Embrace the future of driving at Ricart Ford... Or at least learn to be comfortable with it!

   Gas powered. Diesel powered. Gas and electric hybrid. All electric. Warp drive. Flux capacitor. Okay, so the last two not so much, but gas, diesel, hybrid, and electric are now all viable options for powering your automobile, and at Ricart Ford in The Ricart Megamall, you can check out all of them. We are patiently awaiting the plasma drive and flux capacitor.


   Technology has given us so many choices for our motor vehicles it almost feels like we are living in a Science Fiction novel from the past. The thing is, all this technology can be a bit daunting to some folks, but with familiarity comes acceptance, and Ricart Ford is the perfect place to get to know what state of the art is in the driving world.

   A few years ago, satellite radio, Bluetooth connectivity, Ford SYNC, MyFord Touch, turn by turn navigation, and all the stuff we touched on in an earlier posting on this blog seemed so foreign, especially when you think about the first time you saw a video screen on a car’s dash. “Whoa dude! You watching Two and a Half Men on that?”

   We became used to seeing, then using all those tools quickly, and now it’s a little hard to think about a vehicle without them. The next generation vehicles we have available to us now will also seem just as common place sooner than later, so don’t be afraid to embrace the Ford Focus Electric, C-Max Energi or Hybrid, Fusion Hybrid or Energi, or at least learn a bit about them. Stop by Ricart Ford in The Ricart Megamall and ask to check out the vision we have for the future of automobiles with a vehicle tour and a test drive or two.

Your smart phone can do so much more than all the computer systems used to put a man on the moon combined, and you use it every day without a second thought. When you think about that, the new technologies offered by Ford don’t seem foreign anymore, do they? See you soon!

It's Columbus Auto Show time!

The thermometer is bouncing up and down like a basketball on The March Madness hard wood, the Arnold Fitness Classic has come and gone, the award show season is done, and the count to baseball’s opening day is just around the bend. What do all these mean? It’s time for The Columbus Auto Show, when auto manufacturers tout their current wares, and offer a glimpse at what they have in store for us, or at least what they may have coming down the road. And this year, every single new Ford you see at the Columbus Auto Show is from Ricart Ford in The Ricart Megamall! That means you can get the exact new Mustang, or Fusion, Escape, F150 or whatever Ford you see at the Greater Columbus Convention Center this year at Ricart Ford!

This year’s Columbus Auto Show runs March 14th through the 71th, and in addition to exhibits and presentations that fill a motor-head’s dreams, and the thoughts of somewhat less possessed car lovers, Dialed Action Sports BMX Team will have multiple shows each day, The Columbus Zoo will have some animals to check out Saturday and Sunday, Matt The Balloon Guy will be at The Show Sunday, so there’s things for the whole family to do!

The Columbus Auto Show hours are Noon to 9:00 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Saturday 10 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. And if you see a new Ford you really want to drive, Ricart Ford will be open 10 to 8 Thursday and Friday, 9 to 8 Saturday, and Noon to 6Sunday! That makes it easy to take a spin in the new Focus ST, C-Max, or any Ford you saw at The Show on our six acre test track, on the road, or both!

 Enjoy this year’s show, and we’ll see you at The Ricart Megamall soon!

It’s seems the stereotype for supermodels includes the belief that they are all vacuous, empty headed. All they are is a pretty face and chiseled body. But when you consider Cindy Crawford was offered a full boat scholarship to study Chemical Engineering, and Carmen Kass was a chess champion, that belief just doesn’t hold water. Such is the case with Ford’s 2013 redesign of the Fusion. It’s much more than beauty and great lines, it’s THE family sized sedan that manages to be hot, economical, safe, technologically advanced, and a segment butt-kicker all in one! Like Cindy Crawford with Ninja training and all the equipment used by Tony Stark (Ironman), James Bond, and Batman!

Looking at the redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion the styling is apparent, but what you can’t see until you get in one, are things like the increased leg room no matter where you sit, plenty of places to put stuff (including a 16 cubic foot trunk), and a smooth quiet ride. Check out what The Car Connection offered up about the new Fusion.

Great looks, great driving, and great safety features (the 2013 Fusion is an IIHS Top Safety Pick), and the available EcoBoost engine, Hybrid, and EnErgi versions deliver fuel economy that makes other manufacturers green with envy, and the 2013 Ford Fusion, well… Green! That means Fusion delivers the complete package, according to the New York Times.

If you have driven a previous version of the Ford Fusion, you are in for a treat when you stop by The Ricart Megamall to take the 2013 Fusion for a drive. If you have never driven Fusion before, then get ready for the sedan you have always wanted, but never dreamed you would find! Drive the new 2013 Ford Fusion today at Ricart Ford, on our 6 acre test track, on the road, or both. It’s time to see, feel, and experience the new Fusion yourself.

Fall car maintenance... and zombies at Ricart.

You’re taking a pleasant walk with your dog through the woods at a park. It’s twilight, and the shadows among the trees are starting to take on other-worldly appearances. You aren’t worried though, having walked the trails of this park many times.

As the light fades more noticeably and you start to head back to your car, your dog begins to whine as if sensing something in the surrounding trees and bushes, but you hear or see nothing out of the ordinary, and coax the canine to follow you. After a few more steps, the dog becomes dead weight on the leash as he stops, facing back up the trail with a low rumbling growl. You turn to see what has gotten into the dog, and notice a figure lumbering through the trees. Then you see another figure, then a couple of more. Something must be wrong with those people because they all seem to be stumbling through the growing darkness. It’s time to get back to your car!

