1969 Ford Mustang on 2040-cars

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Production of Shelby GT350 is coming to an end

One Autoblog staffer who drove the limited-edition Shelby GT350 wrote it probably was the best Mustang he'd driven, but, at some point, the fun had to come to an end: December 31 is the last day the GT350 will be available to order.
The GT350's option list has evolved much like it did for the original 1965-67 GT350. For 2011, the 45th Anniversary edition only came in coupe form and was painted white with blue stripes, just as with the 1965 car. The 2012 GT350 was offered as a coupe or convertible, and three colors were added to the option list, just like the 1966 model. For 2013, more colors and options were added in addition to equipment and styling updates, which resulted in Wilwood instead of Baer brakes. No major changes were made for the 2014 model. From the first car in 2011, customers have been able to choose between three different configurations for their 5.0-liter V8: naturally aspirated with 440 horsepower, supercharged with 525 hp (with warranty) or supercharged with 624 hp (without warranty).
"When we unveiled this latest version of the Shelby GT350, we promised it would be built for a limited time to preserve its collectability and value," states John Luft, president of Shelby American. He may have a point, because the original GT350, which also had a limited production run, is among the most valuable muscle cars in the world.

Ford C-Max, Fusion hybrids subject of MPG lawsuit in California

A California lawsuit over the fuel economy claims for the 2013 Ford C-Max was first reported back in December. Based on the numerous reports we've heard of disgruntled owners failing to get their car's EPA fuel economy ratings on the C-Max and 2013 Fusion Hybrid, we suspected there would be more to this story. The Detroit News is reporting that two California law firms are combining their lawsuits against Ford on this matter for "false and misleading" claims.
The article states that there are hundreds of C-Max and Fusion Hybrid owners who have joined the lawsuit, but the issue isn't limited to customers. In December, Consumer Reports extensively tested both the Fusion Hybrid and C-Max and found that both hybrids performed significantly worse than their EPA claims. This all comes just a few months after Hyundai and Kia took the unprecedented step of lowering the fuel economy ratings for all of their 2012 and 2013 model-year vehicles.

Ford books $1.2B profit in second quarter on strength of trucks

Ford is rolling along nicely, with a positive second-quarter sales report and a $2.3 billion profit in North America. The Dearborn, Michigan-based manufacturer captured $1.2 billion globally from April to June, with a $177 million profit in Asia. Even in Europe, the land of doom and gloom for automakers not named Mazda, Ford saw some success as it lowered its expected full-year loss from $2 billion to $1.8 billion. The company lost $348 million in Europe during the second quarter, which, believe it or not, represents a $56-million improvement over 2012.
According to the report on CNBC, Ford enjoyed a three-percent increase in pre-market trading thanks to the news. The strong demand for the F-150 propelled growth in the US market, while Ford's 47-percent increase in Asian sales can be attributed to the new EcoSport crossover and Kuga (Ford Escape in the US) arriving in the somewhat fragile Chinese market.
Pre-tax profits for Ford are expected to be in the neighborhood of $8 billion by the end of the year, with sales the US, Europe, and China all looking up. The company also shifted $4.78 billion of asset-backed debt in the form of bonds, according to a report by Bloomberg. This move came amidst rumors of the Federal Reserve cutting back on its $85-billion-per-month bond purchases. Ford wasn't alone among automakers looking to sell off debt, though, as Mercedes-Benz and Nissan shifted around $1 billion each in bonds relating to auto loans.