Ford Fiesta ST 5-Door Concept to Receive World Premiere at LA Auto Show

At the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show in September, Ford previewed its upcoming Fiesta ST with a thinly disguised concept based on the three-door hatchback model.

Now, the Detroit-based carmaker is heading to this month's Los Angeles Auto Show with a five-door hatchback variant of the Fiesta ST that should give us a taste of the North American model.

“With the Fiesta ST Concept, we are demonstrating that our global performance plan has legs," says Jost Capito, Ford director of Global Performance Vehicles

"The Fiesta ST Concept shows in the most dramatic way possible that the qualities that define an ST are not limited to one model [the Focus ST]. The potential for delivering the ST experience to an even wider audience is laid bare by this exciting new concept," he added.

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Shocker: Ford Slaps a $39,995* Sticker on Pure-Electric 2012 Focus EV

Ask any owner of a Nissan Leaf or Chevrolet Volt, and they'll tell you that going green comes at a cost – not necessarily at the electric outlet, but at the dealership.

Same goes for Ford's foray into the electric-car market, the all-new 2012 Focus EV that carries an MSRP of $39,200 plus a $795 delivery and handling fee* that brings the total to $39,975. That's more than double the cost of the entry-level Focus SE 5-door hatchback.

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Watch a Florida State Trooper Arrest a Fellow Officer in a Police Car for Speeding!

Just when you felt life was getting a little bit mundane, along comes this video to remind you that anything can happen in this crazy world.

A Florida highway patrol trooper who was identified by the Miami Herald daily as D.J. Watts, is making headlines today after a dash cam video showed her arresting a fellow Miami officer in a marked police car for –wait for it- speeding!

The footage shows Watts chasing Miami Police Officer Fausto López, 35, after he repeatedly ignored her warnings to stop and drove to speeds of up to 120mph (193km/h) on Florida’s Turnpike in Broward County.

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Ford Begins Teasing 2013 Escape SUV with Preview of Hands-Free Power Liftback [Video]

Leave it to Ford to begin teasing a new model with random pieces of information and video and/or photo material.

Fortunately though, there's not much time left before the 2013 Ford Escape makes its world premiere at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show that will stay open for the public from November 18 to 27.

Following some revealing details on the new global Escape's engine lineup, Ford today released a single teaser image and a video highlighting the SUV's "segment-first hands-free power liftgate", which opens with a kicking gesture under the rear bumper and without the need to search for the key (though you will need to have it in your pocket).

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Ford–Approved Body Shell Allows You to Build a '64-'66 Mustang Convertible from the Ground Up

Sure, a fully restored first generation Ford Mustang Convertible with matching chassis and engine numbers is something that many car nuts dream of, but what if you could build a brand new example from the wheels up using officially licensed parts?

Ford now offers this opportunity with the release of an officially licensed 1965 Mustang Convertible body shell that can be turned into a ’64½, ’65 or ’66 model, depending on the trim and powertrain that is installed during the rebuild.

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Ford’s Reliability Suffers in Consumer Reports Survey, Japanese Brands Rule and Europeans are a Mixed Bag

Consumer Reports has published its 2011 annual auto survey in which the main point of interest, as the report states, is a sharp decline in Ford’s so far “solid reliability record”: the Detroit carmaker dropped 10 places in the overall reliability ranks.

According to CR's survey, which is based on responses from 1.3 million vehicles owners, Ford’s drop from 10th to 20th place among 28 carmakers can be attributed to two main factors. The first is that all three of Ford’s new models, i.e. the Explorer, Fiesta and Focus, scored below average in reliability in their first year on the market.

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All-New Ford Ranger is the First Pickup Ever to be Awarded 5 Stars in Euro NCAP Crash Tests

Ford’s new Ranger is the first pickup tested by the Euro NCAP safety organization to achieve a five-star top rating. The Ranger’s overall score was 89%, which is not only the best ever recorded by a pickup, but one of the highest regardless of class.

Surprisingly, given that it is a pickup, it also managed to receive the best rating ever for pedestrian protection among the cars tested by the Euro NCAP since it was established in 1997, with an 81% score.

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Ford to Invade SEMA Show with New Focus and Fiesta Tunes

We're a little less than two weeks away from this year's edition of the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, which means it's time for major carmakers to begin teasing their bespoke creations.

Ford promises to have a little something for everyone at the show, from "mild to wild" and "old to new" though the company will pay a whole lot of attention to its compact Fiesta and Focus models.

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Weak USD Makes Small Car Imports Expensive, American Buyers Turn to Domestic Brands

Is a weak dollar a good thing? If you’re asking the U.S. car industry, it most definitely is. Imported car prices have reached their highest point in the last 12 years, thus driving some of their prospective buyers away.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, in August the average price of an imported car reached a record high of $31,536. That makes the price difference between a comparable domestic-made car $7,614, which is the largest since December 1999.

Add to that the severe supply issues faced by the Japanese manufacturers, who are only now starting to recover from the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake, and it’s easy to see why more and more American car buyers are choosing domestic brands instead.

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Tanner Foust Takes 350HP Ford Focus RS500 for a Spin Around the 'Ring [Video]

Professional race car driver and American Top Gear host Tanner Foust was invited to Germany by Ford of Europe to try out the limited production Focus RS500 hot hatch on the famous Nordschleife circuit.

