Tag Archives: Ford news

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Ford announced it’s recalling almost 185,000 F-150 full-size pickups. The 2021 and 2022 model-year trucks are experiencing driveshaft problems that could cause it to fracture.

All-new F-150
Ford is recalling nearly 185,000 F-150 pickups from the 2021 and 2022 model years.

The issue only affects certain F-150 Crew Cab 4×4 pickups, according to the filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The company’s began examining the issue since July.

The truck’s underbody thermal/acoustic insulators can loosen over time. If they come in contact with the truck’s aluminum driveshaft, they can cause scoring or marks. If this goes on long enough, the heat generated each time can eventually crack the driveshaft.

Potential results if the issue is not repaired

“A fractured driveshaft may result in loss of motive power,” the report states, “unintended vehicle movement while the vehicle is in park if the parking brake is not applied, and may result in secondary damage to surrounding components.”

Additionally, once fractured, the driveshaft could break loose and touch the ground, causing the driver to lose control of the pickup, potentially resulting in a crash. The company is unaware of any accidents or injuries caused by the problem.

2021 Ford F-150 - at work site
Some Ford F-150 pickups are facing issues with the aluminum driveshaft on the truck.

Owners are advised to look for a “loose underbody insulator.” They should also listen for a rattling, clicking or clunking noise due to the loose insulator coming in contact with the driveshaft. The scoring or marking on the driveshaft described earlier may also be visible.

Next steps

Ford’s taken steps to resolve the problem during production by swapping the underbody thermal acoustic insulator for an under-carpet thermal patch at the two plants — Dearborn (MI) Truck and Kansas City (KS) Assembly — already.

Dealers received the notice Tuesday, and owners will begin receiving notices in the mail shortly. They will be instructed to make an appointment with their dealer to have “positive attachment features adde to the underbody insulators.”

They’ll also inspect the driveshaft for scoring or marks that may have already occurred. This will be done at no expense to the truck owner.

As of Dec. 7, Ford received 27 reports of fractured aluminum driveshafts possibly related to sagging underbody insulators on the F-150s, the automaker said in an Automotive News report.

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Charging is key to the transition to electric vehicles and while more chargers are one the way, Ford Motor Co. is launching a new program to ensure the juice needed to run an EV does not contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases. 

Ford debuts 2020 Escape PHEV
Ford’s program can be used by current owners of the Mustang Mach-E, E-Transit and Escape PHEV.

With help of one auto industry’s traditional foes, the California Air Resource Board, Ford is beginning what it describes as a “sustainable charging program,” which allows owners of plug-in electric vehicles in California to opt for only carbon-neutral charging at home.  

“Ford’s electric vehicle customers are beginning to realize all the possibilities associated with their vehicles and sustainable energy management,” said Matt Stover, director of charging and energy services, Ford Motor Co.

“By working with regulators, utilities and customers for home integration services, we’re enabling EV drivers to lower their carbon footprints, potentially save money and help protect the grid, all through their smartphones.” 

California-based owners of all current Ford all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, including the Mustang Mach-E, the E-Transit and the Escape PHEV, plus the F-150 Lightning coming in 2022, are eligible for the program. 

Ford green charging California graphic

Only green energy wanted 

The idea is to only use electricity made with renewable sources rather than oil, gas or coal, reducing the carbon footprint of the energy used to power the vehicles.  

Carlos Tavares, Stellantis CEO, recently noted the ability of electric vehicles to limit emissions of greenhouse gases is blunted if the energy powering them comes from fossil fuels, such as oil. Other critics of EVs note EVs cannot deter climate change if they are dependent on electric grid powered by fossil fuels.  

Ford plans to participate in CARB’s “Low Carbon Fuel Standard,” which will offer customers a new way to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change by matching the use of electricity used to charge plug-in electric vehicles at home with 100% local renewable energy, the automaker said. 

CARB, which has control of air quality standards throughout California, has long warred with automakers about emissions. Significant health concerns, created by automotive-related air pollution in Southern California, have given CARB enormous influence over emission standards not only across California but also across the United States. 

Ford Sustainable Charging web page

Program uses a phone app to find green energy 

Under the program, owners of eligible plug-in electric vehicles connect to the program through the FordPass app. 

Once enrolled, the FordPass app automatically tracks the amount of electricity used while charging at home. Ford generates, or buys, an equivalent amount of California-sourced Renewable Energy Certificates, an EPA-recognized program that records the generation and usage of green energy. 

Ford then sends evidence of the matching amounts to CARB, ensuring that all home plug-in charging activity is matched with zero-carbon electricity. 

