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Driving enthusiasts and long-time city dwellers scoff at automatic parallel parking systems, but when it works as well as the one in the Lincoln MKS, well, you just have to marvel at the technology. This new MKS not only has the excellent cabin tech and luxury appointments of the previous year's model, but Lincoln added new tech features, such as the parking system, to really put this car over the top. Couple all that with the new Ecoboost engine, and it's a near technological masterpiece.
Lincoln's new MK naming convention may seem a little austere, but the luxury and tech in the new MKT is anything but. When you spend some time driving a car, and find you don't want to get out of it at the end of the journey, that speaks well for the car's comfort. We could hardly get enough of the MKT's THX audio system, the automatic high beams, and the adaptive cruise control. It is a little thirsty for our tastes, but 355 horsepower from the Ecoboost engine makes this cruiser get up and go.
Want to tweet with Ford's Sync? There's an app for that.
(Credit: CNET)Editors' note: Ford has clarified that its open platform is still in the prealpha testing stages. The article has been updated to reflect this information.
When Ford and Microsoft opened up their joint Sync platform for its own applications and updates, we wondered when the day would come that third-party developers would be given a crack at the in-vehicle infomatics interface. Well, that day may be on the horizon. Ford announced that it is testing an open-source platform to could be used in the future to develop applications that make use of Sync to connect to social networks in the cloud.
Ford's representatives said the system is built on a Robotics Studio platform by Microsoft that has been layered with an open-source cloud-computing platform developed by Ford that will allow rich--and hopefully seamless--interactions with social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.
So what's the point? How can social network interactions be useful and safe in 2,000-plus pounds of steel moving at 70mph? Ford's Venkatesh Prasad, group and technical leader of vehicle design and infotainment, posed the following scenarios:
The Ford Fiesta will be the test vehicle used in the University of Michigan's Ford open platform competition.
(Credit: Ford)Imagine you're on a cross-country road trip and you decide to stop in a new city for something to eat. Now, you don't know this new city very well, so you ask Sync to grab some dining and sightseeing suggestions. The application could then fire out a tweet, update your Facebook status, or query Yelp on your behalf and when the responses roll in, it could format them in an easy to understand way, for example as a custom points-of-interest menu.
Another possible application is a Green Car Challenge, where you compete with your friends to see who can average the highest fuel economy while suggesting the greenest driving routes to one another.
This all sounds pretty cool on paper; we'll have to wait a bit longer to know exactly how effective these apps will actually be. We expect that it will really depend on the size, make up, and responsiveness of your social network. I shudder to think of all of the Twitter-bots that currently follow me supplying any sort of advice.
The first test of Ford's open-application SDK will be in conjunction with a competition at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Students will compete to develop the best Sync application that makes use of the cloud. The winning team will have their app installed in Ford's first test mule, a Ford Fiesta, and will take a road trip from Ann Arbor to San Francisco to participate in the 2010 San Mateo Maker's Faire.
Ford currently has no road map for when we can expect to see the Sync open platform in production vehicles, as it is still in the prealpha testing phases.
Researchers at Ford Motor have some high-tech tools to help them understand driver distraction and to improve safety behind the wheel. One of those tools is the "Distraction Lab," a full-motion-based driving simulator.
The Virttex (Virtual Test Track Experiment) simulator has been in operation since 2001. It looks like an egg-shaped alien spacecraft on legs. The Virttex simulator has helped Ford develop new products, such as SYNC, and continues to help researchers understand driver distractions.
We like Lincoln's new design language; that big winged grille looks good on the midsize MKZ. But the car struggles to separate itself significantly from its platform-mates: the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan. Its interior is generally nicer, but some control surfaces come from a common parts bin. The ride quality doesn't feel that much better than its lower-priced siblings. And much of the cabin tech, although excellent, is the same as you can get in the Fusion and Milan. This comparison leads us to ask, what makes a Lincoln a Lincoln? And does the MKZ have that quality?
Check out our full review of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid.
(Credit: Josh P. Miller/CNET)
Spoiler alert: We gave the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid our Editors' Choice award. Although to be fair, after seeing its doppelganger, the 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid, win the award previously, you had to have known the less expensive Fusion was something of a shoo-in.
However, our experience with the Fusion Hybrid wasn't an exact repeat of our time with the Milan. For starters, our tester was not equipped with the hard drive-based navigation system, which let us get a taste of the Sync flavor without the cheat sheet touch screen.
How did the screenless Sync experience stack up? Check the full review of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid to find out.
Ford's crossover, the Flex, shows off original style in a practical people carrier, but doesn't short on the tech side. The 2010 model can be had with Ford's new EcoBoost engine, which delivers a huge amount of power without giving up fuel economy. The navigation option is excellent, featuring traffic, weather, and gas prices. Our review car lacked this option, giving us a chance to try out Sync's navigation service. This service proved problematic and frustrating, reinforcing our contention that onboard navigation is the best.
Ford Motor Company announced it has developed an intelligent vehicle-to-grid communications and control system for its plug-in hybrid electric vehicles that "talks" directly with the nation's electric grid.
This new technology--which builds on Ford's advancements such as SYNC, SmartGauge with EcoGuide, and Ford Work Solutions--lets the driver program when to recharge the vehicle, for how long, and at what utility rate.
All 21 of Ford's fleet of plug-in hybrid Escapes eventually will be equipped with the vehicle-to-grid communications technology. The first of the specially equipped plug-in hybrids has been delivered to American Electric Power of Columbus, Ohio. Ford's other utility partners' vehicles will also be equipped with the communications technology.
(Source: Ford)
According to some studies, about a quarter of U.S. motorists send text messages while driving. So why not make it safer?
That's the idea behind an upcoming service from telematics service provider ATX Group. ATX plans to introduce hands-free text messaging by voice.
According to ATX, of Dallas, its system, which uses existing speech-recognition technology, will allow people to dictate customized messages with minimal driver distraction.
Other in-vehicle communications systems read text messages aloud to drivers. And some, such as Ford's Sync, allow drivers to send texts--though only from a menu of scripted messages.
Don't look for telematics leader OnStar to jump on the bandwagon. "Our focus remains firmly on safety and security and in-vehicle communications, " says spokesman Jim Kobus.
ATX provides technology for Toyota, Lexus, BMW, Peugeot, Mercedes-Benz, Maybach, and Rolls-Royce.
(Source: Automotive News)
(Credit:
Corinne Schulze/CNET)
Over the last year, Ford has been at the top of the game with its cabin tech, offering the best MP3 player and cell phone integration, along with a truly useful navigation system. But less interesting were its engines. Ford just stepped up the performance end with its all new 2010 Ford Taurus SHO, the muscle version of its standard Taurus sedan.
This car uses Ford's new EcoBoost engine, a direct injection 3.5-liter V-6 with twin turbos. During our testing of the new SHO, we saw impressive 0-to-60-mph times, and even found a few points to compare to the much more expensive BMW 750Li.
