1.
Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor
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The Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor is a four-door body on frame sedan that was manufactured by Ford from 1992 1/2 to 2011. It is the law enforcement version of the Ford Crown Victoria, from 1997 and into the early 2010s, the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor was the most widely used automobile in law enforcement operations in the United States and Canada. They were also used for this purpose on a limited scale in other countries. The CVPIs body-on-frame construction allowed inexpensive repairs after collisions without the need to straighten the chassis. The cars are in demand by companies, those who want a safe, durable and/or inexpensive car. The Crown Victoria Police Interceptor came equipped with heavy duty parts such as a revised transmission. Used Crown Victoria Police Interceptors are normally stripped of any police decals, computer equipment, police radios, from 1992 to 1997, the police car models of the Crown Victoria were officially known as Crown Victoria P71s. In the 1993 model year, the Crown Victoria was given a front grille. Another minor restyle followed suit in 1995, with a new grille, to accommodate the design of the 1995s new taillights, the rear license plate was moved from the bumper to the trunks lid. Apart from North America, between 1994-1995,140 Crown Victoria P71s were bought for the Main Directorate for Road Traffic Safety and it is a Russian law enforcement agency which is a part of the militsiya. They were operated by the Russian Traffic Patrol as highway patrol units around the greater Moscow area until 2010s, both cars included restyled front and rear end components. The 1998 police package P71 had a grille, chrome door handle trim, chrome bumper strips. At this time, the car was known as the Crown Victoria P71. 1999 introduced the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor name, with a badge on the trunk lid replacing the 1998 Crown Victoria badge, a chrome-trimmed gloss black rear fascia, unpainted door handle trim, black bumper strips, and a gloss black slatted grille were also introduced at this time. Finally, the new Street Appearance Package, intended to make the Police Interceptor look like a Standard model, midway through 1999, the taillights were also changed. 1998 and early 1999 models had a separate amber turn signal along the edge of each taillight housing. Starting in mid-1999, the bulbs were eliminated and the turn signals returned to the combination of stop/turn setup with red lenses found in many North American cars. Although the lenses changed, the housings did not, they still had the chambers for the turn signals that early models had
2.
Ford LTD Crown Victoria
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The Ford LTD Crown Victoria is a line of full-size cars produced by Ford from 1980 to 1991. Introduced as the flagship of the Ford LTD range for 1980, for 1983, Ford adopted the LTD Crown Victoria nameplate for its entire range of full-size sedans as part of a realignment of its model ranges. Produced as a two-door and four-door sedan, the range included the woodgrained Ford LTD Country Squire station wagon. As part of the 1992 redesign of its range, Ford ended the use of the LTD prefix. From 1979 to 1985, the LTD Crown Victoria was produced at St. Louis Assembly in Hazelwood, in 1985, Ford shifted production to St. The padded vinyl roof covered the half of the roof. In the style of the original 1965 Ford LTD, the LTD Crown Victoria featured a hood ornament. The first time Ford used the victoria as a convention was in 1932 on the Ford Victoria. As the Ford LTD/LTD Crown Victoria was originally planned for replacement by the Ford Taurus in the early 1980s, the Crown Victoria was an alternative to the smaller Chevrolet Caprice and the Pontiac Bonneville, which were downsized in 1977. As fuel prices stabilized in the early 1980s, concerns over fuel economy eased, for 1988 and 1990, the LTD Crown Victoria saw a number of revisions and updates. In early 1991, the redesigned Ford Crown Victoria was introduced as a replacement, the Ford LTD Crown Victoria uses the rear-wheel drive, Ford Panther platform architecture. As part of a major downsizing over the 1973-1978 LTD Brougham/Landau, brakes were of a vented disc/rear drum configuration. When introduced in 1980, the LTD Crown Victoria was produced with the two smallest-displacement engines previously available on the LTD, the 4. 9L and 5. 8L Windsor V8s. In the interest of economy and CAFE regulations, the 460 V8 was shifted to truck use while the 400 V8 was discontinued altogether. In 1981, Ford would take steps to increase the fuel economy of its full-size cars. From the Lincoln Continental/Mark VI, all Panther-platform cars received the 4-speed AOD overdrive automatic transmission, replacing all previous 3-speed automatics. The engine line was revised, the 5. 8L V8 was moved exclusively to fleet sales, the 4. 9L V8 saw major changes, with the carburetor replaced by throttle-body electronic central fuel injection. In contrast to competitors from General Motors and Chrysler, the LTD Crown Victoria was sold exclusively with a V8 engine, as the LTD Crown Victoria became a stand-alone model line for the 1983 model year, the 4. 2L V8 was discontinued altogether
3.
Ford Motor Company
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The Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16,1903, the company sells automobiles and commercial vehicles under the Ford brand and most luxury cars under the Lincoln brand. Ford also owns Brazilian SUV manufacturer, Troller, and Australian performance car manufacturer FPV, in the past, it has also produced tractors and automotive components. Ford owns an 8% stake in Aston Martin of the United Kingdom, and it also has a number of joint-ventures, one in China, one in Taiwan, one in Thailand, one in Turkey, and one in Russia. It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is controlled by the Ford family, Fords former UK subsidiaries Jaguar and Land Rover, acquired in 1989 and 2000 respectively, were sold to Tata Motors in March 2008. Ford owned the Swedish automaker Volvo from 1999 to 2010, in 2011, Ford discontinued the Mercury brand, under which it had marketed entry-level luxury cars in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Middle East since 1938. During the financial crisis at the beginning of the 21st century, it was close to bankruptcy, Ford is the second-largest U. S. -based automaker and the fifth-largest in the world based on 2015 vehicle production. At the end of 2010, Ford was the fifth largest automaker in Europe, Ford is the eighth-ranked overall American-based company in the 2010 Fortune 500 list, based on global revenues in 2009 of $118.3 billion. In 2008, Ford produced 5.532 million automobiles and employed about 213,000 employees at around 90 plants, the company went public in 1956 but the Ford family, through special Class B shares, still retain 40 percent voting rights. The Ford Motor Company was launched in a factory in 1903 with $28,000 in cash from twelve investors, most notably John. During its early years, the company produced just a few cars a day at its factory on Mack Avenue and later its factory on Piquette Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Groups of two or three men worked on car, assembling it from parts made mostly by supplier companies contracting for Ford. Henry Ford was 39 years old when he founded the Ford Motor Company and it has been in continuous family control for over 100 years and is one of the largest family-controlled companies in the world. The first gasoline powered automobile had been created in 1885 by the German inventor Carl Benz, between 1903 and 1908, Ford produced the Models A, B, C, F, K, N, R, and S. Hundreds or a few thousand of most of these were sold per year, in 1908, Ford introduced the mass-produced Model T, which totalled millions sold over nearly 20 years. In 1927, Ford replaced the T with the Model A, Ford launched the first low-priced car with a V8 engine in 1932. In an attempt to compete with General Motors mid-priced Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Henry Ford purchased the Lincoln Motor Company in 1922, in order to compete with such brands as Cadillac and Packard for the luxury segment of the automobile market. The creation of a laboratory in Dearborn, Michigan in 1951, doing unfettered basic research
4.
Southwold, Ontario
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Southwold is a township in Elgin County, in Ontario, Canada, located on the north shore of Lake Erie. It is an agricultural zone producing predominantly corn and soybeans. It is part of the London census metropolitan area, Southwold was named in 1792 after Southwold in Suffolk, England. The municipality was incorporated in 1852, Sheddens growth occurred when the Canada Southern Railway was built, bypassing Fingal. Later it was joined by the Pere Marquette railway, still further boosting Sheddens importance, talbotville is situated at the intersection of highways 3 &4, two of the oldest roads in the region. Southwold was the site of the 2006 Shedden massacre, the township is home to the Green Lane Landfill site, a large dump recently purchased by the City of Toronto. Waste from Toronto is expected to be shipped to the site in 2010, Southwold was also home of the Ford St. Thomas Assembly plant until its closure in 2011
5.
St. Thomas Assembly
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St. Thomas Assembly was an automobile plant located in Southwold, Ontario, Canada close to the Talbotville community and to the nearby city of St. Thomas. The 2,600,000 sq ft facility, encompassing 635 acres, opened in 1967, flexible fuel vehicles capable of operating on ethanol fuel were manufactured there during the later years of the assembly plant. Fords plans for sustainability and reduction of fuel consumption relied on the St. Thomas Plant. It also produced the final Mercury vehicle, a Mercury Grand Marquis, the plant closed September 15,2011. The last Crown Victoria built by the remaining 300 employees was sent to Saudi Arabia
6.
Car classification
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Governments and private organizations have developed car classification schemes that are used for innumerable purposes including regulation, description and categorization, among others. This article details commonly used classification schemes in use worldwide, vehicles can be categorized in numerous ways. Regulatory agencies may also establish a vehicle classification system for determining a tax amount, in the United Kingdom, a vehicle is taxed according to the vehicles construction, engine, weight, type of fuel and emissions, as well as the purpose for which it is used. Other jurisdictions may determine vehicle tax based upon environmental principles, such as the user pays principle, another standard for road vehicles of all types that is used internationally, is ISO 3833-1977. In the United States, since 2010 the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety uses a scheme it has developed that takes into account a combination of both shadow and weight. The United States Federal Highway Administration has developed a scheme used for automatically calculating road use tolls. There are two categories depending on whether the vehicle carries passengers or commodities. Vehicles that carry commodities are further subdivided by number of axles and number of units, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has developed a classification scheme used to compare fuel economy among similar vehicles. Passenger vehicles are classified based on a total interior passenger. Trucks are classified based upon their gross vehicle weight rating, heavy duty vehicles are not included within the EPA scheme. A similar set of classes is used by the Canadian EPA, in Australia, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries publishes its own classifications. This is a table listing several different methods of vehicle classification. Straddling the boundary between car and motorbike, these vehicles have engines under 1.0 litre, typically only two passengers, and are sometimes unorthodox in construction. Some microcars are three-wheelers, while the majority have four wheels, microcars were popular in post-war Europe, where their appearance led them to be called Bubble cars. More recent microcars are often electric powered, the size of ultracompact cars will be less than minicars, but have engine greater than 50cc displacement and able to transport 1 or 2 persons. Ultracompact cars cannot use standard, because of strict safety standards for minicars. The regulation about running capacity and safety performance of cars will be published in early autumn. Today, there are smaller than ultracompact cars, called category-1 motorized vehicles which it has 50cc displacement or less
7.
Full-size car
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A full-size car is a marketing term used in North America for an automobile larger than a mid-size car. Traditional U. S. full-size passenger cars were designed to be comfortable for six occupants, the United States Environmental Protection Agency currently uses the term large car to denote full-size cars based on their combined interior passenger and luggage volume. The traditional full-size passenger cars that were built by the U. S. Full-size cars were also denoted for their length, nearing 4,953 mm in basic low-priced, family sedans. The luxury models often tended to reach 5,350 mm. Previously, the term first appeared in the early 1960s to distinguish what also became known as standard-size cars from the new compact and intermediate models then being introduced. The U. S. EPA defines large size as 120 ft³ or more of combined passenger, a majority of U. S. automakers manufactured full size automobiles were constructed using a body-on-frame platform. This platform was phased out in 2011 when the Ford Panther vehicles ended production, use of the term in North America became popular after the introduction of compacts by the U. S. Detroit Big Three for the 1960 model year, and then a few years later the introduction of what became known as mid-size cars. The term was most correctly applied to close to the width limit carrying nameplates of The Low Priced Three, Chevrolet, Ford. Manufacturers contributed to the lack of distinction by marketing models of their brands into the lower price ranges with what had previously been considered medium-priced brands. For 1977, General Motors downsized its cars, with overall width cut from approximately 80 in to the mid-70 inch range. Chevrolet, Pontiac, and the less expensive Oldsmobile and Buick models had a 116-inch wheelbase, more expensive Oldsmobile and Buick models, plus the Cadillac had a 119 in wheelbase, but no more width. Ford and Chrysler downsized for 1979, the latter even building its Chrysler R platform, by this time, a huge increase in gasoline prices had made it difficult to sell any large cars, downsized or not. Chrysler had the misfortune of introducing two consecutive new designs of its largest cars, in 1974 and 1979, during times when gasoline prices suddenly increased. The EPA interior volumes for passenger and cargo for the most part resulted in mid-size, full-size, the 1980s Chrysler M platform, classified as large cars at the time, were derived from the Dodge Aspen/Plymouth Volare platform, originally marketed as large compacts. While many modern cars are referred to as full-size, they do not qualify for the term as used in the 1960s and 1970s. Consumer acceptance of large SUVs approaching 80 inches in width shows interest remains in vehicles capable of seating with reasonable comfort. Police cars in the United States are almost always full-size cars and this is usually due to the amount of interior space for an arrestee as well as trunk volume for computer and electrical equipment. Interior space and trunk volume also make such vehicles popular for taxi use, since the discontinuation of the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor the de facto replacement has been a variation of the Ford Taurus
8.
