AROnline » Ford

Tickford’s Ford : The Capri 2.8i Turbo

Keith Adams — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 09:00:17 +0000

Richard David Nener During 1981 John Miles was writing for Autocar. At that time he purchased a 3.0-litre Capri from Ford’s press department and used this car as a test vehicle for over 25,000 miles. He installed a very modified 3.2-litre engine, and most importantly modified and tweaked the suspension. Miles was, and continues today, [...]

The post Tickford’s Ford : The Capri 2.8i Turbo appeared first on AROnline.

Tickford’s Ford : Orion 1600E

Keith Adams — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 18:28:11 +0000

Richard David Nener In 1989, the Escort and Orion were coming to the end of their production run, and Ford wanted to send them off in style, as well as introduce a new halo model. Taking its inspiration from the Cortina Mk2 16ooE, and intended to sit in the range above the 1.6i Ghia, Ford [...]

The post Tickford’s Ford : Orion 1600E appeared first on AROnline.

The cars : Ford Mondeo design story

Keith Adams — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 02:03:45 +0000

The Mondeo celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2013, and to mark the occasion Andrew Elphick recounts the story of its design, development, and subsequent introduction of Ford’s vitally important mid-liner. And it really was an exercise in clean-sheet design. One world, one vision These were the words of two giants – one, the world’s most [...]

The post The cars : Ford Mondeo design story appeared first on AROnline.

Concepts and prototypes : Ford Mondeo design sketches

Keith Adams — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 21:19:59 +0000

Cab forward Mondeo The Ford Mondeo, CDW27, went through a long and considered design process – here are some design sketches early in the development process, around 1988. As you can see, cab forward was a big aspect of the Mondeo’s eventual design.

The post Concepts and prototypes : Ford Mondeo design sketches appeared first on AROnline.

The cars : Ford Zephyr/Zodiac Mk4

Keith Adams — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 02:38:04 +0000

Ford of Great Britain found itself in the enviable position of being able to do no wrong during the post-War years with its large cars. From the Pilot V8, to the Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac, big car buyers flocked to their local blue oval dealership. But in 1966, it seemed that the company stalled with [...]

The post The cars : Ford Zephyr/Zodiac Mk4 appeared first on AROnline.

Not their finest hour : Ford Sierra 2.0 (i4 engine)

Mike Humble — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 08:50:29 +0000

Mike Humble To quote David Grohl of Foo Fighters fame (the nice man of rock), I have a confession to make: I like the Ford Sierra. It took 14 years after its launch for me to really appreciate it, though. Being the age that I am, I grew up loving and worshipping cars that were [...]

The post Not their finest hour : Ford Sierra 2.0 (i4 engine) appeared first on AROnline.

Tested : MG Metro Turbo vs 205GTI vs XR2

Keith Adams — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 23:38:51 +0000

Warm hatch wonders With fewer than 50 MG Metro Turbos left on the road in the UK, it’s time to celebrate one of the most fun sporting hatchbacks the 1980s – by comparing it with the big selling Ford Fiesta XR2 and cultish Peugeot 205GTI. And as Keith Adams reckons, what was best then, might [...]

The post Tested : MG Metro Turbo vs 205GTI vs XR2 appeared first on AROnline.

Tested : Princess vs Granada vs Renault 20

Keith Adams — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 22:19:12 +0000

After the Princess received its O-Series engine in 1978, it was finally capable of battling with the rest of the best of the full-sized European opposition. The main target was the base model Ford Granada, but the Europeans were strong in this sector, too. Keith Adams compares the Renault 20 and Ford Granada against the [...]

The post Tested : Princess vs Granada vs Renault 20 appeared first on AROnline.

Tested : Cortina vs Solara vs Cavalier

Keith Adams — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 22:03:14 +0000

Rep race Back in 1980, if you wanted the ultimate business tool on wheels, you (or your company’s fleet manager) bought a Ford Cortina. Vauxhall and Talbot didn’t necessarily agree, offering the Cavalier and Solara as very capable rivals. But which was best then and now, the Ford Cortina 1.6L, Vauxhall Cavalier 1600GL or Talbot [...]

The post Tested : Cortina vs Solara vs Cavalier appeared first on AROnline.

News : Cortina’s 50th celebrated on the Beeb

Keith Adams — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 19:29:33 +0000

The Ford Cortina celebrated its launch 50 years ago on prime-time TV with a feature on the BBC’s One Show. Presented by comedian and actor Alexei Sayle (above), the feature recalled an hour-long documentary hosted by him on the BBC arts show Arena in 1982 called The Private Life of the Ford Cortina. The Ford [...]

