Have you ever wondered exactly how many jobs and dollars your car contributes to the United States economy? If so, keep reading.

A new website called JobsPerCar is a great way to find out how much good you’re doing for the economy simply by the car you drive. In fact, it’s so new that it just launched last week!

And from what I can tell, it’s a very interesting and informative website. It’s the Consumer Reports of its kind. It not only determines how many jobs each individual car creates, but it also tallies up the number of job each automaker creates for the nation. Here are a few examples:

• Ford cars have a JPC rating of 81. This number is calculated by using the total number of cars sold by a company and dividing that by that company’s workforce. By purchasing a Ford, you’re helping contribute to a workforce of more than 80,000 jobs.

The website also provides information about how many factories each automaker has in the United States, the percentage of domestic materials used in a particular model and much, much more. You can even compare between companies and models to see which one is better for the US economy if that makes a big difference in the vehicle you choose to purchase.

JobsPerCar.com is a great resource to use before you go to the dealer to buy a car. If you’re unsure about which one you want, the website can help you make your final decision. Besides, picking the best car means finding one that’s good for your surroundings, too. Who doesn’t want responsible member of citizen of their country and their community?

For the last couple decades, the Ford Motor Company has been on a rollercoaster ride. At one time, it was one of the leaders in the entire auto industry. Then, for a few years after that, the automaker got a bad “rep” for having low quality vehicles. In fact, there used to be an adage that said that the letters in Ford stood for “Found on Road Dead.”

But all that has changed. Now, Ford is back on top of its game and the quality is back!

Study after study shows that Ford cars are once again the quality they once were. They’ve even improved in other areas, too. In order to stay competitive in today’s world, Ford also leads the industry in environmentalism, safety and even smart systems. Have you heard of the Ford SYNC system? That’s just one of the smart systems currently exclusive to Ford. With hands-free communication and the ability to control many features with just the sound of your voice, some analysts say this is one of the main reasons people are flocking back to Ford.

I haven’t owned a Ford, but I have rented one. Two years ago, we rented a Ford Focus to travel out of town to a friend’s wedding. Our car was junky, to say the least. But when we stepped in the rented Ford Focus, it was almost like a luxury vehicle to us. It drove nice and it was even great on gas! Of course, that was when gas prices were still around $2.00 a gallon (I think). And the vehicles have only gotten better since then.

If you haven’t considered a Ford, don’t let the reputation it had several years ago scare you away. Check one out today and prepare to be impressed!

Can you imagine a car company selling nine million vehicles in the last 30 years? That’s an impressive number! But that number is even more impressive when only one brand of vehicle for a particular company sells that many.

That’s exactly what happened with the Ford Motor Company. The Dearborn-based automaker recently delivered its nine-millionth Mustang to another proud and excited owner.

The exciting, once in a lifetime event occurred in Story City, Iowa. Thomas Krumm purchased a GT convertible Mustang. But this wasn’t the family’s first Mustang. He became interested in these Ford cars when his 17-year-old daughter purchased one several years ago after saving her money for months.

The Krumm’s aren’t alone, either. Customers have purchased nine million other Ford Mustangs because of its sleek style and reputation. The first one was released nearly 35 years ago on April 17, 1964 at the World’s Fair in New York. During its first year, Ford sold 419,000 Mustangs to customers enamored by its sports car appearance. Within two years of its introduction, the company sold over two million units! That was a record at the time and it’s still a record today.

You might also be interested to know that the Mustang comprises 50 percent of the sports cars sold in the United States. That means for every sports car bought from the various other brands, there’s one Mustang sold as well.

How many other automakers can say that?

Did you know one of Ford’s compact cars will be featured in the new James Bond film? You can’t ask for a better marketing strategy or more publicity than that!

The Ka, one of the most popular UK Ford cars, is making its big-screen debut this Halloween season in the highly-anticipated movie “The Quantum of Solace.” Although official announcements haven’t been made, many people “in the know” caught some glimpses of the small vehicle milling around the set.