Sedan (automobile)
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A sedan /sᵻˈdæn/ or saloon is a passenger car in a three-box configuration with A, B & C-pillars and principal volumes articulated in separate compartments for engine, passenger and cargo. The passenger compartment features two rows of seats and adequate passenger space in the compartment for adult passengers. The cargo compartment is typically in the rear, with the exception of some rear-engined models, such as the Renault Dauphine, Tatra T613, Volkswagen Type 3 and it is one of the most common car body styles. A battery electric sedan such as the Tesla Model S has no engine compartment, but a front cargo compartment, the primary purpose of the sedan is to transport people and their baggage on ordinary roads. Sedan versions of the body style have a central pillar that supports the roof and come in two-. Sedans usually have a two-box or three-box body, popular in the U. S. from the 1950s through the 1970s, true hardtop body designs have become increasingly rare. For example,1962 Rambler Classic sedans feature identical windshield, A-pillar, roof, C-pillar, and rear window. A two- or four-door design built on a chassis, but with a shorter roof and interior space. Originating from the car on a Pullman passenger train that was well appointed. A notchback sedan is a sedan, where the passenger volume is clearly distinct from the trunk volume of the vehicle. The roof is on one plane, generally parallel to the ground, the window at a sharp angle to the roof. A fastback sedan is a sedan, with continuous slope from the roof to the base of the decklid. They are not fastbacks because their bodyline changes from the roof to the rear deck and their steeply raked rear windows end with a decklid that does not continue down to the bumper. Instead, their ends are tall — sometimes in a Kammback style — to increase trunk space. Typically this design is chosen for its aerodynamic advantages, automakers can no longer afford the penalty in fuel consumption produced by the traditional notchback three box form. In historic terminology, a sedan will have a frame around the door windows, a true hardtop design also has no center or B pillar for roof support behind the front doors). This pillarless body style offers greater visibility, however, it requires extra underbody strengthening for structural rigidity. The hardtop design can be considered separately, or it can be called a hardtop sedan, during the 1960s and 1970s, hardtop sedans were often sold as sport sedans by several American manufacturers and they were among the top selling body styles
9.
Automobile layout
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In automotive design, the automobile layout describes where on the vehicle the engine and drive wheels are found. Many different combinations of engine location and driven wheels are found in practice, factors influencing the design choice include cost, complexity, reliability, packaging, weight distribution, and the vehicles intended handling characteristics. Layouts can roughly be divided into two categories, front- or rear-wheel drive, four-wheel-drive vehicles may take on the characteristics of either, depending on how power is distributed to the wheels. Front-wheel-drive layouts are those in which the front wheels of the vehicle are driven, the most popular layout used in cars today is the front-engine, front-wheel drive, with the engine in front of the front axle, driving the front wheels. As the steered wheels are also the wheels, FF cars are generally considered superior to FR cars in conditions such as snow, mud. The weight of the engine over the wheels also improves grip in such conditions. Electronic traction control can avoid wheelspin but largely negates the benefit of extra torque/power, a transverse engine is commonly used in FF designs, in contrast to FR which uses a longitudinal engine. This is another reason luxury/sports cars avoid the FF layout, exceptions do exist, such as the Volvo S80 which uses transversely mounted inline 6 and V8 engines, and the Ford Taurus SHO, available with a 60° V8 and front-wheel drive. There are some exceptions to this as rear engine designs do not take away interior space and it also has fewer components overall and thus lower weight. However, this may apply for cars with moderate power-to-weight ratio. According to road test with two Dodge Daytonas, one FWD and one RWD, the layout is also important for what configuration is the fastest. Weight shifting limits the acceleration of a front-wheel-drive vehicle, however, since front-wheel-drive cars have the weight of the engine over the driving wheels, the problem only applies in extreme conditions in which case the car understeers. On snow, ice, and sand, rear-wheel drive loses its traction advantage to front or all-wheel-drive vehicles which have greater weight over the driven wheels. Rear-wheel-drive cars with engine or mid engine configuration retain traction over the driven wheels. A rear-wheel-drive cars centre of gravity is shifted rearward when heavily loaded with passengers or cargo, on front-wheel-drive cars, the short driveshaft may reduce drivetrain elasticity, improving responsiveness. Instead, the tunnel may be used to route the exhaust system pipes. Weight, Fewer components usually means lower weight, improved fuel efficiency due to less weight. Cost, Fewer material components and less installation complexity overall, however, the considerable MSRP differential between a FF and FR car cannot be attributed to layout alone. Few modern family cars have rear-wheel drive as of 2009, so a direct cost comparison is not necessarily possible, assembly efficiency, the powertrain can often be assembled and installed as a unit, which allows more efficient production
10.
Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout
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In automotive design, an FR, or front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout is one where the engine is located at the front of the vehicle and driven wheels are located at the rear. This was the automobile layout for most of the 20th century. Modern designs commonly use the front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout, the first FR car was an 1895 Panhard model, so this layout was known as the Système Panhard in the early years. The layout has the advantage of minimizing mechanical complexity, as it allows the transmission to be placed in-line with the output shaft. In comparison, a vehicle with the engine over the driven wheels eliminates the need for the drive shaft, in order to reduce the relative weight of the drive shaft, the transmission was normally split into two parts, the gearbox and the final drive. The gearbox was produced with its highest gear being 1,1. The final drive, in the axle, would then reduce this to the most appropriate speed for the wheels. As power is the product of torque and angular velocity, spinning the shaft faster for any given power reduces the torque, in an era when gasoline was cheap and cars were heavy, the mechanical advantages of the FR drivetrain layout made up for any disadvantage in weight terms. It remained almost universal among car designs until the 1970s, after the Arab oil embargo of 1973 and the 1979 fuel crises, a majority of American FR vehicles were phased out for the FF layout – this trend would spawn the SUV-van conversion market. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most American companies set as a priority the eventual removal of rear-wheel drive from their mainstream, chrysler went 100% FF by 1990 and GMs American production went entirely FF by 1997 except the Corvette, Firebird and Camaro. This configuration is referred to as a transaxle since the transmission. In Europe, front-wheel drive was popularized by small cars like the Mini, Renault 5 and Volkswagen Golf, upscale marques like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Jaguar remained mostly independent of this trend, and retained a lineup mostly or entirely made up of FR cars. Japanese mainstream marques such as Toyota were almost exclusively FR until the late 1970s, toyotas first FF vehicle was the Toyota Tercel, with the Corolla and Celica later becoming FF while the Camry was designed as an FF from the beginning. The Supra, Cressida, Crown, and Century remained FR, luxury division Lexus has a mostly FR lineup. Subarus BRZ is an FR car, currently most cars are FF, including all front-engined economy cars, though FR cars are making a return as an alternative to large sport-utility vehicles. In North America, GM returned to production of FR-based luxury vehicles with the 2003 Cadillac CTS, as of 2012, all but the SRX and XTS are FR-based vehicles. Chevrolet reintroduced the FR-based Camaro in 2009, and the Caprice PPV in 2011, Pontiac also had a short run with the FR-based G8 and Pontiac Solstice. A Chevrolet replacement for the G8 called the Chevrolet SS was released in 2013, chrysler and Dodge reintroduced the 300 and Charger on a FR platform
11.
Body-on-frame
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Body-on-frame is an automobile construction method by which a separate body is mounted on a relatively rigid frame or chassis that carries the engine and drivetrain. It was the method of building automobiles and continues to this day. In the late 19th century frames might be made of wood reinforced by steel flitch plates, mass production of all-metal bodies became general in the 1920s but Europe, with exceptions, followed almost a decade later. Europes custom-made or coachbuilt cars usually contained some wood framing or used aluminium alloy castings, today some new vehicles still have a separate chassis, most commonly pickup trucks and their relatively low volume variants like crossover SUVs. The Ford Model T carried the tradition of body-on-frame over from horse-drawn buggies and it was also easy to use the same chassis and driveline for several very different cars. Especially in the days before computer-aided design, this was a big advantage, most small passenger vehicles switched to unibody construction by the end of the 1930s. The trend had started with cars like the Citroen Traction Avant, trucks, bus manufacturers and large low volume cars or those made in USA continued to use separate bodies on conventional frames. Mass-market manufacturers Ford, General Motors and Chrysler are abandoning true body-on-frame SUVs, opting, when sales volume permits, for more efficient unibody construction. Toyota currently manufactures the most body-on-frame SUVs with the 4Runner, FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Lexus GX and LX followed by Nissan with the Armada, Patrol, Xterra and Infiniti QX56/80. The Ford Panther platform, which was discontinued in 2011, was the last series of passenger cars to be built in this manner. One variant used by Chevrolet for its Corvette incorporates the inner skeleton to the frame, an intermediate to full monocoque construction was the semi-monocoque used by the Volkswagen Beetle and Renault 4. These used a separate chassis made from pressed sheet steel panels forming a platform chassis, to give the benefits of a traditional chassis. Both of these chassis were used for different models. The mid-1930s designed Volkswagen made use of the bodyshell for structural strength as well as the chassis — hence semi-monocoque, traditionally chassis had compliance, they were designed to allow some twisting. As suspensions improved they could not perform correctly unless supporting a rigid structure like that intended to be provided by unibody or monocoque construction. The Lincoln Town Car once dominated the American limousine market because it was the last American luxury car made on the body-on-frame system, with the Town Car discontinued since 2011, the de facto replacement is the Lincoln Navigator SUV. Easier to design, build and modify, quieter, because the stresses do not pass into the body, which is isolated from the frame with rubber pads around the attachment bolts. This is less significant now, but historically bodies would squeak and rattle more as they rusted, lubricants drained, isolated bodies were affected to a lesser degree by these modes of aging
12.
Car platform
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It is practiced in the automotive industry to reduce the costs associated with the development of products by basing those products on a smaller number of platforms. This further allows companies to create models from a design perspective on similar underpinnings. Platform sharing is a development method where different products and the brand attached share the same components. The purpose with platform sharing is to reduce the cost and have a more efficient product development process, the companies gain on reduced procurement cost by taking advantage of the commonality of the components. However, this limits their ability to differentiate the products. The companies have to make a trade-off between reducing their development costs and the degree of differentiation of the products, one of the first car companies to use this product development approach was General Motors in 1908. A basic definition of a platform in cars, from a point of view, includes, underbody and suspensions — where the underbody is made of front floor, underfloor, engine compartment. Many vendors refer to this as product or vehicle architecture, the concept of product architecture is the scheme by which the function of a product is allocated to physical components. The car platform strategy has become important in new product development, the finished products have to be responsive to market needs and to demonstrate distinctiveness while — at the same time — they must be developed and produced at low cost. Adopting such a strategy affects the development process and also has an important impact on an organizational structure. A platform strategy also offers advantages for the process of automobile firms. Manufacturers are then able to offer products at a lower cost to consumers, additionally, economies of scale are increased, as is return on investment. In the 1980s, Chryslers K-cars all wore a badge with the letter K to indicate their shared platform, in later stages, the K platform was extended in wheelbase, as well as use for several of the Corporations different models. GM used similar strategies with its J platform that debuted in mid-1981 in four of GMs divisions and they were popular through the 1980s, primarily. Even Cadillac started offering a J body model called the Cimarron, a similar strategy applied to what is known as the N-J-L platform, arguably the most prolific of GMs efforts on one platform. Once more, GMs four lower level divisions all offered various models on this throughout the 1980s. For example, the Lexus ES is essentially an upgraded and rebadged Toyota Camry, after Daimler-Benz purchased Chrysler, Chrysler engineers used several M-B platforms for new models including the Crossfire which was based on the M-B SLK roadster. Other models that share platforms are the European Ford Focus, Mazda 3, differences between shared models typically involve styling, including headlights, tail lights, and front and rear fascias
13.
