Ford wins top car, truck awards at Detroit auto show

DETROIT — Ford Motor's market momentum got a lift Monday by winning both the 2010 North American Car and Truck of the Year awards.

Ford's Fusion Hybrid midsize sedan took top car honors and its versatile Transit Connect compact van snagged truck of the year at the Detroit auto show.

It was only the third time in 17 years an automaker has won both awards, selected by 49 auto journalists and given annually since 1994.

Finalists for the car award included the Buick LaCrosse and Volkswagen Golf GTI and TDI diesel.

The Chevrolet Equinox and Subaru Outback were finalists for the truck award.

Thanks to some shrewd moves, Ford is blazing a trail for its Detroit rivals. It has trimmed its lineup, streamlined development and begun standardizing most parts for its cars no matter where they're sold in the world.

Those efforts are culminating in the launch of the 2012 Ford Focus at the show this week. Ford hopes the car becomes the standard for how to economically build a vehicle for the world.

This new "world car" shares about 80 percent of its components with twin models in Europe and Asia.

Because of the way the 106-year-old company was organized, previous models of the Focus were designed separately by region and didn't share many parts.

Toyota

Toyota unveiled a new hybrid concept car Monday that is smaller than the Prius and geared toward younger buyers. The car is part of the company's hybrid and alternative-fuel lineup, which is expanding over the next several years.

The Japanese automaker showed off the FT-CH compact at the North American International Auto Show and confirmed plans to expand the Prius brand from a single vehicle to a family of hybrids.

The FT-CH could be sold under the Prius name, Toyota said.

Toyota said the two-door FT-CH, 22 inches shorter than the Prius, is lighter and more fuel efficient. Its styling, inspired by 8-bit video games popular during the 1980s, is intended to appeal to younger buyers.

The FT-CH, as a concept vehicle, has no official sales or production schedule.

General Motors

General Motors will build a pure-electric vehicle by expanding the Chevrolet Volt's battery pack and removing its internal-combustion engine, Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said Monday.

It's the next step for the Volt, a car the company says can run 40 miles on a charge from a standard home-power outlet. After the battery wears down, a 1.4-liter four-cylinder internal-combustion engine takes over and generates electricity to power the car.

It's due to go on sale this fall at a cost of about $40,000, before tax credits.

Chrysler

Chrysler Group, the U.S. automaker run by Fiat, offered a glimpse of plans for future technology sharing by displaying variants of two of the Italian company's models.

A Lancia Delta hatchback with a Chrysler badge and a battery-powered version of the Fiat 500 were presented as the auto show began.

Both prototypes give hints about how Fiat may provide Chrysler with new vehicles and designs. Auburn Hills, Mich.,- based Chrysler plans to sell a gasoline-powered version of the 500 in the U.S. late this year and has said it will combine Lancia and the Chrysler brands worldwide.

Honda

Honda Motor showed off the production model of the 2011 CR-Z, a sporty two-seater hybrid that will go on sale in late summer in the U.S.

The CR-Z hatchback is Honda's attempt to bring a bit of flair to the hybrid segment, whose design has long been dominated by the boxy lines and sloping roofs of four-door sedans like the Toyota Prius.

The two-door CR-Z, by contrast, features a compact profile and roadster look. It also comes with drive modes that allow cycling between sportier or more fuel-efficient settings.

The new CR-Z will get 36 city miles per gallon and 38 highway mpg, according to Honda's preliminary estimates. That's below the fuel economy of its flagship hybrid, the Insight. It's also less efficient than the 2010 Prius, which gets 51 city/48 highway mpg, according to the EPA.

Unlike other hybrids, CR-Z drivers will be able to cycle among three drive modes: sport, normal and economy.