Ford Mustang 2015 News

Watch the full Ford Mustang RC chase video

Have you ever wished your transmission were smarter? We're not talking about a dual-clutch or a paddle-shift automatic, but a manual. No? Well, maybe you should have. Ford has developed a smart shift knob for manual transmissions (in this case, a 2013 Shelby Mustang GT500), that can help drivers learn how to shift properly. It's not available for purchase, as it's a Ford engineer's project using the company's OpenXC research platform--but the project is open-source, and the design files and firmware are available for download. So you can make one for yourself. So how does it work? It takes a haptic vibration motor from an Xbox 360 controller and a Bluetooth link to the car's data output and packages them all into a fairly compact shift knob. Then the system senses the car's rpm and speed, and vibrates to tell the driver it's time to shift. Engineer Zachary Nelson also says it could be modified to vibrate to indicate other information, including the optimal shift points for gas mileage. While the knob itself might not have all that much use for us--or for most people in the real world--the idea that a car maker is developing and prototyping products, then releasing those designs into the wild for further development by the automotive community, is downright amazing. www.motorauthority.com    

James Bond ‘Goldfinger’ Aston Martin was epic, and the $4.62 million that Steve Champagne (yep, a real name) gave American customiser George Barris for the real Batmobile was serious money, then you'd be wrong.Ford as part of an ongoing product placement arrangement with Warner Bros who financed the movie. Ford also offered two big Galaxie 500s for the baddies to drive in the chase scenes but they were rejected and the producers bought two new Dodge Chargers. And so the main players in this iconic car chase were gathered for the fray.David Burrell is the editor of retroautos.com.au

Mark Skaife has declared incoming manufacturer Volvo is not a replacement for Ford in the , with the V8 Supercars commissioner set to do everything he can to make sure the famous brand remains in the

One of the most anticipated cars of the near future is the 2015 Ford Mustang, the sixth generation of the iconic muscle car and the first to be sold in global markets.Ford global boss Alan Mulally announced in September that the Mustang would be built in right-hand drive and would finally hit European and UK markets -- which gives it a solid chance for Australia. Ford Australia has so far not confirmed they're looking at the Mustang, but has not ruled it out either.So do some of these photos sourced by enthusiast site Mustang 6G show depict clay models for the 2015 Ford Mustang, presumably being shaped at a Ford Motor Company studio.While the clay models are far from complete, they do provide numerous hints towards the styling of the new Mustang, if they do in fact depict the new Mustang.The main photo, in particular, also shows what appear to be possible sketches for various Ford models, which feature clear influences from Ford’s Evos concept car of 2011. As previously reported, the Evos is expected to directly influence the styling of the new Mustang.Other shots show a classic fastback design, a raised hood and a squared-off front. Interestingly, one of the shots also shows a clay model for what appears to be a Fiesta coupe.Ford is currently testing some early mules for its 2015 Mustang. Under the test car’s crude sheet metal, the outgoing model's rear live axle suspension is said to have made way for a fully independent setup.It’s too early to determine what Ford has planned for the Mustang’s V-6 and V-8 engines, though we’re guessing the company will be keen to retain the 5.0 badge on its Mustang GT. A new EcoBoost 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine is also expected, though it’s not clear yet whether this option will be available in the U.S.We are expecting the 2015 Mustang to be lighter than the model it replaces, so even without significant increases in power, the new car should be a considerably better performance. Look for the Mustang to debut at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show next January.www.motorauthority.com  

For a cool $US59,900 - that's about $56,500 in Australian currency - a replica of a car Ford never made - the 1965 Mustang wagon - is yours. Plus shipping. The replica, built on a 1965 Mustang Coupe and using as many original parts as possible, was built about 10 years ago by US specialist body builder Joe Ramp. It is based on a single wagon built by Intermeccanica at the request of Ford advertising agency J. Walter Thompson in 1965 to be shown to Ford as a potential new model. It didn't take off. Decades later and the Intermeccanica car is long gone but Joe Ramp decided on making his own. From the Coupe, the roof is stretched and new rear side glass added to the new D-pillars. The interior has a pseudo-bench style front seat in tan vinyl. It's actually a custom centre console with a padded filler between the seats to give the illusion of a bench. Under the bonnet is a late-model fuel-injected 5-litre V8 mated to a T5 five-speed manual gearbox. Out the back is an eight-inch Ford diff and 3.00 gears, custom control arms and upgraded shocks. It's now for sale on eBay US by RK Motors of Charlotte, North Carolina with a buy-it-now price of $US59,990. Last time we looked, bidding was at $US15,100.

