Ford's future visions: Classic concept cars meet 2010 game-changers

1953 Ford X-100 Concept is a Ford classic that lent its lines to 1961-63 Thunderbirds.

Ford Motor Company has a long history of visionary moves, starting with Henry Ford's adoption of the moving assembly line that enabled efficient mass production. The Model T went down in history as "the car that put America on wheels." The 1932 Ford introduced the first V-8 engine in a popularly priced car. Ford introduced the Fairlane Skyliner in 1957--the first mass-produced car with a folding metal top, and invented the "personal car" with the four-seat Thunderbird of 1958. Ford's Mustang revolutionized the American autoscape by inventing the pony car in 1964. Ford's original Taurus shook up the American car market with an aerodynamic design a generation ahead of its competition in 1986. Ford's aged Rouge Plant has been converted into modern wonder that's the greenest auto plant in the U.S.

Today, Ford Motor Company enjoys an enviable position as the only U.S. automaker to carry on without a government bailout. This appears to be inspiring great public goodwill while it keeps the company free to pursue a future without governmental meddling.

Ford concept cars peaked, as all U.S. manufacturers' did, during the halcyon 1950s. Optimistic postwar America lapped up wild futuristic concepts like crazy and Ford stylists were happy to oblige. They showed wild finned wonders with innovative engineering alongside fantasies like the Levacar, a wheel-less air car and the Nucleon, a nuclear powered coupe. See the slide show below for photos of these fantasies.

Demands of a transformative 21st Century autoscape have challenged Ford to take inspiration from its innovative heritage and deliver cars that Americans want to drive now. That means premium content in a high-style small economy car like Ford's Fiesta--a sporty, upscale European model only lightly massaged for U.S. sales. And it means bringing Mercedes-like levels of refinement, interior design, and performance to a family sedan. Believe it or not, the 2010 Taurus SHO makes that claim stick.

My own belief that Ford is on the right track was underscored with laser brightness when Ford's President of the Americas, Mark Field, took a half hour out to speak with me and a couple other bloggers after his presentation at the Petersen Automotive Museum. Along with Ford treasurer Neil Schloss, he was on a tour of cities, looking to dialog with people outside the industry and check the pulse of automotive writers. This is radical stuff for an American car company. Sending top corporate officers on the road to talk to bloggers just isn't something they do. But Ford is. This alone demonstrates the company's commitment to getting it right and making products that Americans really want, be it an affordable economy car or a full zoot road rocket.

Check out Cartopia, my upcoming book on concept cars.