Ford Panther platform
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The Ford Panther platform is an automobile platform that was used by Ford Motor Company for full-size, rear-wheel drive sedans. Introduced in late 1978 for the 1979 model year, it was updated over 33 years of production. As of the 2011 model year, the Panther platform was in use longer than any platform in North American automotive history. It was initially developed as a response to the downsizing of full-size cars from Chrysler, during trying periods for Ford, the Panther cars were scheduled for cancellation and replacement on several occasions, as early as 1985. As the 1980s progressed, the cars of the Buick, Oldsmobile. The Panthers final GM counterparts, the Chevrolet Caprice, Buick Roadmaster, by 1982, Chrysler left the full-size car class completely. In the early 1990s, Chrysler resumed production of FWD full-size cars, however, with the majority of these cars, Chrysler competed against different customers that Ford attracted with the Panther platform. The Panther platform was produced at Fords St. Thomas Assembly plant in Talbotville, Ontario, Canada, prior to its closure on 31 May 2007, the Wixom Assembly Plant in Michigan was the assembly site for the Lincoln Town Car. Assembly of the Town Car was consolidated at the St. Thomas plant in January 2008 following paint shop, Ford and Mercury versions built before the 1986 model year were assembled in the St. Louis Assembly Plant in Missouri, this facility is currently closed. The Panther platform utilized the body-on-frame construction with live axle suspension. While commonplace during its late-1970s introduction, it is a design found almost exclusively in large SUVs, the durability resulting from the body on frame construction, and their relatively simple design make the Panther cars appealing as fleet vehicles, including police cars and taxicabs. Although introduced in 1978, the Panther platform has undergone major changes along the way, through its design life, it has been produced in three distinct generations, First generation, The initial versions, the only versions produced in bodystyles other than a four-door sedan. 2011 was the last model year for the North American Market, a limited number of 2012 Crown Victorias were built for the police and overseas market. The first cars introduced on the Panther platform were the downsized 1979 Ford LTD, both were available in coupe, wagon, and sedan bodystyles. For 1980, federal regulations forced the Lincoln Continental to downsize, for the first time. All Ford and Mercury models were now built on a common wheelbase, aside from grilles and taillights, in the Lincoln lineup, the Continental, Town Car, and Continental Mark VI shared nearly identical bodywork. In 1982, the Town Car became a line of its own as the Continental became a mid-sized Fox-platform car. While Lincoln coupes based on the Panther platform were discontinued in 1983, Ford and Mercury coupes lasted until 1987, changes Ford made relatively few changes to any of the 1st-generation Panther-platform cars throughout their production life aside from nameplate changes
14.
Ford Taurus (sixth generation)
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The sixth-generation of the Ford Taurus is a full-size car manufactured by Ford. Produced since June 2009, the current version of the Taurus is the longest and heaviest Ford-brand sedan currently sold by the company worldwide, the 2010 model year marked significant changes from model precedent. After an 11-year hiatus, the Ford Taurus SHO high-performance variant made its return for 2010, following the discontinuation of the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor in 2011, a variant of the sixth-generation Taurus was developed as a replacement police car. Deriving its engine and all-wheel drive powertrain from the Taurus SHO, the Taurus, Taurus SHO, and Police Interceptor Sedan are assembled in Chicago, Illinois at Chicago Assembly alongside the Ford Explorer/Ford Police Interceptor Utility. In late 2006, Ford Motor Company named Boeing CEO Alan Mulally to replace William Clay Ford, one of his first decisions was to abandon the unpopular F model naming scheme for Ford-division cars. Although the Taurus gained 60 hp over the Five Hundred, most of its deficiences were related to its introduction essentially being a mid-cycle refresh of its predecessor under a new nameplate. In January 2008, Alan Mullaly revealed that a generation of the Ford Taurus was in development as a planned 2010 model. In April 2008, a photograph of a full-scale prototype mockup of the 2010 Ford Taurus was leaked onto the Internet. After the styling of the prototype was seen worldwide, Ford contemplated legal action against web sites which posted the photo, towards its launch, the Ford Motor Company website introduced several videos, benchmarking the 2010 Ford Taurus against several production flagship luxury sedans. The 2010 Ford Taurus SHO was faster than an Audi A64.2 FSI Quattro in straight-line acceleration while the interior of the Ford Taurus was quieter than an Acura RL. In a major contrast from previous generations of the Ford Taurus, once the highest-selling nameplate in the United States, instead of the 1990s peak volumes of nearly 400,000 vehicles a year, the intended sales were closer to 50,000 to 75,000. As a full-size car, the Taurus competed closer to the Toyota Avalon and Nissan Maxima than the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, additionally, Ford sought to preserve the resale value of the Taurus by avoiding the usage of fleet sales of the vehicles. The 2010 Ford Taurus was unveiled at the 2009 North American International Auto Show at Cobo Hall. In May 2009, the new Taurus debuted at three dealers in the Buffalo, Tampa, and Houston, respectively, to be put on display and to build anticipation for the release. The first dealer, West Herr Ford in Hamburg, New York, was due to the successful unveiling of the redesigned Ford F-150 earlier that year. The 2009 Tauruss counterparts, the Ford Taurus X and the Mercury Sable, the sixth-generation Taurus production started on June 15,2009 for the 2010 model year. Unlike previous generations of the Taurus, the sixth-generation Taurus would not have a Sable counterpart since the Mercury brand was in the process of being phased out by the end of 2010. For the first time since 2002, Lincoln dealers sold a Taurus-based sedan, the sixth-generation Ford Taurus is based on the Volvo-derived Ford D3 platform architecture, sharing the 112. 9-inch wheelbase of the Lincoln MKS and the previous Ford Taurus
15.
Full-size Ford
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The term full-size does not necessarily indicate it was large relative to its competitors, but that it was the largest and most complete model offered by Ford. The Model Ts 134-inch overall length makes it substantially shorter than a current-generation Fiesta hatchback, American automobiles in the early years were usually only identified by make and year. Typically, companies produced only one model in a year. Nameplates emerged when companies began selling cars to augment their lineup. The term full-size came in use after Ford introduced compact cars, if the Ford full-size line were to be considered as a single shared lineage, it would comfortably be the longest-running in the car industry with staggering collective production numbers. The Crown Victoria and Police Interceptor were produced until September 2011,103 years after the introduction of the 1908 Model T, by comparison, the longest-running nameplate in the industry, the Chevrolet Suburban, has been in use for 83 model years. Over a centurys time, full-size Fords from North America have been updated to keep pace with contemporary technology, from 1932 to 2012, a V8 engine was available, being standard from 1935 to 1940 and from 1973 to 2012. The Crown Victoria has become commonplace as a taxi cab. In September 1908, the lineage of the full-size Ford began as the Model T entered production, the successor to the Model N and Model S, the Model T would become the first Ford to utilize mass production techniques. Produced in over fourteen body styles, over 15 million would be produced in 19 years of production, although its predecessors introduced the front-engine, rear-wheel drive configuration to the company, the Model T was the first Ford produced in left-hand drive. Throughout its production run, the Model T saw relatively few changes, in addition to changes to refine its production, technological upgrades were made along the way. Ford added electric lights, electric starting, balloon tires, as the Model T aged in comparison to its competition, the market share held by Ford began to erode by the mid-1920s. At the end of 1927, the Model A was introduced as its replacement, introduced in December 1927, the Model A borrowed its name from the first car produced by the company in 1903. As with the Model T, the Model A used a front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout with body-on-frame construction, an all-new 4-cylinder engine was introduced. As before, the Model A was produced in a variety of body styles, in contrast to its predecessor. Produced from 1927 to 1931, approximately 4.8 million were produced, as the Model A was the first all-new design in 19 years, many features were upgraded. The Model A introduced Ford buyers to conventional driver controls, it now had pedals for the brakes, throttle, safety glass made their automotive industry debut when Ford used it for the windshield. For the 1932 model year, Ford introduced a version of the Model A
16.
Ford Fairlane (Americas)
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The Ford Fairlane is an automobile model that was sold between 1955 and 1970 by Ford in North America. The name is derived from Henry Fords estate, Fair Lane, near Dearborn, over time, the name referred to a number of different cars in different classes, the Fairlane was initially a full-sized car, but became a mid-sized car from the 1962 model year. The mid-sized model spawned the Australian-built Fairlane in 1967, although in that market it was considered a large car, for the 1955 model year the Fairlane name replaced the Crestline as Fords premier full-sized offering. All featured the trademark stainless-steel Fairlane stripe on the side, power options were a 223 cu in straight-6 engine and a 272 cu in V8. The 292 cu in Y-block was offered as an option and was called the Thunderbird V-8. Few changes were made for 1956, a four-door Victoria hardtop and two new, more powerful V8 options, of 292 cu in and 312 cu in, the Lifeguard safety package was introduced. The two-door Victoria hardtop featured a new and slimmer roofline, a one-year only two-door station wagon, the 1956 Ford Parklane, featured Fairlane-level trim. It was marketed to compete against the Chevrolet Nomad, for 1957, a new style gave a longer, wider, lower, and sleeker look with low tailfins. The new proportions and modern styling were a hit with customers to the extent that the Ford outsold Chevrolet in 1957 for the first time since 1935, a new top trim level was reversed, the Fairlane 500. For the first time, the lower-level Custom line had a shorter wheelbase than the Fairlane, engines were largely the same as the year before. The big news for 1957 was the introduction of the Fairlane 500 Skyliner power retractable hardtop, another facelift for 1958 had fashionable quad headlights, a grille that matched the 1958 Thunderbird, and other styling changes. New big-block FE V8s of 332 and 352 CID replaced the previous largest V8s, a new top-level full-sized model was introduced at mid-year 1959, the Ford Galaxie. The 1959 Galaxie displayed both Fairlane 500 and Galaxie badging, full-sized Fairlane and Fairlane 500 models were restyled for 1960 and again for the 1961 model year. The Galaxie series continued as the top-of-the-line full-sized Ford, Fairlane 500s demoted to mid-level in the lineup and were equivalent to the Chevrolet Bel Air. Fairlanes were primarily sold as base level trim models for fleet use, both were now only available as pillared sedans. The big-block 390 CID V8 was available in 1961 as the top-horsepower option, with an overall length of 197 in and a wheelbase of 115.5 in, it was 16 in longer than the Falcon and 12.3 in shorter than the Galaxie. Wheel track varied from 53.5 in to 56 in depending on model, suspension was a conventional short-long arm independent arrangement in front, with Hotchkiss drive in the rear. The Fairlane was initially offered only in two-door or four-door sedan body styles, the Sports Coupe option débuted mid-year and featured bucket seats and a small floor console
17.
Lincoln Town Car
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The Lincoln Town Car is a model line of full-size luxury sedans that was marketed by the Lincoln division of the American automaker Ford Motor Company from 1980 to 2011. Deriving its name from a style of limousine, Town Car translated in French is the term Sedan de Ville, the Town Car nameplate first appeared as a sub-model of the Continental in 1959, later becoming a trim line during the 1970s. For 1981, the Lincoln Town Car became a distinct product, with the exception of two-door sedans sold in 1980-81, the Town Car was produced in a single four-door body style. Following the 1996 discontinuation of the Cadillac Fleetwood, the Town Car became the longest mass-produced sedan assembled in the Western Hemisphere until 2003, marketed primarily in the United States and Canada, the Town Car saw exports worldwide. From 1980 to 2007, the Lincoln Town Car was assembled at Wixom Assembly, at Wixom, Michigan, alongside the Lincoln Continental, Mark Series, and Lincoln LS. Following the closure of Wixom Assembly, production of the Town Car was moved to St. Thomas Assembly in Southwold, Ontario, Canada, alongside the Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis. In 2011, production of all three Panther-platform vehicles ended as the St. Thomas facility ended production in September 2011, in the 1920s, a town car was a type of limousine that gained popularity among automobile buyers. The design featured an open chauffeurs compartment with either a fixed or convertible roof for the rear passengers, in 1922, Edsel Ford purchased a custom-built Lincoln L-Series town car as a personal vehicle for his father, Henry Ford. In the 1950s, Cadillac and Lincoln would introduce the de Ville/Town Car nameplates, however, while Cadillac styled the de Ville series as a hardtop coupe and sedan, in 1959, the Town Car was introduced as a limousine variant of the Continental Mark IV four-door sedan. In place of the reverse-slant roofline of the standard Mark IV the Town Car was given a profile to its roofline with a padded vinyl top. Due to its nature, all Continental Town Cars were sold in black. In addition to the styling, the roofline was designed for the ability to add rear legroom without further extending the wheelbase. As only 214 Continental Town Cars were sold from 1959 to 1960, the nameplate went dormant for a decade, becoming an option for 1969, in place of a sub-model, the Town Car returned as a trim package. As part of the 1970 redesign of the Lincoln Continental, the Lincoln Continental Town Car trim made its return, as an option package, the Continental Town Car featured additional standard equipment and an extra plush interior. On nearly all 1970-1979 Lincoln Continental Town Cars, the roof covered half the roof. To suggest a partition, a raised molding sweeping over the roof was added, as an option, some models of the Town Car featured a full-length padded roof. From 1973 to 1981, two-door Lincoln Continentals were available with an option called the Lincoln Continental Town Coupe. After lagging behind rival Cadillac since 1977, Lincoln became the final American luxury brand to market downsized full-size cars for the 1980 model year
18.
