It’s almost the end of the decade for the 2000’s and it’s time to look back and review what trucks were the most significant. PickupTrucks.com and AutoPacific has just announced a list of the Most Significant Trucks of the Decade. As expected the list were made up of trucks that were technologically cutting edged advanced and who pushed the envelope in terms of quality and design.
So here they are:
2000 Nissan Frontier Crew Cab
2001 Chevrolet Silverado / GMC Sierra Heavy Duty with 6.6-Liter Duramax Diesel
Why It’s Significant: Remains the gold standard against which other half-ton pickup trucks are compared.
Ford gave its F-150 half-ton pickup a major revision for 2009 and gave buyers an astonishing seven different models to choose from before they even considered engine choice or cab type. Two more models have been added for 2010! It’s not the most powerful truck but the F-150 features an excellent six-speed transmission and innovative features like Ford Work Solutions that make doing jobs with a truck easier. From contractor to urban cowboy, Ford has an F-150 to meet almost anyone’s needs.
“On balance, we thought the 2009 Ford F-150 was the most significant pickup of the last decade,” said Jim Hossack, vice president of consulting for AutoPacific. “It sells in high volume, owners like it and its body, chassis and powertrain are all first rate. Features abound, and there are more models, series and options than can be counted. It’s a good looking truck and suitable for the widest possible range of tasks and uses.”
Congratulations to the Ford F-150 team for creating a Pick-up Truck that ruled a decade.
If you remember, we last reported that the Ford Flex was so good it could still be considered as a great car in the year 2030, well, it seems to have won another award for the present day: it and the Ford Fusion Hybrid are named 2010 All-Stars by Automobile Magazine.
Reasons for why the Flex won:
Jason Mase, Ford crossover marketing manager, says it is the design and features available with the Ford Flex that make the vehicle stand out.
“We’re delighted that AUTOMOBILE Magazine has named Flex an All-Star two years running,” he said. “The AUTOMOBILE editors recognize Flex stands apart from the rest of the crossover crowd with unmatched style, tremendous passenger comfort and space, and leading technology features like the available EcoBoost engine, Active Park Assist, Ford SYNC® and a refrigerated second-row console.”
It seems that the Flex is good on its own even if it wasn’t considered as a Green vehicle, granted, its EcoBoost engine is enough.
As for the Ford Fusion Hybrid:
Jennings says what makes the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid special is that it doesn’t drive like a hybrid.
“Its very ordinariness is what makes the Fusion Hybrid an AUTOMOBILE Magazine All-Star,” said Jennings. “The Fusion Hybrid is not a performance machine, but neither does it feel hobbled or inadequate for daily driving. Perhaps the best thing about it is that, apart from the LCD color screens, you might never know you’re driving a hybrid.”
Eventhough it’s not as strong as the other cars, being green was enough to win the award. Hopefully, more high performing green cars will be rolling out the production line soon.
“The NAHC is the world’s largest public archive of automotive lore and a treasure for automotive historians, journalists and collectors. Its collection of books, manuals, photos, company histories and historic documents is open to the public.”
This year, they pinned the award as the Collectible Vehicle of the Future 2009 on the Ford Flex. The reason?
“We are delighted that the Ford Flex has been recognized by the NAHC as having a design that will become a collectible of the future,” said Kate Pearce, Flex marketing manager at Ford.
“We knew from the start that we had a vehicle with stand-out design that looks like nothing else on the road, but that also meets the needs of our customers looking for passenger space with innovative technology and great fuel economy,” she said. “Reaction from our customers has been fantastic and we hope they will enjoy their cars long into the future.”
It’s great that the judging body has taken into its criteria the vehicle’s fuel economy features. It looks like the future’s going to be more green come the year 2034.
If you had a classic British car around you know how hard it is find any replacement parts in the US as it usually it means importing the expensive parts from the UK. However, two British car enthusiasts from Michigan, Brian Thornton and Keith Leigh-Monstevens, have made it easier for you as they have established Heritage Spares, a distributor for North America of AP Braking (used to be known as AP Lockheed) breaks and clutch replacement parts.
