History of Ford Motor Company

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Henry Ford (ca. 1919)
Ford Motor Company is an American automaker and the world's third largest automaker based on worldwide
vehicle sales. Based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb ofDetroit, the automaker was founded by Henry Ford,
and incorporated on June 16, 1903. Ford Motor Company would go on to become one of the largest and most
profitable companies in the world, as well as being one of the few to survive the Great Depression. The largest
family-controlled company in the world, the Ford Motor Company has been in continuous family control for over
100 years. Ford now encompasses two brands: Ford and Lincoln.
Contents
[hide]
1 The founding of Ford Motor Company
2 Early developments and assembly line
3 History of the blue oval
4 Post-World War I developments
o 4.1 Lincoln Motor Company
o 4.2 Fordlndia
o 4.3 The Great Depression
o 4.4 Soviet Fords and the Gorki
o 4.5 World War II
5 Post-World War II developments
6 General corporate timeline
7 Criticisms
o 7.1 Alleged Nazi collaboration
o 7.2 Argentine "Dirty War"
o 7.3 Support for US-backed coups and death squads in Latin America
o 7.4 Ford Pinto
8 References
[edit]The founding of Ford Motor Company
Henry Ford's initial foray into automobile manufacturing was the Detroit Automobile Company, founded in 1899.
The company floundered, and in 1901 was reorganized as the Henry Ford Company. In March 1902, after
falling out with his financial backers, Ford left the company with the rights to his name and 900 dollars.
Henry Ford himself turned to an acquaintance, coal dealer Alexander Y. Malcomson, to help finance another
automobile company. Malcomson put up the money to start the partnership "Ford and Malcomson" and the pair
designed a car and began ordering parts. However, by February 1903, Ford and Malcomson had gone through
more money than expected, and the manufacturing firm of Johnand Horace Dodge, who had made parts for
Ford and Malcomson, was demanding payment.
[1]

Malcomson, constrained by his coal business demands, turned to his uncle John S. Gray, the president of the
German-American Savings Bank and a good friend. Malcomson proposed incorporating Ford and Malcomson
to bring in new investors, and wanted Gray to join the company, thinking that Gray's name would attract others
to invest. Gray was not interested at first, but Malcomson promised he could withdraw his share at any time, so
Gray reluctantly agreed. On the strength of Gray's name, Malcomson recruited other business acquaintances
to invest, including local merchants Albert Strelow and Vernon Fry, lawyers John Anderson and Horace
Rackham, Charles T. Bennett of the Daisy Air Rifle Company, and his own clerk James Couzens.
[1]
Malcomson
also convinced the Dodges to accept stock in lieu of payment.
On June 16, 1903, the Ford Motor Company was incorporated, with 12 investors owning a total of 1000 shares.
Ford and Malcomson together retained 51% of the new company in exchange for their earlier investments.
When the total stock ownership was tabulated, shares in the company were: Henry Ford (255
shares), Alexander Y. Malcomson (255 shares), John S. Gray (105 shares), John W. Anderson (50
shares), Horace Rackham (50 shares), Horace E. Dodge (50 shares), John F. Dodge (50 shares), Charles T.
Bennett (50 shares), Vernon C. Fry (50 shares), Albert Strelow (50 shares), James Couzens (25 shares), and
Charles J. Woodall (10 shares).
[2]

At the first stockholder meeting on June 18, Gray was elected president, Ford vice-president, and James
Couzens secretary.
[1]
Despite Gray's misgivings, Ford Motor Company was immediately profitable, with profits
by October 1, 1903 of almost $37,000. A dividend of 10% was paid that October, an additional dividend of 20%
at the beginning of 1904, and another 68% in June 1904. Two dividends of 100% each in June and July 1905
brought the total investor profits to nearly 300% in just over 2 years; 1905 total profits were almost $300,000.
[1]

However, there were internal frictions in the company that Gray was nominally in charge of. Most of the
investors, both Malcomson and Gray included, had their own businesses to attend to; only Ford and Couzens
worked full-time at the company. The issue came to a head when the principal stockholders, Ford and
Malcomson, quarreled over the future direction of the company. Gray sided with Ford. By early 1906
Malcomson was effectively frozen out of the Ford Motor Company, and in May sold his shares to Henry
Ford.
[1]
John S. Gray died unexpectedly in 1906, and his position as Ford's president was taken over by Ford
himself soon afterward.
[1]