Mercury Grand Marquis
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The Mercury Grand Marquis is a full-size rear-wheel drive luxury sedan that was sold by Mercury from 1975 to 2011. From 1975 to 1982, it was the model of the Mercury Marquis model line. For its entire run, the Grand Marquis served as the flagship of the Mercury line. From 1979 to 2011, it shared the Panther platform along with the Lincoln Town Car, from 1979 to 1985, the Grand Marquis was manufactured at the St. Louis Assembly Plant in Hazelwood, Missouri. From 1986 to 2011, production was located at the St. Thomas Assembly Plant in Southwold, Ontario, with the phasing out of the Mercury brand following the 2010 model year, a limited run of 2011 models were produced. The last Grand Marquis rolled off the line on January 4,2011. In 1969, the Marquis would take over the Brougham trim package from the Park Lane, in 1975, Mercury introduced the Grand Marquis as a higher-trim submodel of the Marquis. The Grand Marquis was introduced as a model in its own right in 1983, the coupe for 1980 assumed the role of full-sized coupe when the Cougar was downsized and shared the chassis with the smaller Capri. Remaining the flagship sedan of the Mercury lineup, the Grand Marquis now was left as the sole full-size sedan of the division, based upon the Panther platform, the Grand Marquis was the counterpart of the Ford LTD Crown Victoria, and the Lincoln Continental Mark VI. As with its Ford counterpart, a padded vinyl half-roof was standard equipment, the Grand Marquis was an alternative to the smaller Buick LeSabre and the Oldsmobile 88, which were downsized in 1977. The Grand Marquis was available in sedan and four-door sedan body styles in standard. As part of the shift, the Colony Park station wagon became part of the Grand Marquis line. Most versions of the Colony Park would wear Grand Marquis LS badging, the 5. 0L5.0 Windsor V8 was the sole engine available from model years 1983–1985. In 1986, the engine was converted from throttle-body to sequential multi-port fuel injection, additionally in 1986, the 5. 8L Windsor V8 was returned to the Grand Marquis/Colony Park engine lineup. By the end of production in 1991, versions ordered with the 5. 8L would be the final carbureted vehicles ever sold in North America by Ford, both engines were coupled to the four-speed AOD overdrive automatic transmission. Limousine manufacturers used the Mercury Grand Marquis as an alternative to the mechanically similar Lincoln Town Car. These were more popular in Latin America than in the United States, in the 1989 James Bond movie Licence to Kill, the villain Franz Sanchez drives a black 1985 Grand Marquis Limousine. This limousine was black with a red interior, for the 1992 model year, both Ford and Mercury Panther-platform cars underwent their most extensive changes since their 1979 introduction
19.
Rebadging
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Rebadging, sometimes called badge engineering, is the application of a different brand or trademark to an existing product and subsequently marketing the variant as a distinct product. The term badge engineering is a misnomer, in that little or no actual engineering takes place. The term originated with the practice of replacing an automobiles emblems to create a new model sold by a different maker. More extreme examples involve differing engines and drivetrains, the term badge engineered does not apply to vehicles that share a common platform architecture but are uniquely designed so that they may look completely different from each other. This is achieved by not sharing visible parts, and maintaining a host of underlying parts specific to their respective applications, rebadging in the automotive industry can be compared with white-label products in other consumer goods industries, such as consumer electronics and power tools. The first case of engineering began in 1917 with the Texan automobile assembled in Fort Worth, Texas. The chairman and CEO of the company, Charles W. Nash, ordered that the Ajax models be marketed as the Nash Light Six, Nash being a known and respected automobile brand. Production was stopped for two days so Nash emblems, hubcaps and radiator shells could be exchanged on all unshipped Ajax cars. Conversion kits were distributed at no charge to Ajax owners to transform their cars. Starting with the beginning of General Motors in 1923, chassis, exterior appearances were gradually upgraded between these vehicle brands. For 1958, GM was promoting their fiftieth year of production, and introduced Anniversary models for each brand, Cadillac, Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, a later example was Wolseley Motors after it was bought out by William Morris. After World War I, the Wolseley started to lose its identity and this was repeated with the consolidation of Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Organisation to form the British Motor Corporation. Badge Engineering, as it known, was symptomatic of a policy of sales competition between the constituent organizations. Badge engineering often occurs when a manufacturer, such as General Motors, owns a portfolio of different brands. It may also be done to sell the model in different regions. For example, cars built by Daewoo, now owned by GM, are no longer badged as Daewoos, instead, they are now badged as Chevrolets. Similarly, in Australia and New Zealand, where Daewoo was unsuccessful, the Australian car manufacturing industry experienced major badge reengineering during the 1980s and 1990s as part of the failed Button car plan. In Japan, Toyota, Nissan and Honda used this approach to vehicle production by offering one car at multiple Japanese dealerships
20.
Taxicab
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A taxicab, also known as a taxi or a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice, Taxicab is a compound word formed from contractions of taximeter and cabriolet. Taximeter is an adaptation of the German word taxameter, which was itself a variant of the earlier German word, taxe is a German word meaning tax, charge, or scale of charges. The Medieval Latin word, taxa, also means tax or charge, meter is from the Greek metron meaning measure. A cabriolet is a type of carriage, from the French word cabrioler, from Italian capriolare. Both instituted fast and reliable postal services across Europe, the taxicabs of Paris were equipped with the first meters beginning on March 9,1898. They were originally called taxamètres, then renamed taximètres on October 17,1904, horse-drawn for-hire hackney carriage services began operating in both Paris and London in the early 17th century. The first documented public hackney coach service for hire was in London in 1605, in 1625 carriages were made available for hire from innkeepers in London and the first taxi rank appeared on the Strand outside the Maypole Inn in 1636. In 1635 the Hackney Carriage Act was passed by Parliament to legalise horse-drawn carriages for hire, coaches were hired out by innkeepers to merchants and visitors. A further Ordinance for the Regulation of Hackney-Coachmen in London and the places adjacent was approved by Parliament in 1654, a similar service was started by Nicolas Sauvage in Paris in 1637. His vehicles were known as fiacres, as the vehicle depot apparently was opposite a shrine to Saint Fiacre. The hansom cab was designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, Hansoms original design was modified by John Chapman and several others to improve its practicability, but retained Hansoms name. These soon replaced the hackney carriage as a vehicle for hire and they quickly spread to other cities in the United Kingdom, as well as continental European cities, particularly Paris, Berlin, and St Petersburg. The cab was introduced to other British Empire cities and to the United States during the late 19th century, being most commonly used in New York City. The first cab service in Toronto, The City, was established in 1837 by Thornton Blackburn, Electric battery-powered taxis became available at the end of the 19th century. Bersey designed a fleet of cabs and introduced them to the streets of London on 19 August 1897. They were soon nicknamed Hummingbirds’ due to the idiosyncratic humming noise they made, in the same year in New York City, the Samuels Electric Carriage and Wagon Company began running 12 electric hansom cabs. The company ran until 1898 with up to 62 cabs operating until it was reformed by its financiers to form the Electric Vehicle Company, the modern taximeter was invented and perfected by a trio of German inventors, Wilhelm Friedrich Nedler, Ferdinand Dencker and Friedrich Wilhelm Gustav Bruhn
21.
Police vehicles in the United States and Canada
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The first police car was a wagon run by electricity fielded on the streets of Akron, Ohio in 1899. Since the 1920s, the New York City Police Department has employed a fleet of Radio Motor Patrol vehicles to aid in its fight against crime within the city, in turn, this gave the company a market-capturing edge that lasted until 1968. In the 1940s and 1950s, the Big Three began to offer specialized police packages with severe duty parts, foremost amongst these was the Ford package of 1950, which utilized the larger and more powerful Mercury engine in the smaller, lighter Ford. This ended the practice of state police buying larger and more powerful, but higher-priced models including Buicks, Hudsons. In 1969, Plymouth took first place in the police market, v8s, Torqueflite transmissions, and torsion bar suspensions giving them a compelling advantage. Chrysler held this lead until the 1970s energy crisis drove buyers to smaller cars, some state highway patrols adopted pony cars, such as the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and AMC Javelin for use as high-speed pursuit vehicles. The Ford LTD, Plymouth Gran Fury, and Chevrolet Caprice were re-adopted as standard when the models were downsized in the late 1970s. In an attempt to combat the threat of rear-end impacts that highway patrol vehicles face when stopped on the shoulder. In September,2011, however, Ford discontinued the Crown Victoria in favor of the 6th-generation Taurus and this has helped Dodge reclaim leadership in the market with the Charger. Non-Crown Victoria police vehicles may be bought to diversify a police departments fleet in order to minimize disruption should a recall occur. Furthermore, trials with FWD vehicles like the Taurus and Impala have proven problematic in terms of maintenance costs, given its superior performance and greater fuel efficiency, the Charger has proven itself to be a capable alternative to/replacement for the aged and arguably outdated Crown Victoria. That being said, the Charger is not without drawbacks, some departments have expressed concern in regards to limited trunk space, additionally, in the 2005-2006 model years, there were significant problems with the braking systems. Nonetheless, more continue to opt for the Charger. At the end of 2006, multiple Dodge Chargers were added to the NYPD fleet for citywide testing, as of 2007, the Alameda County Sheriffs Office has plans to upgrade to the Charger. Dodge only rates their 6-cylinder and Hemi-engined versions as pursuit capable, the R/T version is not available in a police package. Along with various agencies, many states troopers and counties sheriffs use the Chevrolet Tahoe variant. In 2013, according to statistics compiled by R. L. Polk, the standard Ford Taurus-based PI can also be equipped with AWD. The fleet vehicles that were used typically came painted in a color, most commonly white or black
22.
1955 Ford
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The 1955 Ford is an automobile which was produced by the Ford in the United States for the 1955 model year and, in revised form, for the 1956 model year. The American Ford line of cars gained a new body for 1955 to keep up with surging Chevrolet, the Fairlane Crown Victoria was also offered with a transparent skylighted top. New brakes were used 11-inch drums, also, Fords had a new frame, but still with five cross members. The Fords introduced for 1955 also featured the panoramic windshields found on Oldsmobiles, Buicks, with this panoramic windshield the A-pillars have a vertical angle. This gives the driver more panoramic visibility, for the first time, Ford offered seat belts as a dealer option. Also new for 1955 was Fords first factory installed air conditioner and this “Select Aire” option featured an integrated heater core and evaporator coil unit within the dash and cold air discharge vents located on top of the dash on either side of the radio speaker. The Select Aire design was carried over to the 1956 models with slightly different cold air vents in the location as on the 1955 models. The condenser was mounted in front of the radiator as in later cars, station wagons were offered as a separate series for the first time for 1955. The Ranch Wagon and Custom Ranch Wagon were 2 door wagons whilst the Country Sedan and Country Squire models were 4 door wagons, the Crown Victoria Skyliners sales were plummeting with just 603 made, and it would be replaced by a convertible the next year. The Parklane, a Fairlane trimmed Tudor station wagon, was added to compete with the Chevrolet Nomad, there were new convenience options, such as a new air-conditioner system, a new heater, and a nine-tube signal-seeking radio. Instead of gauges, instrument cluster warning lights for oil pressure, Victoria hardtop coupes now adopted the lower, sleeker roofline used by both 1955 and 1956 Crown Victoria, sans the wide chrome roof trim. The Lifeguard safety package — consisting of belts, a padded dashboard, a deep-dish steering wheel. The 1955 Ford was also produced by Ford Australia which offered it as a V8 Customline 4-door sedan, the latter body style was developed in Australia utilising an imported convertible chassis strengthened for load carrying. A limited number of Customline wagons was also built, the 1955 model was the first Australian Ford to receive the new overhead-valve Y-block V8 engine, and went on sale at the end of July 1955. Australian Customlines and Mainlines received the 1956 US Ford facelift and then further makeovers in 1957 and 1958 with the series utilizing the grille from 1955 Meteor of Canada. The 1957s, introduced in September 1957, were available with the Fordomatic automatic transmission. By 1958 the Customline was being marketed as the Ford V8 Fordomatic when supplied with automatic transmission,1958 was also when the larger,292 cu in V8 engine was introduced. Australian production ended the year with the introduction of the 1959 US Ford which was locally produced in Custom 300, Fairlane 500
23.
Hardtop
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A hardtop is a rigid form of automobile roof. They may be detachable for separate storing, retractable within the vehicle itself, the term is also used to describe such vehicles, principally the last. Hardtops may be either two-door or four-door, and tend to be more expensive, early automobiles were open, described as having a torpedo, runabout, phaeton, or touring car bodystyle. In time, some were made with rudimentary weather protection composed of a canvas top. Some instead had removable rigid roofs, which were cumbersome and laborious to seasonally alternate, once fully closed bodies became the norm, it was considered fashionable to remove the central roof support post to give them a more open touring look. The Springfield design featured folding upper frames on the doors and the glass frames is removable. By the time of World War I some automakers offered a removable roof, typically with a frame with a canvas or leather covering. They typically used side curtains like the conventional folding soft tops, the elaborate cloth covered California top originated in the West, with either a permanent or a folding frame. These were designed with an emphasis on proportions to accent and provide distinctiveness to the appearance of the automobile, one objective of these aftermarket tops was to bring the cost of the closed car nearer to the prices of corresponding open cars. Automobile dealers were encouraged to equip a car with a California top to demonstrate that they were cool and clean in summer. The hard tops were frequently equipped with windows that retracted like a roller blind for open sided motoring offering a low-cost compromise between an open and closed car. The metal-framed Carson top was an addition for the 1930s Ford convertibles or roadsters because it turned these models into an almost instant hardtop. The design mimicked a convertible top, but lacking the bulky folding mechanisms enabled the removable hardtop to have a much lower, following the ascendancy of steel tops for closed bodies in the 1930s, detachable hardtops with metal roofs began to appear. After World War II, the availability of new types of plastic, because the convertible top mechanism is itself expensive, the hardtop was customarily offered as an additional, extra-cost option. On early Thunderbirds, buyers could choose between a detachable hardtop and a canvas top at no additional cost, but paid extra for both. Some open cars continue to offer it as an option, for example, some Mazda MX-5s are believed to have been delivered with an accessory hardtop, which is compulsory for some auto racing series. The automotive usage of the term hardtop is most often applied for a roof body style without a b or center pillar. They were sometimes called a hardtop convertible because they were designed to look like a convertible with the top raised, while some early models retained side window frames and B-pillars, by the 1950s, most were pillarless hardtops
24.
