Ford Stages Fratricidal Race Between 2013 Mustang Cobra Jet and Fiesta ST Rallycross

Ford builds a variety of racing cars, but it’s hard to find two models that are more far apart from each other than the Mustang Cobra Jet and the Fiesta ST global rallycross car (GRC).

While the former is designed to run the quarter-mile as quickly as possible on the drag strip, the other is a nimble little car made for crazy rallycross stages that combine dirt roads with asphalt and various obstacles.

There are more differences: the Cobra Jet is a rear-wheel drive monster powered by a 5.0-liter V8 engine fitted with a Ford Racing-built Whipple 2.9L Supercharger, while the Fiesta ST GRC is an all-wheel drive supermini with a 550hp 2.0-liter turbocharged engine mated to an OMSE gearbox with custom ratios.

The two cars were driven at the zMAX Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway by drag racing legend Roy Hill and rallycross driver/Top Gear USA presenter Tanner Foust. We won’t disclose the outcome of the race, but we'll tell you that the race wasn't as one-sided as one would have expected.

By Dan Mihalascu

VIDEO

Ford Falcon Ute Turns Into a Hot Rod, Owner Calmly Puts Out Fire and Drives it Back to Work!

Talk about turning around a hot situation into a very cool affair. Mark Schocroft, a young automotive electrician from the Australian city of Adelaide, was in for a nasty surprise on Friday morning when he saw his Ford Falcon ute engulfed in flames.

Apparently, the butane bottles in the pickup truck's bed exploded. Thankfully, bypassers notified Schocroft who ran outside the pizza place and extinguished the fire.

What makes this story cool is that Schocroft, far from shocked, checked out his Falcon ute and once he made sure that the basics work, he drove the car to his job!

Schocroft told 7News that he was concerned he would be late for work. "I didn't know what the bosses would say…," explained the young man.

VIDEO

Ferrari Tailgater of the Creepy Ford F-Series Kind

Feel free to blame Hollywood, but whenever I see GM and Ford vans and trucks from the 1970s on the road, my mind travels to eerie movie scenes with serial killers and psychopaths. And the driver of this Ford-F-Series isn't really helping to overcome those creepy (fictional?) stereotypes we have, is he now…

A group of car enthusiasts were on hand to film a Ferrari F430 crossing the road (note that the crackling sounds heard in the beginning are from a Subaru Impreza WRX / STI passing through), which it did perfectly fine.

And then, out comes the F-Series van-o-truck with its driver dangerously tailgating the red Italian supercar…

Watch the short clip for yourself right below the break.

VIDEO

GM Says Camaro Z/28 Shows Mustang Boss 302 LS Who's the Real Boss…in its Own Video

GM is aiming high with the new Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, as the car’s Nürburgring lap time has showed. In the words of Camaro chief engineer Ed Oppenheiser, the Z/28 is a rival for the Porsche 911 GT3 and the Nissan GT-R.

However, to demonstrate how the souped-up Camaro stacks up to the domestic competition, Chevrolet tested it at the Milford proving grounds alongside the 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca.

Chevrolet says it opted for the Mustang Boss 302 because it is the best Ford has. "The obvious question here today is why don't we have the [Shelby] Mustang GT500 to compare it to," says Chevrolet Camaro Chief Engineer Al Oppenheiser. "Frankly, we've tested everything they have, and the Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca is their fastest track car".

However, that’s about the only good thing about the Mustang you’ll hear in the following official Chevrolet video. Ford's pony car lost on all aspects of the comparison, from average speed to lateral Gs and corner entry speed.

In the end, the Camaro Z/28 set a time of 1:53.71 over a lap of GM’s 2.9-mile (4.6-km) Milford road course. That’s 5.3 seconds faster than the Mustang Boss 302 and more than 6 seconds better than the 2013 Mustang GT500. Scroll down to watch the video.

By Dan Mihalascu

PHOTO GALLERY

VIDEO

Ford’s MyKey May Be the Worst Thing to Happen to Young Drivers and their Parents

I remember after I got my driver’s license that I had to have my father in the passenger’s seat for a few months after, but not because so said the law, or the fact that I was particularly bad at driving, and the lack of parental faith in me bringing the prized family sedan back home in one piece – it was simply for peace of mind, as well as a bonding experience, and I think very important in the development of any parent-child relationship.

Ford now has a sneaky way around that, which would allow whichever parent should be tutoring you in the ways of the steering wheel, to sit back and watch their favorite show at home, while you roam the streets on your own – it’s not actually new, but it’s called MyKey. It allows owners to limit certain settings for the car, the most important of which being the maximum speed, or making the stability control stay permanently on, without the possibility of disabling it using the usual dashboard button.

It is a good system to have, but it does not, like the commercial posted below says, replace the presence of a parent or trusted family member in passenger’s seat by any means – now more parents will have more excuses to spend less time with their kids, and I’m sorry, but while MyKey is useful, it’s not necessarily constructive.

By Andrei Nedelea

VIDEO

Mustang GT Driver Nabbed Street Racing but Cool Cop Cuts Him a Break

Can you guess what happens when you go all Fast&Furious with your ride in real life, and at the same time, don't care to pay attention to anything else on the road – including…a police car that's right behind you?

Yes, you get caught, but we can say without any question, that this young man actually caught a break here, thanks to the forgiving police officer.

There were three cars but the cop pulled over only the fourth generation Mustang GT driver who was leading the race and gave him his prize – two tickets.

"I was right behind you guys, and you still took off!" the cop told the man, and then went on to say, "I'm cutting you a break here. What I'm doing is writing two citations, driving a vehicle in excess of speed that's reasonable or prudent, which is a $90 fine, and driving a motor vehicle intended to cause excessive noise, basically if your muffler is too loud for $70".

The officer also handed him two warnings, one for racing and the other for negligible driving. We say, he should consider himself lucky…

VIDEO

Here's What Happens When You Feed Your Ford Too Much Eggnog…

These festive days, every company and their mother are tapping into the Christmas atmosphere – yes, carmakers included.
Among other initiatives for the holiday season, the Ford Motor Company launched a special app that allows users to either use preloaded images of one of its models or if they prefer, just take a picture of their own ride's grille, and then with the magical help of software, make the cars say what’s on their mind.

Smooth Criminal Filmed Stealing Police Car, Manages to get Away!

You just can't trust thieves these days. A burglary suspect in White Settlement, Texas, who was handcuffed and left alone in the rear seat of a Ford Crown Victoria squad car, was able to steal the patrol vehicle and make a successful getaway.
Darren Porter, 41, was filmed from another police car parked right behind rolling down the window, opening the door and jumping into the driver's seat before he stole the patrol vehicle!

Chris Harris Puts Ford’s Focus ST Against Opel Astra OPC and Renault Megane RS

Hot hatches are the Swiss Army knives of the automotive world in that they can do almost everything. Their humble underpinnings mean that they are as practical as any hatchback in everyday use, their tuned chassis and powerful engines can scare a sports car or two on twisty roads and they are, comparatively affordable.
There was a time, not so long ago, that putting anything more than 200-horses on the road through the front wheels was considered a recipe for terminal power understeer. Things have certainly changed and, as Chris Harris points out in the video that follows, front-wheel drive hot hatches have really become very competent.