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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  What a waste of 10 Grand - 2005 Ford Freestyle
  By 4freese - December 6 - 7:43 pm

  We bought out Freestyle used and was assured that it was a great automobile with no known issues. After a year of owning it the car died and it has to have the CVT transmission fixed. I replaced the mechatronic unit and it still is not fixed. Dealer said that the best thing to do is light a match and drop it on the floorboard. A new trans is $6000 and a throttle body is $500. Mechatronic unit was $800. What a money pit. If it had a better transmission it would be a great car but it cannot move without this working.

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  New focus automatic transmission and warranty - 2012 Ford Focus
  By 10snyder - December 3 - 7:55 am

  Have a 2012 Focus with 16,000 miles, the car shutters and jerks extremely bad when shifthing from 1st to 2nd gear. Local Ford mechanic agrees with me that a new car should not shift this violently but Ford will do nothing to correct the problem. Apparently Ford simply needs to say that other cars of this type do the same thing so this is a normal characteristic of the car. Everything else about the car is great but the warranty is not worth the paper its written on.

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  Lessons from KIA - 2013 Ford Escape
  By buddyn - December 2 - 2:03 pm

  The Ford advertized mpg on this vehicle is a joke. On flat AZ hwy at 75 mph, with ac off you get 25 mpg. No way near the advertized 33mpg . The EPA went after KIA & Hyundai why dont they go after ford. Don,t buy this car if you expect good milage youll be very dissapointed.

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  Another bad tranny. - 2005 Ford Freestyle
  By susanh48 - November 29 - 11:04 pm

  Ive had my 2005 freestyle 2 years. Its miles 112,000. When stopped it would lunge forward. Had mechanic look at it but he couldnt get it to lunge. Then the rear traction light came on. Tried to take it to mechanic & was fine. A few more days go by and then the check transmission light comes on. Again go to mechanic and it runs fine. This time I had it looked at & was told it had 5 transmission codes, none of which he could fix. Drove it for weekend made an appt to take to tranny shop, told it needed a new tranny $4500 plus labor of $1500 and backordered 90 days. I am like others and stuck making payments while it sits. This will be my last Ford.

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  Not what I expected - 2011 Ford Edge
  By flangilotti67 - November 28 - 6:54 pm

  Ive been a honda owner for the last 15 years but decided to buy american this last go around. I loved the exterior look of the Edge but our love affair ends there. The sync features are great, when they work. I loved that the map would show me traffic speed & accidents, it worked for about a month. For the last six months ive gotten an error message that the front collison isnt working but dealer cant find anything wrong. the placement of the emergency lights is horrible, right under the sync screen and i constantly set it off. trying to give the navigation verbal information, like a city or address is a nightmare. I also really dislike that the headrest are fixed and cant be move

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  Nice vehicle, when & if everything works - 2013 Ford Escape
  By pzam - November 20 - 11:43 am

  Ive had this vehicle for 3 mo and 3k miles. Likes: quick engine, comfortable interior, reasonable gas mileage, loaded with features. Dislikes: 6 service visits in 3 months Sync is buggy some of the electronics features still dont work right. The electronics are great when working. I have 8 GB of music on a mini zip drive, and Sync recognizes the names of all the music. The voice recognition is really superb. Unfortunately, sync has bugs. Read the various forums and you can see a list of issues ranging from the clock to lock-ups. Ive had two software updates, but the dash display still doesnt update with the Nav display like it should. Much fun when everything works

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  headlights are very poor - 2013 Ford Explorer
  By starter352 - November 20 - 9:29 am

  I recently purchased a 203 ford explorer. This was my very first ford and will be my last. Do not buy this car if you plan on driving at night on anything but a very well lit road. It has been back to dealership several times, everyone that drives it concurs that the lighting is an issue, but since Ford says it is a character of the car nothing can be done, even though they have received numerous complaints. The lights perform so poorly that my wife will not drive it at night. I am hoping this posting keeps someone else from making the mistake I did.

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  Watch out - 2006 Ford Freestyle
  By mae52 - November 19 - 7:36 am

  Bought used 6 months ago a 2006 Ford Freestyle SE AWD with CVT. Power steering pump went I had it replaced. Two weeks later rack and pinion steering making noise, took it in to have it looked at and he said the following, the front sub frame on your car is completely rotted out and is unsafe to drive. The sub frame was replaced at a cost of $1000.00 plus labor (used sub frame). The rest of the frame is strong. The sub frame must have been rotted for years. This is a six year old car! All I can say congrats to the drunk or stoned UAW workers who put this car together. You must be happy, you must have had a good laugh. By the way, the front brakes needed replacing and a caliper was seized.

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  Wanted to like this car - 2010 Ford Fusion
  By ranner1 - November 16 - 6:11 pm

  I bought our 2010 fusion late 2010 and have had no major issues with it and then wham! The transmission began giving major problems. We took it to the dealer first with no real help. We then took it to Mr. Transmission and they found a catastrophic failure inside the transmission. $4000 repair later and out of warranty we contacted Ford to look for help and at least for them to help rectify the issue with us and all we got was a "Sorry its your problem". Granted the milage was at 150,000km but a modern transmission should not fail this badly this soon. I am sorry I bought this car, for anyone else out there with this problem, report it to Transport Canada. Perhaps they can do something.

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  Dont Believe the Estimated MPG - 2013 Ford Fusion
  By pvlawyer - November 16 - 2:56 pm

  I have had this car for a month and bought it specifically for the mileage since I drive over 20,000 miles per year. My Jaq S-Type with V8 got 20-22 mpg, and this 4 cylinder only averages 22-24 mpg. Even on straight highway trip with no traffic, it reached 29 mpg, not the 36 advertised. Ive only reached 29 mpg once. Extremely disappointed! I see a class action in Fords future just like Hyundai and Kia just had. Dealer says it will be get better mileage after break-in period (1000 miles), but with 2100 miles on car, no change. Last tank averaged 22 mpg. I could be driving my V8 luxury car!! I rated performance low because the car doesnt get mpg it advertises!