The refresh your memory, the RS500 was a special edition version of the standard Focus RS equipped with a modified 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-five delivering 350-horses to the front wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox. Ford only made 500 examples of the car available to the public and 12 units for its own use.

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New Ford Contract Approved by United Auto Workers Union

Ford announced today that it has sealed a deal for a new four-year contract with the United Auto Workers union that covers approximately 41,000 employees.

According to the new labor contract, Ford will add 12,000 hourly jobs over the next four years in its US facilities, bringing home production from overseas operations in Mexico, China and Japan.

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Tjin Edition Preparing 2012 Ford Explorer and Mustang GT 5.0 for the SEMA Show

As usual, the upcoming SEMA Show in Las Vegas will be crowded with plenty of one-off and accessorized vehicles from most carmakers. As a preview, the crew over at Tjin Edition have released some up skirt photos of two of the Ford models they are currently working on in partnership with the Detroit automaker.

First up is Tjin Edition's take on the 2012 Ford Explorer. The teaser picture only provides a glimpse of the tuned crossover model, but the company has shared some initial details.

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Grateful Ford Designer Auctions One-Off Mustang Boss 302 for Charity

Melvin Betancourt is a Ford designer who 11 years ago, suffered a serious heart problem. Betancourt is now 49 years old and in good health, thanks to the doctors at Henry Ford Hospital who performed a very difficult open-heart surgery and saved his life.

Wanting to give something back, a grateful Betancourt decided to design a one-off 2012 Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca that will be auctioned off to benefit the cardiovascular care, research and education departments at the Henry Ford Health System.

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Video: Gymkhana on a Really, Really Tight Budget

Sick and tired of watching Ken Block flashing around his very expensive automotive toys? The crew over at YouTube channel "LeakingDuck" feels your pain so they created a little something to cheer you up.

LeakingDuck explains: "Let's do a little experiment : Do we really need a 600HP all wheel drive rally car driven by Ken Block to do a cool video ? Or any budget at all for that matter ? Let's see if it works."

You can see if it "works" for yourself by following the jump to watch the video.

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Woman Designs a Unique Necklace Piece out of…Ford Focus Parts

Chevrolet isn't the only company to have its centennial this year; so is Ford, or to be more precise, the Blue Oval is celebrating 100 years of Ford in Britain as the company itself was founded in 1903.

As part of the company’s Centenary Tour, which is a month-long event, Ford of Britain commissioned Cornish designer, Katherine Hawkins, to craft a unique piece of jewelry made out of select Ford Focus parts.

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Chrysler LLC and UAW Reach an Agreement over New Contract

After General Motors and Ford, Chrysler is the last of Detroit's Big Three to reach an agreement with the United Auto Workers union.

The new four-year contract, which is the first after Chrysler’s 2009 bailout and the Fiat deal, covers UAW’s 26,000 Chrysler workers and will create 2,100 new jobs, with Chrysler committing to invest US$4.5 billion in its US plants.

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Imported from Detroit? Made in the USA Foundation Doesn’t think so, Sues Chrysler and Ford

Chrysler's “Imported from Detroit” campaign that began airing during the Super Bowl earlier this year and continued with several more spots later on, has grasped the interest of viewers and consumers alike.

Unfortunately for Chrysler, it has also caught the attention of the Made in the USA Foundation, which filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against Chrysler's claims for false advertising. And it’s not only Chrysler as the non-profit consumer group is also targeting Ford for the same reason.

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Seven Major Carmakers Agree on a Common EV Charging Protocol

ACEA, the European car manufacturers’ association, recently called for a common electric vehicle charging standard to be adopted by all automakers. This would be the ideal solution for a unified infrastructure, which in turn, would further boost EV sales.

No sooner had the association’s call been published and seven major manufacturers from Europe and the U.S. but oddly enough, not from Japan, namely Audi, BMW, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and Volkswagen, announced an agreement to support “a harmonized single-port fast charging approach” for electric vehicles in Europe and North America.

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SPY SHOTS: 2013 Ford Mondeo Prototype Snapped in Station Wagon Trim

The end of the current European market Mondeo and North American Fusion is nearing as Ford is ramping up tests of a new common replacement for both models in the mid-size category.

We've already shown you spy pictures of the sedan model, but now our scoopers captured a test-mule of the station wagon derivative. It’s too early for Ford to talk about availability, but it's fairly certain that the Estate version of the next Mondeo/Fusion series will not be sold in the States.

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Ford to Debut All-New 2013 Escape with 1.6-liter and 2.0-liter EcoBoost Engines at LA Auto Show

The rapidly approaching 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show that takes place for the public from November 18 to 27, will play host to the world premiere of the next global Ford model, the all-new 2013 Escape.

As is the case with the current Fiesta and Focus, the compact SUV will be offered in the same form worldwide, replacing the current North American Escape as well as the Kuga in Europe and other markets around the globe.

Ford gave us a preview of the 2013 Escape with the Vetrek concept study at this year's Detroit Motor Show in January. Aside from the presentation date, Ford also revealed details about the SUV's powertrain options.

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