Ford's Nair Takes the Wheel

Raj Nair attempted to quit his car racing avocation as the needs of his day job started to be too great. But the attraction of the track kept calling to him. Nair, 47, still follows motor racing as an enthusiast, and he hasn't lost his passion for motorbikes. But he's unlikely to wear his racing suit and helmet again anytime soon.

"I cannot remember how many times I retired and went back," said Nair, who raced open-wheel Formula Ford vehicles on circuits like Lime Rock, Mid-Ohio and Waterford Hills until he finally stopped for good in 2004.

During his 25-year career with Ford, Nair has worked on vehicles of every size and category -- from the Figo subcompact in India to the F-series Super Duty pickups in North America.

"Our global platforms are well-established, and now we'll capitalize on rolling out the top hats," Nair told Automotive News. "Ford will be continuing to deliver the vehicles with the DNA we've set up. We'll work on accelerating our product cadence and continuing to have the fastest model refreshes in the industry."

In his current job as vice president of engineering for global product development, he has been responsible for all engineering of light vehicles for the Ford and Lincoln brands. Before that, he headed product development, manufacturing, purchasing, quality and information technology in Ford's Asia Pacific and Africa region. From 2006 to 2008, he was executive director of commodity business planning, working on reducing Ford's material costs.

Asked what vehicle programs he is most proud of, Nair had trouble narrowing the list. "The two I'm most proud of are the F-series and Super Duty pickups. I was the vehicle line director who put those programs together and got the funding from senior management," he recalled.

Nair, a native of St. Louis whose India-born parents were both college professors, is a genial man well liked by his colleagues. He began his Ford career in 1987 at the factory level as a body and assembly launch engineer. As part of his co-op studies toward a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering at Kettering University in Flint, Mich., he had spent five years at General Motors' St. Louis Assembly plant.

Chevrolet VS Ford

The Ford VS Chevrolet scenario made me think about two famous advertising and publicity quotes:

1.The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.

2.There’s no such thing as bad publicity.

The average cost of a Super Bowl 2012 Commercial starts at 3 million dollars for a 30 seconds spot. Chevrolet has paid the money for the advertising but Ford is one of the Traditional Best Cars in the US. Although the Chevrolet advertisement is well done and seems realistic many people know that Ford makes some of the best cars in the world!

In our opinion Chevrolet just gave Ford more than 3 million in free advertising and media exposure.

Ford Fusion for 2013 Reveals

It's uncommon for a vehicle to sell better at the end of its life, but that's the case Ford has on its hands with today's Fusion sedan. Last year, the firm sold almost 250,000 Fusion cars, putting it forward of the Honda Accord on the yearly family-car sales graphs. Although it's still selling firmly, a alternative is in the works in the type of the 2013 Ford Fusion, launched to the world at the 2012 Detroit auto show. Like some other rivals, the Fusion's dropping all V-6 engines from its collection, and rather adding a pair of greener cars to satisfy hybrid and plug-in-hybrid enthusiasts.

The Fusion's trump cards could well be a pair of hybrid models. The "standard" hybrid model gets higher gas mileage and more EV range this time around: Ford says it can run on batteries alone up to 62 mph, up from 47 mph in the 2012 Fusion Hybrid.


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Sedans Under $15,000 -Top Recommended Sedans

To get a sedans at a reasonable price is a practical idea for us since we are still in the process of recovering our economy. Here are three types of different cars for you, which of them are under $15,000. They are worth buying from the comparison. Now, let's have a look.


The Chevrolet Sonic surprises all with its sudden appearance in the mix of cars in this segment. At first glance, the front-wheel-drive package seems like a pug-nose reprise of past efforts from GM's outpost in South Korea, but the new car expresses a far greater level of refinement.

                                                                             
                                                     Chevrolet Sonic 2011
                                                       
For the second year, the Ford Fiesta sets the standard by which other cars in this segment are judged. The front-wheel-drive package is small on the outside yet space-efficient on the inside, while the 120-horsepower, 1.6-liter engine is alert as well as thrifty with fuel, delivering 28 city and 37 highway mpg with a manual transmission. 

          
                                                         Ford Fiesta 2011


The Chevrolet Sonic surprises all with its sudden appearance in the mix of cars in this segment. At first glance, the front-wheel-drive package seems like a pug-nose reprise of past efforts from GM's outpost in South Korea, but the new car expresses a far greater level of refinement.