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Ford pulls official support from top-level NHRA teams

As the smallest team in the sport, it wasn't really a surprise when Dodge decided to pull out of NASCAR, but Autoweek is reporting that Ford is looking to pull the plug on its professional-level NHRA sponsorships following the 2014 season. With attendance and television ratings down, the article reports that Ford is just backing out of the top series but will remain active in the Sportsman classes of racing, which are geared more toward the grassroots and semi-professional racers.
This means that one of drag racing's biggest names, John Force, will be left looking for new sponsorship after next season. Force, 64, has been with Ford for 17 years, winning 15 championships in that time and winning almost half of all Funny Car events in his Mustang since he started working with Ford in 1997, but after 2014, there could be some big shakeups at John Force Racing.
According to the report, Force would consider is moving over to the Top Fuel dragster series, although he could also move to another manufacturer to remain in the Funny Car series. With Ford on the way out, this leaves just Toyota and Dodge as the remaining active automakers in the highest levels of drag racing.

Lower gas prices mean there are excellent deals on green cars right now

The phenomenon was big enough to make news in 2006, then in 2008, in 2011, in 2012, in 2013, and again last year: a big move in gas prices means a big move in alternative-fuel-vehicle sales. True Car's TrueSavings report, which averages transaction prices across the country to figure out what people are paying compared to MSRP, shows that electric cars and hybrids are ripe for excellent savings right now. The Ford Focus Electric presents the greatest disparity, with the average transaction price of $25,168 representing a 16.1-percent saving off its $29,995 MSRP. The Kia Optima Hybrid and Toyota Prius also snagged spots in the top five, with the Kia offering a 10.7-percent discount and the Toyota a 10.1-percent discount. One hybrid managed to show up among the top five lease offers, too: the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is just $315 a month for 36 months after $3,875 down in some markets. Alt-energy vehicles got bumped out of the top five finance deals, however. That was dominated by light trucks and, oddly, two subcompacts. The press release below has more details. TrueCar finds hybrids, EVs top list of best savings in January Gasoline price plunge = savings for consumers on alternative fuel vehicles SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 15, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Ford's Focus Electric hatchback, which sells at an average of 16 percent off MSRP, tops January's list of best savings on new vehicles, according to TrueCar, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRUE), the negotiation-free car buying and selling platform. The "TrueSavings" monthly report analyzes current transaction prices and identifies opportunities for consumer savings. "Fuel savings are not top of mind to many consumers right now, and that makes this a great time to buy a hybrid or electric vehicle," said John Krafcik, president of TrueCar. "With gasoline prices now averaging just $2.10 per gallon, and vehicle preferences tied so closely to short-term gasoline prices, automakers are heavily discounting their most fuel-efficient cars to clear inventories." Toyota's Prius, the world's best-selling alternative fuel vehicle for more than a decade, also makes January's list of best savings. Customers who purchase a Prius Two model this month can save 10 percent off the hybrid car's $25,025 MSRP. "Gasoline prices and vehicle type preferences are strongly related, and this relationship is cyclical in nature," said Krafcik.

Leno chooses his top 10 Mustangs

He may be a few months late to the party, but in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Ford Mustang, Jay Leno has delivered a short video in which he runs down which of the Blue Oval's pony cars from the past 50 years are his favorites.
The list is pretty darn similar to our own, with some of the big names from the Mustang's half century making an appearance, while there are three or four cars here that we think you'll be pretty surprised by.
Take a look below for this short video from Jay Leno's Garage.