The Ka is a good choice for 007, too. It looks like it drove right out of the older James Bond movies and directly into the new one. The body design is similar to other popular UK vehicles, like the Mini Cooper, but it also has its own distinct features that set it apart from other cars.

The use of the Ka also gives Bond a new, environmentally-conscious attitude. Even though he’s racing to and fro while fighting his latest nemesis, the Ka allows him to do so with only a minimum of carbon emissions.

Maybe 007’s next villain can be global warming!

But this isn’t Ford’s first time in a bond film, either. Last year’s “Casino Royale” featured the Ford Mondeo, one of the automaker’s newer models on the market. Maybe future Bond movies will feature Ford cars, too. As a 007 fan and a Ford fan, I’m anxious to see the two together once again.

Crossover vehicles are designed to please car buyers who aren’t interested in a normal sedan but still aren’t ready to drive a normal SUV. Crossovers are a popular product in the auto industry, but some of the Ford Motor Company’s older and bigger vehicles hold up well when compared to the new products.

This story in the Dallas News doesn’t look too kindly on the new crossovers. Instead, the writer describes them as a new “fad” that is pushing out the better, more established Ford cars on the market. He uses the Ford Explorer, an SUV that has experienced dwindling sales in recent years, as the catalyst for comparing the crossover models to the fuller-sized SUV models.

According to the test driver, the Explorer is, at the very least, competitive with the newer and sleeker Ford Edge (or trucklet, as he calls it). So why do people appreciate the Ford Edge and other crossovers more than the Explorer?

Maybe it’s the gas mileage.

Nope. When comparing the gas mileages of the two vehicles, there is only a difference of about two miles in the city. That seems minimal for making a car-buying decision.

It must be the price.

Wrong again. The Eddie Bauer four-wheel drive that the test driver tested was roughly $4,000 less than that of the Ford Edge. When all was said and done, the writer appreciated and enjoyed the Ford Explorer, a model that has been around for several years. The only explanation for its decreasing popularity and the increasing popularity of the Edge is the uniqueness of something new.

For me, I prefer an old friend to a new one any day. But that’s just me. If you’ve driven a crossover lately, do you have reasons for preferring it over a full-sized SUV? Feel free to comment and let us know.

In recent years, New York City has been trying to phase out its fleet of taxis to make room for hybrids and other more efficient vehicles. But did you know the Ford Escape hybrids outnumber the other eco-friendly taxis by hundreds?

Right now, there are about 850 Ford Escape hybrid taxis transporting people all over the city while helping to create a cleaner environment. The nearest competitor to the Escape is the Toyota Highlander. But there are fewer than 100 of those on NYC roads today.

It all started around May of last year when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he would like to have only hybrid taxis on the streets of the city by 2012. As New York has phased out Ford’s Crown Victoria models as the most common choice for taxis, the automaker has strived to keep its share of vehicles on the metropolitan city’s roads.

But Ford isn’t the only beneficiary of hybrid taxis. Taxi drivers also appreciate the hybrid options. Much of the cost needed to maintain a taxi falls on the driver’s shoulders. According to analysts, most taxi drivers who operate Ford Escapes can save upwards of $6,000 a year. That averages out to about $30 per shift!

So far, drivers are enjoying the Escape hybrid taxis. The first group of these popular vehicles has logged nearly 200,000 miles in only 18 months. And the only major complaint is that the back seats are a bit cramped when there are more than three passengers. Dearborn is also working on other hybrid Ford cars to send to NYC, including hybrid versions of the Fusion and the Taurus.

Now if they could only do something about that traffic!

If you just answered “not me” to that question, then join the crowd. According to the Ford Motor Company, minivan sales are at their lowest point since 1985. Could that have something to do with the rising gas prices? I would guess that’s part of the problem, because truck sales are also down.

But this story hits close to home for me. According to George Pipas, a sales analyst for Ford vehicles, minivans were “America’s family car” during the 1980s. I can attest to that fact. The first vehicle that my dad handed down to me was a minivan. I loved that thing, too.

