My experiences with the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor in the past were confined mostly to paved roads--hardly the right environment to get a good feel for this wild beast of a pickup. While the truck offers major appeal in the styling and suspension departments, the 5.4-liter, 310-hp, 365-lb-ft V8 just didn't seem to live up to the bat-out-of-hell tradition of its SVT truck predecessor, the F-150 Lightning.
All that changed when Ford invited us out to drive the 2010 SVT Raptor 6.2--the mid-year upgrade with the all-new 6.2-liter, 411-hp, 434-lb-ft V8. Ford promised some on-road driving along with plenty of off-road work during a day at its Michigan Proving Grounds about 40 miles outside of Detroit.
Rain was the dominant weather for most of the week leading up to the event, and the drive day dawned wet and nasty. While rain might put a damper on enthusiasm for most drive events, in this case it could only mean one thing: Joy in Mudville.
Sure enough, the drive routes and trails scratched out by the Ford team were in terrible shape--almost like someone had imported a slice of the soggy British Midlands to Romeo, Mich. But hey, we're talking the Raptor here, with mongo Fox shocks, Raptor-exclusive all-terrain tires, massive ground clearance, electronic locking rear differential, stability control, traction control, hill descent control, off-road mode--the works. The truck seemed up to the task, but were we?
With my co-pilot, SVT suspension and vehicle dynamics chief engineer Eric Zinkosky, serving as navigator and cheerleader, we launched into a series of severe driving endeavors, the likes of which I've only encountered a few times (driving Land Rovers in the aforementioned Midlands comes to mind). Though seven inches wider than a normal F-150, the Raptor made easy work of tight wooded trails, despite mud that made steering nearly irrelevant at times. We picked our way through the rutted, sloppy backwood two-tracks, up and down hills, with the Raptor's 6.2-liter engine's extra punch providing ample assistance.
But the real fun came later in the day when Ford cut us loose on a wide-open high-speed off-road course that wound its way around a fairly open field, over hill and dale, and through all manner of mud. Zinkosky complained that the mud was limiting our speed in several stretches, but it had no effect on the pure joy of pounding around an off-road course that truly tested the truck's mettle. We bounded out of the cockpit after each track run literally sweating from the workout.
Is the Raptor for real? So far, 7,200 buyers have stepped up to get one, and the truck's average time on a dealer lot is six days. Like its effect on the Raptor's 0-to-60-mph times (6.9 seconds vs. 8.4 seconds for the 5.4-liter V8), the addition of the 6.2-liter engine to the lineup is only accelerating that process.
Need more? Ford tells us that when the 2011 Raptor hits the market late this summer, the lineup will expand to include a Crew Cab model--offered exclusively with the 6.2-liter engine.
Mud, as we understand it, will be optional.
The 2010 Saleen 435S was inspired from the 2010 Ford Mustang. It is said to be the first performance car that the Saleen Performance Vehicles has introduced in the market. This is quite a popular car to enthusiasts, as they know the quality and value that Saleen has to offer its consumers. Much like all other models from the Saleen, this only comes as a limited edition production.
The 435S has been expertly designed and engineered to be able to stand tall among the other popular performance vehicles in the market. This was conceptualized and developed to be an impressive platform for an individual to use and modify to the extreme should they choose to. This car has given focus on handling. Power is no reason to be worried about as this uses a supercharged 4.6-liter V8 engine. This is an addition to the goal of making this car one of the best performance vehicles in the market.
The good: The EcoBoost engine in the 2010 Ford Taurus SHO turns in blistering acceleration, while sport suspension elements and standard all-wheel-drive keep the car steady in the corners. Sync delivers excellent phone and MP3 player support while Sirius Travel Link makes traffic reports and gas prices available.
The bad: With its high sides, judging the size of the Taurus SHO from the driver's seat can be difficult. Its bulk makes it less than nimble in turns.
The bottom line: The 2010 Ford Taurus SHO combines an impressively fast, cutting-edge engine with cabin tech that is still ahead of the competition--even after appearing in Ford cars for a year already.
After losing its mantle as most popular sedan to the Toyota Camry in 1997, the Ford Taurus went through a bit of an identity crisis, but it's back with a vengeance for the 2010 model year with a whole new platform. Right out of the gate, Ford is showing confidence in the model by simultaneously releasing the SHO, or super high output, version. The 2010 Ford Taurus SHO is a big sedan, packed with the cabin tech that currently sets Ford apart from the competition. Also, it features a whole new drivetrain: Ford's V-6 EcoBoost engine comprised of a direct injection V-6 and twin turbochargers.
With extraordinarily high sides, the Taurus SHO, a big, beefy sedan, embodies American muscle. Externally, it doesn't differ from the standard Taurus, sharing details such as the notched bars in the grille. Only an aficionado will notice the SHO badges that indicate this Taurus is built for speed. That sleeper status makes the SHO fine for an everyday commute yet able to blast to 60 mph in 5 seconds.
This grille, shared with the standard Taurus, helps the Taurus SHO stand out amid all the other sedans on the road.
