#essex

Americans love their Ford F-150s, but buyers are increasingly opting for a powerplant boasting fewer than eight cylinders. As such, the automaker is cutting the third shift at the Windsor, Ontario engine plant tasked with building the 5.0-liter Coyote V8.

Ford V8s and Windsor have a long association, but the extraneous employees needn’t worry about hitting the job boards. There’s a much larger V8 in need of assembly.

The Internet is full of reasons why people want be on the coveted Ford GT waiting list, but there’s a reoccurring theme: said individual bleeds Blue Oval Blue, they own (insert Fords here), they’ll promote the Ford GT within the motorsports community and—whoa dude—check out their mad marketing skillz and/or social media reach. While I don’t have the means, my cancer-killing brother does. His application story isn’t about the final submission, it’s about what wasn’t submitted.

For months, news of new investment at Ford’s two engine plants in Windsor, Ontario has been making the rounds. The supposed story was that Windsor would get a new family of small, fuel-efficient engines, and possibly even hybrid powertrains. The (wishful) thinking was that the profitable assembly of these powertrains might lead to small car production in Canada.

Ford’s plan to ramp up production of their Ecoboost engines may negatively impact the Blue Oval’s Essex engine plant in Windsor, Ontario.

What do you do when your £50,000 ($82,000) Range Rover requires, in the span of 42,000 miles, the following repairs?

• Six front ball joints;
• Four front arm bushes [bushings?];
• One new seat base;
• Front and rear [near side?] struts;
• Air conditioning system;
• Anti-roll bar bushes; and
• A “full” suspension unit