2013 Ford Flex Limited Awd 1 Owner Loaded! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Motor Trend pits Subaru WRX vs. Ford Focus ST

The Ford Focus ST has enjoyed a relatively calm, if brief, reign in the world of hot hatches. With nothing else in the class (in the States, at least) but the aging Mazdaspeed3 and Subaru Impreza WRX and the slow-selling Volkswagen Golf R, the Blue Oval's 252-horsepower five door has been the go-to vehicle for those that don't need the high-octane lunacy (and expense) of the rally bred Subaru Impreza WRX STI and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.
Now, though, as the new Subaru WRX (it's not an Impreza anymore, though, neither is it a hatchback...) starts to arrive at dealers, the Focus ST appears to be under threat for the first time. Naturally, Motor Trend is here to figure out which one is the best, with another one of its Head 2 Head videos. Host Jonny Lieberman puts both cars through their paces, going above and beyond, quite literally, at the very end of the video.
Have a look below and let us know what you think of MT's verdict in Comments.

Ford paying $750 million just to close plant in Belgium

According to a report from Reuters, Ford is shelling out $750 million in a severance deal that will see the automaker close its facility in Genk, Belgium. The automaker reached this deal with the 4,000 hourly workers employed at the plant last week, which means the company will pay out an average of $187,500 per worker.
Ford is still negotiating with the 300 salaried workers at the factory, which currently produces the Mondeo sedan. All told, Ford expects to lose around $2 billion in Europe thanks in no small part to the region's ongoing economic downturn, and two more plants are scheduled to be shut down in Europe this year. The company will log its $750 million payout under "special items" for this quarter.
As you may recall, Ford took a similar path in the US back in 2009 when the domestic market took a spill. Back then, the company shelled out around $50,000 per employee with at least one year of experience, plus either $25,000 toward a new car or an extra cash payment of $20,000. It would seem the cost of closing plants in Belgium is a much harder pill to swallow than in the States...

Ford and 'Dirty Jobs' pitchman Mike Rowe part ways [w/videos]

Former Dirty Jobs host Mike Rowe has one less job as of today - the pitchman is no longer a pitchman for Ford, with yesterday's announcement from Rowe ending a seven-year partnership between the TV host and the Blue Oval.
Rowe made the announcement to political pundit Glenn Beck, saying the two are "going in different directions" and wishing Ford "every possibly success that any car company could ever have," according to The Detroit News. Rowe and Ford got together in 2005, right around the time the 51-year-old came to prominence as the host of Dirty Jobs and the narrator for Deadliest Catch, two of the Discovery Channel's most popular shows.
Take a look below for a few video snippets of Rowe's tenure at Ford.