• Ford Thinks Russian Space Robots Could Help Make Your Car Safer

    Few things are more important than a reliable connection in space. The communication system between the International Space Station and Earth is one of the most robust ever created. And that’s why Ford is tapping Russian researchers to learn how they maintain the flow of information to both the systems and their robot caretakers, and then apply it to create safer cars that talk to one another.

    For the next three years, Ford is partnering with the St. Petersburg Polytechnic University in Russia to study how its communication models with robots in space could influence more terrestrial undertakings like vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications here at home.
     

  • GM’s New Pickups Ace Tough New Crash Tests

    WASHINGTON, DC (WWJ) - The 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra have become the first pickup trucks to get five star rankings in the new, tougher crash tests done by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

    The government increased the severity of the crash tests in 2011, saying that it had become too easy to get five star ratings. Since then, no pickup truck had received more than four stars.

  • Ford's Explorer-based Police Interceptor to get 365-hp EcoBoost option

    Speeders beware, the police are going to be getting quite a bit faster. Ford has just announced that it will be offering its 3.5-liter, twin-turbocharged, EcoBoost V6 in the Explorer Police Interceptor. The new engine will be joining the existing 3.7-liter V6. The 365-horsepower, 350-pound-foot mill should be familiar to consumers as the powerplant that's found in the Ford Taurus SHO (and its LEO equivalent, the Taurus Police Interceptor) and the Ford Explorer Sport. It should also provide quite a kick in the pants to officers used to the naturally aspirated 3.7 and its 304 ponies and 279 pound-feet of torque.

  • 2014 Ford Fiesta ST to arrive in dealerships by summer's end

    The Ford Fiesta ST, a popular performance car in Europe, is about to go on sale in North America.

    The all-new 2014 Fiesta ST will be in U.S. showrooms by summer’s end with a starting price of $22,195 including $795 in destination charges.

    The subcompact Fiesta ST costs $2,500 less than the larger Focus ST that has been on sale for a year and accounts for about 5% of total Focus sales. The Fiesta ST is expected to mimic those sales.

  • Chrysler Ranks Among Best U.S. Employers for Hispanic Women

    The editors of Latina Style magazine have again selected Chrysler Group LLC for inclusion on the magazine's annual list of the 50 best companies for Hispanic women to work in the U.S. This year, Chrysler Group was included among the top 12 companies listed in the Report and will be featured in August issue of the magazine.

    The Latina Style Top 50 Report highlights companies that have a dedicated effort to diverse recruitment and promotion initiatives, including companies that have programs to recruit veterans and military personnel, and is considered "the most respected evaluation of corporate America's employment opportunities and policies as they pertain to Latinas."  

  • Chrysler plant on pace to turn out 300,000 vehicles

    Workers at the Belvidere Chrysler plant are on pace to turn out more than 300,000 vehicles, which would be just the fifth time that has happened in the plant's history.

    In July, workers turned out 23,466 Dodge Darts, Jeep Compasses and Jeep Patriots. That was 47.1 percent above July 2012 production levels.

     

  • Group makes final push to save historic Ford buildings

    A local economic and community development group is making a final push to turn a historic car plant into an automotive attraction center.

    The Woodward Avenue Action Association, beginning today, will try to crowd-source the $125,000 needed to purchase two former Ford Motor Co. buildings in Highland Park. The association wants to use the buildings as a central location where tourists and automotive enthusiasts can learn and seek information about auto-related activities in the Metro Detroit area.

     

  • GM to offer wireless charging for smartphones in some 2014 vehicles

    General Motors Co., the largest U.S. automaker, will start offering wireless charging for smartphones in some vehicles next year, said Ran Poliakine, chief executive officer of Powermat Technologies Ltd.

    Instead of plugging in cables to replenish battery power, drivers of some 2014 GM models will be able to place mobile devices onto a Powermat surface inside the car to draw electricity. Phones must be capable of recharging via built-in technology, or use a case designed for the purpose.