2014 Ford Edge Limited on 2040-cars

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2015 Ford Focus Sedan is fresh-faced and ready to defend its Most Popular crown

Ford has made an art of deeper-than-normal midlife updates since the 2010 Fusion, a strategy that has allowed it to keep models looking fresher in showrooms for longer without needing full redesigns. Instead of slight touchups to light fixtures, new paint colors and perhaps new wheel patterns, Ford has been digging deeper, with significant sheetmetal changes and very different front-end looks, along with an increased emphasis on new in-car technologies to keep models vibrant. Other automakers are following this trend, and Ford itself is continuing on the path with this new 2015 Focus Sedan.
There's a handsome new SE Sport Package that includes a firmer touring suspension, modest body kit and 17-inch wheels.
We first saw this sleek Aston Martin-like nose fitted to a Focus at the Geneva Motor Show last month, but Ford only showed the new look on the five-door hatchback - this is the first appearance of the sedan, which will bow at next week's New York Auto Show. The front end treatment is the same, with a new hood, new headlamps incorporating LED accents, a different grille shape and a completely revised lower fascia that does away with the 2014 model's controversial triangle-shaped corners and gaping intakes. The rear gets a new two-piece, laser-brazed trunk lid with new taillamps, but the overall look is quite similar to last year's car. In any case, the refreshed look brings the Focus sedan more in line with the design of Ford's other recently reworked cars, including the Fusion and Fiesta.

Ford EcoSport Storm concept swallows a Raptor in Sao Paulo

Ford rolled into the Sao Paulo Motor Show with some pretty cool crossovers in tow, the awesomest of all being the EcoSport Storm concept shown above, which draws its inspiration directly from the F-150 SVT Raptor. It packs a lower grille clearly derived from the now-famous muscle truck, as well as a Blue Storm paint job, black and silver trim, special graphics, lower body cladding and 215/75 R15 off-road tires. Don't go holding your breath for a supercharged V8, though; made locally in Brazil, India and Thailand, the tiny EcoSport is typically powered by a three- or four-cylinder engine.
The Storm isn't the only specially prepared Ecosport on show, however, joined as it is by another pair called Beauty and the Beast. Beauty is decked out in matte copper with a black roof, LED fog lamps, 18-inch wheels with low-profile tires and an interior complete with four individual bucket seats, leather upholstery and a full multimedia suite. The Beast, meanwhile, takes a sportier approach with a white pearl finish, blue and orange trim and three-bar grille. It also wears 18-inch wheels and LED fog lamps, but its interior swaps out its rear seats for a bike rack.
Joining the EcoSport show cars was an Edge crossover equipped with all the latest technologies and done up in bright red with three-bar grille, bulging hood, and an interior featuring 10-inch touchscreens and leather upholstery. Feel free to read more in the press release below.

Quitting Mexico factory helps bring down Ford earnings $200 million in 2016

Ford released its 2016 earnings report this morning, and despite a fourth quarter net loss it proved to be the automaker's second most successful year ever, following record breaking numbers in 2015. Losses for the year come from a number of sources, including accounting changes and a $200 million hit for backing out of the small-car factory in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Despite the loss, come March 9 about 56,000 UAW-represented employees will receive a $9,000 profit-sharing check. That, like most of Ford's other 2016 metrics, is slightly down from the year before, but it's still the second best profit-sharing payment ever. Total net income was $4.6 billion, down $2.8 billion from 2015. Total revenue for 2016 was $151.8 billion, up $2.2 billion. Ford's earnings report lists a global market share of 7.6 percent, down a tenth from 2015. Ford's European and Asia-Pacific markets posted their best and second best pre-tax profits respectively. The South American, Middle East, and African markets all took hits because of unstable economies and other external factors. Ford expects to have another down year in 2017 as it invests in new and emerging markets and focuses more on its mobility projects.Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: Ford via Automotive NewsImage Credit: Getty Earnings/Financials Plants/Manufacturing UAW/Unions Ford Lincoln Mexico ford earnings