Automotive Trends

      As the Ford Explorer enters into its 21st model year, the vehicle itself attempts to redefine a segment which it led through years of prosperity. Once referred to as the ‘compact SUV,’ the genre has changed in recent years. The original Explorer was little more than a lightly re-skinned Bronco II offered in 2-door and stretched 4-door form. Eventually the 2-door would vanish and the 4-door would add a third row of seats, but one thing stayed constant all those years: body-on-frame construction. For 2011 Ford is taking a small gamble that SUV buyers don’t really care about what type of platform their vehicle is based on. Read more…

Ford Free of Style?

    The suits must have finally tired of watching paying customers bypass the Blue Oval store on their way to make a down payment on a Chrysler Pacifica, because it didn’t take long for Ford to jump onboard the crossover train. It may be a few years late to the party but Ford’s entrant is here nonetheless. The Freestyle is the vehicle that the bean counters hope will claim a piece of the ever-expanding crossover pie for the house that Henry built. But to do that it will have to offer generous doses of comfort, value, safety and drivability. A bit of style wouldn’t hurt either. Read more…