There’s a lab within Ford that utilizes 6,000 watts of lighting – close to 300 spotlights and floodlights – to simulate various phases of the Earth’s revolution around the sun. Does that leave you wondering what purpose the sun could serve in developing a Ford vehicle? It’s because the interior and exterior of a vehicle can look a lot different at various times of day. Therefore, the goal is to create harmony, and in particular among interior components and lighting, in an effort to minimize things like glare.

“The Visual Performance Evaluation Lab [VPEL] helps us ensure that the craftsmanship in our vehicles is apparent day or night,” explained Christina Bloxom, Ford Interior Harmony Engineer.

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What are the steps you take from when the idea lightbulb goes off over your head to making that vision a reality? We’re betting the steps are probably similar to what happens when a lightbulb goes off for a Ford designer or engineer about a vehicle, whether it has to do with cutting-edge improvements for a current model, advancements in safety technology, design changes or a completely new model to introduce.

Part of your process is likely about exploring wild, never-before-done concepts, and it’s similar at Ford. But what you may not know is all of the alternatives that were explored before something like a concept vehicle goes from a doodle on paper to game-changing genius.

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Check out this article by Jeff Wise, detailing his adventures through Germany in a Shelby GT500 Mustang!

Before I accepted the mission, they swore me to secrecy. “You’ll leave for Germany in two days,” they said. “Are you in?”

Here was the deal: Somehow, somebody had gotten their hands on a brand-new Shelby GT500—the scorching 650-hp, 200-mph number produced in collaboration with Carroll Shelby—and shipped it to Germany. The plan was to quietly unleash this prodigy of American automotive engineering into the German industrial heartland, to go head to head with the world’s most fanatically performance-conscious drivers on the legendary no-speed-limit autobahn. Then I’d head off to the country’s endless skein of narrow, serpentine country roads.

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There’s no denying the new 2013 Ford Fusion is photogenic. One look at the design, then another look at the innovation that accompanies it, and you spot a package that is not only unique, but also stylish and sleek. It speaks to high fashion, eco-friendliness, global DNA and the future of technology. It also speaks to something that would be a blast to drive.

When it came to shooting photography of the Fusion, the question became, where? What location would also encompass those attributes? Turns out, it’s Brooklyn.

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The Model T was born the same year as Edythe Kirchmaier: 1908. And like that famous Ford, Edythe is making automotive history of her own. In January 2013, she got her driver’s license renewed at age 105; it’s good for another five years.

Coincidentally, Edythe learned to drive in a Model T. “My uncle had a farm in northern Ohio, and when I was a teen, I would go up every summer to visit and he would let me drive it around the farm and on the dirt roads.” But she didn’t actually get her driver’s license until she moved from Chicago to Santa Barbara, California, with her husband, whom she met at work – they were both social workers; she was his supervisor. They realized they needed more than one car, so she got her own (bringing the household total to two Fords) as well as her license in 1939. “It was simpler back then. They asked a few written questions. I never took a road test. They just assumed I could drive.”

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Three cheers for the Ford Fusion – which accomplished it’s mission to put the stock back in “stock car racing.” Carl Edwards drove his all-new Ford Fusion NASCAR race car to its first win in the Subway 500 at Phoenix International Raceway March 3rd.

This marks Ford’s 613th Sprint Cup victory, Edwards’ 20th win after a long dry spell, and the 130th win for Roush Fenway Racing.

According to Edwards: “I thought for the last few laps it was gonna be easy and then they had that caution. It was an awesome restart. Brad Keselowski pushed me and that meant a lot. He stayed in line there and he pushed and we got a Ford to Victory Lane, so I’ve got to thank Brad. I’ve got to thank my crew. These guys were unreal and Subway, this is the Subway Fresh Fit 500. We just won the race in the Subway Ford Fusion. This is insane, very cool.”

At Borgman Ford, we’re excited to announce that our manufacturer is being featured in Fast Company’s annual Most Innovative Companies issue. The magazine, which hit the stands today, honors leading businesses, including Apple, Amazon, Google and Target along with such rising newcomers as Square, Fab and Tumblr. Ford Motor Company is the only full-line automaker named to the 2013 list. Nike ranks No. 1 following the release of two major innovations, FuelBand and Flyknit technology.

Fast Company editors highlighted an array of recent efforts by Ford, including the opening of a Silicon Valley Lab in Palo Alto, Calif. in June 2012 where Ford engineers can collaborate with some of the best and brightest technology minds.

Among the innovative features already available in Ford vehicles, the award-winning SYNC® connectivity system enables drivers to stay connected with the latest mobile technology using voice commands so that hands can stay on the wheel and eyes on the road. The all-new 2013 Ford Fusion offers one of the industry’s most complete suites of advanced driver assist systems, including adaptive cruise control and the Lane Keeping System all in an affordable midsize family sedan. Ford researchers are also hard at work on future systems including a driver workload estimator to help drivers manage stressful situations on the road. Read the rest of this entry »

The F-series has logged a lot of mileage in the past 65 years.

The F-1 debuted in 1948 with a three-speed transmission and 95 horsepower. Water for washing the windshield was pumped using a foot pedal, and the passenger-side taillight was optional.

The F-Series has come a long way since then.

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Check out this article and video from Ford Social about King Ranch, the place that inspired Ford’s decked-out F-series trucks of the same name!

The great American cowboy is not urban legend; he’s not confined to history; and he’s not a caricature most accurately served up in the reels of a classic Spaghetti Western. He’s alive and well. I know because I spent two days with him and his comrades at the 825,000-acre sprawl where it all began—the historic King Ranch in Kingsville, Texas.

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That’s right. America’s Most Capable Pickup is now even better. Tested-tough new powertrains – designed, engineered and built by Ford – give Super Duty class-leading fuel economy, plus best-in-class diesel horsepower and torque.

Best-in-class maximum towing and payload capacities get the job done when no one else can. Standard trailer sway control helps increase your towing confidence. It’s no wonder F-Series has been America’s best-selling truck for 33 years running.

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