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Former Cadillac boss Butler takes Ford tech job

When Don Butler made the surprising decision to leave his post as Cadillac's VP of global strategic development, it was a surprise. Citing a desire to "recalibrate, reassess my priorities" in that August announcement, it wasn't entirely clear where Butler - a virtual General Motors lifer after spending nearly 30 years with the company - would end up. Turns out he took a trip to Dearborn.
Butler has taken a position in the newly created position of Executive Director of Connected Vehicles and Services at Ford, where he'll be responsible for the Blue Oval's global connectivity strategy. "Not only does Don understand the connected car landscape, but probably just as important, he understands customer expectations," said Raj Nair, who, as Group Vice President of Global Product Development, is Butler's new boss. "Having a leader with technology experience both inside and outside the industry is a rare combination - we're excited to have Don join our team."
As Ford has received its fair share of flak for the sometimes recalcitrant MyFord Touch infotainment system and its Sync voice-controls, it appears that Butler has his work cut out for him.

Consumer Reports declares most and least loved cars [w/video]

Consumer Reports is crunching the numbers from its annual owner-satisfaction survey, and part of that process is finding out how attached drivers are to their cars. CR simply asks readers of models up to three years old if they would buy the same vehicle again in light of their entire ownership experience, and tallies the results. After looking at the responses for about 350,000 vehicles, it turns out that people really love a certain California-built, electrically powered luxury sedan. That's right, this year's the overall winner was the Tesla Model S with a whopping 98 percent of owners saying they would purchase another one (the Model S also won this award last year, with 99 percent satisfaction). The Chevrolet Corvette Stingray came in a close second with 95 percent of drivers hoping to park another one in their garage. A few models weren't quite so favored, though. The Nissan Versa Sedan was the least loved model among its owners; a mere 42 percent said that they would purchase another. The aging Jeep Compass didn't do much better, with just 43 percent of drivers willing to buy the softroader again. On average, about 70 percent of owners say they would buy their car again, and only four cars ranked below 50 percent in CR's findings. Check out the video above to see some of the winners and losers in a few of CR's categories. If you're a subscriber, you can check out the full list on its website. Related Gallery Consumer Reports Most Loved Cars 2014 Related Gallery Consumer Reports Least Loved Cars 2014 News Source: Consumer Reports - sub. req., Consumer Reports via YouTube Chevrolet Ford Mazda Mercedes-Benz Porsche Subaru Tesla Ownership Videos car ownership

Ford recalls 600,000 older-model sedans for braking issue

Ford is recalling 600,166 older-model Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles over an issue that could affect braking and increase the risk of a crash. The safety recall covers certain Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ sedans from the 2006 through 2010 model years that were built at Ford’s Hermosillo Assembly Plant in Mexico between Feb. 22, 2006, and July 15, 2009. Ford says a valve that is normally closed inside the hydraulic control unit may get stuck in the open position or be slow to close, which could make it harder to engage the brakes and increase risk of a crash. Ford says itÂ’s aware of 15 reports of accidents and two injuries possibly related to the issue. Dealers will inspect the hydraulic control unit for signs of the problem and replace it, if necessary. The dealers will pressure-flush the system with brake fluid and replace the reservoir cap with a new one. Ford is also issuing a small recall of 33 of its 2020 F-150 trucks in the U.S. and 51 in Canada over potentially damaged spare tires. It says the bead area on the tires may have been damaged when it was mounted onto the wheel assembly, leaving it vulnerable to corrosion, separation of the bead wire and ultimately a rapid loss of air pressure and detachment from the wheel. Dealers will replace the spare tire. Affected vehicles were built at the Dearborn Truck Plant from Nov. 10-21 of this year.