Ford is investing more than $30 billion in electric vehicles and batteries through 2025. The push supports the company’s longer-term goal of creating a sustainable American manufacturing ecosystem, and to accelerate its progress towards achieving carbon neutrality no later than 2050. Overall, Ford expects 40% to 50% of its global vehicle volume to be fully electric by 2030.

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Some Bronco fans thought the Jeep Wrangler wasn’t the only vehicle Ford would take on with the new Bronco. Upon its return, Ford officials said Bronco would be a “family” of vehicles, leading to plenty of speculation about what that could mean. 

Ford Bronco family
The Bronco and Bronco Sport are just the beginning of a “family” of vehicles, Ford officials said when they debuted.

Apparently, it no longer means a truck to compete with the Jeep Gladiator. The original Bronco from the late ’60s did come with a pickup option, but the new models will not, according to Automotive News. The publication cited two sources “knowledgeable about the decision.”

Ford typically doesn’t comment on future products, but spokesman Mike Levine told Automotive News “we continue to see strong demand for our full portfolio of rugged trucks and SUVs, including our Bronco-brand utilities and our best-selling Ford truck line-up.”

The plans reportedly called for a pickup model to arrive as a 2024 model, built at Wayne (MI) Truck Plant where the Bronco and Ford Ranger midsize pickup are currently produced. Ford officials never formally confirmed the existence of a pickup truck.

A family of vehicles

For now anyway, anyone wanting a Bronco pickup is going to have shop the used market for this 1966 Bronco.

When the Bronco and Bronco Sport were introduced in July 2020, Ford officials noted there were plans for additional vehicles beyond the two- and four-door Bronco and Bronco Sport — a family. Details weren’t provided but there has been plenty of speculation about what it could mean.

At the time, officials suggested they would always sport Ford’s “Blue Oval” badge, but the automaker would push Bronco as its own unique brand. Mark Grueber, the Bronco marketing chief, told TheDetroitBureau.com back then one of its hallmarks will be that every vehicle will be equipped with all-wheel drive, something it believes will give Bronco a leg up on competitors like Jeep and Land Rover.

Naturally, fans were left to explore what that could mean in terms of actual products. Part of that including the now-dead pickup as well as a variety of performance variants, including the Warthog or Raptor (both names have bandied about for the same vehicle), which is akin to the Raptor line-up for the automaker’s F-Series pickups.

Ford Bronco R Baja 1000 Testing
The Bronco Type R racer clearly hints at what a Raptor might look like — albeit without the tube frame.

The company produced a Baja-style model, dubbed the Bronco Type R, that raced in Mexico. That version, if it comes to life, may be called the Wildtrack. Then, there’s the potential for an EV model. Ford’s massively invested in battery electrics to the tune of at least $22 billion. Further, Ford CEO Jim Farley added a little gas to that fire in May via Twitter. 

When asked by a Tesla fan on Twitter about why there isn’t an electric version of more new products coming out, specifically the Bronco, Farley’s response was “Why do you think we dont?” 

Former CEO Jim Hackett confirmed in 2018 that a Bronco hybrid was also coming.

A plug-in would allow Ford to take direct aim against Bronco’s key rival, the Jeep Wrangler. A PHEV model — the Wrangler 4xe — went on sale last month. It can run 21 miles in all-electric mode, according to the EPA, while Jeep noted the 4xe can operate for at least three hours on batteries alone while off-roading.

“I would be shocked” if Ford didn’t electrify the Bronco, Sam Abuelsamid, principal auto analyst for Guidehouse Insights in Chicago told TheDetroitBureau.com in May.

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General Motors doesn’t want to share the sandbox with Ford when it comes to using “cruise” in the name of semi-autonomous driving technology. 

Ford BlueCruise in F-150 driving
Ford is offering BlueCruise, a subscription-based version of Level 2 autonomous driving technology this fall.

In response to GM’s lawsuit against its fellow Detroit-area automaker, Ford asked the U.S. Patent Office to rescind the trademarks GM filed using the word. Officials claim that “cruise” is so generic a term that no one should be able to lay claim to it.

The “cruise” chaos came to the fore when Ford announced its new semi-autonomous driving technology in mid-April, dubbed BlueCruise. GM already employs two versions of the word for similar purposes. It’s Super Cruise technology performs a similar task to Ford’s new product. Meanwhile, it also owns a significant stake in Cruise LLC, which is developing autonomous vehicles to be used as robo-taxis in the San Francisco area.