Pillar (car)
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Pillars are the vertical or near vertical supports of a cars window area or greenhouse—designated respectively as the A, B, C or D-pillar, moving from the front to rear, in profile view. The consistent alphabetical designation of a cars pillars provides a reference for design discussion. As an example, rescue teams employ pillar nomenclature to facilitate communication when cutting wrecked vehicles, the B pillars are sometimes referred to as posts. This pillar provides structural support the roof panel and is designed for latching the front door. As the most costly body components to develop or re-tool, a roof and door design are a major factor in meeting safety. Some designs employ slimmer, chamfered windscreen pillars, A pillars, as perhaps the most complex of all the structures on the vehicle, the center or B-pillar may be a multi-layered assembly of various lengths and strengths. Closed vehicles without a B-pillar are widely called hardtops and have available in two or four-door body styles, in sedans, coupes and wagons. Designs without a center or B pillar for roof support behind the front doors offer increased occupant visibility, while in turn requiring underbody strengthening to maintain structural rigidity. In the early 1970s, General Motors broadened their definition of hardtop to include models with a B-pillar although, up to then, thus a two-door hardtop or a three box designed coupé could have its rearmost pillar called the C-pillar even in the absence of a B-pillar. Conversely additional doors, such as on limousines, will create additional B-pillars, the B-pillars are then numbered, B1, B2, and so forth. In addition to the pillar nomenclature derived from viewing an automobile in profile, some cars have a two-part windshield or a split rear window. Posts for quarter windows are not considered a named pillar, automobile design Automotive head-up display Blind spot Driver visibility Quarter glass Art of Automotive C Pillars—flickr photo group created 2005-07-26, webpage accessed 2008-02-10
25.
Victoria (carriage)
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The victoria was an elegant French carriage, possibly based on a phaeton made for George IV. A victoria may be visualised as essentially a phaeton or brougham with the addition of a coachmans box-seat, but not enclosed and therefore open to the elements. Though in English the name victoria was not employed for a carriage before 1870, when one was imported to England by Edward VII, the Prince of Wales in 1869 and it was very popular amongst wealthy families. On a low body, it had one forward-facing seat for two passengers and a drivers seat supported by an iron frame, all beneath a calash top. It was usually drawn by one or two horses and this type of carriage became fashionable with ladies for riding in the park, especially with a stylish coachman installed. Nowadays, victorias can be seen in the Chilean city of Viña del Mar, the name has been applied to the Ford Crown Victoria, and has been used as a generic term for light horse carriages in Mumbai. Illustration and description, Carriage Association of America, farrell, Jeremy, Aileen, Dr, Ribeiro, ed. Umbrellas & Parasolls, London, BT Batsford
26.
Carriage
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A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn, litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for passenger use and for comfort or elegance. It may be light, smart and fast or heavy, large, Carriages normally have suspension using leaf springs, elliptical springs or leather strapping. A public passenger vehicle would not usually be called a carriage – terms for such include stagecoach, charabanc, working vehicles such as the wagon and cart share important parts of the history of the carriage, as does too the fast chariot. The word carriage is from Old Northern French cariage, to carry in a vehicle, a carriage is sometimes called a team, as in horse and team. A carriage with its horse is a rig, an elegant horse-drawn carriage with its retinue of servants is an equipage. A carriage together with the horses, harness and attendants is a turnout or setout, a procession of carriages is a cavalcade. Some horsecarts found in Celtic graves show hints that their platforms were suspended elastically, four-wheeled wagons were used in prehistoric Europe, and their form known from excavations suggests that the basic construction techniques of wheel and undercarriage were established then. The earliest recorded sort of carriage was the chariot, reaching Mesopotamia as early as 1900 BC, used typically for warfare by Egyptians, the near Easterners and Europeans, it was essentially a two-wheeled light basin carrying one or two passengers, drawn by one to two horses. It is likely that Roman carriages employed some form of suspension on chains or leather straps, in the kingdom of the Zhou Dynasty the Warring States were also known to have used carriages as transportation. With the decline of these civilizations these techniques almost disappeared, the medieval carriage was typically a four-wheeled wagon type, with a rounded top similar in appearance to the Conestoga Wagon familiar from the USA. Sharing the traditional form of wheels and undercarriage known since the Bronze Age, suspension is recorded in visual images and written accounts from the 14th century, and was in widespread use by the 15th century. Carriages were largely used by royalty, aristocrats, and could be decorated and gilded. These carriages were on four wheels often and were pulled by two to four depending on how they were decorated. Wood and iron were the requirements needed to build a carriage. Another form of carriage was the pageant wagon of the 14th century, historians debate on the structure and size of pageant wagons, however, they are generally miniature house-like structures that rest on four to six wheels depending on the size of the wagon. Historians also debate whether or not pageant wagons were built with pivotal axle systems, whether it was a four- or six-wheel pageant wagon, most historians maintain that pivotal axle systems were implemented on pageant wagons because many roads were often winding with some sharp turns. Six wheel pageant wagons also represent another innovation in carriages, they were one of the first carriages to use multiple pivotal axles, pivotal axles were used on the front set of wheels and the middle set of wheels
27.
1932 Ford
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Ford produced three cars between 1932 and 1934, the Model B, Model 18 & Model 40. The Model B continued to offer Fords proven four cylinder and was available from 1932 to 1934, the V8 was succeeded by the Model 48. It was the first Ford fitted with the flathead V‑8, in Europe, it was built slightly longer. The same bodies were available on both 4 cylinder Model Bs and V8 Model 18/40s, the company also replaced the Model AA truck with the Model BB, available with either the four- or eight-cylinder engine. Rather than just a much updated version of the Model A, the V-8 was marketed as the Model 18 in its initial year, and commonly simply called the Ford V‑8. It had the new flathead V‑8 engine, the Model 18 was the first low-priced, mass-marketed car to have a V8 engine, an important milestone in Automotive industry in the United States. The 221 cu in V8 was rated at 65 hp when introduced and this engine choice was more popular than the four-cylinder, which was essentially a variant of the Model A engine with improvements to balancing and lubrication. Model B was derived with as few changes as possible to keep cost low. Other than the engine, and badging on headlamp support bar and hub caps and its intention was to be a price leader, and as it offered more than the popular Model A, this should have been a winning formula. In fact, the new and only slightly more expensive V-8 stole the show, the V8 engine was previously exclusive to Lincoln products, which in 1932 switched to V12 engines only. Although there is a certain relationship with the predecessor Model A. While the Model A has a frame with two straight longitudinal members, the new car got a longer wheelbase, and an outward curved. While the V-8 was developed from scratch, the B just had an improved four-cylinder Model A engine of 201 cu in displacement producing 50 horsepower. When Ford introduced the Model A in late 1927, there were several competitors also offering four cylinder cars, among them Chevrolet, Dodge, Durant, or Willys. That changed within a few years, soon leaving the new Plymouth the sole major make in the Fords price class with a four. Although sharing a platform, Model Bs and Model 18s came not only in Standard and Deluxe trim. Some of them, like the commercial cars described below, were available as Standards. The wooden panels were manufactured at the Ford Iron Mountain Plant in the Michigan Upper Peninsula from Ford owned lumber, one of the more well known and popular models was the two-door Victoria, which was largely designed by Edsel Ford
28.
Lincoln K-series
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The Lincoln K-Series was a line of luxury vehicle produced by Lincoln from 1930 to 1940. While the original K-Series featured a 385 in³ V8, a V12 became standard in 1933, customers also had the choice of ordering a fully custom coachwork. The original Model K appeared in the 1931 model year on a new chassis with a 145 in wheelbase, factory bodies included two- and four-door phaetons, the latter available as a dual-cowl model. The 384.8 in³ engine was a derivative of the earlier L-series 60° V8, but a dual venturi downdraft Stromberg carburetor, higher compression, and altered timing raised the power to 120 hp. It competed with the recently introduced Chrysler Imperial, Rolls-Royce Phantom II, Mercedes-Benz 770, Duesenberg Model J, Packard Eight, the Lincoln K-series was split in 1932 into two lines, the V8 carryover Model KA and the new V12-powered Model KB. The V8 car reverted to a 136 in wheelbase, though output was pushed to 125 hp. The KB, on the hand, featured the marques new L-head V12 engine. The 447.9 cuin 65° L-head unit produced 150 hp. Both series featured a new grille with less of a surround, vent doors rather than vertical louvers on the sides of the hood, a light on top of each front fender. The Lincoln Victoria coupe, first introduced in limited numbers in 1929, the V8 engine was replaced in the Model KA with a new 381.7 in³ V12 for 1933. This L-head engine shared little with the big KB engine which continued unchanged, the 1933 K-series Lincolns featured many changes, only a few of which were readily visible. The removal of the bar linking the headlights and return of hood louvers was most noticeable, but the chassis, thermostatic shock absorbers. Drivers would notice the adjustable-pressure brakes, both V12 engines were replaced for 1934 by a single 414 in³ version of the new Model KA V12, with the KA and KB names now denoting the wheelbase only. Styling changes included a body-colored grille surround and the replacement once again of louvers with doors on the side of the hood, the Lincoln line was greatly trimmed for 1935, with all cars simply called Model K. The marque attempted to improve profitability by focusing on the lofty over-$4,000 segment, the Model Ks days were numbered as the less-expensive and more-modern Lincoln-Zephyr debuted for 1936. A 7-passenger Model K limousine was the marques best-selling model despite its $4700 price, the grille and front fascia were again redesigned, and a revised raked windshield and pressed steel wheels were now used. The Model K continued in production for five years, but sales declined rapidly with the modern Zephyr. Production was evidently completed during the 1939 model year, the last Lincoln K-Series was delivered in January 1940
29.
Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner
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See also 1955 Ford, Ford Crown Victoria The first time Ford used the victoria as a naming convention was in 1932 on the Ford Victoria 2-door coupe. Fords 1954 Crestline Skyliner was replaced in 1955 by the Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner and it shared the flashy chrome basket handle which stretched the B-pillar across the roof of the 1955 Crown Victoria model but added a smoked acrylic glass window over the front seat area. It was a interpretation of a horse-drawn carriage bodystyle, called a victoria, the model, commonly referred to as the Glasstop Vicky lasted just two years, with sales slipping sharply as customers realized the trouble of keeping the car cool. An optional snap-in sunshade or air conditioning system were desirable, the Skyliner name was later applied to the Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner hardtop convertible based on the 1957 Ford. Similar roof panels were used on General Motors products of the time, currently, the 2004-2009 Opel Astra offers a panoramic windshield, which is similar in concept. Mercurys similar Montclair Sun Valley was produced in 1954 and 1955, generations, Ford Model T to Crown Victoria
30.
Poly(methyl methacrylate)
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The same material can be utilised as a casting resin, in inks and coatings, and has many other uses. Chemically, it is the polymer of methyl methacrylate. PMMA is an alternative to polycarbonate when extreme strength is not necessary. Additionally, PMMA does not contain the potentially harmful bisphenol-A subunits found in polycarbonate and it is often preferred because of its moderate properties, easy handling and processing, and low cost. The first acrylic acid was created in 1843, methacrylic acid, derived from acrylic acid, was formulated in 1865. The reaction between acid and methanol results in the ester methyl methacrylate. In 1877 the German chemist Wilhelm Rudolph Fittig discovered the process that turns methyl methacrylate into polymethyl methacrylate. In 1933, the brand name Plexiglas was patented and registered by another German chemist, in 1936 Imperial Chemical Industries began the first commercially viable production of acrylic safety glass. During World War II both Allied and Axis forces used acrylic glass for submarine periscopes and aircraft windshields, canopies, common orthographic stylings include polymethyl methacrylate and polymethylmethacrylate. The full chemical name is poly, although often called simply acrylic, acrylic can also refer to other polymers or copolymers containing polyacrylonitrile. The other notable names include, Acrylite, a trademark of Evonik Cyro since 1976 Lucite, a trademark of DuPont, first registered in 1937 R-Cast. Founded in 1987 after spinning off from Reynolds & Taylor and they specialize in large scale and thick monolithic acrylic. Plexiglas, a trademark of ELF Atochem, now a subsidiary of Arkema in the US, generally, radical initiation is used, but anionic polymerization of PMMA can also be performed. To produce 1 kg of PMMA, about 2 kg of petroleum is needed, PMMA produced by radical polymerization is atactic and completely amorphous. The glass transition temperature of atactic PMMA is 105 °C, PMMA is thus an organic glass at room temperature, i. e. it is below its Tg. The forming temperature starts at the transition temperature and goes up from there. All common molding processes may be used, including molding, compression molding. The highest quality PMMA sheets are produced by casting, but in this case
31.
