We continue today with our foray into the new Ford company and their efforts to redesign their lineup to better accomodate American drivers as well as make the company profitable again. Our topic for discussion: the new Ford F-150. The new F-150 pickup, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), is sporting a brand-new airbag system that no other truck has, and this is giving them an edge in the world today. It’s earned five-star ratings in government crash tests and is on the IIHS best-picks list for 2009; but what makes this truck so good?

As stated, the new airbag system has eyebrows raising and people looking impressed. The F-150 is implementing a new “K-bag” airbag system; it’s design is to protect the ribcage during a side-impact crash, drastically decreasing the loss of life during side-impact crashes. The k-bag is named so for its unique shape and is mounted on the side of the front seat to minimize damage and maximize safety for the driver and passenger. The k-bag is the first in a long line of new, innovative safety features that many people are heralding as the thing that may get Ford back on the map.

But that’s not the only thing that Ford has in mind for its truck. Many more airbags are being implemented, including one that would protect front-and-rear-outboard passengers during rollovers, which last considerably longer than a front-or-side impact crash. The F-150 is also sporting a brand new roll-assist technology and advanced electronic stability controls – both of which helped it to win the IIHS’ top safety rating for a full-size truck.

The truck is also offering a brand new design in terms of how its built. Ford has utilized a new, ultra-lightweight, ultra-strong tubular material to build their front end, allowing for more distribution of less weight, allowing the truck to reach unheard-of miles-per-gallon ratings as well as the ability to withstand a front-end impact, making it much easier to repair and much more affordable.

Lastly, we come to the trucks new towing capabilities, which are also helped by the ultra-strong, ultra-lightweight materials used to build the frame and front-end. Probably the most exciting feature of the new truck is the trailer sway control system. This new, standard system determines the yaw of a towed trailer, figures out just how much it’s swaying, and attempts to put a stop to it. Though the technology is new, the results are promising. Other features include a factory-installed trailer brake control system, an all new tow/haul mode (allowing more torque and power to be used when hauling large loads), and an available rear-view camera, which is located behind the blue Ford oval on the back of the truck. This is activated when the truck is shifted into reverse, allowing unsurpassed control of the vehicle to the driver.

These new features sound promising, to say the least. Hopefully Ford can implement these features smoothly and cleanly into their new vehicles, which would bely their reputation for shoddy workmanship. If Ford can make a vehicle like the 2009 Ford F-150 affordable and available to the masses (the cornerstone of the company, ever since Henry Ford started it), then they are well on their way to rebuilding their company and making them competitive once again.

We’ll keep exploring the Ford Story and the company’s attempts to rebuild itself from the ground up next time.

It’s been quite some time since we began discussing the automobile industry: how far down it’s gone, the many plights and possible implosion of the American automobile industry – mostly just bad news and blank reassurances from the government that we can make it better. But now, out of all of this, comes something that might make people just turn their heads: it’s called The Ford Story, and it’s quite an interesting website. You can find it at www.thefordstory.com, and it’s quite a piece of work. Like its name suggests, it’s the story of Ford’s journey through this pit of despair that it has wiggled its way into, and its plans on how to get out of it in one piece.

The first part, of a many-part series, focuses on something called “Transit Connect,” a spacious new alternative for cargo vans and pickup trucks. It was designed with business owners in mind: people who need cargo space, but don’t need a massive vehicle to tow all their chairs and filing cabinets. Weighing in at just 1,600 lbs and offering a whopping 135 cubic feet of storage space, the Transit Connect is sitting pretty in terms of trunk space. However, it’s not just that; it gets an estimated 22 miles per gallon in town, and 25 on the highway. That should make a lot of of jaws drop out there.

The Transit Connect should be familiar to anyone who has traveled to Eurpoe in the past six years; it’s launch in 2003 was hailed by Europeans as the second coming of the pickup truck, but Ford hasn’t been able to find a market for it here in the United States. With stiff competition from Dodge and Chevy (the Sprinter and the Express Van, respectively), Ford has had a tough time edging out the competition. But with a new design and a sleek new exterior, plus a much more fuel-efficient engine, the Transit Connect may just be the answer to the American towing and hauling nightmare.

As chief engineer Rob Stevens states, the Transit Connect will be a “useful small business tool. It drives like a car, works like a van and is engineered to be as tough as a truck.” Now that’s good news.

The governor of Michigan, Jennifer Granholm, is heading back to D.C. this week to lobby the government for more funds to help the ailing auto industry. She’s actually expected to meet later today with government officials detailing what she might need. Detroit has already received $17.4 billion in federal aid money, most of which came from the TARP program that President Bush signed into law before he left. But the automakers are now requesting $21.6 billion more, even though they haven’t shown what they’re doing to remedy the situation that put them in this crunch in the first place.

As part of the original funds given to the automakers, they were required to submit a proposal on how best to change the company and make it profitable once more. President Obama has taken it a step further, requiring that an “auto task force” be setup to oversee the restructuring of the companies and make sure that they are holding up their end of the bargain. Unfortunately, however, this plan is starting off slowly, and Detroit is most likely utilizing that lack of focus by the task force to receive more money to continue the disastrous work they’ve started.

But all’s well that ends well, and all we can hope for at this point is that Detroit can actually create a car that the American consumer might want to buy. It’s surprising, really, that the automobile got its major break in the United States, and now the Asian companies are cornering the market and making and producing better vehicles. It’s much like baseball; America may have started it, but Japan and the other asian countries are perfecting it. Let’s get out of this rut and fix it, eh?

If you haven’t heard of it, the Nano, from Tata Motors in India, is the worlds cheapest car. Or so the stories tell us. It’s designed to allow every family in India to have a vehicle as well as boosting the domestic Indian automobile industry and providing more competition from other manufacturers. The Indian company is expecting other manufacturers to exand their ideas into their own production lines, making cheaper, better cars that can help the regular consumer save money.

However, the country of India will be under lots of pressure to promote the roadwork and widen the roads to accomodate four-wheeled vehicle as opposed to two. Either way, this news is good to hear; maybe, finally, everyone in the world truly will have a car. Although how good of an idea this is, only time can tell.

The International Motor Show has been cancelled for the 2010 showing due to the economic downturn and the unreliability of automobile companies in recent months. But the funny thing: this is the British International Motor Show. It was slated to be held at the ExCel Exhibition Area in the Docklands area, but was cancelled by the Society of Manufacturers and Traders because many companies couldn’t afford to a) get their products over there, and b) focus marketing strategies on people who may want to buy their vehicles.

However, the SMMT has stated that they will stay “committed to to showcasing the achievements and products of the automotive sector.”

Many auto transport companies have been hit somewhat hard by the news as well: the major US manufacturers often outsource their shipping needs to companies inside the United States, and those companies aren’t complaining about the business. But now, with the show cancelled and many other shows likely to be cancelled in the future, the auto transport industry could see a downturn if things don’t improve. However, the good news is that people still are buying new cars, and the only way to get them to the dealerships is to ship them.

So keep your fingers crossed, because as we get deeper into 2009 we’re starting to see what the auto industry can really do. Hold your hats.