Going to court

Cruise Bolt in SF
GM’s Cruise subsidiary is hoping to offer a fleet of robs-taxis in the near future.

“Ford’s decision to rebrand by using a core mark used by GM and Cruise will inevitably cause confusion between the parties, the affiliation, connection, or association between them, and/or origin, sponsorship, or approval of their goods and services,” GM said in the lawsuit. 

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco where GM’s self-driving enterprise is testing the system without safety drivers. According to the lawsuit, GM, Cruise and Ford “engaged in protracted discussions” following Ford’s announcement, “but Ford insisted on moving forward with the ‘Blue Cruise’ name despite Cruise’s preexisting rights.” 

GM and Cruise are asking for Ford to pay monetary damages related to the incident and for the manufacturer to stop using the BlueCruise name. 

Cadillac’s Super Cruise system allows some hands-free driving but requires drivers to stay focused in the even of an emergency.

“While GM had hoped to resolve the trademark infringement matter with Ford amicably, we were left with no choice but to vigorously defend our brands and protect the equity our products and technology have earned over several years in the market,” according to Reuters. 

Can’t sue if no infringement

While GM went to court, Ford — which contends the suit is without merit — instead went to the patent office. That move is seen by some as akin to pouring gasoline on a fire; however, company officials claim there was little choice.

“To defend itself, Ford has no choice but to ask the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to rescind both of GM’s “Cruise” and “Super Cruise” trademark registrations that should have never been registered in the first place,” Ford said. “Any number of companies use the word ‘cruise’ in connection with driver assist technology.”

Ford essentially contends the word cruise is commonly used by all automakers for similar technologies, in particular, cruise control. However, the automaker offered other examples, including “smart cruise control” by Hyundai, “predictive cruise” by Mack Trucks and more.

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The new GT version of the Ford Mustang Mach-E will deliver substantially better range than the automaker originally estimated — the EPA rating the high-performance package at up to 270 miles per charge.

Ford’s Mustang Mach-E is one amongst a wave of new EV products coming to market.

That’s 20 miles more than what Ford initially claimed for the Mach-E GT. Meanwhile, the Mach-E GT Performance Edition will deliver 260 miles per charge, up from Ford’s original estimate of 235 miles.

“We already pushed the envelope by creating an electric vehicle with the pony badge, so it’s only natural that we push it even further,” said Darren Palmer, Ford’s global director for battery electric vehicles. “Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition not only gives you the added performance you expect from the GT name, but accentuates the thrill with the responsiveness of an all-electric powertrain.”

Charging up the market

2021 Mustang Mach-E GT
The 2021 Mustang Mach-E GT gets 270 miles on a full charge, better than the previously expected 250 miles.

The electric “pony car” received something of a mixed response when Ford first unveiled it in November 2019 at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Some traditional fans lamented the idea of going electric, others disturbed to see an SUV wearing the familiar Mustang badge. But since the base and mid-range models went on sale late last year, the Mustang Mach-E has scored a solid hit. It has taken market share away from Tesla and helped power the 95% jump in overall U.S. sales of plug-based vehicles during the first four months of 2021.

Several factors have played out for Ford. Despite the concern of traditionalists, the crossover design comes at a time when SUVs have come to dominate the American market. And the initial models have come in with some of the best range numbers of any new battery-electric models. Depending upon the trim level and battery pack, the original front- and all-wheel drive Mach-E models delivered EPA numbers of 211 to 305 miles per charge.

The 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition is expected to arrive sometime this fall.

The new GT models don’t quite match what the Tesla Model Y Performance model delivers, at 303 miles, but they remain contenders in the emerging electric muscle car segment.

The “standard” GT, meanwhile, punches out 480 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque. The Performance Edition bumps the torque number up to 634 lb-ft, enough, Ford says, to launch from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds. The special edition gets some additional help from stock Pirelli summer tires, the stock GT coming with all-season rubber.

Going head-to-head with Tesla

That’s about the same as the Tesla crossover with its performance package making 456 hp and 497 lb-ft of torque. Preliminary reviews have also faulted some aspects of the Tesla crossover’s handling. Initial reviews of the Mustang GT and GT Performance Edition are not yet available.

Ford has been taking advance orders for the Mustang Mach-E GT. It said Wednesday it will now take orders for the Performance Edition — and let those with existing orders upgrade.

The GT will start at $61,000, the Performance Edition at $66,000. Those figures don’t factor in the current $7,500 in federal tax credits, nor do they include delivery fees and taxes.

Deliveries are expected to begin this autumn.