Lifeguard (automobile safety)
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Lifeguard was the name of a 1956 safety package marketed by the Ford Motor Company. Safety double-grip door latches to prevent occupant ejection in case of a crash, safety rearview mirror to reduce broken glass if shattered. Two optional features, Front and rear lap only seat belts, padded dashboard and sun visors The instruments were recessed to minimize injury potential. The buying public was unresponsive to the Lifeguard package according to some, prompting Henry Ford II to say, McNamara is selling safety, ralph Nader and Joan Claybrook claim that the package was extremely popular. How Robert McNamara changed the automobile industry Lifeguard Design, original publicity shots
32.
Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner
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See also Ford Crestline Skyliner for the 1954 Ford and Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner for the 1955–1956 Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria, both with an acrylic glass roof panel. The Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner is a full-size two-door automobile with a hardtop which was produced by Ford in the United States for the model years 1957,1958 and 1959. In 1959 the model changed to Ford Galaxie Skyliner very shortly after the production of 1959 models had started. Part of the Ford Fairlane 500 range, the Skyliner had a mechanism which folded the front of the roof. No hydraulic mechanisms were used as in regular convertibles of the era, the large top took up vast amounts of trunk space, limiting the cars sales. Production totaled 20,766 units in 1957, declining to 14,713 in 1958, fuel consumption was around 14 mpg‑US overall. The fuel tank was placed vertically in back of the rear seat, the wheelbase of the Skyliner was 118 in and the overall length was 210.8 in. During the 1959 model year the Galaxie series was added to Ford’s full-size range, although the 1959 Galaxie was designated as a separate series, Galaxies carried both “Fairlane 500” and “Galaxie” badging, on the rear and sides respectively. It came with the standard 292CID 2-barrel 200 hp V8, at the time of its introduction, the Skyliner was the only true hardtop convertible in the world. Today, it has become a collectible car, the design attracted more attention than sales, the option was expensive, suspected to be unreliable, and took up almost all the trunk space when retracted. It required the roof to be shorter than the other Fords. This was because the design was originally to be a Continental coupe, the solid roof pillar of the Skyliner is the similar to the appearance of 2nd generation Ford Thunderbirds of 1958-1960. The following engines, all V8s, were available on the Fairlane 500 Skyliner, two manual transmissions, a three-speed and three-speed with overdrive were available, as well as three-speed Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission. Starting in 1958, Cruise-O-Matic was added, which provided a second drive range, the Skyliner name had been used by Ford on earlier models, namely the Crestline Skyliner of 1954 and the Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliners of 1955 and 1956. These models have a two-door hardtop body style with an acrylic glass roof panel over the front seats. 1959 Skyliner image showing both Fairlane 500 & Galaxie badging International Ford Retractable Club
33.
Downsize (automobile)
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Downsizing in the automobile industry is the practice of redesigning a vehicle to retain the interior volume, and often the nameplate and styling of a larger car to a smaller, more efficient platform. It was common in the 1970s following the 1973 oil crisis, General Motors was among the first to announce a downsize strategy for the whole company as a response to demand for smaller more efficient cars. An alternative strategy was to simply rebadge or mildly restyle smaller vehicles, as such as the Ford LTD. The term engine downsizing is used when the car remains the same size but the engine is reduced. From 1977 to 1982, in order, General Motors would physically downsize its full-size, intermediate, compact, for 1977, all five GM car divisions saw the downsizing of their full-size vehicle lines, with an average length reduction of 12 inches and 750-800 pounds in weight. While producing a smaller footprint than the GM intermediate product lines. For 1978, the GM intermediate product line became true mid-size cars with similar size reductions, for 1980, to allow for downsizing in its compact segment, the cars of the GM X platform were replaced on a front-wheel drive platform, allowing for increased interior dimensions. In 1982, the GM J platform, while similar in size to its GM H platform predecessor, by the end of the 1980s, nearly all cars produced by GM would be front-wheel drive. At the end of the 1996 model year, the B-platform was discontinued, size comparison between 76 and 77 Caprice Nearly concurrent with the 1973 gas crisis, Chrysler introduced larger and heavier 1974 full-size models for Plymouth, Dodge, and Chrysler. In contrast to Ford and General Motors, the companys car sales would never recover from the gas crisis. Chrysler was forced to concentrate its development on fuel-efficient compact cars, for the 1979 model year, the success found by GM and the upcoming introduction of smaller full-size cars by Ford necessitated a response from Chrysler. As a replacement for the C-platform redesigned in 1974, the introduced the R-body vehicles. Unable to develop a new design from the ground up, Chrysler was relegated to reworking its existing 1962-1978 intermediate platform, the R-series wore comparable dimensions as its Ford and General Motors competition. By the end of the 1981 model year, poor sales of all four R-body cars outside of fleet markets forced its discontinuation, after 1980, downsizing would take a much more radical form at Chrysler. As a replacement for the Dodge Aspen/Plymouth Volare, the introduced the Dodge Aries/Plymouth Reliant. Known as the K-cars, they were the first front-wheel drive cars developed entirely within the company, in spite of their small exterior footprint, the K-cars offered 6-passenger seating, they were classified as mid-size cars by the EPA. With the introduction of the K-Cars as midsize cars, Chrysler took a new approach at the full-size market, the midsize M-series of the 1980s with 112.7 wheelbase and 205 length was actually similar to size to the intermediate class 1967 AMC Rebel and 1964-77 Chevrolet Chevelle. In the 1980s era of downsizing, Chrysler explored alternatives for large family vehicles, declining sales along with lack of development funds led Chrysler to not include station wagons as part of the 1979 redesign of its full-size cars
34.
Engine
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An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one form of energy into mechanical energy. Heat engines burn a fuel to heat, which is then used to create a force. Electric motors convert electrical energy into motion, pneumatic motors use compressed air. In biological systems, molecular motors, like myosins in muscles, use energy to create forces. The word engine derives from Old French engin, from the Latin ingenium–the root of the word ingenious. Pre-industrial weapons of war, such as catapults, trebuchets and battering rams, were called siege engines, the word gin, as in cotton gin, is short for engine. Most mechanical devices invented during the revolution were described as engines—the steam engine being a notable example. However, the steam engines, such as those by Thomas Savery, were not mechanical engines. In this manner, an engine in its original form was merely a water pump. Devices converting heat energy into motion are commonly referred to simply as engines, examples of engines which exert a torque include the familiar automobile gasoline and diesel engines, as well as turboshafts. Examples of engines which produce thrust include turbofans and rockets, the term motor derives from the Latin verb moto which means to set in motion, or maintain motion. Thus a motor is a device that imparts motion, motor and engine later came to be used largely interchangeably in casual discourse. However, technically, the two words have different meanings, however, rocketry uses the term rocket motor, even though they consume fuel. A heat engine may also serve as a prime mover—a component that transforms the flow or changes in pressure of a fluid into mechanical energy. An automobile powered by a combustion engine may make use of various motors and pumps. Another way of looking at it is that a motor receives power from an external source, simple machines, such as the club and oar, are prehistoric. More complex engines using human power, animal power, water power, wind power and these were used in cranes and aboard ships in Ancient Greece, as well as in mines, water pumps and siege engines in Ancient Rome. The writers of those times, including Vitruvius, Frontinus and Pliny the Elder, treat these engines as commonplace, by the 1st century AD, cattle and horses were used in mills, driving machines similar to those powered by humans in earlier times
35.
Ford Modular engine
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The Ford Modular engine is Ford Motor Companys overhead camshaft V8 and V10 gasoline-powered engine family. The Modular engine got its name from its design and sharing of certain parts among the engine family, starting with the 4. 6L in 1991. The name was derived from a manufacturing plant protocol, Modular. The Modular engines are used in various Ford, Lincoln, Modular engines used in Ford trucks were marketed under the Triton name from 1997–2010 while the InTech name was used for a time at Lincoln for vehicles equipped with DOHC versions of the engines. The engines were first produced in Romeo, Michigan then additional capacity was added in Windsor, the result was sleeker, more aerodynamic designs like that used for the highly successful Ford Taurus. The objective was to develop a new V8 engine that would surpass Ford’s earlier V8s in every way, from power and efficiency to emissions performance. Clarke and his engineers studied engine designs from major European and Japanese automakers to modernize the V8 to become power-dense while still surviving up to 100,000 miles of use. The initial engine design would implement a 90° vee-angle with a bore of 90.2 mm and this square configuration was chosen primarily for its positive noise, vibration and harshness characteristics. Tight construction tolerances were used in shaping the engine’s cylinder bores with narrow piston rings fitted to the engine’s pistons and this would serve to improve engine efficiency through reduced friction and reduce the engine’s oil consumption, while also promoting cleaner emissions. Perhaps the most significant aspect of the new design was the number of variations of the engine that could be made to suit different needs. In addition to the various eight-cylinder engines produced, ten-cylinder engines eventually entered production, six-cylinder derivatives were also explored, though never built. Referring to this method of production, the name Modular was given to the new engine family, three years later, in the summer of 1990, the first Modular engine, a 4. 6L SOHC V8, would be used in the 1991 model year Lincoln Town Car. To the credit of Jim Clarke’s engineering team, the new V8 engine in the Town Car compared favorably to its pushrod-based predecessor, accompanying these performance advantages, the engine was also 20 lbs lighter than the older 5. 0L V8. The 4.6 L 90-degree V8 has been offered in 2-valve SOHC, 3-valve SOHC, the engines were also offered with both aluminum and cast iron blocks, depending on application. The 4.6 Ls bore and stroke are nearly square at 90.2 mm and 90 mm, respectively. Deck height for the 4.6 block is 227 mm and connecting rod length is 150.7 mm center to center, cylinder bore spacing measures 100 mm, which is common to all members of the Modular engine family. All Modular V8s, save for the new 5.0 L Coyote, the 4.6 L engines have been assembled at Romeo Engine Plant, located in Romeo, MI, and at Windsor Engine Plant and Essex Engine Plant, both located in Windsor, Ontario. The final 4.6 L engine was produced in May 2014, the engine was a 2-valve version and installed in a 2014 model year Ford E-Series van
36.
V8 engine
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A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder V configuration engine with the cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two sets of four, with all eight pistons driving a common crankshaft. Most banks are set at an angle to each other, some at a narrower angle, with 45°, 60°. In its simplest form, the V8 is basically two parallel inline-four engines sharing a common crankshaft, since the 1920s, most V8s have used the somewhat more complex crossplane crankshaft with heavy counterweights to eliminate the vibrations. This results in an engine that is smoother than a V6, most racing V8s continue to use the single plane crankshaft because it allows faster acceleration and more efficient exhaust system designs. In 1902, Léon Levavasseur took out a patent on a light and he called it the Antoinette after the young daughter of his financial backer. From 1904 he installed this engine in a number of competition speedboats, the aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont saw one of these boats in Côte dAzur and decided to try it on his 14-bis aircraft. Its early 24 hp at 1400 rpm version with only 55 kg of weight was interesting, Santos-Dumont ordered a larger and more powerful version from Levavasseur. He changed its dimensions from the original 80 mm stroke and 80 mm bore to 105 mm stroke and 110 mm bore, obtaining 50 hp with 86 kg of weight and its power-to-weight ratio was not surpassed for 25 years. Levavasseur eventually produced its own line of V8 equipped aircraft, named Antoinette I to VIII, hubert Latham piloted the V8 powered Antoinette IV and Antoinette VII in July 1909 on two failed attempts to cross the English Channel. However, in 1910, Latham used the VII with the engine to become the first in the world to reach an altitude of 3600 feet. Voisin constructed pusher biplanes with Antoinette engines, also, notably the one first flown successfully by Henry Farman in 1908, the V8 engine configuration became popular in France from 1904 onward, and was used in a number of aircraft engines introduced by Renault, and Buchet among others. Some of these found their way into automobiles in small quantities. In 1905, Darracq built a car to beat the world speed record. They came up with two racing car built on a common crankcase and camshaft. The result was monstrous engine with a displacement of 1,551 cu in, victor Hemery fixed that record on 30 December 1905 with a speed of 109.65 mph. Rolls-Royce built a 3,535 cc V8 car from 1905 to 1906, in 1907 The Hewitt Motor Company built a large 5 passenger Touring Car. It was equipped with a hefty V8 engine that developed 50/60 horsepower and had a bore of 4 inches, the Hewitt was the first American Automobile to be equipped with a V8 engine. De Dion-Bouton introduced a 7,773 cc automobile V8 in 1910 and it was produced only in small quantities, but inspired a number of manufacturers to follow suit
37.
Transmission (mechanics)
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A transmission is a machine in a power transmission system, which provides controlled application of the power. Often the term refers simply to the gearbox that uses gears and gear trains to provide speed. In British English, the term refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft, differential. In American English, however, the term more specifically to the gearbox alone. The most common use is in vehicles, where the transmission adapts the output of the internal combustion engine to the drive wheels. Such engines need to operate at a high rotational speed, which is inappropriate for starting, stopping. The transmission reduces the engine speed to the slower wheel speed. Transmissions are also used on bicycles, fixed machines. Often, a transmission has multiple gear ratios with the ability to switch between them as speed varies and this switching may be done manually or automatically. Directional control may also be provided, single-ratio transmissions also exist, which simply change the speed and torque of motor output. The output of the transmission is transmitted via the driveshaft to one or more differentials, while a differential may also provide gear reduction, its primary purpose is to permit the wheels at either end of an axle to rotate at different speeds as it changes the direction of rotation. Conventional gear/belt transmissions are not the mechanism for speed/torque adaptation. Alternative mechanisms include torque converters and power transformation, automatic transmissions use a valve body to shift gears using fluid pressures in conjunction with an ecm. Early transmissions included the right-angle drives and other gearing in windmills, horse-powered devices, and steam engines, in support of pumping, milling, most modern gearboxes are used to increase torque while reducing the speed of a prime mover output shaft. This means that the shaft of a gearbox rotates at a slower rate than the input shaft. A gearbox can be set up to do the opposite and provide an increase in speed with a reduction of torque. Some of the simplest gearboxes merely change the rotational direction of power transmission. Many typical automobile transmissions include the ability to select one of several gear ratios, in this case, most of the gear ratios are used to slow down the output speed of the engine and increase torque
38.
Wheelbase
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In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles, the wheelbase is defined as the distance between the axle and the centerpoint of the driving axle group. In the case of a truck, the wheelbase would be the distance between the steering axle and a point midway between the two rear axles. The wheelbase of a vehicle equals the distance between its front and rear wheels, at equilibrium, the total torque of the forces acting on a vehicle is zero. So, for example, when a truck is loaded, its center of gravity shifts rearward, the amount the vehicle sinks will depend on counter acting forces like the size of the tires, tire pressure, and the stiffness of the suspension. If the vehicle is accelerating or decelerating, extra torque is placed on the rear or front tire respectively, so, as is common experience, when the vehicle accelerates, the rear usually sinks and the front rises depending on the suspension. Likewise, when braking the front noses down and the rear rises, because of the effect the wheelbase has on the weight distribution of the vehicle, wheelbase dimensions are crucial to the balance and steering. For example, a car with a greater weight load on the rear tends to understeer due to the lack of the load on the front tires. This is why it is crucial, when towing a single-axle caravan, likewise, a car may oversteer or even spin out if there is too much force on the front tires and not enough on the rear tires. Also, when turning there is lateral torque placed upon the tires which imparts a turning force that depends upon the length of the distances from the CM. Wheelbases provide the basis for one of the most common vehicle size class systems, some luxury vehicles are offered with long-wheelbase variants to increase the spaciousness and therefore the luxury of the vehicle. Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair was given a version of the Rover 75 for official use. In contrast, coupé varieties of vehicles such as the Honda Accord are usually built on shorter wheelbases than the sedans they are derived from. The wheelbase on many commercially available bicycles and motorcycles is so short, relative to the height of their centers of mass, in skateboarding the word wheelbase is used for the distance between the two inner pairs of mounting holes on the deck. This is different from the distance between the centers of the two wheel pairs. A reason for this use is that decks are sold with prefabricated holes. It is therefore easier to use the holes for measuring and describing this characteristic of the deck. A common misconception is that the choice of wheelbase is influenced by the height of the skateboarder, however, the length of the deck would then be a better candidate, because the wheelbase affects characteristics useful in different speeds or terrains regardless of the height of the skateboarder
39.
Chevrolet Caprice
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The Chevrolet Caprice is a full-sized automobile produced by Chevrolet in North America for the 1965 to 1996 model years. Full-size Chevrolet sales peaked in 1965 with over a million sold and it was the most popular American car in the sixties and early seventies, which, during its lifetime, included the Biscayne, Bel Air, and Impala. The 1971 to 1976 models are the largest Chevrolets ever built, the downsized 1977 and restyled 1991 models were awarded Motor Trend Car of the Year. The Caprice name was coined by Bob Lund after a restaurant he frequented in New York City. Some say the car was named after Caprice Chapman, daughter of auto executive, a Caprice Custom Sedan option package was offered on the 1965 Chevrolet Impala 4-door hardtop, adding $200 to the $2,742 price tag. Full wheel covers were the same as that years Super Sport, the Super Sports blackout rear trim panel was also used, without the Impala SS nameplate. The interior featured a higher-grade cloth and vinyl seat and door trim, faux walnut trim on the dashboard and door panels, pull straps on the doors, a full vinyl roof was optional. A283 cu in,195 hp V8 engine was standard, the Caprice was intended to compete with the Ford LTD, Plymouth VIP, AMCs Ambassador DPL, and even the smaller Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. These models included luxuriously upholstered interiors with simulated wood dashboard and door-panel trim, thicker carpeting, sound insulation, courtesy lighting, Caprice gained series status for the 1966 model year, and was positioned as the top-line full-size Chevrolet. It included a hardtop, six- or nine-passenger station wagon. The Caprice Estate, a new station wagon model with simulated woodgrain trim was the first Chevrolet woodie wagon since 1954. All wagons featured a bench seat interior. A V8 engine was standard for Caprice models, while features such as an automatic transmission, power steering, white sidewall tires, and vinyl top were extra-cost options, most were built with these options. According to some journalists at the time, a fully optioned Caprice could rival the appearance, comfort, lenses and silver trim on Caprices differed slightly from the other full-sized models. Sedans and coupe models included luxurious cloth and vinyl bench seats with a center armrest in the rear seat. Optional on both was a Strato bench seat which combined bucket-style seat backs and center armrest with a cushion for six-passenger seating. Caprices had unique standard wheel covers, although some of the optional wheels, New options included the Comfortron air conditioning system where the driver could set a constant year-round temperature. A Tilt/Telescopic steering wheel option could be adjusted vertically in six positions, the 1965-70 GM B platform is the fourth best selling automobile platform in history after the Volkswagen Beetle, Ford Model T, and the Lada Riva
40.
Drag coefficient
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In fluid dynamics, the drag coefficient is a dimensionless quantity that is used to quantify the drag or resistance of an object in a fluid environment, such as air or water. It is used in the equation in which a lower drag coefficient indicates the object will have less aerodynamic or hydrodynamic drag. The drag coefficient is associated with a particular surface area. The drag coefficient of any object comprises the effects of the two contributors to fluid dynamic drag, skin friction and form drag. The drag coefficient of an airfoil or hydrofoil also includes the effects of lift-induced drag. The drag coefficient of a structure such as an aircraft also includes the effects of interference drag. The reference area depends on type of drag coefficient is being measured. For automobiles and many objects, the reference area is the projected frontal area of the vehicle. This may not necessarily be the sectional area of the vehicle. For example, for a sphere A = π r 2, for airfoils, the reference area is the nominal wing area. Since this tends to be compared to the frontal area, the resulting drag coefficients tend to be low, much lower than for a car with the same drag, frontal area. Airships and some bodies of revolution use the drag coefficient. Submerged streamlined bodies use the surface area. Two objects having the same reference area moving at the speed through a fluid will experience a drag force proportional to their respective drag coefficients. Coefficients for unstreamlined objects can be 1 or more, for streamlined objects much less, cd is not a constant but varies as a function of flow speed, flow direction, object position, object size, fluid density and fluid viscosity. Speed, kinematic viscosity and a length scale of the object are incorporated into a dimensionless quantity called the Reynolds number R e. C d is thus a function of R e, in a compressible flow, the speed of sound is relevant, and C d is also a function of Mach number M a. For certain body shapes, the drag coefficient C d only depends on the Reynolds number R e, Mach number M a, for low Mach number M a, the drag coefficient is independent of Mach number
41.
Ford Aerostar
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The Ford Aerostar is a minivan that was manufactured and marketed by Ford for the 1986 to 1997 model years in the United States and Canada, a limited number were exported outside North America. Several major components of the Aerostar would be derived from the Ford Ranger, during most of its production run. The role of the version has been most directly replaced by the Transit Connect. A total of 2,029,577 Aerostars were produced from 1985 to 1997, all production was sourced from the now-closed St. Louis Assembly Plant in Hazelwood, Missouri. At Ford, development of a minivan began in the early 1970s as a model to the Econoline full-size van. Dubbed Carousel, the vehicle was given a lower roofline and a rear body surrounded by glass, sharing its chassis with the standard-wheelbase van, the Carousel prototype was powered by a 460 cubic inches V8 and an automatic transmission. In a key indication of its market, the Carousel wore a rear tailgate with a drop-down rear window with simulated exterior woodgrain trim. Inside, it was fitted with two bench seats with interior trim similar to the Ford Country Squire and Mercury Colony Park. While the Carousel received a response by many Ford executives for a potential 1976 introduction. While financial constraints forced the company to divert funds towards critical projects, in 1978, Lee Iaccoca and Hal Sperlich left Ford and were hired by Chrysler, leading to the eventual development of the Chrysler minivans. While sharing the garageable van concept of the Ford Carousel, the 1984 Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager would become far different vehicles in terms of layout and engineering. During the early 1980s, as information became known about the development of the Chrysler minivans, the energy crises of the late 1970s made fuel economy a high priority of vehicle design, as such, simply downsizing the Econoline was not a competitive option for Ford. To lower weight, the new minivan would use plastic in the bumpers, fuel tank, rear door, and hood with aluminum used for the driveshafts, axles, and wheels. The use of Ranger/Bronco II parts would also make for major fuel economy gains over a vehicle based upon the F-Series/E-Series trucks, unique to the chassis was the rear suspension, a 3-link coil spring suspension with a live rear axle, it was designed specifically for the minivan. Although it would become the first Ford truck to use of a unibody chassis. To reinforce the chassis for towing and overall rigidity, the platform was designed with full-length integrated frame rails. The addition provided the Aerostar with the same 5,000 pounds tow rating as the Astro/Safari, the front suspension consisted of unequal length A-arms through its entire production. The lower A-arm was changed to accommodate the E-4WD option from 1990 onward, the Aerostar differed from all other Ford light trucks in its rear suspension configuration as well
42.
