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Ford rakes in record $2.5b profit during Q1 of 2016

Fears that the auto industry is due for a downturn may be fading. Ford posted record profits in the first quarter of 2016, the company announced Thursday. Chief financial officer Bob Shanks said Ford enjoyed its best quarterly performance in history, generating operating profits of $3.8 billion and a record profit margin of 9.8 percent. Overall, the company's $2.5 billion profit in the quarter more than doubled from the 2015 quarterly results. "The first quarter was an absolutely terrific start to the year, an all-time record for the company, with very strong performance across the business," said chief executive officer Mark Fields. "We're excited about our future and confident in our ability to deliver long-term growth and profitability as we expand our business model to be both an auto and a mobility company." During the quarter, Ford announced the creation of Ford Smart Mobility, a new subsidiary that would vet future mobility projects in the realm of car-sharing, fractional ownership and autonomous deployment. The company also kicked off a billion-dollar makeover of its Dearborn, Michigan campus and headquarters. The company's after-tax earnings of $0.68 per share trumped Wall Street's expectations, and were significantly up from $0.39 per share a year ago. The results were buoyed by the company's fourth consecutive quarter of growth in Europe, which comes after a long period of stagnant sales. Ford's earnings results come amid reports that April car sales are on pace to jump 4 percent year over year, which would make it the best-selling April in history. Kelley Blue Book projects that car sales will reach 1.51 million this month, placing the industry on track for 17.5 million vehicles sold in 2016. Even as SUV and crossover sales drive the market, analysts say Nissan and Honda are positioned to benefit from renewed interest in mid-size cars. "Following a disappointing March, we expect sales to get back on track in April with SAAR in the mid-17 million range," said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "Increased fleet sales and rising incentive spending among automakers remain the factors to watch, but the retail demand appears to be holding steady, signaling the industry's strong run isn't over quite yet." Related Video: Image Credit: Getty Earnings/Financials Ford Lincoln 5g Connectivity mobility auto industry financial

World's dumbest carjackers livestream themselves committing crime

Warrants were issued Monday for a trio of Cleveland carjackers who, after beating up a limo driver and stealing his car, livestreamed themselves joyriding around the city in the stolen limo. According to Cleveland.com, Brandon Lynch, a limo driver and National Guardsman, drove a couple in a hired limo from New Philadelphia, Ohio to Cleveland for game one of the Indians/Red Sox AL Divisional Series last Thursday. After dropping off his passengers at Progressive Field, he drove the stretched 2001 Lincoln to a McDonalds at Carnegie Avenue and East 30th to grab a bite and wait for the game to end. After finishing his dinner in the car, Lynch stepped out for a breath of fresh air in the parking lot when he was approached by three young men on bicycles. One of them asked Lynch if he could take them through the drive-through in the limo. "I laughed at first because I thought they were kidding," Lynch told the website. "I can't just drive someone in the limo." Lynch said no, and that's when the trio jumped him. During the scuffle the three youths choked Lynch out, punched and kicked him in the head. They then rifled through his pockets and made off in the limo. The next day, a young Cleveland resident named Jessee Varner fired up Facebook live and filmed himself and his two accomplices–Ty'Juan Philpot and Norman Henry–reenacting every 90's hip-hop video ever made from inside the stolen Lincoln. During the video they drove around town, smoke some weed, drank some 40 ounce beers, stuck their heads out of the sunroof, and generally made a nuisance of themselves while posting the evidence online. Eventually they crashed the car and fled the scene. Using evidence from the video and from DNA samples collected from a bicycle at the scene of the crime, Cleveland Police issued warrants for their arrest. The three criminal masterminds, who are well known to Cleveland's law enforcement community, remain at large. Despite a bad concussion and the loss of his car, Lynch is looking on the bright side of things. "The Indians won, so it wasn't all bad!" he said. Recent Video: News Source: Cleveland.com Auto News Humor Weird Car News Lincoln Commercial Vehicles limo carjacking cleveland

2017 Lincoln Continental spied inside and out

Lincoln certainly made us stand up and take notice when it unveiled the Continental concept at the New York Auto Show this past March. Showcars, however, are only worth so much if they never reach production. But as these latest spy shots indicate, Ford's luxury division is hard at work taking the new Conti from show floor to showroom. The team from Dearborn has clearly gone to great lengths to disguise this prototype, wrapping it in a new type of camouflage with trompe l'oeil bulbous-looking shapes to keep us from seeing just how close the production version will keep to (or how far it may stray from) the concept's design. Our spy photographers did, however, manage to snap some shots of the inside through the side glass, and though it's still evidently some ways off from reaching production, some key details give us an idea of what to expect. Look closely and you can make out the buttons for the transmission running down the side of the infotainment screen, just like on other new Lincolns. The chromework appears to have been toned down some from the blinged-out dashboard of the showcar, but it may be too early to say how much shine there will be to the production model. The overall design of the center console looks pretty darn close to the version we saw in New York, though. The Continental is expected to replace the MKS, as Lincoln moves away from alphabetical nomenclature back towards actual nameplates. Assembly is slated to be undertaken in Flat Rock, MI. There are a great many more details yet to be uncovered, but as far as early indications go, it looks like Lincoln is well on its way to making its concept a reality. Related Video: