 30 miles per gallon, according to federal rankings, compared with 27 m.p.g. a decade ago.

One of the more outstanding parts of the article:

On Friday, [Ford] will unveil the all-electric version of its Ford Focus â€" its answer to the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt â€" at an event in New York with its chairman, William Clay Ford Jr., and another in Las Vegas with its chief executive, Alan R. Mulally.

By 2012, the Focus compact will be available to buyers in four versions: gasoline-powered, conventional hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric. All will be built in the Wayne plant, which can easily change the mix of vehicles produced.

Cool stuff - and proof that we *can* still make decent stuff domestically!

[Jason]

IMO, Ford's overall quality has greatly improved.  The new lineups from both Ford and GM are fantastic and should give the Japs a great bit of competition.  And if you haven't tried out Ford's Sync system you're missing out.

[peestandingup]

Good on them, but still. It'll be a cold day in hell before I ever buy a GM product after everything they did to the country's public transportation system (including here in Jax).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines

[JMac]

Has GM figured out a technology that will keep their headliners from sagging?

[Doctor_K]

I've owned two Saturns - a '96 SC2 and an '04 Ion - and had almost no problems with either of them over the 8+ years I'd owned each.  I can't speak for the rest of the GM stable, but Saturn was always pretty decent (if not flashy) based on my experiences.

Dying to get behind the wheel of a Ford Fusion Hybrid.  (drool...)

[letters and numbers]

You know i'm thinking about a Ford too. I want to buy local and they're local, right?

[JeffreyS]

Good on them, but still. It'll be a cold day in hell before I ever buy a GM product after everything they did to the country's public transportation system (including here in Jax).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines

Those decision makers and workers are long gone. That is kind of like saying I won't vote for Mayor again because of what a now out of office Mayor did way back when.

[reednavy]

My SO drives a Ford Fusion Hybrid with Sync, all I say is, I'd highly recommend it. Ford has really taken hold now and knows what they're doing.

[Ocklawaha]

JTA SHOULD TAKE NOTE, a Steampunk Society member has a clock work bus for the ultimate in savings.

OCKLAWAHA

[spuwho]

Glad to see they are finally catching up. With the conspiracy behind us now, we can rebuild what we left behind.

[tufsu1]

Dying to get behind the wheel of a Ford Fusion Hybrid.  (drool...)

it is a nice family car...but, drool, really?  

[I-10east]

I've owned two Saturns - a '96 SC2 and an '04 Ion - and had almost no problems with either of them over the 8+ years I'd owned each.  I can't speak for the rest of the GM stable, but Saturn was always pretty decent (if not flashy) based on my experiences.

I totally agree. I had a 98' Saturn SL2 that I gave to my sister. It's still running like a horse.

[JC]

Boy the free market really got this one squared away didnt it? 

[peestandingup]

Good on them, but still. It'll be a cold day in hell before I ever buy a GM product after everything they did to the country's public transportation system (including here in Jax).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines

Those decision makers and workers are long gone. That is kind of like saying I won't vote for Mayor again because of what a now out of office Mayor did way back when.

I'm aware of that, but still. I can never forgive a company as a whole for something that did so much damage to our infrastructure just for their own benefit. They set us back decades & it's a personal choice for me to never support them.

IMO, they should have got what they had coming to them & went under a couple years ago. But I guess our government had a different opinion & decided to bail them out with our money (the very people that they fucked over). It's not fair & frankly, pretty damn insulting if you look at the big picture. But that's life I guess.

[tufsu1]

Boy the free market really got this one squared away didnt it?  

sure did...10 years too late

and then of course there are those pesky C.A.F.E. standards...I'm sure they helped encourage Ford to make a more fuel efficient Explorer.