| General Motors Corp. is heading toward | | | | campaign challenges consumers to compare Ford |
| recovery. And Ford Motor Co. is expected to | | | | products to the product line of rival |
| follow after. Though it is apparently | | | | manufacturers. |
| exerting efforts, they still lack momentum to | | | | |
| save the sputtering automaker. | | | | Ford spokesman Oscar Suris said the numbers |
| | | | presented to employees only show part of the |
| Ford earlier announced its campaign involving | | | | picture. "This is not a comprehensive look at |
| zero-percent financing and $1,000 savings on | | | | everything affecting the business," Suris |
| range of brands. These strategies are aimed | | | | said in an interview. "There are other areas |
| at increasing the February sales by 3.4 | | | | where we are ahead of schedule. Overall, we |
| percent. But February sales turned out to be | | | | are where we expected to be at this point." |
| a frustration. But Mark Fields, the Ford | | | | |
| Americas president, is still confident the | | | | According to the report card, 39 percent of |
| automaker could still achieve its turnaround | | | | those surveyed said they had an "excellent" |
| goals for the year. | | | | view of Ford. "That's better than our |
| | | | domestic competitors," Suris said, though he |
| The automaker received more bad marks on its | | | | said the company still has a ways to go |
| latest internal report card. The report card | | | | before catching up with Japanese brands like |
| was shared to ford's employees following | | | | Toyota. "We don't want to stay there." The |
| Fields' weekly Webcast. The report card | | | | document also showed that financial weakness |
| reflects that the automaker's February retail | | | | at many of Ford's suppliers continues to be a |
| sales in the United States were worse than | | | | challenge. |
| the company projected they would be a month | | | | |
| ago. | | | | During his webcast, Fields said improving |
| | | | brand favorability is a key objective of |
| The recovery plan require for the company to | | | | Ford's recovery plan. Fields also challenged |
| hold onto just over ten percent of the | | | | employees to talk up the company's new |
| domestic retail market in February. Last | | | | products with everyone they know, saying |
| month, it said that was improbable but it | | | | word-of-mouth marketing can help change the |
| contended the company could hold the line at | | | | way people look at Ford. |
| ten percent. Nevertheless, Ford only managed | | | | |
| to claim a 9.8 percent share in February, | | | | Ford is motivated to make a moving change |
| missing the target by about 1,900 units. | | | | this year to alleviate its standing. This |
| | | | change could be triggered by powerful |
| The automaker blamed the results on weaker | | | | campaigns, auto parts upgrade, and efficient |
| than expected sales of the Ford Explorer | | | | work plan. The heat of the auto competition |
| sport utility vehicle, Ford Mustang sports | | | | is getting hotter to test not just the |
| car and the F-series pickup. But with the new | | | | performance of Gibson exhaust but the |
| ad campaigns, executives are confident that | | | | survival instinct of the automakers. |
| sales will return to the right track. The ad | | | | |