“By reintroducing genuine AP brake and clutch replacement parts to the U.S. and Canada, we are providing the British car enthusiast with the optimal maintenance or restoration solution – the ability to fit factory specified, original equipment replacement parts to their cars,” said Brian Thornton, president and vice president of sales and marketing for Heritage Spares.
The following parts are available:
Heritage Spares customers will have access to: front and rear brake drums; calipers; remote and direct acting servos; single and tandem master cylinders; brake valves; repair kits; brake hoses; wheel cylinders; clutch master cylinders; clutch slave cylinders; clutch hoses; and clutch dampers. The parts will be applicable to models spanning the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s for several of England’s classic brands, including: Austin; Austin-Healey; BMC; Jaguar; Land Rover; Mini; MG; Morgan; Morris; Riley; and Triumph.
If you have any doubts to their credibility as British car experts from North America, then it would be wise to know that Leigh-Monstevens spent 40 years in AP companies, including AP Braking as its chief engineer. Know that you are dealing with people who live and breath British cars.
So you think gasoline guzzling cars are not really your thing and want to try out “green” cars? Don’t know where to get one or don’t have enough money to buy a brand new one? Well, if you want to buy or try out second hand green cars, then head over to Carlocate.com. There, you’ll be able to search for the green car you want for the budget you have. You have the option to search for brand new or used vehicles:
Hybrid
fuel efficient
Diesel
flexible fuel cars
“More and more, consumers are interested in buying vehicles with better fuel economy and lower emissions,” said Nicole Case, general manager for CarLocate.com. “But being eco-friendly is more than looking at hybrids. Wading through all the information to find those cars isn’t always easy. That’s why we’ve created the Green Search option for both new and used cars. Now, we’ve made it quick and easy for car shoppers to find vehicles on our site that are more environmentally friendly. This is just one more way we’re building our search function to cut the clutter and take consumers to search results that more exactly fit the cars they want to buy.”
Both new and used cars are guaranteed to have passed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards of 23.1 miles per gallon, and an EPA air pollution score of six or above. It’s a great idea to spread and increase more green cars on the roads and hopefully other businesses, both online and offline, to follow suit what Carlocate.com has done.
Enough with the car awards of the year, it’s time to look under the hood and check out which engines made it as the 10 Best for 2010. According to Ward’s 10 Best Engines, the winners are as follows:
“This year’s list embodies how the industry is responding to demands for higher fuel economy and lower emissions without shortchanging performance,” Ward’s AutoWorld Editor-in-Chief Drew Winter said. “Auto makers are using innovative designs and advanced technology to boost horsepower and torque while downsizing engines and increasing efficiency.”
It’s a good thing that one of the criterias involved was the lower gas emissions. It just shows that engine makers do care about saving the environment. Now if they can only make engines this good that runs on ethanol. In the meantime, since the US economy’s going down the slippery slope, it’s great that they’ve also included the criteria regarding fuel economy. The last thing we need are engines that guzzle gas like there’s no tomorrow.
Here’s to hoping that next year’s best engine’s list will have engines that help save more on gas and produce lower (or better no) carbon emissions.
If I told you that big time politicians will be riding on straw powered limos, would you believe me? Well the ones who will be attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen will be riding in one.
The climate-friendly fill-up came about as a collaboration between Danisco’s enzyme division Genencor, Inbicon Biomass Refinery Technology, Novozymes, and Statoil, assisted by the Partnership for Biofuels. The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is supplying the limousines: 30 Volvo S80s and 10 Volvo V70s will be chauffeuring politicians from all over the world during COP15. Among those present at this first official filling-up with E85 in Denmark were senior representatives of the companies involved as well as Jan-Christoph Napierski from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ COP15 Logistics unit. “An event such as the UN Climate Change Conference attracts a large number of exciting new technologies, which could help to solve the climate challenge.”
