Recycled paper honeycomb material give the new Ford EcoSport four-way parcel shelf what is claimed to be exceptional strength. The adjustable cargo floorboard is made from all-natural paper and water-based glue. Ford says the six-pound honeycomb floorboard can handle nearly 700 pounds of cargo. The technology came from honeybees, and was first introduced in household door manufacturing 50 years ago. It is now used in automotive and furniture design, as well as packaging. (Ford Rouge Complex Hosting 80,000 Honeybees)
“Customers can slide the shelf into multiple different slots like an oven rack; even store it on the back of the seats,” said Mike Mazzella, Ford EcoSport assistant chief engineer.
Configurations
The parcel shelf can hold any of four positions in the cargo area to best suit a driver’s needs:
- In the lowest position, it serves as a load floor for maximum storage
- In the middle position, it creates a secure storage area beneath the floorboard
- In the high position, the area underneath increases to create a cargo floor that lines up with the fold-flat second-row seats
- Removed and stored vertically against the back of the second-row seats
See: https://youtu.be/WMueZDcu93o
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