It was a dark blue color with a couple of silver stripes that went around it. My folks bought it in 1988 when it was two years old. I didn’t get it until 1993, just before my senior year in high school. I learned how to do everything in that van. I learned how to drive in that minivan. I went on several road trips in that van. I even went away to college in South Carolina with that minivan.

When I received it, I named her Abby. She became my best friend. I kept her for four years until it was time to let her go. That was a sad day, too. My friends and I took pictures inside the van and had a ceremony before selling it. I still miss it.

Luckily, sales analysts feel the sales will rebound in 2009 when consumer confidence hopefully increases. If you have a chance, I suggest getting a minivan for your family. The memories you’ll make will be priceless!

If you’re a reader of our blog, you’ve noticed that we’ve mentioned several Ford vehicles and models in the last few months. There’s the Falcon, the Focus and the Escape, just to name a few. But have you ever heard of the Ford Foose F150?

This oddly attractive pickup truck is my new favorite Ford product. And that’s just judging from the pictures I’ve seen. But it’s more than just another Ford model.

The Ford Foose is the creation of Chip Foose, the youngest inductee into the Hot Rod Hall of Fame (I didn’t even know there was such a thing). He’s also the “custom vehicle maker to the stars,” as many Hollywood celebrities seek him out when they want entirely genuine vehicles designed so they can show off.

And now, Chip Foose has made his mark on the Ford brand of vehicles. I’m loving it, too. Instead of the typical F150 that sits high off the ground, the Foose model is lower so it hugs the road regardless of where you’re driving. The lowered body combines the American ideals of a pickup truck and a race car for a truly unique appearance.

The funny thing is that the entire creation sprang from a challenge. Last year, Ford’s truck team challenged Foose to create a sporty, hot rod-like version of the F150. Less than five months later, Foose’s creation made its public debut. 

Ford’s manufacturing plant in Kansas City is producing the trucks. They should be on sale soon if they’re not already.

How many times have you been backing up in your vehicle and wondered if there was an abandoned tricycle or, worse yet, an occupied tricycle behind you? If you’re like me, that’s happened more times than you care to remember.
But the Ford Motor Company has recognized this problem and its engineers have worked to address it. Many Ford vehicles will soon have two new pieces of technology designed to help drivers back up safer. The modified “blind spot mirror” will soon be a standard feature on the Mercury and Lincoln brand vehicles. These new mirrors give drivers a better view of what they couldn’t see before.

But that’s not all.

Also available is the new “blind spot-checking radar” that uses a 24GHz spectrum to alert drivers when something enters their blind spots. Amber lights mounted on the wing mirrors blink and beep when there is something in an area the driver can’t typically see. This feature isn’t standard, though. Starting with the 2009 models, it will be an option that many drivers will likely choose.
Studies have found that more than 75 percent of the drivers who used this blind spot-checking technology drove with more confidence. They also felt less pain in their necks because they didn’t need to stretch them as much to check their blind spots. The mirrors and the radar system did it for them.

Ford’s Falcon might soon be going the way of the Dodo bird: it’s in danger of becoming extinct. But that’s just for the Falcon as you know it today.

With decreasing sales and stricter emission standards throughout the world, the V8 engine may no longer be a part of the Falcon model, according to Ford Australia president Bill Osborne. The newest model, scheduled for release in May 2008, has the popular V8 engine and the nickname of Falcon XR8.

But the V6 engines are becoming more popular for a number of reasons. For one, it’s an increasingly more frequent staple of performance engines, including the XR and G6 models. In addition, the six-cylinder Falcon outpaces the V8 model. I don’t want to say the V6 leaves the V8 model in the dust, but tests have revealed that it is much faster.

But that’s not all. The Falcon XR8 is also worse for the environment and your wallet. It gets less than 15 liters per 100km, which is 20 percent less efficient than the V6 model. Who wants a slower and less efficient vehicle in today’s world?

Osborne said the automaker has not “sorted out” its V8 strategy for the near future. But with the Ford Motor Company’s introduction of the EcoBoost engine and other features designed to increase efficiency, it looks like the Falcon is just one more of the popular Ford vehicles to fall victim to the new standards and awareness.