Pioneer Supplies Navigation to Ford
By Amy Gilroy -- TWICE, 9/5/2005
Farmington Hills, Mich.— Pioneer Automotive Technologies said Ford will include Pioneer's new DVD-based navigation/entertainment systems on select Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles.
The Pioneer systems will offer turn-by-turn route guidance navigation that pronounces all street names, touch-screen display, AM/FM tuner and an integrated six-disc CD player with MP3 playback. They represent Pioneer's first OEM navigation systems in North America.
Ford will offer the systems on seven vehicles for the 2006 model year, including the Ford Explorer, Ford Freestyle, Ford Five Hundred, Ford Explorer SportTrac, Mercury Montego, Mercury Mountaineer and Lincoln Zephyr.
Although the features will be similar, the products will contain “uniquely optimized software and hardware” for each model. Differentiating features include a splash screen identifying the Ford, Mercury and Lincoln logos; different button shapes and colors; and different backlighting. The Lincoln Zephyr will also provide THX-II Certified audio.
The units are also Sirius-ready, said the company.
