Tag Archive for 'MKS'

Opinion: Distance to Empty? (w/Poll)

Published on February 16, 2011 in General, Polls and Under the Hood (In Depth). 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Starting about 15 years ago, some vehicles began shipping with Distance To Empty (DTE) computers on-board.  These DTE computers take a few variables into account and give the driver a running update of how many miles he or she may drive before they run out of fuel.  Now that I’ve owned a few vehicles which feature these displays, I have come to realize that there are two ways manufacturers calculate DTE: Optimist, and Pessimist (my own names for them).  Read on for the explanation of each and which one I think is better.

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Ford’s sale of Volvo: Complete. Geely’s cost: $1.8 Billion

Published on August 2, 2010 in Industry Status, Industry Update and Manufacturer Update. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Well, it’s finally happened – Ford completed the sale of Volvo to Geely, the Chinese automaker.  Geely forked over 1.8 billion, according to a press release by Ford.  Most of it was in cash, but there was also a $200 million “note” involved.

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Preview: 2011 Ford Explorer

Published on July 26, 2010 in Hot Car - Upcoming and Vehicle Redesign. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

This week, Ford announced a whole lot of details about the upcoming 2011 Explorer SUV, including photos, technology and capability.  They spent a lot of time talking about fuel efficiency and high technology, which I’ll go into after the break, followed by a high-resolution image gallery.

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Test Drive Frenzy – 6/6/2010

Published on June 7, 2010 in Test Drive. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

2010 Nissan Maxima

In the pursuit of quieter and quieter cars, I test drive a lot of different ones.  I suffer from Tinnitus, also known as “ringing of the ears.”  It’s a bothersome thing, and some cars more than others will aggravate my condition, to the point of headaches and earaches.  The Lincoln MKS I had didn’t bother my tinnitus at all, but now my 2010 Maxima (review pending) does.  So yesterday, I went out and test drove some cars.  A couple of these are known for their quietness, another couple of them I just wanted to compare with.  How did I fare?  Click past the jump to find out!

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Breaking News: Ford confirms rumors of Mercury shutdown

Published on June 2, 2010 in Industry Update and Manufacturer Update. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

In a press conference this afternoon with Ford’s president of the Americas, Mark Fields, it was announced that the Mercury brand, in existence for the past 71 years, will be shuttered at the end of this calendar year.  According to Ford, this allows them to enhance the Lincoln brand, with Lincoln-specific powertrains and vehicles, without straining the resources of the Ford brand itself, which has seen major growth in sales, customer satisfaction, and reliability over the past few years.  Read on for more details.

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Tech: Ford's "Noise Vision" Technology

Published on December 22, 2009 in Manufacturer Update, Predictions and Under the Hood (In Depth). 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , .

It has long been known that Ford competes directly with Chrysler and GM.  After reading a press release on their new “Noise Vision” technology, I have to wonder if Ford isn’t aiming far higher than its domestic rivals, at least in one aspect of their vehicles.  Ford’s new technology allows engineers to “see” the sounds intruding on a car’s passenger compartment and subsequently engineer those sounds out.  More details following the jump.

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