We got a tip yesterday that Geo Metros were being auctioned on eBay Motors for prices above what the tiny cars cost new. This auction for a 1993 Geo Metro XFI with just 22,501 miles ended yesterday with a winning bid of $7,200! Why has the resale value of the Metro and other tiny econocrap cars gone through the roof? The simple answer: gas prices. Vehicles like the Metro, the Suzuki Swift on which it's based, Ford Aspire and Festiva, and Hyundai Excel were around before federal safety regulations and public pressure demanded that every car survive an impact from any angle with five stars. That kind of safety adds weight, and modern econocars are therefore much heavier and therefore less fuel efficient than they were in the early '90s.
The aforementioned Metro XFI is powered by an anemic 1.0L three-cylinder engine producing just 49 hp, but it returns between 55 and 60 mpg. Cars like this defined the phrase 'fuel-sipping' and made passing on the highway a strategic maneuver involving lots of planning. But the XFI is now apparently the holy grail for used car shoppers willing to sacrifice modern amenities and a bit of safety to save a buck on fuel. The trick is finding an example with low miles that hasn't rusted to pieces or been abused by an angry teenager who wanted a Mustang instead. If you do find one, you'll have what automakers are now just unable to offer: a cheap small car that doesn't use expensive technology to achieve incredible fuel economy. But you better willing to pay for it. Thanks for the tip, Lynn!
Click on the 2009 Ford Escape for a high res gallery
The 2008 redesign of the Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner wasn't the clean-sheet redesign Ford would like people to believe. In fact, only the parts visible to the naked eye were "all new." Aside from the body and interior, the working bits that make the badge-engineered duo go were almost entirely carried over from the 2007 models. Fortunately for Ford, that oversight didn't seem to hurt sales, which increased by about ten-percent over their predecessors in a market that's down overall. For 2009, all the hardware under the skin has been either replaced or significantly refreshed. And that's a good thing.
The old 2.3-liter four-pot has been superseded by a 2.5-liter unit, while the classic 3.0-liter Duratec V6 gets a major overhaul. Both engines receive a substantial boost in power and an all new six-speed gearbox to transmit it to the wheels. The driver's working environment also becomes a more pleasant place thanks to structural improvements to the body and Ford's next-generation navigation system with Sirius Travel Link. We got a chance to play with all of the 2009 Escape variants on a rainy spring morning, so read on after the jump for our impressions.
Click above for high-res gallery of the 2009 Ford F-150
The new 2009 Ford F-150 will get an updated version of its venerable 5.4L V8, and thanks to a sneaky dealer with a camera phone, we have some details on exactly what the updates will be. A new process of fuel injection called 'open valve technology' will give the 5.4L V8 a bump in horsepower from 300 to 320 and increase torque from 365 pound-feet to 390. The technology does exactly what it says: injects fuel into the cylinders while the intakes valves are open (normally they're closed). In addition to the updated 5.4L V8, we also expect some Eco-boost powerplants to drop in the F-150 soon, though whether or not they debut with the new 2009 model isn't known.
There's been a spate of vehicles given the roofless treatment since 2003, which helped keep registrations of convertibles growing since then. 2007 saw the trend reverse, though, with registrations of droptops sliding by 8.6 percent, says R.L. Polk & Company. Polk's folks contend that while there's now plenty of selection with fancy retractable hardtops, the economic slide is putting downward pressure on some luxury items. While it might be difficult to describe the ghastly petrochemical disaster inside a Sebring as profligate, convertibles are not viewed by consumers as a sensible shoes purchase. Segment leaders such as the Mustang and Sebring still maintain their dominance, with the Mustang taking a 33 percent hit compared to 2006, while the Sebring actually found 2.7 percent more registrants. If you hate convertibles, this news doesn't matter to you. The upside is that as inventory ages on lots, deals get hotter.
2009 will mark the 45th year of production of Ford's iconic Mustang, and while the handsome pony car won't get its skin changed until MY2010, it will receive some festive badging to celebrate the occasion. The Stang fanatics over at Mustang Evolution got a hold of a picture of the new badging, which includes a galloping stallion over a horseshoe with the obligatory 45th Anniversary text below. The snazzy-looking four inch chrome badge will only decorate V6 Mustangs, which we're sure won't rankle many future GT owners. Thanks for the tip, Brent!
I just spent a day at Ford's proving grounds driving a number of vehicles that use Eco-boost technology, which is the centerpiece of the company's strategy to improve fuel economy. I wish I could tell you more about my driving impressions of these Fords, but all that information is embargoed for now. What I can say is that the Eco-boost technology works impressively well.
