Ford Brings AWD Benefits to Passenger Cars
FORD MOTOR COMPANY BRINGS ALL-WHEEL-DRIVE BENEFITS TO MAINSTREAM PASSENGER CARS
Source: Ford Motor Company Press Release
- 70 percent of consumers in Snow Belt states – and more than half of consumers nationwide – say they would like the option of all-wheel-drive in their next new car.
- Ford Motor Company will launch three new vehicles with all-wheel-drive technology this year – the Mercury Montego and Ford Five Hundred sedans and Ford Freestyle crossover.
- Ford and Mercury cars join an already robust all-wheel-drive lineup that includes Ford sport utilities and Volvo and Jaguar cars.
DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 26 – Ford Motor Company is responding to increasing consumer demand for the all-weather performance and dynamic benefits of all-wheel-drive by taking the lead in bringing this technology to mainstream passenger cars.
The 2005 Ford Five Hundred, Freestyle and Mercury Montego, which arrive in dealer showrooms later this year, will be the company’s first new high-volume passenger cars available with fully automatic all-wheel-drive technology.
Recent Ford Motor Company consumer research found that approximately 70 percent of car buyers in the Midwest, West and Northeast – the traditional markets for four-wheel-drive sport utilities and pickups – would consider all-wheel-drive availability extremely important or very important in their next car.
Why is all-wheel-drive popular?
This is not just a Snow Belt phenomenon. More than two-thirds of consumers polled in the San Diego area expressed interest in AWD, and more than half of these Sun Belt residents were willing to pay a premium for the feature.
This insight is borne out by industry trends. The purchase rate for all-wheel-drive nationwide increased by 13 percent from February 2000 to September 2002.
All-wheel-drive offers benefits on wet pavement and loose surfaces, or whenever traction is temporarily compromised – such as when encountering debris or a slick spot in the road. It also can improve handling and acceleration even on dry surfaces.
Ford’s all-wheel-drive system doesn’t require any intervention from the driver, automatically delivering these benefits seamlessly and dependably, boosting the driver’s confidence. Its compact design and transparent operation make it just as practical driving in the city or to the beach.
Moving to the mainstream
All-wheel-drive traditionally has been a strong selling point among performance and luxury vehicles. Making it available in an all-new Mercury product reinforces the aspirational nature of the brand.
"All-wheel-drive has become almost the price of entry for manufacturers in the premium and luxury classes," said Darryl B. Hazel, President of Lincoln Mercury. "Lincoln Mercury intends to be well-represented."
Ford Motor Company already offers AWD on all Volvo models and on the Jaguar X-TYPE. Fully automatic all-wheel-drive also is available on the popular Mercury Mountaineer, Lincoln Aviator and Ford Explorer sport utilities. Explorer also offers a rugged four-wheel-drive ControlTrac II option, with selectable high and low ranges.
With the Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego, the company will have two all-wheel-drive offerings in the high-volume sedan market this year. The Freestyle – an all-new vehicle in the crossover segment – also will offer an AWD option.
"None of the competitors of our new Ford Five Hundred sedan offers all-wheel-drive, which will give consumers a clear choice in this segment," said Phil Martens, Ford Motor Company Group Vice President of Product Creation.
Ford was able to develop this competitive advantage by leveraging technology from its Volvo brand. The Five Hundred, Montego and Freestyle use a Volvo-engineered chassis architecture, which made it relatively easy to adapt Volvo’s proven, space-saving all-wheel-drive system.
"This is the latest example of how Ford Motor Company is leveraging technologies across all divisions to deliver the kinds of vehicles and features that customers desire," Martens said.
At the heart of this system is a European-sourced Haldex torque-transfer unit, mounted just ahead of the rear differential. The electronically controlled Haldex unit reacts quickly and smoothly to transfer torque front-to-rear as needed, to head off wheel slip.
It has proven its durability in millions of miles of real-world use, and delivers the kind of quiet operation customers would expect to find in a luxury vehicle.
How it works
Ford Motor Company’s all-wheel-drive system is fully automatic.
Power is transmitted from the engine through a compact continuously variable transmission into a balanced drive shaft that leads to the Haldex coupler. In normal driving, the vehicle uses front-wheel-drive, but the driveshaft also turns whenever the vehicle is moving, ready to supply power to the rear wheels at a moment’s notice.
Whenever the driveshaft spins faster than the rear wheels – indicating front-wheel slippage – it builds hydraulic pressure inside the Haldex coupler, engaging clutch plates that quickly pull power to the rear wheels.
Additionally, the Haldex system on the Ford Five Hundred, Freestyle and Mercury Montego uses electronic sensors to continuously monitor wheel speeds and engage the coupler using an electro-hydraulic pump when appropriate. This system acts so quickly that it can head off wheel slip before it happens – an important factor when making a quick lane-change, for example.
"It works very quickly – much more quickly than a typical viscous coupler," said Phil Kurrle, powertrain supervisor for the vehicles. "It releases just as quickly, for smooth, seamless operation."
Special calibration allows the system to account for variables such as an underinflated tire, towing or other situations that would severely challenge an all-mechanical system.
Traction control – standard with AWD on the Five Hundred, Freestyle and Montego – allows progressive braking to be applied to any wheel within 100-150 milliseconds to stop wheel slip before it can affect vehicle dynamics. This electronic braking capability transfers torque side-to-side when needed, complementing the smooth front-to-rear torque transfer of the Haldex unit.
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