Another UK price rise from Ford

Ford's sporty Focus RS is not affected by the latest price increase

Ford has announced another round of price rises for the UK; on average its cars will be 2.7 per cent more expensive when the changes are implemented at the end of this month, although the hot Focus RS and some Transit vans will not be affected by the increases.

Ford has had to make several small price increases over the last year or so in order to try to offset the damage that the strength of the Euro is doing to its UK bottom line. The company now makes most of the cars it sells here in continental Europe, and has been badly hit by the depreciation of the pound against the Euro by about 30 per cent since 2007.

Given that the UK is Ford's second-biggest market worldwide, it appears odd that the company should have shut down so many of its British operations, allowing such a big mismatch of production and sales between different currency areas to arise.

However, when Ford decided a few years back to close its last remaining British assembly facilities for cars carrying its own badge, it still owned substantial UK production sites – since disposed of - for Land Rover, Jaguar and Aston Martin, from which large numbers of high-value vehicles were exported to North America and the Eurozone. This pattern of activities probably left Ford much better hedged in currency terms on a group-wide basis than it is today.

One open question is the extent to which Ford can make these price increases stick; several of its models have long been available at large discounts via websites such as drivethedeal.com, and some of its competitors have held their prices back.

Jet-powered Ford guns for 300 mph

Joe Wilkins knew there was only one way to give his supercharged, alcohol-injected Hemi-engined hot rod more power: Put a jet engine in the trunk.

"It started as a hobby and turned into a monster," said Joe Wilkins, the motor madman behind what might be the wildest 1939 Ford ever built. He's an inventor and defense department contractor, and the idea of goosing the Ford's ability to turn heads and shred tires came when he bought a used gas turbine engine.

"I got hooked on the simplicity and power that this thing produced, and I decided one day I want to put it in a car."

Luckily for us, he did. The Hemi Jet -- Wilkins has copyrighted the name -- fires up this weekend at the Houston AutoRama, and Wilkins plans to attempt a land speed record in the near future.

In the meantime, he's tooling around Navasota, Texas, in what he says is the ultimate sleeper when the jet engine's tucked away in the trunk.

If you see this car pull up next to you at a traffic light, you may want to think twice before trying to race it.

Most people say "Nice car" and assume he's got the obligatory small-block Chevrolet engine under the hood. Little do they know.

"I can drive it up to the store and get a gallon of milk if I want to," he told Autopia.

The car is an amalgamation of the Big Three, with a Chrysler engine, Chevrolet drivetrain and Ford body. Wilkins says the jet engine was probably used as an APU and weighs 110 pounds.

He claims the car is street legal so long as the jet stays stowed. He fires it up from time to time to show off, and he plans to run it flat-out at the Bonneville Salt Flats.

"We want to be the fastest street legal car in the world," he said.

He's got some intense competition. The Bugatti Veyron tops out at 253 mph and the Shelby Supercars Ultimate Aero TT does 255. And then there's Red Vector One, that crazy Vauxhall that does zero to 60 in under a second. Record, schmecord -- we just want to see the video.

"I'm more than certain the car will go over 300," Wilkins said. "We've still got a ways to go [before Bonneville], but not a long way. We'll have to experiment in some wind tunnels and end up with a spoiler on the back to keep the front end on the ground."

Sadly, Wilkins won't be behind the wheel during the car's test run.

"I turned 61 last Sunday. I just don't think I'm going to be able to handle it [without] the reflexes I had 20 or 30 years ago," he said. "I know several people who would be more than interested."

2009 Ford Kuga

Ford’s new 2009 Kuga inspired by the 2006 Ford iosis X concept and previewed at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show, the production-spec Kuga debuted at Geneva as the brand's first European crossover. With a 2.0-liter Duratorq TDCi diesel engine and all-wheel drive, the Kuga gives drivers better traction and more room than its Focus platform mate, all while beautifully maintaining Ford's kinetic design language.

The Kuga's exterior features a light assortment of chrome accents, side vents, projector-style headlights and fog lights, rear parking sensors, dual exhaust outlets, and a "liftgate-in-liftgate" tailgate. Inside, the crossover's instrument cluster and audio/navigation systems are shared with the Focus, but each vehicle receives its own unique air vents and smaller design touches.

2009 Ford S-Max

Ford S-MAX has won the large MPV class in the British Insurance Car Security Awards, for the third year in a row, with Galaxy yet again named as runner-up.

Standard security features on S-MAX include Thatcham Category 1 alarm, remote-control deadlocks, engine immobiliser and visible VIN numbers. Ford S-MAX is available from £19,895, on-the-road.