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Auto critic calls out Corvette, Mustang and Cherokee faithful

Most automotive purists fear change, but not without reason. Change, after all, did kill big-block V8s, along with most station wagons and manual transmissions. But change has also brought with it far more performance, safety and fuel economy - not to mention ridding the world of shag carpet interiors, bias-ply tires and those horrible motorized seatbelts of the early '90s.
By this time next year, the Chevy Corvette, Jeep Cherokee and next-generation Ford Mustang will all be on sale and will all, in some way, have angered or offended purists. To those critics, Mark Phelan of the Detroit Free Press is preemptively telling them to stop complaining - at least until they've all been driven. From the Corvette's square taillights and the Cherokee's radical nose to whatever pony car purists will harp on the 2015 Mustang for, Phelan's column points out the positives of automotive evolution and the negatives of staying the course for too long. That's fair enough, but do you think Phelan is on point, or all wet? Head on over to the Detroit Free Press to read his words, then have your say in Comments.

Ford Fiesta becomes UK all-time best seller

We may regard Ford as an American automaker, but ask a Brit and they may tell you otherwise. The Blue Oval has, after all, been selling cars in the UK since 1903, and started manufacturing there as far back as 1911 when it began local production of the Model T in Manchester. Last year Ford ended 100 years of vehicle manufacturing in the UK when the last Transit van rolled off the assembly line in Southampton, but it's still the biggest-selling automotive marque in Britain.
Ford has led the British market for 34 out of the past 45 years, selling more Fiestas than any other company sells any other car in the UK since 2009... when it overtook the Focus. In fact the Fiesta has now become the best-selling car in British history, topping 4,115,000 units since its introduction in 1976. The previous record was held by - you guessed it - another Ford: the Escort sold 4,105,961 units over the course of its 32 years on the British market.
Although the Fiesta is no longer manufactured in the UK (previous versions having been built at Dagenham until 2002), engines are: the EcoBoost line was developed at the company's R&D center in Essex and are built at the factory in Dunton, while its diesel engines were developed at Dagenham in East London. Even the 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine in the Fiesta ST is built in South Wales.

Ford to show special edition Raptor on April 9

There are precious few details, but what we do know is that Ford will be revealing images of "appearance upgrades" for a special-edition 2014 F-150 SVT Raptor on April 9. The slideshow will happen during a Motor Press Guild luncheon at Ford's Design Center Showroom in Irvine, California.
Without photos or further details, we're left to wonder about the extent of these changes, but aren't expecting anything too significant given the venue. Ford is understood to be revealing a next-generation F-150 with a big weight loss - as much as 700 pounds - for 2014, though it isn't yet clear if that's the truck's model year or simply its on-sale year. For at least a couple of years, Ford forums have been suggesting changes will come with the 2014 Raptor, so there could still be a bigger surprise in store. Either way, we'll know what all this means in a little more than a week. The press release below has the official details, but for the moment, we'll content ourselves by ogling the 2013 model above.