Tjin Edition Preparing 2012 Ford Explorer and Mustang GT 5.0 for the SEMA Show

As usual, the upcoming SEMA Show in Las Vegas will be crowded with plenty of one-off and accessorized vehicles from most carmakers. As a preview, the crew over at Tjin Edition have released some up skirt photos of two of the Ford models they are currently working on in partnership with the Detroit automaker.

First up is Tjin Edition's take on the 2012 Ford Explorer. The teaser picture only provides a glimpse of the tuned crossover model, but the company has shared some initial details.

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MT Slams 2012 Ford Explorer 2.0L EcoBoost, Says it's Slow, Clumsy, Pricey and Thirsty

Now here's a review that is bound to get the conversation heated up. Motor Trend's senior editor, Jonny Lieberman of former Jalopnik, The Truth About Cars and Autoblog fame, tried out the new 2012 Ford Explorer with the 2.0-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four that produces 240-ponies. And well, let's just say he didn't like it one bit.

After testing the Explorer, Lieberman states, among other things, that the 2.0-liter model is "slow, clumsy, pricey, thirstier than we would have thought, and a packaging disaster".

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Awesom-o: Ford Builds Life-Size 2012 Explorer Replica from LEGO Bricks [with Video]

We have seen LEGO bricks used to craft just about anything one can imagine but we never cease to be amazed when somebody goes over the top to construct a freakishly big design.

Case in point, a full-size replica of Ford's 2012 Explorer built almost entirely from LEGO bricks, which was made to mark the beginning of a new long-term alliance between Ford and the LEGOLAND Florida theme park.

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Ford Police Interceptors Reporting For Duty in Michigan

Michigan outlaws beware: State Police is getting ready to add another weapon in its armory, or rather two: the Ford Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan and the Explorer Police Interceptor Utility, which today passed the two-day State Police tests and are ready to enter service.

Although the Taurus Interceptor was tested just as thoroughly, it was the Explorer SUV Utility version that received most of the attention.

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Ford to Baby Boomers: We Get that You’re Old and Feeble and Can’t Read Small Fonts

*This article has been (patronizingly) posted in a larger-than-normal font for our older readers

From next year, the fonts in Ford’s Edge and Explorer SUV models will be some 40% larger as well as thicker. The reason? Baby Boomers have poor eyesight. No, really, Ford’s done a study and everything. The bigger fonts will extend to interior display screens control and A/C controls, and will gradually be rolled out onto other models in the Ford range in coming years.

In a statement on their website, Ford expressed its desire to make it, “easier for people of all ages, particularly aging Baby Boomers, to read display fonts.” Ah, like the little boy or girl who flat-out tells his grandparents that they’re old and wrinkly, Ford has snagged upon that babying / slow and loud way anyone under the age of 30 speak to anyone over the age of 50:

“YES, MRS. JOHNSON. THE WEATHER IS NICE TODAY. DO YOU THINK YOU’LL GO DOWN TO THE PARK?”

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Ford Releases Videos of Its New Police Interceptors Taking on the Competition

Ford has released a series of six videos with the Taurus and Explorer-based police vehicles undergoing various tests performed by police officers. The performance, handling and durability of the Interceptors were tested in a series of real-world police maneuvers and driving conditions and then compared to those of the competitors. The six videos show Ford's police cars taking on the Chevrolet Tahoe PPV and Dodge Charger Pursuit in a series of tests to find out which are the most capable purpose-built police cars.

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2011 Ford Explorer Receives its First Recall

Ford's freshly launched 2011 Explorer SUV has received its first safety recall for a problem concerning the second row of seats. The recall affects approximately 1,658 Explorers made between July and December of last year.

According to a filling with federal safety regulators, the manual recliner mechanisms of the second row seats may "have components that are out of dimensional specification". The NHTSA said that in the event of a crash, "the seat back may not provide the required strength, increasing the risk of injury."

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VIDEO: Sanitation Workers Wreak Havoc on a Parked Ford Explorer

Even if you know your winter driving ABCs and have properly equipped your car, sometimes there’s no way to avoid getting snowed in. Should that happen in a thriving metropolis, chances are that the sanitation “cavalry” will have your back covered. However, this wasn’t the case in New York, as a Sanitation Department loader got stuck and, in what can only be described as a very poor effort of trying to free it, the on-the-scene personnel seriously damaged a city owned - ah, the irony - Ford Explorer parked nearby.

Check out the video after the jump to see dumb and dumber at work.

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2011 Ford Explorer V6 Rated by EPA at 17mpg city and 25 mpg Highway

The official EPA fuel-economy numbers have been posted for the V6 Ti-VCT version of Ford's chunky 2011 Explorer. The 3.5-liter six-cylinder engine produces 292 hp, or 80 ponies more than the outgoing model’s 4.0-liter V6. Despite the power increase, the new crossover returns an EPA-certified 17 mpg city and 25 mpg highway, which accounts to a 25 percent improvement over the previous V6 model.

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Ford’s Police Interceptor Outpaces Competition at LA Sheriff’s Department Testing

The American police car segment is heating up with equally interesting offers from GM (Chevy Caprice), Chrysler (Dodge Charger) and Ford. In their latest battle, the Dearborn automaker's Taurus-based AWD Police Interceptor achieved the fastest lap time in tests carried out by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department (LASD), signaling that it's a worthy successor for the Crown Victoria.

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Ford Confirms 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost Turbo for F-150, 2.0-liter Turbo for Explorer and Edge

Over the past few months we've heard several rumors regarding the models that will get FoMoCo's EcoBoost turbocharged engines.

Now, the Detroit automaker has officially confirmed that the 2011 F-150 pickup truck will be offered with its 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 upgraded for rear-wheel-drive applications, while a new 2.0-liter inline-four turbo will find its way under the hood of the next next-generation Ford Explorer SUV and Edge CUV.

The 2.0-liter EcoBoost unit will be launched along with a smaller displacement 1.6-liter EcoBoost unit, which will be used initially on the European C-Max people mover, by the end of the year.

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