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Ford pulling out of V8 Supercars after 2015

Australian racing fans are staring down the end of an era as news breaks that Ford will no longer participate in the V8 Supercars series. Although the official announcement has yet to be made, the decision – as reported widely in the automotive press Down Under and in global motorsport publications – indicates that the Blue Oval automaker has already confirmed its intentions to its shareholders early on Monday to shut down its factory effort in the popular tin-top series at the end of next season. The move will mark the end of an era for what has become the International V8 Supercars Championship. Alongside GM's Holden division, Ford was one of only two manufacturers competing in the series from its inception in the late 1990s through last year when a change in regulations opened the door for entries from Nissan, Volvo and Mercedes. Further rule changes are expected to attract even more manufacturers to the series, with Lexus said to be first among them. Over the past eighteen seasons, the V8 Supercars Championship has been won in a Holden Commodore fourteen times, leaving Ford to win the title only four times with successive versions of the Falcon. Eleven of the cars on the grid this season were Commodores, compared to only seven Ford Falcons between two teams that will need to switch to another manufacturer for the season after next – although some could opt to stick with their Fords for one more season, even without factory support, until the open 2016 regulations take effect. The decision follows Ford's announcement last year that it will cease manufacturing in Australia by 2016, ending a 90-year presence Down Under that stretches back to 1925. Blue Oval models like the Falcon, previously unique to the Aussie market, are being replaced by imported models like the Mondeo and Mustang.

Ford Recalls '13 Escape For 11th Time

Only in dealer showrooms for two years now, the 2013 Ford Escape has already been recalled for safety hazards 11 times. The most recent recall for the beleaguered vehicle came Friday, when the company announced it was recalling almost 160,000 Escapes and Focus ST hatchbacks from the '13 and '14 model years because of a wiring problem that could cause the engine to stall. Caused by a faulty wiring harness, Ford said the defect could result in reduced power, hesitation or outright stalling. The company said it knew of no crashes or injuries caused by the flaw. Customers affected will be notified by mail. It was the latest problem for a vehicle beset by recalls from the moment it started rolling off the assembly lines. Starting on July 6, 2012, the '13 Escapes have been recalled for an assortment of problems, including multiple hazards with fuel lines that could result in engine fires, fluid leaks in the engine that could also result in fires, problems with engines overheating, delays in airbags deploying and more. Ford

Ford's Farley apologizes for saying Blue Oval tracks customers with GPS

Ford marketing head honcho Jim Farley made waves at CES this week by telling show attendees, "We know everyone who breaks the law, we know when you're doing it." according to a report by Business Insider. Farley continued by saying, "We have GPS in your car, so we know what you're doing. By the way, we don't supply that data to anyone."
Farley has since amended his statement, saying that Ford dose not, in fact, track its customers in their cars "without their approval or consent."
Apparently carried away with a hypothetical notion, Farley was attempting to describe how Ford might be able to employee aggregated user data for things like accurate traffic reporting and pattern spotting. A Ford spokesperson confirmed with Business Insider that its GPS units are not sharing the whereabouts of drivers, though there are a few on-board services that might do so. After opting in to the services (and presumably being made aware of any/all tracking and data collection), Ford's Sync Services Directions and Crew Chief software do, in fact, allow data collection as a means of improving both systems. Farley added that the opt-in data is not shared, even when being tracked.