You pull the leash hard, and with it the dog, as you begin to walk with greater purpose toward the parking lot. Suddenly the dog passes you, whining loudly, as he begins pulling you hard down the path to where your car is parked. The reassuring sounds of nightfall, the crickets and the fading calls of song birds, are quickly overwhelmed by the growing din of a large group of people now crashing through the underbrush and trees. You move faster and faster, the dog pulling you ahead harder and harder. You look over your shoulder and see many of the dark figures following you now, and notice they don’t seem to move quite right, but you are too scared now to try and figure out why.

With your car just ahead, you are running full speed, the dog still racing ahead of you jerking the leash and your arm hard. When you reach the car, you yank open the door, the dog leaps across the driver’s seat to sit shotgun, you hurl yourself into the car, jam the key into the ignition as you see the first zombies spilling from the woods onto the parking lot and heading toward you! You turn the key in the ignition, and… you guessed it… the car does not start!
Maybe it’s the battery, maybe the starter. Who knows? Had you taken the time to get your vehicle serviced regularly by the Factory trained and certified technicians at Ricart, you would be half way home now, and not a snack for the zombie horde.

Sure, zombies are not real, but rain, ice, and snow storms are. So are dark nights in a lonely parking lot. So to avoid having a bad vehicle experience under any conditions, make sure to follow the vehicle maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual, and call Ricart Service at 614-836-6300 to set up your next appointment.

Looks like the new Fords are arriving at Ricart Ford.

One of the best car related movie lines ever uttered came during a car chase in the original “Blue Brothers Movie” where, after slamming into the plate glass windows of a car dealership in the mall, Ellwood Blues says to his brother Jake, “Looks like the new Oldsmobiles are in early this year!”.

Fall is the traditional start of the automotive new model year, an event celebrated for decades with a stop by the car lot with your parents or grandparents just to see what’s new, whether a new car was on the family horizon soon or not. Then there were, and still are, the ads promoting the newest and best in driving convenience, or style, or power, or, whatever in magazines, on the radio, on television, and eventually in emails, and all over on-line!.



2013 Ford C Max

2013 Ford Focus ST

 Of course, the introduction of Ford’s 2013 model year is no different than all those past years, except maybe for the fact the 2013 Mustangs came out this spring, along with the 2013 Edge and Taurus, and the 2013 Escape redesign was introduced early this summer, and all have been hits! Sure, those great vehicles showed up on the lot and in folks’ driveways early, but there is still plenty of excitement this fall at Ricart Ford with the arrival of the 2013 Ford Focus ST just a few days ago, which will be followed very soon by the C-Max Hybrid and Energi, and after that the Fusion Energi and the Focus Electric. See, there are plenty of reasons to get stoked about the traditional new model year season this year, and all of them are stylish, economical, technologically advanced, and planet friendly!


So this fall, take some time to continue the tradition of marking the new model year with a walk through the new Fords at The Ricart Megamall, or at ricart.com, and see what’s new, what’s innovative, and what you’ll want parked in your driveway soon!

The Internet before ricart.com?

There is an overwhelming chance you have researched a new vehicle on-line. That’s because more than 8 in 10 folks now go to at least one web-site to do some research when they start thinking about a new vehicle. When they get to that web-site, they see full color pictures of cars, trucks, SUV’s and CUV’s, and lots of them! There are videos, and live chat, and payment generators for both leases and purchases on the site, along with links to articles about the vehicles, and social sites so you can see what other people are saying about the car you want and the store you want to go to (umm, that better be Ricart!).


Color, sound, video, chat, and oodles of information are what you find on our website today, and that’s are far cry from the first website, which went live 21 years ago this month!

Wow. That’s pretty boring. And does anyone still refer to the ‘net as W3?

Actually, when you think about it, when Tim Berners-Lee published the first web-page from his lab in the Swiss Alps, it was a pretty major event. Of course, back when Tim was working for the European Organization for Nuclear Research his site was designed to be used by fellow researchers. That was the World Wide Web long before you started checking your Facebook status, or even received your first email… and forget about that smart phone you have, or live streaming video, instant messaging, or any of the other stuff you now accept as part of your life!

So the next time you hop on ricart.com to look at that new car, or make a service appointment, or check Facebook or Twitter to see what community event Ricky Ricart will be hanging at this weekend, remember it always didn’t use to be that way. Life was hard back in the day, wasn’t it?

Free show in the sky worth a ride in your Ricart Ford May 20th!

There's a free show coming just before sunset on May 20th, 2012. Hey! That's a Sunday! Great! Let's hope for nice weather!

No, it's not a live performance of "Dark Side of the Moon", but it's really cool, and your Ricart Ford Family didn't want you to miss out the chance to enjoy something you just can't see every day... a partial solar eclipse. If you want to see the total eclipse, grab the family or some friends, fill up your Ford, and head west a few states.

To see the partial eclipse, find a good place to look westward with as few ground objects between you and the western horizon as possible. Plan on arriving at your spot by 8 p.m. or so on the evening of the 20th, weather permitting. The event should begin a bit after 8:00, and you should begin to see the Moon's shadow blocking a bit of the Sun's disc. The Moon should cover as much of the Sun it's going to by about 8:40, or about the time the Sun will set completely.

Remember to never look directly into the sun! That would not be good because it can damage your eyes. So if you are gonna view the eclipse, check out how NASA suggests you do it. Make sure any children with you follow the viewing guidelines, or stay at home and watch it from Mt. Fujiyama in Japan at go-green.ae.

If you want to find out even more, you can check out Annular Solar Eclipse May 20. 2012 on Facebook.
While you are on Facebook, just go ahead and like Ricart Automotive too. You know you want to!

So pack some snacks, and maybe a blanket for the ground... put together a good tunes list on your player or phone, hop in your Ford, and head to that spot you have picked out. It'll be a great way to end the weekend, so have fun! If we don't see you out there, we'll see you the next time you visit the Ricart Megamall.