Ford E-Series
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The Ford E-Series is a range of full-size vans produced by Ford Motor Company. Introduced for the 1961 model year as the replacement for the Ford F-Series panel van, in addition to cargo van and passenger van body styles, the Ford E-Series has been produced as a cutaway van chassis and stripped chassis. With a 56-year production run, the Ford E-Series is the second longest-produced nameplate by Ford worldwide, for the 2015 model year, the Ford E-Series cargo/passenger vans were replaced in North America by the Ford Transit introduced worldwide in 2013. As of the 2017 model year, only cutaway and stripped chassis configurations of the E-Series are produced, since 2006, the E-Series has been assembled at the Ford Motor Company Ohio Assembly plant in Avon Lake, Ohio. From 1961 to 2005, the Ford E-Series was assembled at Lorain Assembly in Lorain, commercial or fleet users represented 95% of sales, with cargo vans accounting for nearly half of production. Based on the compact Ford Falcon automobile, the first Ford Econoline was introduced to the public on September 21,1960 for the 1961 model year based on sketches that were dated 1957. The Ford models were sized to compete with the Chevrolet Greenbrier, Dodge A100, and the Volkswagen Type 2, the Volkswagen van had made an impact on the marketplace, thus Dodge, Chevrolet and Ford responded with their own versions. Originally offered as a van, a window van with or without seats with up to three rows of seating, offering a maximum eight-passenger capacity, and as a pickup truck. A165 lb counterweight was fitted over the wheels to balance the front-heavy vehicle. The 1961 Econoline made Ford the first American manufacturer to offer a van series as it is now known, early models had a 144 cu in I6 engine with a three-speed manual transmission. Later models had 170 cu in or 240 cu in I6 engines with a manual or an automatic transmission. Ford had projections for building more Econoline pickups than vans, but buyers preferred conventional body design and these closed van body versions were popular as service vehicles, such as with utilities like the Bell Telephone System. In its first year,29,932 standard vans,6,571 custom Econoline buses,11,893 standard pickups, the Econoline was sold as a Mercury alongside the M-Series truck lineup. For 1966 and 1967, Lorain-built Econolines were exported to Canada, production numbers were low, for example, a total of 1,291 Mercury Econoline pickup trucks were built in 1965. Only the first generation of Econolines were sold under the Mercury badge in Canada, the next van sold by the division would be the 1993 Villager minivan. Instead of calling it a 1968 or 1968.5 model, shedding its Falcon roots, the second-generation Econoline became a heavier-duty vehicle, sharing many of its underpinnings with the F-Series full-size pickups. While the unibody construction of the previous generation van was carried over, as they had become introduced as options in Dodge and Chevrolet/GMC vans, Ford introduced a V8 engine option into the powertrain line. With the change of chassis and axle configurations, the Econoline gained a conventional hood for engine access, to aid in engine compartment ventilation, the model was given a conventional grille, styled similar to the F-Series
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Ford Explorer
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The Ford Explorer is a full-size sport utility vehicle produced by the American manufacturer Ford since 1990, based since 2010 on a crossover platform. The Ford Explorer became one of the most popular sport utility vehicles on the road, the model years 1991 through 2010 were traditional body-on-frame, mid-size SUVs. It is slotted between the traditional body-on-frame, full-size Ford Expedition and the mid-size CUV Ford Edge, although outwardly similar, the fifth generation Explorer, Ford Edge and Ford Escape do not share platforms. The fifth generation Explorer does, however, share platforms with the Ford Flex, the original Explorer has also been involved in controversy, after a spate of fatal rollover accidents in the 1990s involving Explorers fitted with Firestone tires. Both two-door Explorer Sport and four-door models of Explorer have been sold, part-time four-wheel drive is an available option, and since 1995 this has been a shift on the fly system with full protection against being engaged at high speed. A specially modified Special Service Vehicle version is available from Ford Fleet for law enforcement agencies, fire departments. Explorer was also the name of a package offered on the Ford F-Series trucks from 1968 to 1986. The 2011 Ford Explorer was named North American Truck of the Year, the Ford Explorer was introduced in March 1990 for the 1991 model year. First generation Explorers were equipped with the then new 155 hp 4.0 L Cologne V-6, manufactured in Cologne, vehicles came with either Fords own 4-speed A4LD automatic transmission, built in France, or Mazdas 5-speed M5OD manual transmission. Like the Bronco II it replaced, it was an SUV derivative of the Ranger pickup, like its direct competitor, the Chevrolet S-10 Blazer, Explorers were available in both 3-door and 5-door body styles and with either rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive. The four-wheel drive versions were equipped with a Borg Warner 13–54 part-time four-wheel drive transfer case, the 13–54 was available with either Touch Drive electronic push-button shifting or manual lever-operated shifting. Both were shift-on-the-fly designs that allowed the SUVs to be shifted from two-wheel drive to four-high at any speed, all Explorers were equipped with the Ford 8.8 axle in either a limited slip or open version with a variety of available gear ratios. Four-wheel-drive front axles were the TTB Dana 35 with some Dana 44-spec components, Explorers initially came in 4 trim levels, the base model XL, XLT, Sport, and the upscale Eddie Bauer edition. For the 1993 model year, engine output was increased by 5 hp for a total of 160 hp. The Limited edition, added for the 1993 model year, was only in the 5-door body style and was positioned at the top of the lineup above the Eddie Bauer edition. The grill and headlight trims on the Limited edition were paint-matched to the body color, similar to the 5-door Ford Explorer, the 3-door Explorer Sport model came in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive variants. It replaced the Ford Bronco II as Fords 3-door mid-size SUV, a variant of the Explorer Sport was sold by Mazda as the Navajo, which won Motor Trend Truck of the Year award, until it was discontinued in 1994. The A4LD was also known to suffer premature failure of the gear when used to frequently tow or haul heavy loads
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Corporate average fuel economy
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The Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended by the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act, requires that the U. S. DOT has delegated the responsibilities to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Congress established both of these provisions explicitly in EPCA, as amended in 2007 by EISA. In addition, a Gas Guzzler Tax is levied on individual passenger car models that get less than 22.5 miles per US gallon, a complicated 2011 mathematical formula was replaced starting in 2012 with a simpler inverse-linear formula with cutoff values. CAFE footprint requirements are set up such that a vehicle with a larger footprint has a fuel economy requirement than a vehicle with a smaller footprint. e. 17 miles per US gallon published, individual vehicles do not have to meet their fuel economy targets, CAFE compliance is enforced at the fleet level. The compliance fuel economy of electric vehicles such as the Plug-in Prius or LEAF is complicated by accounting for the energy used in generating electricity. CAFE has separate standards for cars and light trucks even if the majority of light trucks are being used as passenger vehicles. The market share of light trucks grew steadily from 9. 7% in 1979 to 47% in 2001, more than 500,000 vehicles in the 1999 model year exceeded the 8,500 lb GVWR cutoff and were thus omitted from CAFE calculations. More recently, coverage of medium duty trucks has been added to the CAFE regulations starting in 2012, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration regulates CAFE standards and the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency measures vehicle fuel efficiency. Thus higher fuel efficiency was associated with traffic safety, intertwining the issues of fuel economy, road-traffic safety, air pollution. In the mid-2000s, increasing safety of cars and the poor safety record of light trucks began to reverse this association. In 2002, a committee of the National Academy of Sciences wrote a report on the effects of the CAFE standard. One cost of this increase in economy is a possible increase in fatalities, estimated to be 1,300 to 2,600 increased fatalities in 1993. In the case of cars, U. S. Most recently, fuel economy has increased about one mpg from 2006 to 2007 and this increase is due primarily to increased fuel efficiency of imported cars. S. consumers would otherwise have to pay. Reductions in petroleum demand in the United States helped create the collapse of OPEC market power in 1986, fleet fuel economy is calculated using a harmonic mean, not a simple arithmetic mean – namely, the reciprocal of the average of the reciprocal values. For the purposes of CAFE, a manufacturers car output is divided into a domestic fleet, each of these fleets must separately meet the requirements. The two-fleet requirement was developed by the United Automobile Workers as a means to ensure job creation in the United States, the UAW successfully lobbied Congress to write this provision into the enabling legislation – and continues to advocate this position
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Ford Festiva
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The Ford Festiva is a subcompact car that was marketed by Ford between 1986 and 2002. Festiva was sold in Japan, the Americas, and Australasia, the name Festiva is derived from the Spanish word for festive. It was not related to the similarly sized and named Ford Fiesta, and was not replaced by the Ford Ka, South Korean first generation sales began in 1987 under the name Kia Pride, assembled by Kia under license. Australasia and Europe received the first version between 1987 and 1991 as the Mazda 121, after 1991, Australasian sales occurred under the Ford Festiva name, while European sales continued under the name Kia Pride. Kia ended production of the Pride in 2000, although SAIPA of Iran has produced this model in various forms since 2001. This ongoing production has been in parallel to the second generation Festiva introduced in 1993, sold as the Ford Aspire in North America and Kia Avella in South Korea and other markets. Although these second generations models were withdrawn in 2000, a generation was sold between 1996 and 2002 in Japan as a badge-engineered version of the Mazda Demio. The first generation Ford Festiva was designed by Mazda in Japan at the request of parent company Ford, the Mazda-designed and built three-door hatchback was launched in Japan in February 1986 under the name Ford Festiva, with the 1.1 and 1. 3-liter engines. The Festiva was facelifted in 1989, receiving a redesigned grille insert, in Japan at launch, the Festiva three-door was offered in L, L Special, S, Ghia, and Canvas Top specification levels. Ford retailed the Japanese market Festiva via the Autorama dealership network, at the 1987 Tokyo Motor Show, the sporty GT and GT-X models were shown, with a unique twin-cam 1. 3-liter engine. It has a body kit and a prominent bonnet bulge. In mid-1986, another Ford partner, Kia Motors in South Korea began production of the Festiva under license as the Kia Pride. Starting from mid-1987 for the 1988 model year, Kia began exports to Canada under the Ford Festiva name, Ford offered a single 1. 3-liter B3 four-cylinder engine and three trim levels, L, L Plus, and LX. The two base models featured a manual overdrive transmission, with the LX upgraded to a five-speed unit. A tachometer and tilt steering wheel also featured on the LX trim, as did alloy wheels, remote mirrors, cloth interior seating, Ford released a minor facelift in North America for the 1990 model year. Ford also replaced the front seat belts with motorized versions. For the 1991 model year, the L Plus and LX models were combined into a single GL trim, optional power steering was deleted for 1992, and the GL gained alloy wheels and the availability of a sport package. The final 1993 model year brought no changes, over the life of the Festiva in the United States, Kia exported roughly 350,000 units
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Lincoln Continental Mark VII
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The Continental Mark VII, later changed to Lincoln Mark VII, is a rear wheel drive luxury coupe that was produced by Lincoln. Introduced in August 1983 for the 1984 model year, the Continental Mark VII shared its platform with the Ford Thunderbird, Mercury Cougar, the Fox platform was originally introduced for the 1978 Ford Fairmont and Mercury Zephyr. The same platform was also utilized as the base for the 1982 -1987 Lincoln Continental sedan - the Mark VIIs four-door companion, like its predecessor the Lincoln Continental Mark VI, the Mark VII was manufactured at the Wixom Assembly Plant in Wixom, Michigan through 1992. It was replaced by the Lincoln Mark VIII in 1993, the Mark VII held a lengthy standard equipment list, including an onboard trip computer / message center and digital instruments. Mark VIIs also came with air suspension at all four wheels. The 1985 LSC was the first American vehicle with electronic 4-channel anti-lock brakes, the Continental Mark VII was introduced in August 1983 for the 1984 model year. It was available in a trim level, Designer Edition. A new sport-oriented upper trim level was introduced with this generation, to back its image as a technically advanced car for the 1980s, the Mark VII was equipped with a long list of standard equipment. A fully digital dashboard featured a trip computer and message center. Other standard features included four-wheel air suspension, four-wheel disc brakes, power seats, an AM/FM stereo, and power windows, locks, all models were now installed with Fords Keyless Entry System, and an automatic dimming high-beam module. This worked via a sensor located adjacent to the rear-view mirror, the Mark VII was the first American manufactured vehicle to be equipped with a replaceable bulb headlamp system. Ford had petitioned NHTSA for a rule change permitting replaceable bulb headlamp systems, the dealer-installed GTC performance option package is introduced. As they have largely replaced by cassette tapes, the 8-track tape player option is discontinued. An in-car telephone is added to the options list for $2,995, other visual changes involved the addition of a federally mandated center brake light. The rarely-seen BMW diesel was dropped from the line, as was the Versace Edition, a number of changes were made for the LSC for 1986 to differentiate it from the rest of the Mark VII line. To update its image, the 1986 LSC was given analog gauges in place of the all-digital dash. Largely unchanged from 1986, a running change late in 1987 production added the 225 hp 5. 0L H. O. to a number of LSC models. 1987 would be the last year the Mark VII offered an optional CB radio, since vent windows had all but disappeared on American automobiles by the 1980s, the option for them was discontinued for 1987
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Ford Taurus SHO
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The Ford Taurus SHO is the high-performance variant of the Ford Taurus. It was originally produced by Ford from 1988 until 1999 and it returned in 2009 for the 2010 model year. The SHO was built by the team that produced the Ford Mustang SVT Cobra. It was originally created as a production model for 1989. However, the car proved to be popular and sold 15,519 units in its first model year, leading Ford to order more engines. The SHO would go on to be produced for ten years in three generations, totaling 106,465 vehicles as of late 1999, there has been some confusion about the original intended use of the engine. It was thought this engine was first intended to power a mid-engine sports car, patents have been found and pictures of prototype SHO powerplants installed in the Taurus show that the original intent was for the larger FWD setup and the GN34 would have come later. There were a few GN34 prototypes produced, most with standard Vulcan engines and a few other factory swaps, production of the SHO came to an end after the 1999 model year due to plummeting sales. In 1999, just over 3,000 SHOs were sold, the SHO was revamped with the Sixth Generation Taurus for the 2010 model year. The SHO differed from the normal Taurus on the exterior by having a Mercury Sable hood, different bumpers, side cladding, the interior also differed, with sports seats and an 8000 rpm tachometer. The SHO had a Yamaha Built V-6 engine that redlined at 7,000 RPM, Car and Driver reported in their December 1989 issue a top speed of 143 mph. A special edition of the SHO called the Plus package became available in late 1990, there were also some SHOs that came with only part of the package options known in the community as a partial plus. White painted pluses had the option of white painted slicer wheels,1991 was the only year that a Mocha Frost color option was offered. Also in 91 a green called Deep Jewel Green Clearcoat Metallic was available, the SHO was redesigned for 1992, although it continued with the same powertrain as before, The Yamaha Built V-6 engine and 5-speed manual transmission. The second generation SHO borrowed from the Mercury Sables front fenders, hood, and headlights, but used a different bumper, fog lamps, the SHO also got unique seats, side cladding, dual exhaust, as well as a unique rear bumper. 1992 models can be identified by not containing a rear trunklid spoiler, having downturned exhaust tips. For MY1993, the brakes on the SHO were converted to solid discs. The lack of a transmission had hurt sales, which was a situation that Ford rectified for MY1993
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