Tom Barnes: Ford Mustang Vehicle Engineering Manager Embraces Car Culture
Tom Barnes, vehicle engineering manager
Background
Tom Barnes, vehicle engineering manager for the 2013 Ford Mustang, immersed himself in car culture at an early age and continues to devour all things automotive.
As a child he was into such vehicles as Speed Racer’s Mach 5, the Batmobile and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Then it was Magnum P.I.’s Ferrari 308GTS, Columbo’s Peugeot 403 and, yes, KITT from “Knight Rider.”
Barnes, who has worked on the Mustang program for nearly nine years, believes the 2013 Ford Mustang offers customers what they want in terms of technology and design:
“A fresh-looking vehicle that signals higher technology is incredibly important for sports cars right now. The new design and technology upgrades signal that we’re always doing things to improve this car.”
His life and passion
- Barnes holds master’s degrees from both Michigan State and the University of Michigan
- He likes to get outside for fun, with bird watching, gardening, fishing and running among his interests
- His first car was a Cobalt Blue 1974 Maverick with bench seat and automatic transmission. “It lived through high school and college and beyond, and died in the hands of a buddy who crashed it,” he says
- A new 2012 Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca is parked in his garage
What he does for Ford
- Barnes started at Ford in research, eventually moving his way through chassis and vehicle integration into his current role with Mustang
- He considers his role part of making the car functional for customers – but it’s always a team effort. “All of the groups come together to share ideas and break down the hurdles to get there,” he said. “We all work together to plan for the future, make sure the systems work seamlessly and have a cohesive feel – it’s an across-the-board approach”
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