Take Control of Your Vehicle With Ford’s Adaptive Steering System

PEKIN, Ill. – Once upon a time, power steering was a new sensation that made driving all the more easier and enjoyable. But now you can truly take control of your vehicle with Ford Motor Co.’s adaptive steering system.

“First and foremost, all Ford Motor Company products have to offer a great driving experience,” said Raj Nair, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development. “This new steering technology can help make vehicles easy to maneuver and fun to drive.”

The vehicles you know are built with fixed-ratio steering systems that only allow for the steering wheel and front wheels to affect each other directly. The difference that allows you to take control of your vehicle with Ford’s adaptive steering system is in changed communication between your vehicle’s steering components. Instead of your front wheels coinciding with the amount of steering wheel turns you make, the new steering system bases wheel turns off of your speed.

If you’re driving slower it will require more steering wheel turns to move your front wheels in the desired direction. This allows you to maneuver better in tight areas lot parking lots. If you’re driving faster it will require less steering wheel turns to move your front wheels in the desired direction. This provides more stability and control when you’re driving on the highway.

The trick for an adaptive steering system like this is found in the precision-controlled actuator located in the steering wheel. The electric motor and gearing system, designed by Ford and engineers from Germany-based auto supplier TKAG, adds or subtracts from your steering inputs depending on the driving situation, but preserve other functions of a traditional steering system so you’re still in complete control.

Look for Ford’s adaptive steering system with the debut of the 2016 Ford Edge, which will be on our Peoria area Ford dealer lot in no time. Eventually the system will be implemented into all Ford vehicles, giving you more control to avoid collisions or other damaging situations that call for car repair or auto service.

At Velde Ford, we are committed to providing our customers with an unbeatable level of service and a great car buying experience. Feel free to visit our dealership, Velde Ford at 2200 North 8th Street, Pekin, IL 61554.

Visit our website: VeldeFordPekin.com

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Orlando Residents Fear Low-Visibility Driving More Than Anything Else

PEKIN, Ill. – The fears of public speaking, heights, and snakes are ubiquitous in the United States, but if you live in Orlando, Fla., it's likely something else ranks highest on your hierarchy of fears: low-visibility driving.

In Orlando, 69% of residents fear public speaking, 68% heights, and 76% snakes. But compare those statistics to the amount of anxiety engendered by low-visibility driving in the city: 82% of Orlando residents fear low-visibility driving more than anything else.

Despite this unusual juxtaposition of fears, the comparison elucidates the stark truth of how common low-visibility driving is, and Ford Motor Co. wants to change that. The company hopes introducing its Ford Smart Mobility Tour to Orlando will encourage the city to eventually implement safer transportation methods that allay driving related anxiety.

Ford Smart Mobility Tour is Ford’s strategic move into the realm of connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, the customer experience, and big data. The company is also developing multimodal transportation that as yet includes a routing app able to integrate with vehicles and electric bikes, an industry Ford recently made a foray into.

Some of Ford’s major mobility innovations include multiple driver-assist technologies like Blind Spot Information System and Pro Trailer Backup Assist. The company is also developing semi-autonomous technologies such as a lane-keeping aid and active park assist. These are systems capable of mitigating negative driving habits, lack of awareness on the road, and low-visibility driving for cities like Orlando.

It's the right direction for Ford seeing as almost 7 in 10 Orlando residents say they're more likely to purchase a vehicle that warns them of someone or something in their vehicle’s blind spot, and almost 9 in 10 would be more relaxed driving such a vehicle.

Already, 40% of 2015 Ford F-150 and SUV drivers in Orlando deliberately purchased models equipped with Ford’s Blind Spot Information System, according to Ford. Could it be an implication of what vehicles drivers are leaning towards as we move into the future?

Ford’s study shows Orlando residents fear low-visibility driving more than anything else, but presumably the city isn’t alone. Urban population is thickening, and areas once considered sparsely populated are following becoming denser, too. These environments, combined with an increase in drivers, multiply the potential for low-visibility driving situations, which results in Orlando residents' primary fear.

As a Ford dealer serving Peoria, IL, we share Ford’s concern for our customers, and residents of our area in general. As Ford Smart Mobility materializes to become the most feasible solution available to hazardous driving situations such as low visibility, we’re ready to help our local customers stay safe on the road by providing the best car repair, auto service, and oil changes you’ll find in Central Illinois.

At Velde Ford, we are committed to providing our customers with an unbeatable level of service and a great car buying experience. Feel free to visit our dealership, Velde Ford at 2200 North 8th Street, Pekin, IL 61554.

Visit our website: VeldeFordPekin.com

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How to Grill the Perfect Steak This Labor Day

PEKIN, Ill. – Your friend may have a secret steak rub recipe, but you can show them who’s boss when it comes to bringing a steak to the perfect level of tenderness. With a simple trick, you can be the friend who knows better than anyone how to grill the perfect steak this Labor Day. It’s a simple trick you won’t forget, and the secret lies in the palm of your hand.

For a rare steak, you want the meat to feel spongy and a little springy. To understand what a rare steak should feel like, hold your hand open and with your other index finger press the palm under your thumb. That tenderness is what a rare steak should feel like.

You can use this trick to check your steak according to the degree of wellness you or your guests prefer; all you have to do is increase or decrease the firmness of your palm by forming a circle with your fingers and thumb.

To test for medium-rare steaks, make a circle with your index finger and thumb. For medium steaks make a circle with your middle finger and thumb. For medium-well steaks, make a circle with your ring finger and thumb. For well-done steaks make a circle with your pinky and thumb.

Instead of serving undercooked steaks, or using the less elegant method of cutting into the meat to check its color, you now know how to grill the perfect steak this Labor Day using a simple, proven technique. If your friend insists on using their overhyped secret rub, let them. You now wield the bigger steak knife in the battle of grilling.

If you have an eye for steak, which you now do, you probably have an eye for quality vehicles, too. In that case, stop by our Ford dealership serving Peoria, IL, to check out our inventory of used Fords for sale.

At Velde Ford, we are committed to providing our customers with an unbeatable level of service and a great car buying experience. Feel free to visit our dealership, Velde Ford at 2200 North 8th Street, Pekin, IL 61554.

Visit our website: VeldeFordPekin.com

Follow us on: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram