1952 Ford F2 Pickup on 2040-cars

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Fitting Retirement: Grand Marquis last Mercury off the line

The signs have come down and retail production ended back in October of 2010. Now, the very last Mercury model has rolled off the assembly line. This last Mercury somewhat fittingly takes the form of a Grand Marquis reporting for fleet duty. It was built at the St. Thomas plant in Ontario, Canada, which is the same facility that continues to produce the Ford Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town Car for fleet and livery duty.
St. Thomas' days are numbered, however, as the factory is slated to close on August 31. When it goes, the Panther platform is likely to follow. So long, and thanks for all the fish memories.
[Source: Autoweek]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Highlights and standouts from the 2015 LA Auto Show

This year's LA Auto Show has been packed with interesting debuts and fascinating industry trends. The Autoblog team is on the scene to examine all the new metal, and Senior Editor Greg Migliore has some show highlights for us in the video above. In particular, the new Fiat 124 Spider and Honda Civic Coupe stand out as important debuts. The Fiat is based on the excellent Mazda Miata, with a turbocharged 1.4-liter engine and revised styling. The Civic Coupe is a striking redesign of an extremely popular and important model for the company. And the restyled Ford Escape looks more like its bigger brother, the Explorer. There's this an much more in our video above. Watch it and let us know what you think – and look for more LA Auto Show coverage coming soon.

Global buyers prefer red, black Ford Mustangs

As sales of the new, 2015 Ford Mustang kick off across the globe, Ford is uncovering some interesting data about its long-lived muscle car, and some of the most interesting stats focus on the color palette. Not surprisingly, buyers have a thing for a red Mustang. Race Red, a bright, glossy color, is the number one shade among Mustang owners in both Europe and China with 20 percent of Europeans and 35 percent of Chinese owners opting for the shade. Ford's Ruby Red paint was the third most popular color among American consumers. That's because Mustang owners in the land of the free and home of the brave prefer a literal dark horse, opting for the glossy Black. Magnetic, a dark gray shade, was the second favorite among American Mustang owners. That's right, America's favorite color overall, white, didn't even crack the top three (although Oxford White hit number two in China). Black remained popular in other markets, as well. Absolute Black, a metallic shade, tied Race Red in Europe, appearing on 20 percent of vehicles. Just under 20 percent of Chinese buyers, meanwhile, opted for the same gloss black Americans preferred. Check out Ford's full press release for more detailed stats on how customers in three of the company's largest markets are designing their Mustangs. Related Video: MAR 12, 2015 | DEARBORN, MICH. EARLY DATA INDICATES UNIVERSAL PASSION FOR MUSTANG EXTENDS TO COLORS AS ICONIC PONY CAR GOES GLOBAL; RED, BLACK RULE As all-new Ford Mustang officially arrives in global markets for the first time, customers worldwide are opting for red and black as their top exterior color choices Approximately 1.1 million Mustangs configured online by pony car enthusiasts throughout Europe; more than 18,000 consumers in China signed up to take all-new Mustang for a test spin U.S. Mustang sales up 32 percent in February – making it the best-selling sports car in America DEARBORN, Mich., March 12, 2015 – Red and black clinch the top spots as the most popular exterior paint colors for the first global Mustang, according to initial consumer data. Mustang demand has been high, with the car reaching dealer lots in the United States late last year and China in early 2015. It's set to go on sale in Europe midyear, with nearly 1.1 million pony cars configured on Ford's European websites just a month after ordering banks opened.