Detroit Auto Show: Ford Model U Concept: A Model For Change

     "The company's Centennial offers us a unique opportunity to reflect on
     our many past accomplishments.  But, it also challenges us to look ahead
     and create a vision of continuing success.  Model U is an exploration of
     that future vision."
                               Bill Ford
                               Chairman and CEO, Ford Motor Company

    DETROIT, Jan. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Building on the heritage started
with the Model T, Ford's Model U concept begins Ford Motor Company's second
century of innovation.
    Equipped with an array of upgradable technologies and a multi-function
tailgate, Model U can stick with you and adapt to your needs if your life
changes.
    Powered by the world's first supercharged hydrogen internal combustion
engine, equipped with a hybrid electric transmission and pioneering green
materials and processes, Model U is a vision for the future.  It is Ford's
model for change -- exploring the benefits a vehicle provides to its users,
the way it is manufactured and how it impacts the world.
    It is the Model T of the 21st century.
    Inspired by how the Model T revolutionized personal transportation in the
last century, a team of Ford researchers and designers created Model U.  It is
a clear expression of Ford Motor Company 's strategy to pursue future
automotive technologies without compromising today's customer expectations for
personal mobility.  It is a car designed to be good to you and good for the
world.
    "When Henry Ford built the Model T, it was affordable, offered the most
advanced manufacturing and was built with the most advanced materials," says
Dr. Gerhard Schmidt, Ford Motor Company vice president of Research and
Advanced Engineering.  "In a similar but entirely contemporary way, Model U
starts a new cycle.  Emissions, safety and fuel economy, also green materials
and processes, are all key questions facing the entire industry.  We believe
the Model U addresses them all."
    A partnership was struck among Ford's Research and Advanced Engineering,
Ford's Brand Imaging Group (an internal design think tank), Bill McDonough
(architect of the new Rouge Center and co-founder, with Dr. Michael Braungart,
of the product design firm MBDC), BP and a host of technology suppliers.
    "Model U is very different from most futuristic concept vehicles," says J
Mays, vice president of Design.  "It tries to address the challenges of the
future and proposes exciting, realistic solutions that exceed current industry
standards.  Therefore, I hope it does justice to the name 'Model for Change.'"
    Model U offers SUV driving excitement that is affordable, but can grow
with a customer's lifestyle and aspirations.  It is designed for mass
production, but has nearly infinite capacity for being personalized and
upgraded.  It offers advanced technologies that respond to customers' desires
for convenience, entertainment and continuously improved safety.  And it looks
at how building a car, truck or SUV can strengthen the environment.
    "What I think is so exciting about Model U is that it opens the door to a
whole new way of looking at things, just like the Model T did," says
McDonough.  "The vision behind Model U is entirely positive.  Instead of
focusing on minimizing environmental harm, which is what most approaches to
sustainable mobility do, Model U starts to find ways to be re-creational and
regenerative -- to have fun and create environmental benefits at the same
time. That's a totally new vision for the auto industry."

    Key features:
    * Reconfigurable Interior and Exterior - Model U can adapt to each
      person's individuality.  Its interior is modular, allowing for ongoing
      upgrades.  The Model U has a series of slots in the floor, door panels
      and instrument panel in which different components can be mounted, moved
      around or added later.  The slots are designed to provide power and
      access to the vehicle's electronic network.  The exterior is highlighted
      by a power retractable roof, rear window, tailgate and trunk, allowing
      the vehicle to go from closed to open.

    * Hydrogen ICE plus Hybrid Electric Powertrain - Model U is powered by
      internal combustion engine (ICE) that is optimized to run on hydrogen.
      The engine is supercharged and intercooled for maximum efficiency, power
      and range.  Its emission of all pollutants, including carbon dioxide, is
      nearly zero, and the engine is up to 25 percent more fuel-efficient than
      gasoline engines.  The hydrogen ICE is based on Ford's global 2.3-liter
      I-4 engine used in the Ford Ranger, the European Ford Mondeo and a
      number of Mazda vehicles.  The engine is optimized to burn hydrogen with
      12.2:1 high-compression pistons, fuel injectors designed to handle
      hydrogen gas, a coil-on-plug ignition system, an electronic throttle and
      new engine management software.  The hydrogen ICE is joined with an
      advanced hybrid electric transmission technology called the Ford Modular
      Hybrid Transmission System (MHTS).  The torque converter from a
      conventional transmission is replaced with a high-voltage electric motor
      and two hydraulic clutches that permit the motor to operate
      independently of, or in concert with, the engine.  The electric motor
      simultaneously fills the role of flywheel, starter, alternator and
      hybrid traction motor.

    * Conversational Speech Interface - Model U showcases the most advanced
      conversational speech technology displayed to date.  It allows a person
      to speak naturally to operate on-board systems including entertainment,
      navigation, cellular telephone and climate control.

    * Improved Driver Visibility and Awareness through Active Safety - Model U
      features pre-crash sensing, adaptive front headlights and an advanced
      night vision system to help the driver avoid accidents before they
      occur.

    * Green materials and processes - The Model U features advanced materials
      that have been designed for the optimum health of the car's occupants.
      These were designed for their ecological effects and can go from
      cradle-to-cradle, instead of staying in typical cradle-to-grave waste
      streams.