Overview & Reviews

For more than 100 years now, Ford Motor Company has been selling mass-produced automobiles in the United States and around the globe. Known as one of the Big Three American manufacturers, Ford has attracted millions of loyal customers with a wide range of vehicles that offer considerable value. The automaker's trucks and SUVs have been especially popular. For decades, Ford's F-Series truck has been the best-selling vehicle in America.

The company was founded by Henry Ford in 1903. Ford dreamed of building a car for the masses, and that's precisely what he did, most notably with the immortal Model T of 1908-'27. The latter was bought by 16.5 million Americans during its 20-year lifespan and was affordable enough for Ford's own factory workers to purchase. Ford's early years were also distinguished by its introduction of the moving assembly line. It was the first to utilize this more cost-effective method of production, and its innovation became a mainstay of the manufacturing process.

Ford expanded into the luxury-car market with its purchase of Lincoln Motor Company in 1925. Over the next few years, the company broadened its focus even further by creating the Mercury division to produce mid-priced cars. By the late '30s, Ford had unveiled the stylish Lincoln Zephyr, introduced a low-priced V8 engine and built more than 25 million vehicles.

The 1950s saw the introduction of the legendary Thunderbird. Offering sleek styling and spirited performance wedded to available luxury features like power windows and a signal-seeking radio, the car was a huge hit. Another model of that decade, the Edsel, met with a somewhat less enthusiastic reception. In the wake of abysmal sales, the Edsel was discontinued just a few months into its third model year.

Ford regained its footing in the early 1960s with the introduction of the compact Falcon, a model that was warmly received by the public. By the middle of the decade the automaker had given enthusiasts something to cheer about with the launch of the sporty Mustang, a car that went on to become one of the biggest sellers of its day. Buyers adored the Mustang's low price, available powerful V8 engines and sporty styling. The Mustang even created a brand-new vehicle category: the pony car.

By the 1970s, Ford, like other domestic automakers, was starting to suffer the effects of changing consumer tastes and new government regulations. Many of its cars became shadows of their former selves. But the seeds of rebirth were planted in this decade. In 1979, the company acquired a stake in Mazda; this move would later aid Ford significantly in co-development projects. The company also emerged with a new mindset of global competitiveness.

By the mid-to-late '80s, Ford was showing new strength with its popular Escort and Taurus models while further expanding its empire with the purchase of the Aston Martin and Jaguar brands. Meanwhile, its full-size LTD sedan (later renamed the Crown Victoria) remained a staple of taxi companies and police forces throughout America.

Ford rode a wave of popularity in the 1990s, thanks in part to the huge success of its Explorer midsize SUV. The truck played a huge role in ushering in the era of the SUV. In 1999, Ford expanded its family yet again with the purchase of Volvo's car division, and, in 2000, it acquired Land Rover. For awhile, there was talk of Ford even taking General Motors' spot as the No. 1 automaker in the world.

But the new millennium initially saw a downturn for Ford. Increased competition, a continuing operating loss for Jaguar, legacy costs and a reliance on SUVs for profit took their toll. To compensate, the company sold Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo and introduced a wave of successful new products. Models like the F-150, Fusion, Fiesta, Focus, Flex and Mustang have allowed Ford to regain its health and standing as a very competitive manufacturer.

User Reviews:

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  TIN CAN ALLEY - 2015 Ford F-150
  By Joe - May 26 - 5:13 am

  Bought this in August of 15 only to find out that my brand newly redesigned state of the art aluminium truck s radio was old technology, bad call ford. This was a 43000 dollar truck yet it had a hard plastic dash and the armrest in the front doors were thinly padded while the ones in the back were hard plastic, the seats looked like they were made from potato sacks, this was an SLTmodel. Now lets get to the turbo 3.5L. first 2000 miles this thing was like a speed racer, then it started to have very delayed reactions to input from my foot, I broke it in properly, but after that it was downhill from there, it jerked and when it would finally spool up it would jerk your head back. But I also wanted to include this, when it rains you might as well forget having a conversation with whoever is seated next to you, it sound like a heard of elephants are trampling across that aluminum hood. When you walk in the back of the bed, it pops and cracks. The door alignment and body panels look like my first plastic model car I put together at the age of 6. Ive always been a For, but after 10000 miles in 14 months I just have had enough. I am now driving a 2016 Nissan Titan XD Platinum Reserve, and it has everything on it, leather, navigation, around view cameras led lights and big V8, all for less than 55,000$, ford cant touch that deal at all.