When you get to borrow the prize.  That's the deal from Ford with its competition in the US to name its V6-engined Mustang.Ford's Facebook site is hosting the competition that seeks the name for the V6 Mustang equipped with go-faster gear such as a low-ratio 3.31 rear axle, GT suspension and brakes including a Shelby GT500 rear lower control arm, 19-inch wheels and Pirelli tyres.Come up with the name and Ford will lend you the car and pay the lease costs for two years.  Ford says its Mustang Facebook community is more than 940,000."It makes sense for us to continue the accessibility of the package by having our fans help name it, and it's a fun and unique way to engage enthusiasts," says Ford's group marketing manager Amy Marentic."Facebook fans can suggest a name on the Mustang Facebook page, and reach out to their friends in the social media world to help propel their pick to the top five names."A gallery on the Facebook page will list the choices and viewers can vote on their favourites.  From the most popular five names, Ford will choose the final name."It's a nontraditional approach to naming a piece of brand that millions of people identify with," Ford says.

Some of it is inspiring, some is disappointing, some of it is enlightening and a lot is plain hooey and hot air.It is great to listen to transplanted Holden chief Mark Reuss talk about calling customers to get a feeling of how General Motors is rated in the USA, Ford chief Alan Mulally drops some great hints about the Falcon being twinned with the next Ford Mustang, and sales boss Ian Robertson talks enthusiastically about the future of Mini inside the BMW Group.But the one line that hits me hardest comes from someone I have never seen before, a man called Mike Robinson.  "The stone age didn't end because they ran out of stones. They had better ideas," he says.It gives me a light-bulb moment on the future of the automobile and helps cut through all the various technologies on display in Detroit. Particularly the GM Volt, the company's range-extended hybrid hero car.It should not be a surprise, because Robinson is the new 'futurist' at GM, taking over from Larry Burns. He is quieter than Burns, and not as edgy as the man with one of the biggest brains in the car business, but he still makes a lot of sense.Robinson's official title at GM is vice-president, Environment, Energy and Safety but what he really does is try to crystal-ball the future.  He has a lot to say and a lot of it makes sense, so it's good to share some of his insights.Robinson has a clear take on GM's original electric car, the EV-1, which sparked the movie 'Who killed the electric car?'. "It just wasn't the right time," he says.So, what about electric cars for 2010 and beyond."There is no silver bullet that we know of," he says, stating the obvious.  But his take on batteries gives a lot more insight.  "The battery is just a room. It's what you put in that room," he says.Robinson talks across the map, about nuclear power for electricity, a family of Volt-based models, what GM's rivals are doing on future propulsion, and even the take-up rate of the leading-edge cars coming to showrooms in the next few years.He finishes with another simple but worrying sentence. It's one that still has me thinking.  "Technology sells itself a lot easier when the price of fuel is high," he says.Follow Paul Gover on Twitter!

Nicknamed after the great scientists, the pair of ‘Aachen head’ sensor systems – a ball and a vaguely humanoid shape worth about $250,000 each – are key to research in the sound vision lab.  Bolted into their workstations, they’re putting in 16-hour days hunting down the source of undesirable squeaks, rattles and moans in prototype cars, and reporting them back to their minders.When the sound hits the 31 microphones and 12 digital cameras inside the ball, the time lag is able to be measured and Pythagorean theory – basically triangulation – is used to identify where the noise ‘hotspots’.  The pair is not completely office-bound, and often get mounted in cars and taken for drives to keep refining the research on sound identification and suppression.The aim is to eliminate any undesirable noise – whether from road, drivetrain, wind or simply parts of the vehicle that could be further streamlined.  Working in tandem with the `sound vision’ lab is the one devoted to sound quality, where an analytical simulator shows how the car’s noise impacts on the occupants.“A big piece of ‘great to drive’ is how the vehicle sounds,” says lab spokesman Mark Clapper, adding that a lot of work makes for a seemingly small improvement on paper.“Three per cent improvement in quietness is about three year’s progress,” he says.The analytical simulator can mimic the sounds of particular engine ‘types’ – a European turbo, a luxury V6 – and compare them over different road surfaces, or jump from one drivetrain to another to allow the engineers to compare the effect. However, it’s not all about making cars quiet. It’s also about making them noisy in an enjoyable way.  “We combine exhaust and intake system to tune the pipes of the vehicle and include the wind and road noise for compatibility,” Clapper says.And this lab also helps Ford decide where and how and at what pitch to direct the noise, with technology like the sound symposer that tunes up the music on the Focus ST and the diaphragm on the Mustang GT that feeds into the cabin just beside the steering wheel to help give the driver a blast. Literally.