However, while the technology works well, I wonder how well Ford's strategy will work. That's because this technology does not really improve the fuel economy of an engine. It merely allows the company to use a smaller engine in place a bigger one. And sure enough, across almost the entire rev-range, an Eco-boost engine produces more torque than naturally aspirated engines that are at least one liter larger.
John McElroy is host of the TV program "Autoline Detroit". Every week he brings his unique insights as an auto industry insider to Autoblog readers. Follow the jump to continue reading this week's editorial.
One of the cool features that Ford is introducing for the 2009 model year is its updated navigation system with Sirius Travel Link. When we went out to drive the updated 2009 Ford Escape this week, Ford's chief technology spokes-model Alan Hall gave us a guided tour of the system. The next generation nav unit takes the traditional touch screen GPS unit and integrates it with the popular SYNC system that debuted last year, while adding real time downloadable information from Sirius and a 10GB jukebox. The Sirius system provides information such as live weather maps overlaid on the navigation data, current fuel prices, movie listings and more.
With the jukebox, you can insert an audio CD and automatically rip it to the internal hard drive like you can in the Cadillac CTS. The full Gracenote CDDB database is incorporated so that the meta-data can be automatically added. The screen can even display the album artwork. The system can even play DVDs with the video only being visible on the front seat screen when the car is in park. As soon as the transmission is shifted into gear, it only plays the audio track. If you pull up a restaurant listing, it can automatically dial your bluetooth phone through the SYNC system. Like SYNC, the whole system can be controlled by voice commands so you don't have to take your hands off the wheel. The new setup will be on most 2009 Fords, with bigger vehicles like the new Flex and the MKS getting an 8-inch touch screen while the smaller Escape makes do with a 6.5" inch screen. Ford will be charging $1,995 for the full system including SYNC, the nav system, Travel Link and the jukebox. Check out a pair of video run-throughs of the system after the jump.
Click above for high-res gallery of the FPV F6, more galleries after the jump
FPV's seemingly endless rollout of its new FG Falcon-based lineup has finally culminated in the actual launch of the cars (how novel), which we've already touched upon. To that end, we'll keep this brief and turn you loose on the multiple new photo galleries now available (check out the rest after the jump). The FPV range encompasses both Falcon sedan and Ute bodystyles, and power comes from either the turbocharged F6 inline-six or the 5.4L Boss 315 V8. The six delivers 415 horsepower and a tire-humbling 416 lb-ft of torque. The eight's no slouch either, pumping out 422 horses (315 kW, hence the engine's name) and 406 lb-ft. A Tremec TR6060 6-speed stick is available across the full range of cars.
FPV GT E (Top-of-the-line V8 FPV sedan, more subtle styling than GT, GT-P)
You can see galleries of everything below and after the jump. We'll take an F6 sedan in the lime green. In fact, we need one of those approximately yesterday.
Ford Motor Company is recalling a whole herd of trucks to see the team doctors over concerns about a hose in the braking system that could adversely effect the vehicles' braking power. According to the NHTSA, about 605,000 2005 and 2006 model year Ford F150 and Lincoln Mark LT trucks equipped with the 3-valve 5.4-liter V8 will receive a hose replacement free of charge. The problem hose supplies the brake booster with engine vacuum, and could swell over time and eventually become disconnected. While the hydraulic braking system will function without the power assist, pedal effort will be significantly increased, and if drivers are taken off-guard by the problem an accident could occur. Ford will start notifying owners in June, and the recall campaign will kick off in July. According to FoMoCo, there have been 11 minor accidents related to the issue. Check out more details from the NHTSA after the jump.
Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2008 Shelby GT500 Mustang
Sometime around late 2003, I first saw the car that was at that time still known as Condor. Condor was the Ford internal code name for the SVT version of the yet to be publicly shown S197 Mustang. At that time, most everyone outside of Ford was still anticipating that this car would be the new Mustang Cobra. Somewhere along the line to launch, Ford had settled its long standing conflict with Carroll Shelby and Condor ended up wearing one of the other classic Mustang badges from the '60s. The Shelby GT500 eventually started rolling off the Flat Rock, MI assembly line in both coupe and convertible forms for the 2007 model year.
Ford recently dropped off a Grey 2008 GT500 coupe at the Autoblog Garage for a few days, and we just had to share. By coincidence, the GT500 arrived about three weeks after the Mustang Bullitt we reviewed. While the Bullitt was about as understated as a modern Mustang can get, the GT500 is anything but. The Shelby is slathered in stripes, badges, spoilers and driving lights. The GT500 also has a very different powertrain from the Bullitt. Find out how the GT500 compares to the stealth 'Stang after the jump.
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