1966 Ford Mustang on 2040-cars

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Ford won't be releasing GT500 lap times for the 'Ring, or any other car

Trucks have towing capacity, EVs have driving range and performance cars have Nürburgring lap times. What do all three have in common? They should all be taken with a grain of salt. Currently, there is no sanctioned way to record lap times or verify production-spec cars - a lesson we recently learned with the 2015 Nissan GT-R Nismo - and until there is a way to do so (and there probably never will be), we'll never officially know the actual time it took for Ford to lap the 'Ring with its ultra-powerful Shelby GT500.
After posting a Ford-made video of a 2013 GT500 running around the 'Ring, the guys over at SVTPerformance.com (an enthusiasts forum not affiliated with Ford or SVT) wanted more answers. They got in touch with Ford's Global Performance Vehicle Chief Engineer Jamal Hameedi, who said until there is a way to verify the times and inspect the cars, Ford will not get involved with lap-time wars. In the email, Hameedi pointed out that the 'Ring is a useful tool in that it allows a wide spectrum of track conditions, but until there is a governed way to record times, there is no way to accurately compare cars head-to-head.
And as much as some may not like it, Hameedi speaks the truth. It really isn't possible to compare times from one car to another, unless those cars were lapping the same track at the same time with the same driver. Not that any of this means there won't be continuous wars by fans and manufacturers alike... in other words, feel free to voice your opinions in the Comments below.

Updated Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator caught in new spy photos

Face-lifted Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator prototypes were spotted in the wild Monday wearing fairly extensive camouflage disguising updated bodywork for the 2022 model year. Ford's two body-on-frame offerings (BOFferings? Nope. Pretend that didn't happen.) are both due for a nip and tuck, and with GM's fresh slate of full-sizers now available, the timing couldn't be more perfect.  There's not much we can discern from this Navigator prototype. The camo does a good job of masking whatever Lincoln has in store for the nose, but the tailgate has some discernible updates, including a significantly more pronounced recess for the license plate that also appears to be mounted higher on the hatch. This would likely indicate that the rear lighting scheme is getting an overhaul, as there doesn't appear to be enough room between the lower edge of the glass and the plate for the current scheme to be preserved.  The Expedition, on the other hand, has quite a bit going on. For starters, this prototype is not sporting the chrome-and-polish look we've come to associate with these often-blingy SUVs. Instead, we see a set of Goodyear Wrangler all-terrains on what appear to be 18" wheels, which are positively dwarfed by the turbine-style wheels on the Lincolns. Leaning even harder into the off-road theme, this prototype is not wearing the scalloped front air dam seen on other Expeditions. While it may have been removed for testing purposes, its absence (or replacement) would certainly do wonders for the big SUV's approach angle. Elsewhere, we can see what appear to be a new set of tail lights, and it would be safe to assume based on the camo that we'll see new front and rear bumper treatments.  We can also see a bit of the Expedition's interior, and there are quite a few things to note on this front. For starters, the prominent, vertically oriented infotainment screen takes after the Mustang Mach-E's unit. This is significant not only on spec, but also because it signals that the Expedition's interior will be departing more significantly from that of the F-150.  Related Video:

Ford fights back against patent trolls

Some people are just awful. Some organizations are just as awful. And when those people join those organizations, we get stories like this one, where Ford has spent the past several years combatting so-called patent trolls. According to Automotive News, these malicious organizations have filed over a dozen lawsuits against the company since 2012. They work by purchasing patents, only to later accuse companies of misusing intellectual property, despite the fact that the so-called patent assertion companies never actually, you know, do anything with said intellectual property. AN reports that both Hyundai and Toyota have been victimized by these companies, with the former forced to pay $11.5 million to a company called Clear With Computers. Toyota, meanwhile, settled with Paice LLC, over its hybrid tech. The world's largest automaker agreed to pay $5 million, on top of $98 for every hybrid it sold (if the terms of the deal included each of the roughly 1.5 million hybrids Toyota sold since 2000, the company would have owed $147 million). Including the previous couple of examples, AN reports 107 suits were filed against automakers last year alone. But Ford is taking action to prevent further troubles... kind of. The company has signed on with a firm called RPX, in what sounds strangely like a protection racket. Automakers like Ford pay RPX around $1.5 million each year for access to its catalog of patents, which it spent nearly $1 billion building. "We take the protection and licensing of patented innovations very seriously," Ford told AN via email. "And as many smart businesses are doing, we are taking proactive steps to protect against those seeking patent infringement litigation." What are your thoughts on this? Should this patent business be better managed? Is it reasonable that companies purchase patents only to file suit against the companies that build actual products? Have your say in Comments.