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  1999 ExpeLemon Eddie Bauer - Burned By F - 1999 Ford Expedition
  By disgruntled_at_ford - May 26 - 2:00 am

  replaced emissions sensor at 45,000, altenator at 47,000 and transmission at 84,000. never seen such horrible quality.

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  Worst Decision I have Made - 1997 Ford Explorer
  By NeverBuyFordAgain - May 24 - 2:00 am

  Based on other responses, I am not the only one who has had bad experience with the Ford "Exploder". Thats a typical term from mechanics. I have put over $3k in repairs to it in the 3 years I owned it. Replaced timing belt, manifold work, and it has this issue with stalling whenever it is idle, fixed it once, wont pay to fix again, traded it in(and got barely anything for it), also my horn, power locks, and rear windshield wiper all quit on me. I will NEVER buy a FORD again.

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  Found on road dead - 1995 Ford Thunderbird
  By DV - May 23 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car when I was 16 and for the past three years its been a constant money leach.Even though I take good care and only use about one third of an average yearly milege Its broken down 4 times and what happened at 80,000 miles, you guessed it ...the tranny went.Overall its a cheaply made unefficient gas hog.

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  1999 Windstar SEL - 1999 Ford Windstar
  By Dale Mann - May 22 - 9:23 am

  II leased this van in 1999. It was at Ford within the first week for repairs. The van has had a number of recalls and repairs. Tires and brakes had tto be replaced at about 25k. Gas mileage is bad, about 15mpg. This van iis expensive to own and operate. I finally stopped driving this van about a year ago and purchased a new car.

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  My ford sucks - 1996 Ford Explorer
  By Fordsucks - May 19 - 10:00 am

  I have had nothing but trouble with my "exploder". Thats its new nickname. I have it in the shop again for a new transmission. Second time in 2 years. Not only have I been fixing transmissions I think every other mechanical part has been replaced as well.

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  My ford sucks - 1996 Ford Explorer
  By fordsucks - May 19 - 10:00 am

  I have had nothing but trouble with my "exploder". Thats its new nickname. I have it in the shop again for a new transmission. Second time in 2 years. Not only have I been fixing transmissions I think every other mechanical part has been replaced as well.

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  Ford Screwus - 2015 Ford Focus
  By jssr - May 17 - 10:45 am

  Do yourself a huge favor and do not buy this car with the "automatic" transmission. It is the worst car I have EVER owned ( and I have owned more than I would care to admit) in terms of the transmission and reliability. Ford is well aware of the defective transmission and its electronic controls and still is somehow able to foist this piece of trash on the American public! The dealer is now replacing the clutch on this POS and Ford has told them that they can expect the part in 12 weeks. Nice! The transmission issues started around the 11000 mile mark and havent been fixed yet. The car now has 14000 miles on it.

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  Can you afford to - 1999 Ford Windstar
  By ttudave - May 14 - 2:00 am

  "Buy American" I thought proudly. Two transmissions later Im replacing my Windstar with a Camry or an Accord. I cant afford to be patriotic if that means supporting unreliable vehicles like this Windstar. Dealers charge over $100 to diagnose mysterious trouble lights on the dash...three times already. The AC and power steering systems leak. Ford has a problem with their automatic transmissions. The service manager at the dealership advised me that transmissions were a known Ford weakness. Fords customer service was useless.

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  Never repeat buy this car - 2001 Ford Explorer
  By bethj - May 12 - 2:00 am

  I had a 1995 ford explorer xlt, never had a problem. I have had this explorer for 1 year and have had nothing but trouble. Bought it with 27000 miles on it and had it at the dealer 6 times before the warranty ran out. On one visit had the idle sensor replaced and we just had to replace it again, at our expense. VERY DISAPPOINTED IN FORD!!!!!