The cabin of the Taurus SHO, although lacking a real luxury feel, is covered in quality materials. The dashboard is made up of soft plastics with patterned metal insets. The shifter, with its meaty handle, suits the nature of the car, but feels a little last century. The steering wheel holds the buttons we would expect from a Sync-equipped vehicle, and a touch-screen LCD sits front and center, showing the home screen we've grown familiar with over the past year. The screen shows the map, audio system, and climate control all in their own little windows, but it's the last time we will look at it because we prefer the full-screen map for everyday driving.
Out on the road, the Taurus SHO feels comfortable. Its plush seats feel like overstuffed easy chairs, complete with heating and cooling in front. Ford also makes what it calls multicontour seats available, basically massage chairs, but we didn't have that option. The Taurus SHO does a very good job of insulating against external noise, helping with the impression of quality. We're used to dropping the height adjustment on seats down low, but the high sides of the car make it hard to judge the space around it, forcing a higher seat position.
As a fuel-saving measure, Ford fits the Taurus SHO with electric power steering. The steering is tuned well, providing enough resistance to feel like we are in control. Over time, that power unit proves to limit road feedback to the wheel, but around the city it feels just fine. Likewise, the power delivery from this new power train comes on smoothly, with no turbo lag evident. Of course, in the city we're only asking the turbos for occasional bursts of speed to get around another car or squeeze in a traffic opening. The six-speed-automatic transmission, also tuned for fuel-saving, goes to the highest gear possible, keeping the engine revs at 1,500rpm to 2,000rpm.
BLIS lights up this warning signal in the sideview mirror when another car is in the SHO's blind spot.
A blind-spot warning system called BLIS, technology lifted from Volvo, is present on our car. Our favorite safety tech, BLIS lights up a warning in the side view mirror if a car is in the lane next to the Taurus SHO. Ford is just starting to incorporate this type of driver aid technology, and also makes adaptive cruise controls available as an option, along with automatic high beams. We experienced the latter on the Lincoln MKS and were impressed by their utility.
Route guidance
Of even more utility is the hard-drive based navigation system that serves as an onboard information system. It's very easy to enter an address while underway with the voice command system, which recognizes full city and street names, providing good feedback every step of the way. The touch-screen-entry system is equally easy with its direct inputs. The system shows maps in 2D or 3D, while route guidance graphics indicate upcoming turns. Voice guidance has text-to-speech, reading out the names of streets.
But what really sets this system apart from the competition are its external data sources sent through satellite radio. Its live traffic feature shows incidents and traffic flow information, but it only offers detours around bad traffic when a route is programmed into the system. We've got into the habit of programming a destination even when we know the way. Out roaming California's highways in the Taurus SHO, we got stuck in a few traffic jams; however, that was the fault of the local traffic authorities not providing updated reports, as the navigation system showed clear sailing. As they say, garbage in, garbage out.
Gas prices are one killer feature of the SHO's navigation system and can help save you some bucks.
Another key feature of this navigation system is its integration with local gas prices. Using the Sirius Travel Link feature, the car shows a list of nearby gas stations complete with their current price per gallon. Touch any item in the listing, and the car offers to set the gas station's location as its destination. Sirius Travel Link also includes weather reports, a nice feature for travel in less sunny parts of the country. Of more niche usefulness are the movie times and sports scores data feeds.
When we get into some easy freeway cruising, the Taurus SHO starts to remind us of the BMW 750Li we tested the previous week. These cars, vastly different in price and luxury, both get up to ridiculous speeds without the driver realizing how fast they are going. The Taurus SHO and 750Li share very good noise and vibration engineering, along with engines willing to accelerate easily from 65 mph to 85 mph. Of course, this willingness to get up to excessive speeds means the driver needs to pay attention to the speedometer, or at least have a very good radar detector.
Karl Geiger has many things to be proud of with his latest creation, the 2010 GeigerCars Ford GT Geiger HP790. This sports car has 5.4 liter V8 engine that can run up to 780 horsepower. It possesses a larger throttle valve to enable higher supply of fresh air to come in.
The stunning vivid green outer color is matched with the elegant matte black alloy wheels. Just the mere thought of the contrasting colors makes the 2010 GeigerCars Ford GT Geiger HP790 more appealing. This magnificent creation can shoot up to 100km per hour speed in just a measly 3.6 seconds and can shoot up to 300 kph in 22.8 seconds. The V8 engine can reach 6320 rpm and its torque can reach up to 863 Newton meters in as little as 4600 revolutions. Banking on such speed, it is safe to say that this machine is definitely not suitable for rookies and meek sport car drivers.
The X-1 Ford Mustang is jointly designed by Galpin Auto Sports and the United States air force.
The X-1 stands as a fine example of technical and mechanical skill of the air force and it draws the attention of the people wherever it is exhibited.
The X-1 employs a 4.8 L V8 engine with hot rod cams, tube headers, hot rod cams, three valve heads and air inlets. The engine makes use of Ford Racing Tuning Program and as a result, the engine delivers an output power of 500 hp.
The exterior of the car is painted in white color and it consists of the Gull wing doors. The interiors completely make one feel the Jet environment and it consists of a single seat for the driver located at the middle of the car. The other interiors consists of advanced instrument panels, touch screen monitor, motorized steering wheel, global positioning system, sensor located on the dashboard that displays a good vision during the nights.
