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Even Ford executives had issues with MyFord Touch

MyFord Touch is one of the auto industry's more controversial features. The media broadly panned the infotainment system developed with Microsoft for its slow responses and reliance on voice commands to navigate its deep menus. Oh, and Ford executives weren't big fans, either. Newly revealed court documents in a California class-action lawsuit demonstrate the level of venom Ford employees, both big and small, reserved for the Blue Oval's infotainment system. An error caused Bill Ford's navigation system to crash, leaving the family scion stuck on the side of the road in an unfamiliar area. The documents, unearthed by Forbes, detail current CEO Mark Fields' aggravations with MFT, too. A mechanic emailed an image of a cracked infotainment screen on an Edge to one of Ford's top Sync engineers, Kenneth Williams, suggesting "Mark Fields may have been a little aggravated with the system." But Ford and Fields' issues are nothing compared to the woes of the engineers that had to work on MFT. In a collection of emails obtained by Forbes, one engineer called the system "a polished turd," while another simply said, "These poor customers." And after one engineer suggested using a photo of Ford's Oakville Assembly Plant – home of the Edge, Flex, Lincoln MKX, and MKT production – as a background for the system, one of his coworkers said in an email that someone should instead Photoshop the image to read "abandon hope all ye who enter here," the Detroit News reports. Another summed up the problem, saying: "Ford's quality reputation is completely on the line ... another model year with the same crap is not acceptable." MyFord Touch almost single-handedly torpedoed Ford's reputation in widely reported quality metrics, including JD Power and Consumer Reports. Ford responded with a refreshed Sync3, a wildly improved rethink of its infotainment system that is far more responsive and easier to live with every day. Related Video: News Source: Forbes, The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Ford Government/Legal Ford Lincoln Technology Mark Fields sync 3

Second part of Forza Horizon 3 car list revealed early

We previously brought you the first portion of Forza Horizon 3's list of 350 cars last week, and today we're bringing you part two. Apparently Fairfax Media in Australia had the list and images early and published them on The Sydney Morning Herald's website . We say early because the publication's story reveals that Playground Games, the developer of the game, plans to make the official announcement on the Forza website this Wednesday. This set of virtual machinery brings us closer to the full list, which will continue to be revealed over the coming weeks. While this part is smaller than the first one, it still features a number of notable automobiles, including the Bugatti EB110 Super Sport, GMC Syclone and Ferrari Dino 246 GT. This list also adds more vintage Aussie machines, including the very cool 1974 Holden "Sandman" HQ panel truck. Fans of the Mad Max movies may remember Max's Sandman truck from the original film. Check out the list of new cars from The Sydney Morning Herald below and take at look their article for new images and insight on what the developers' goals were for the game. 2007 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione 1970 AMC Rebel "The Machine" 1998 Aston Martin V8 Vantage V600 2011 Audi RS 5 Coupe 2011 BMW X5 M 1981 BMW M1 1992 Bugatti EB110 Super Sport 1970 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 1966 Chevrolet Nova Super Sport 2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR 1969 Ferrari Dino 246 GT 1968 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 2011 Ferrari FF 1978 Ford Mustang II King Cobra 1956 Ford F-100 1991 GMC Syclone 2016 Holden Special Vehicles GTS Maloo 1951 Holden 50-2106 FX Ute 1974 Holden Sandman HQ panel van 2012 Infiniti IPL G Coupe 2015 Jaguar XFR-S 1997 Lamborghini Diablo SV 2014 Lamborghini Urus 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged 2005 Lotus Elise 111S 2013 Mazda MX-5 1990 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.5-16 Evolution II 2013 Mercedes-Benz E 63 AMG 1999 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI GSR 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR 2000 Nissan Silvia Spec-R 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am 2010 Renault Megane RS 250 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi Related Video: News Source: The Sydney Morning HeraldImage Credit: Playground Games/Microsoft Auto News Bugatti Ford GMC Holden Technology video games forza motorsport forza horizon 3

2015 Ford Expedition stays the course, adds EcoBoost power

The era of the body-on-frame, fullsize SUV is rapidly vanishing in favor of smaller, unibody crossovers. However, Ford still sees life in the segment with the reveal of the updated 2015 Expedition, now available (solely) with the company's 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. The new truck will make its public debut at the 2014 DFW Auto Show in Dallas on February 19.
The loss of the previous 5.4-liter V8 in favor of Ford's 3.5-liter, direct-injected, twin-turbocharged V6 engine might rankle some of the Expedition's fans, but Ford claims that the change gives the SUV better fuel economy, more power and increased low-end torque than before. Unfortunately, official engine specifications won't be released until later this year, but Ford says engine output will be similar to the 365 horsepower and 360 pound-feet of torque that this powerplant produces in other applications. The EcoBoost is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, and the SUV now uses electrically assisted power steering, for an even greater fuel economy advantage. Ford claims this also allows for better maneuverability at low speeds and better feel at high speeds.
Exterior styling is basically unchanged for 2015. The front end has the same three-bar chrome grille and headlight design, but the lower air dam gets added chrome and LED lamps. The rear gets more brightwork on the hatch, and there's a chrome-tipped exhaust pipe. As before, Ford is offering the Expedition in two wheelbase lengths - 119 inches and 131 inches. A new, optional, continuously controlled damping system alters suspension settings constantly based on 46 parameters and offers comfort, normal and sport modes (just like the Expedition's sister, the recently refreshed and decidedly less-attractive Lincoln Navigator).