Ford Of Britain 100: Image Of The Week - 51/52

BRENTWOOD, UNITED KINGDOM – Dec 22, 2011: To celebrate the centenary of Ford of Britain in 2011 the company is exploring its photo archive to reveal rarely seen images.

Ford's unique relationship with Britain and its society will be illustrated each week by specially selected pictures.

The winter of 1993-1994 saw a combination of Ford Mondeos – a model with aspirations as a global car – and Ford Mavericks set off from London to support an attempt to drive overland between London and New York via the Bering Strait. This overland (and ice) route did not prove successful but the team did find alternative means to reach Alaska and, eventually, New York.

In 2010, The Ford Fiesta used conventional routes to embark on a 15,000-mile round-the-world trip that saw Ford’s stylish small car visit a total of 21 countries.

The drive was a demonstration of the "One Ford" global strategy, which is putting the Ford Fiesta, Ford Focus and future Ford Kuga and Ford Mondeo models on sale globally. The round-the-world programme for the Ford Fiesta took over 50 days to complete, covering North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Australia.

UK-built engines are a key part of the "One Ford" strategy and during the Ford Fiesta's 500-mile leg across the UK, the car stopped off at Ford's Bridgend engine-plant – where the car's 1.6-litre petrol engine is built.