Ford Motor Co

Ford Motor Co. unveiled what it boasted was a "world-beating" next-generation Ford Focus at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Monday and announced its intentions to sell an all-electric version of the vehicle starting next year. The company said the electric version of the Focus would be built at a factory in Michigan that previously manufactured sport utility vehicles, which Ford President of the Americas Mark Fields observed was an example of how quickly the auto industry and consumer tastes were shifting.

Ford Motor Co.'s 3.8-liter V-6 engine has been a modern-day workhorse, used in such popular vehicles as the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable mid-size sedans, the Ford Windstar minivan and the Lincoln Continental luxury car. But many mechanical experts and consumer advocates say it is troubled by a major defect. Failure of the engine's head gasket is so common that many independent garages are doing a booming business replacing it.

Ford Motor Co. rules the sport-utility and light-truck markets in the United States but has stumbled in the luxury-car arena, letting its Lincoln division suffer with stodgy, outdated cars that appeal mostly to the over-60 crowd. Now, in what it says is the most expensive product launch campaign in its history, the company is taking aim at that profitable luxury market with the Lincoln LS.

Need a billion-dollar corporate turnaround? There's an app for that. Hitching a ride with the fast-paced Internet and consumer electronics industry, Ford Motor Co. on Thursday unveiled new features for its Sync in-car technology designed to turbocharge the company's financial turnaround and create Ford's image as the Apple Inc. of the car industry. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally showed off how consumers could soon catch up on Twitter, listen to Internet radio, check movie times and get free maps with turn-by-turn directions, using Sync's voice commands or 8-inch color touch-screen in the dashboard, in Ford's spring lineup of cars.

Ford Motor Co. wants to reduce its dealership network in the United States, particularly in major metropolitan areas such as Southern California, to allow the survivors to improve profits as the company battles to reverse a decade of slumping sales. The plan, outlined to dealers at a meeting in Las Vegas last week, will be "voluntary and collaborative," Ford spokesman Jim Cain said Monday. Details have not been announced. For Dearborn, Mich.

Ford Motor Co. said it would offer no-interest loans of as long as 72 months to help clear its inventory of 2006 model year cars and trucks as next year's models begin to arrive. In a move that could reignite the incentive wars that boosted sales but slashed profits for U.S. automakers last summer, Ford said the interest-free loans would be available on purchases through Sept. 5.

Ford Motor Co. posted a profit of $2.7 billion for 2009, a dramatic turnaround for the company, which weathered one of the worst years in the history of the automotive industry in comparatively good health. Separately, Ford confirmed it had stopped making a limited-production commercial van in China because the vehicle contained gas pedals that were similar in design to the component involved in Toyota Motor Corp.'s massive recall. Under some conditions, the pedal can cause unintended acceleration in a vehicle, according to Toyota.

Ford Motor Co., recognizing the extent of consumer outrage over the defective 3.8-liter V-6 engine in a wide range of its vehicles, took another major step last week toward extending warranty coverage to owners saddled with costly blown head gaskets. The world's No. 2 auto maker said it would cover repairs on the engines of 300,000 additional vehicles, going back to 1994 and 1995 model years. The action marks the third time Ford has expanded warranty coverage for the 3.

Ford Motor Co. may pull off a feat its crosstown rival hasn't been able to manage: the successful sale of a Swedish car company. Ford is close to selling its Volvo brand to Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., the Dearborn, Mich.-based car maker said Wednesday. The companies have worked out "all substantive commercial terms" related to Volvo, Ford said, and the deal could be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2010. The automakers still need to work out financing and government approvals, however.

Japanese giant Toyota Motor Corp. sped past American corporate icon Ford Motor Co. last year to become the world's second-biggest car company, according to sales figures released Friday. The ascension marks a major milestone for Toyota, which began as a small weaving factory in 1918, didn't produce its first vehicle until 1935 and as recently as 1966 sold a mere 20,000 cars and trucks in the crucial U.S. auto market.

We live in a media universe where "American Idol" judges slurp from giant tumblers of Coca-Cola, "The Biggest Loser" contestants gush about their Subway sandwich feasts and local television news operations sell off "sponsorships" to the highest bidder. Weather, traffic, sports, ski reports and more now come along with broadcast or Web-based advertising. "Lakers coverage on KCBS and KCAL -- sponsored by Honda." The thicket of corporate billboards dotting the airwaves can get a little mind-numbing.

Ford Motor Co. posted a profit of $2.7 billion for 2009, a dramatic turnaround for the company, which weathered one of the worst years in the history of the automotive industry in comparatively good health. Separately, Ford confirmed it had stopped making a limited-production commercial van in China because the vehicle contained gas pedals that were similar in design to the component involved in Toyota Motor Corp.'s massive recall. Under some conditions, the pedal can cause unintended acceleration in a vehicle, according to Toyota.

Ford Motor Co. unveiled what it boasted was a "world-beating" next-generation Ford Focus at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Monday and announced its intentions to sell an all-electric version of the vehicle starting next year. The company said the electric version of the Focus would be built at a factory in Michigan that previously manufactured sport utility vehicles, which Ford President of the Americas Mark Fields observed was an example of how quickly the auto industry and consumer tastes were shifting.

Need a billion-dollar corporate turnaround? There's an app for that. Hitching a ride with the fast-paced Internet and consumer electronics industry, Ford Motor Co. on Thursday unveiled new features for its Sync in-car technology designed to turbocharge the company's financial turnaround and create Ford's image as the Apple Inc. of the car industry. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally showed off how consumers could soon catch up on Twitter, listen to Internet radio, check movie times and get free maps with turn-by-turn directions, using Sync's voice commands or 8-inch color touch-screen in the dashboard, in Ford's spring lineup of cars.

Ford Motor Co. may pull off a feat its crosstown rival hasn't been able to manage: the successful sale of a Swedish car company. Ford is close to selling its Volvo brand to Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., the Dearborn, Mich.-based car maker said Wednesday. The companies have worked out "all substantive commercial terms" related to Volvo, Ford said, and the deal could be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2010. The automakers still need to work out financing and government approvals, however.

Ford Motor Co., seeking to unload its unprofitable Volvo unit, will announce todaythat talks with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. have progressed to the point where a sale is likely, according to a person familiar with the matter. Ford, which named China's Geely its "preferred bidder" for Volvo on Oct. 28, also will lay out an estimated timeline for completing the sale, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the details aren't yet public. John Gardiner, a Ford of Europe spokesman, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let stand a record $83-million judgment in favor of a San Diego County woman who was paralyzed when her Ford Explorer rolled over and its roof partially collapsed. The justices rejected an appeal from lawyers for Ford Motor Co., who argued that the punitive damages were unfair and unconstitutional because the design of the sport utility vehicle met all the government and industry safety standards. The jury had been told, however, that Ford could have strengthened the roof and possibly avoided such a catastrophic accident had it spent an extra $20 per vehicle.

Ford Motor Co.'s surprisingly strong quarterly earnings capped a day of upbeat news that showed the U.S. economy continuing to gain strength in key sectors including manufacturing and housing. The only U.S. automaker to avoid filing for bankruptcy protection this year, Ford on Monday reported a nearly $1-billion profit from July to September, helped by cost-cutting, the government's "cash for clunkers" program and strong demand for its new F-150 pickups. But Ford's strengthening financials underscore the major weakness plaguing the nascent economic recovery.

In the auto business, there are few challenges tougher than marketing a brand that has few new cars to promote. No matter how good the current product, consumers like to see the latest stuff. That's the conundrum at Ford Motor Co., which after a solid run of product launches now faces a roughly six-month gap without a significant new rollout. The last 12 months at the Blue Oval have been a salesman's dream, with introductions of the Taurus full-size sedan, the Transit Connect van, the Fusion and Mercury Milan mid-size sedans, the 2010 Mustang and the redesigned F-150 pickup.

Amid swirling rumors about the fate of the U.S. auto industry, Ford Motor Co., the only domestic carmaker not to rely on federal aid, reported a first-quarter loss of $1.4 billion, bettering analysts' expectations. Although Ford's results were received enthusiastically on Wall Street, they were in great part overshadowed by reports that the Obama administration was preparing a bankruptcy filing for Chrysler and that General Motors Corp. was considering eliminating its Pontiac brand.