The Ford Reflex (or ''REFL3X'', as spelled on the vehicle nameplate) was a

concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...

introduced at the 2006 North American International Auto Show that, according to

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

, "proved small cars could be bold and American". It was a technological showcase that included

solar panel A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...

-powered

headlight A headlamp is a lamp attached to the front of a vehicle to illuminate the road ahead. Headlamps are also often called headlights, but in the most precise usage, ''headlamp'' is the term for the device itself and ''headlight'' is the term for t ...

s, an integrated child seat, a baby cam with a monitor mounted on the dash, inflatable rear

safety belt A seat belt, also known as a safety belt or spelled seatbelt, is a vehicle safety device designed to secure the driver or a passenger of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result during a collision or a sudden stop. A seat belt reduc ...

s, and an interior quieted by ground

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

taken from

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...

athletic shoe

outsole A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

s. A production version of the Reflex design has never been announced. It featured an advanced

diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine ...

- electric hybrid engine with new-generation

lithium ion batteries A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery that uses the reversible intercalation of Li+ ions into electronically conducting solids to store energy. Li-ion batteries are characterized by higher specific energy, energy d ...

that could help deliver up to of diesel fuel, and could accelerate the vehicle from 0 to in 7 seconds. Auto Show 005

The concept featured an

electric motor An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...

on the rear axle in addition to its hybrid propulsion system on the front axle. The rear motor provided

all wheel drive An all-wheel drive vehicle (AWD vehicle) is one with a powertrain capable of providing power to all its wheels, whether full-time or on-demand. Types The most common forms of all-wheel drive are: ;1x1 : All unicycles Reflects one axle with ...

capability, improved driving dynamics, and the fuel economy benefited of a full hybrid vehicle. Reflex's energy was stored in a new-generation lithium-ion

battery pack A battery pack is a set of any number of (preferably) identical Battery (electricity), batteries or individual battery cells. They may be configured in a series, parallel or a mixture of both to deliver the desired voltage and current. The term ' ...

, using the same technology found in

cell phones A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive Telephone call, calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones (landline phone ...

. Ford was the first manufacturer to produce an

electric vehicle An electric vehicle (EV) is a motor vehicle whose propulsion is powered fully or mostly by electricity. EVs encompass a wide range of transportation modes, including road vehicle, road and rail vehicles, electric boats and Submersible, submer ...

using this type of battery system when it introduced the electric

Ford Ka The Ford Ka is a small car manufactured by Ford Motor Company from 1996 to 2016 as a city car and from 2014 to 2021 as a subcompact car. It entered its second generation in 2008, produced by Fiat in Tychy, Poland. A third generation was introduced ...

research vehicle in 2000. Also contributing to Reflex's power and performance were unique headlamps and taillamps that integrated

s. The Ford-patented battery-charging lighting system improved fuel economy by using the sun's power to charge the on-board batteries, while capturing and reusing the daylight at night. The Reflex featured 2+1 seating, with a center-mounted rear "love seat" for 2 children or one adult, that also included a fold-out rear-facing child seat. "Ford Reflex is a small car that doesn't feel small," said Freeman Thomas, director, Ford North American Strategic Design. "It is a gorgeous sporty car that delivers guilt free performance with a hybrid engine. And thanks to its innovative approach to the interior, it has space for growing families." Reflex was set off with Ford's three-bar grille – made of high-strength

anodized Anodizing is an electrolytic passivation process used to increase the thickness of the natural oxide layer on the surface of metal parts. The process is called ''anodizing'' because the part to be treated forms the anode electrode of an electro ...

extruded Extrusion is a process used to create objects of a fixed cross-sectional profile by pushing material through a die of the desired cross-section. Its two main advantages over other manufacturing processes are its ability to create very complex ...

aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

, which was hand polished to a matte finish. The concept's shoulder line flowed upward to the

B-pillar The pillars on a car with permanent roof body style (such as four-door sedans) are the vertical or nearly vertical supports of its window area or greenhouse—designated respectively as the A, B, C and (in larger cars such as 4-door stati ...

and back down into the wheel arch. Reverse

butterfly doors Butterfly doors are a type of car door sometimes seen on high-performance cars. They are slightly different from scissor doors. While scissor doors move straight up via hinge points at the bottom of a car's A-pillar, butterfly doors move up and ...

aid vehicle ingress and egress. The Reflex concept car was similar in size and general configuration as the

Mazda Kabura The Mazda Kabura was a concept car shown by the Japanese automaker, manufacturer Mazda in 2006. Concept overview The Kabura, introduced at the North American International Auto Show#2006, 2006 North American International Auto Show, was a sport c ...

concept, and if they were both ordered into production could share a common platform, with styling and powertrain differences to set the pair apart. For example, while the Kabura concept included a 2.0L 16 valve DOHC piston

inline-four engine A straight-four engine (also referred to as an inline-four engine) is a four-cylinder piston engine where cylinders are arranged in a line along a common crankshaft. The majority of automotive four-cylinder engines use a straight-four layout ( ...

, a production Kabura could have ended up with a

rotary engine The rotary engine is an early type of internal combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration. The engine's crankshaft remained stationary in operation, while the entire crankcase and its ...

, as used in the

Mazda RX-8 The Mazda RX-8 is a sports car manufactured by Japanese automobile manufacturer Mazda between 2003 and 2012. It was first shown in 2001 at the North American International Auto Show#2001, North American International Auto Show. It is the direct s ...

. The Reflex would likely have gotten a more conventional gasoline or diesel (or hybrid) engine.Mazda Kabura Concept - Video Exclusive

References

External links

Ford Reflex Press Kit MaterialsSound Bites from Ford Reflex Press Release Material
{{Ford Concept All-wheel-drive vehicles

Reflex In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus. Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...

Diesel hybrid vehicles