Besides the politicians attending the conference, come 2010 Statoil’s Danish customers will be able to fill up their tanks with advanced biofuel as well. Lucky them as they’ll be able to experience its benefits first. If it becomes successful hopefully the other countries will copy them.
It’s a great way for politicians to see how ethanol can be a good alternative to gasoline and be able to apply it to their own countries. Hopefully with this move, and the main politicians who are in charge of their countries energy resources experiencing the ethanol powered ride, will change their minds about using gasoline to fill up their vehicle’s tanks.
With 2009 about to end, there’s a lot of Cars of the Year awards coming out of the woodwork. Although there are some organizations that stand out to provide a good quality choosing of the winner, and one of them is NADAguides. According to them the Car of the Year goes to the 2010 Kia Forte/Forte Koup. It won the August 2009 Car of the month and it’s won the whole year now.
“Our editorial team realized the moment we got behind the wheel of the Forte that it would be a top contender for our NADAguides.com Car of the Year, but it wasn’t until we extensively drove the sporty four-door sedan and the two-door coupe that it solidified our decision,” said Michael Caudill, NADAguides.com auto expert and spokesperson. “2009 marked many great new entries in the auto industry. With cars like the Ford Fusion Hybrid, Mercedes-Benz E350 and Nissan 370Z Roadster coming in closely behind the Kia Forte, it made our decision difficult, but when you add up the low price point, Best in Class features, and a 10-year/100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty, it made our decision to award the Forte much easier.”
As to why they chose it, they were simply blown away with its money saving and safety features.
“The Fuel Economy Package (available with the EX trim only) adds even more unique elements: electronic power steering, a smart alternator, low rolling resistance tires and aerodynamic improvements to achieve 27 city/36 hwy mpg. What does that ultimately mean for the driver? Fewer trips to the pump, and more money in your pocket!
The safety features on the Forte are evident not only with its 4 dual front, side and full-curtain airbags, but also with the 4 wheel anti-lock braking system and electronic stability control.”
Where have all the quality and safety in American cars gone to? It seems that overseas manufactured cars and automotive vehicles seems to be the one that’s taking a look at quality and safety more than it is over here. No wonder our automotive industry is down in the gutters. This is further proven after Car and Driver Magazine just listed down the 10 best cars of 2010: and it’s no surprise that only two of the top ten belong to American car manufacturers.
Following are the 2010 Car and Driver 10Best winners (in alphabetical order), followed by the number of times each model has made the list:
The list is not in a ranked order. A panel of 18 Car and Driver editors determined the winners by rating them on a scale of 1-100 with a focus on functional performance, driving satisfaction and value. Vehicles considered for the award must be available in the United States by January 2009 and priced below the cap of $80,000, or 2.5 times the average transaction price as of summer 2009. Winners from the previous year are re-nominated if they are still available under the price cap.
Hopefully this is a wake up call to American car manufacturers to do their best to produce quality cars that will attract not only local buyers but foreign ones as well.
NADAguides.com, the leading provider of vehicle pricing and information, today announced the 2010 Ford Mustang GT Convertible has received the NADAguides.com “Car of the Month” award for September. The fading summer heat means the time is right for cruising with the top down, and there is no better way to do it than behind the wheel of the new Mustang. The latest iteration of America’s favorite pony car takes performance and refinement to a new level with an aggressive new exterior, stylishly designed cabin and even more power from the V8 engine.
The star of the GT Mustang is the magnificent drivetrain. GT models are equipped with the 315 hp 4.6L V8 from last year’s Bullitt Mustang which is mated to a 5-speed manual or optional 5-speed automatic transmission. Respectable fuel economy figures of 16 city/24 hwy mpg hint at the Mustang’s relatively small displacement V8, but the sound coming from the stainless steel dual exhaust is pure ’60s big block.
With a choice of body styles and powertrains, there is a Mustang to fit nearly anyone’s budget and lifestyle. The base V6 Coupe has an MSRP of $20,995 while the GT Premium Convertible we tested starts at $35,995. All models are backed by a 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty.
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