The post News : Cortina’s 50th celebrated on the Beeb appeared first on AROnline.

News : Ford Cortina’s 50th celebrated at Goodwood

Keith Adams — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 08:02:49 +0000

This weekend the world’s most popular historic race meeting, the Goodwood Revival, will celebrate 50 years of the Ford Cortina with a display of some rare Mark I models outside the RAC Earls Court exhibition. The Cortina was Britain’s best-selling car for 10 of the 20 years it was on sale and laid the foundation [...]

The post News : Ford Cortina’s 50th celebrated at Goodwood appeared first on AROnline.

Concepts and prototypes : Ford Probe III

Keith Adams — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 23:01:11 +0000

Keith Adams Back in 1981, when the development of the Ford Sierra (project Toni), was reaching its latter stages of its development, management felt the need soften the buying public. The styling, penned by Patrick Le Quement, was as avant garde as its predecessor, the Cortina’s, was conservative. So, the design team produced a more [...]

The post Concepts and prototypes : Ford Probe III appeared first on AROnline.

First Drive : Ford Focus 1.0 EcoBoost

Keith Adams — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 08:32:39 +0000

Keith Adams spends a week behind the wheel of Ford’s astonishing 1.0-litre Focus EcoBoost – and wonders if this UK designed three-pot really does represent the beginning of the end of the diesel in Blighty… Twenty twelve – is it the beginning of the end of the popular diesel in the UK? It certainly seems [...]

The post First Drive : Ford Focus 1.0 EcoBoost appeared first on AROnline.

News : Ford builds 40 million engines at Dagenham

Keith Adams — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 17:15:49 +0000

Ford Dagenham has passed the milestone of 40 million engines – enough to stretch 20,000 miles, or four fifths of the way around the globe, when placed end to end. The factory has been engineering and manufacturing engines since 1931, and now specialises in diesel engines for Ford’s small, medium, and large car ranges, as [...]

The post News : Ford builds 40 million engines at Dagenham appeared first on AROnline.

News : Backbone of Britain breaks cover

Keith Adams — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 16:09:35 +0000

Andrew Elphick Finally, Ford’s new Transit Custom has broken cover away from the halogen spotlights of the show circuit. Ford whetted the appetite of ‘White van person’ (we’re very politically correct here at AROnline!) back in March with the taster Tourneo Custom concept luxury bus. Fast forward a month and the Commercial Vehicle Show previewed [...]

The post News : Backbone of Britain breaks cover appeared first on AROnline.

Gallery : Ford Cortina Mk3

Keith Adams — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 21:44:14 +0000

In 1970, the Ford Cortina grew up – taking in the 2-litre class, and replacing the Corsair as well as the Cortina Mk2 in the same process. This growth was a gamble for its maker, but a prescient one, as it was this generation of Ford’s favourite repmobile that became the UK’s best-selling car.

The post Gallery : Ford Cortina Mk3 appeared first on AROnline.

Gallery : Ford Cortina Mk1

Keith Adams — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 21:33:39 +0000

The Ford Cortina Mk1 was launched in 1962, and proved an immediate hit for its maker. The engineering, lightness and overall rightness for its purpose have resulted in this car being an all time classic…

The post Gallery : Ford Cortina Mk1 appeared first on AROnline.

Video : Ford Escort MkIII

Keith Adams — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:13:36 +0000

Keith Adams The Ford Escort MkIII, codenamed Project Erica, was a massive step forward for its maker. And Ford was keen for potential customers to be aware of its front-wheel drive challenger’s strongest assets. Three-times World Champion Jackie Stewart seemed impressed as he looked on at Ford’s test track at Lommel in Belgium, as did [...]

The post Video : Ford Escort MkIII appeared first on AROnline.

Blog : New Capri? We’ve been here before!

Keith Adams — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 21:24:30 +0000

Keith Adams Frankfurt IAA 2011. It’s the big show of the year, and home to the European industry’s most important debuts, show cars, and industry tie-ups. Exciting isn’t it? Yes and no. It’s great that Land Rover and Jaguar will be showing concept versions of their next new car icons (C-X60 for the XE – [...]

The post Blog : New Capri? We’ve been here before! appeared first on AROnline.

The cars : 1990 Ford Escort 1.8D

Keith Adams — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 06:53:43 +0000

Ones they’d rather forget: It was a $1bn make-or-break car for Ford, and they blew it by allowing the marketing department to call the shots. Picture the scene: it’s 1986 and you’re a Ford product planner. Your brief is to come up with a replacement for the UK’s best-selling car, and you have an extremely [...]

The post The cars : 1990 Ford Escort 1.8D appeared first on AROnline.