2008 Ford E350 Utility Box Truck/van 1 Owner 33000 Miles Must See 5.4 Liter on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ford cuts 950 Russian jobs on weak demand

The Russian auto market, in decline for the past year and further hit by the declining value of the ruble and recent sanctions over its annexation of Crimea, has forced Ford to cut jobs and shifts at two of its joint venture plants there. Around 700 of the 2,700 total workers who build the Russian-market Focus and Mondeo will be cut at the plant in Vsevolozhsk, near St. Petersburg as it drops to a single production shift. A second plant about 700 miles away in Yelabuga, in the Tartarstan region, will lose 250 workers. That plant builds seven vehicles, including the Explorer, Kuga and Edge.
The Moscow Times says Ford has been especially hit by the market decline, the overall market losing 5.5 percent in 2013 compared to the year before, but Ford sales dropping 18 percent in 2013 year-on-year. This year isn't going any better, with The Blue Oval posting a 21-percent decline through the first two months of 2014. That's why, though the Yelabuga plant builds the CUVs that customers are moving into, even it is facing cuts.
The job cuts in Vsevolozhsk come on top four-week plant shutdown planned so that the paint and body shops can go to one shift. In a statement, the company said, "Ford Sollers remains absolutely committed to the Russian market and is confident it has the right product plan, people and assets to deliver long-term profitable growth."

Ford, Renault, VW shareholder oppose French aid for PSA/Peugeot-Citro"en

Pots and kettles, glass houses and stones - that's a little of what we appear to have going on in the European car market. New reports say that that three European automakers have registered their opposition to a loan deal that PSA/Peugeot-Citroën is working on with the French government. Peugeot's finance arm, Banque PSA Finance, is struggling with its debts and has been downgraded by Moody's to its lowest investment-grade classification, one step above junk. This makes it more expensive for a potential buyer to finance a car through Peugeot. The last thing Peugeot needs is more difficulty selling cars in the tough European market, and the situation will only worsen if the bank's credit worthiness takes another hit.
A deal being worked on would have the French government offer €7 billion ($9B U.S.) in bonds to guarantee the bank's loans, which would give the institution some breathing room to manage its debts and lower its interest rates. Outside of that, a group of banks would provide other, non-guaranteed loans to the bank to further help its position. In exchange for state help, though, the government wants seats on Peugeot's board for worker representatives and a government liaison, along with factory and worker guarantees. The Peugeot family would maintain control of the company.
So what we have is government assistance being provided to a car company's finance arm, akin to the way General Motors' GMAC (now Ally Financial) and Chrysler Financial got help in their time of need. What we also have is Ford and Renault, and Germany's State of Lower Saxony, the second-largest shareholder in Volkswagen, voicing their concern about the proposal, because they say it could create an unfair competitive advantage for Peugeot. Everyone in Europe's down market is fighting for every sale, and if Peugeot gets help to keep its auto loan costs down, it figures to help buyers choose Peugeot or Citroën.

Ford F-150 Tremor to pace NASCAR Truck Series this weekend

Ford's bro-tastic F-150 Tremor will be pacing this weekend's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Michigan International Speedway. The Tremor fills a gap in the Ford F-Series lineup that we imagine the NASCAR set have clamored for - a hot-rod pickup truck.
Where the F-150 Raptor is designed to go quick on anything, the Tremor and its 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 are designed to tackle the road. The 365-horsepower and 420-pound-foot EcoBoost is unchanged from the rest of the F-150 line, but it combines the shortest drive ratio with the lightest two-door body, making it a bit of hot rod.
Ford will be offering hot laps with Michigan native Brad Keselowski behind the wheel of the Tremor for fans that arrive in the Irish Hills on August 14. The main showing for the new pickup will be the August 17 race, though, when it'll lead the field at the start of the race and through cautions.