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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  Wait til the bugs are worked out! - 2011 Ford Explorer
  By larryhat - July 30 - 7:05 am

  Less that 5k miles and I have had problems with overheating and air conditioning. Both were resolved by dealer. MyTouch is problematic to say the least. Being computer savvy, I could not get the "upgrades" to install. Took it to my dealer and they had the same issues. The website is as useless as I have seen. Bluetooth phone adapter is no where near as good as the one I had in my F150. Everyone complains that they cant hear me...even though its the same phone as before!

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  6 years and 60k miles later - 2002 Ford Taurus
  By mikepm - July 28 - 8:20 am

  My mom bought this car for me when I was in college and its fairly comfortable to drive. Maintenance wise, atleast $300 per year in the things that had to be fixed. Thats not including the things that are currently wrong with it and too expensive to fix. Had a mechanic tell me he loved Fords and Chevys because he makes so much money off them (from repairs)

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  I loved this car. - 1996 Ford Taurus
  By jimandsil - July 25 - 7:46 pm

  I bought my 96 Taurus in 2003 with 65 K on it. I paid $3500 for it. I had it up to 200K and it was still running great. Replaced the normal stuff like brakes, a radiator, oil sending unit. Had to replace valve cover gaskets but that is about it other than standard maintenance for 8 years. I got rear ended and because of the age it was totaled. Sorry to see it go. On average I put about $300 to $500 into it. I loved this car even though the seats hurt my back but I cut out a piece of foam for back support. Its not stylish or cool but what was really cool was the total cost of ownership which is the most important to me. I just bought a 2003 Taurus SES. I hope its half as good as my 96.

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  I hate this car - 2008 Ford Focus
  By dieguito06 - July 22 - 7:23 am

  The only reason I bought this car was because I lost the 2005 Impala in a crash & I needed A car in a hurry.A week into the car the carpet on the pasengers side started to came off ,every time I would fix it it would come right off ,then a year later the passenger door wooden open I used the warranty & had it fix two years later the same door the same problem but this time my warrranty was out so I had to pay $200 to get it fix. now the other door is having the same problem.another thing wrong with this car is the sway bars I had to replace them too

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  Worst Car Ive Ever Owned - 2010 Ford Fusion
  By mrsnorris - July 21 - 3:04 pm

  I never write auto reviews. However, I figured that it would have been helpful is someone told me about this car before I got it. First off, the 2010 Fusion is a beautiful looking car. I got the black with black leather interior. Very nice. I thought the SYNC was cool and loved the color combo...(note to self, never buy a car based on looks). I had the car for 1 year. I was literally at the shop so much they knew me by name. The transmission failed 3 times. After the 3rd time of being in the shop and paying for a rental (on a lease) I sold it and went back foreign. The only reason you should get this car is if you like living at the repair shop.

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  Sync ruins a decent SUV - 2011 Ford Explorer
  By nfriedman - July 17 - 7:55 pm

  Exterior very nice, all downhill from there. Car is very under-powered, getting worse gas mileage than expected and the Sync system is aweful. Been to the dealer a few times about it already. The system crashes, freezes and cannot tell time. Dealer told me to go to website. The website is worse then the system itself, poor insutrctions and the guy on the chat service says you have to bring it to the dealer! Dealer says go on web! How do I return this car?

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  Soon to be Lemon Law - 2011 Ford Explorer
  By jen413 - July 16 - 5:34 pm

  I loved my 2011 Ford Explorer Limited until after one month of driving it when the problems started. My Ford Touch screen malfunctioning: SD Nav card error, screen freezing or blacking out, controls not working. Had to be reset twice so far. Next, the "electronical component in the fan" went and the vehicle overheated significantly dumping antifreeze all over. That was replaced but what major permanent damage did that cause? Last week I noticed I have a tapping, banging, knocking sound from the engine. Ford knows about it, working on a fix but ok to keep driving as per the dealer. Today I noticed oil leaking from the engine. Im frustrated, upset and fed up.

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  Ford Flex Brake issues - 2010 Ford Flex
  By phillthedog - July 16 - 9:06 am

  Had our Flex for nearly two years once we hit 22k miles began having brake failures car has been in dealer 5 times they have replaced vacuum booster and check valves. When the car has been parked overnight or for a few hours the brake pedal is very hard the car will not stop. Ford says this is "normal" operating procedure and we have to warm the car up for five minutes before driving which is totally unacceptable. Dealer is as frustrated as we are Ford sent out an engineer who said he could not replicate the problem. We are truly disappointed with Ford.

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  Ford should never have released - 2011 Ford Explorer
  By dmr1063 - July 11 - 11:32 am

  BUYER BEWARE.......Picked up new XLT on 7/5/11. Next morning the MyTouch screen was not working. Waited 4 days for a new module. New Module installed except it was wrong. Now I have AC and Radio but no Navigation and the 2nd row controls dont work. 2 weeks old, 500 miles on it and 320 of the miles have been back and forth to dealer. All this after waiting three monthes to hear I could not get Tuxedo Black paint. What a mistake. Too bad because the new design is appealing and the run in nice.

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  Bad Transmition - 2011 Ford F-150
  By dstiggs1 - July 10 - 6:26 pm

  I bought my truck on a Thursday with about 17000 miles on it by sunday the transmition was slamming down from gear one to two! It runs well but when pulling off you can feel the transmition shift rough and it slips from the upshift from 1 to two also. Im disappointed at ford for this. After web research I found that this is a common problem with this model and ford doesnt know how to fix it!!!!!!!!!!!!!