Ford was subject to lawsuits or threats there of from the Association of Licensed Automobile
Manufacturers early in its history. The Association claimed patent rights to most gasoline-powered automobiles.
After several years of legal wrangling, the Association eventually dropped its case against Ford in 1911.
[edit]Early developments and assembly line


The first Ford factory on Bagley Street, Detroit.
During its early years, the company produced a range of vehicles designated, chronologically, from the Ford
Model A (1903) to the Model K and Model S (Ford's last right-hand steering model)
[3]
of 1907.
[4]
The K, Ford's
first six-cylinder model, was known as "the gentleman's roadster" and "the silent cyclone", and sold for
US$2800;
[4]
by contrast, around that time, the Enger 40 was priced at US$2000,
[5]
the Colt
Runabout US$1500,
[6]
the high-volume Oldsmobile Runabout
[7]
US$650, Western's Gale Model A
US$500,
[8]
and theSuccess hit the amazingly low US$250.
[7]

The next year, Henry Ford introduced the Model T. Earlier models were produced at a rate of only a few a day
at a rented factory on Mack Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, with groups of two or three men working on each car
from components made to order by other companies (what would come to be called an "assembled car"). The
first Model Ts were built at the Piquette Road Manufacturing Plant, the first company-owned factory. In its first
full year of production, 1909, about 18,000 Model Ts were built. As demand for the car grew, the company
moved production to the much larger Highland Park Plant, and in 1911, the first year of operation there,
69,762
[9]
Model Ts were produced, with 170,211 in 1912.
[10]
By 1913, the company had developed all of the
basic techniques of the assembly line and mass production. Ford introduced the world's first moving assembly
line that year, which reduced chassis assembly time from 12
1

2
hours in October to 2 hours 40 minutes (and
ultimately 1 hour 33 minutes),
[10]
and boosted annual output to 202,667 units that year
[10]
After a Ford ad
promised profit-sharing if sales hit 300,000 between August 1914 and August 1915,
[11]
sales in 1914 reached
308,162, and 501,462 in 1915;
[10]
by 1920, production would exceed one million a year.
These innovations were hard on employees, and turnover of workers was very high, while increased
productivity actually reduced labor demand.
[10]
Turnover meant delays and extra costs of training, and use of
slow workers. In January 1914, Ford solved the employee turnover problem by doubling pay to $5 a day,
cutting shifts from nine hours to an eight hour day for a 5 day work week (which also increased sales; a line
worker could buy a T with less than four months' pay),
[10]
and instituting hiring practices that identified the best
workers, including disabled people considered unemployable by other firms.
[10]
Employee turnover plunged,
productivity soared, and with it, the cost per vehicle plummeted. Ford cut prices again and again and invented
the system of franchised dealers who were loyal to his brand name. Wall Street had criticized Ford's generous
labor practices when he began paying workers enough to buy the products they made.
[12]



Ford assembly line (1913)
While Ford attained international status in 1904 with the founding of Ford of Canada, it was in 1911 the
company began to rapidly expand overseas, with the opening of assembly plants in Ireland (1917), England
and France, followed by Denmark (1923), Germany (1925), Austria (1925),
[10]
and Argentina (1925),
[13]
and also
in South Africa (1924)
[14]
and Australia (1925) as subsidiaries of Ford of Canada due to preferential tariff rules
for Commonwealth countries. By the end of 1919, Ford was producing 50 percent of all cars in the United
States, and 40% of all British ones;
[10]
by 1920, half of all cars in the U.S. were Model Ts. (The low price also
killed thecyclecar in the U.S.)
[10]
The assembly line transformed the industry; soon, companies without it risked
bankruptcy. Of 200 U.S. car makers in 1920, only 17 were left in 1940.
[10]



Ford 1916 Model T Field Ambulance. This canvas on wood frame model was used extensively by the British & French as
well as the American Expeditionary Force in World War I. Its top speed was 45 mph (72 km/h), produced by a 4-cylinder
water-cooled engine
It also transformed technology. Henry Ford is reported to have said, "Any customer can have a car painted any
color that he wants so long as it is black." Before the assembly line, Ts had been available in a variety of
colors, including red, blue, and green, but not black. Now, paint had become a production bottleneck;
only Japan Black dried quickly enough, and not until Duco lacquer appeared in 1926 would other colors
reappear on the T.
[10]

In 1915, Henry Ford went on a peace mission to Europe aboard a ship, joining other pacifists in efforts to
stop World War I. This led to an increase in his personal popularity. Ford would subsequently go on to support
the war effort with the Model T becoming the underpinnings for Allied military vehicles, like the Ford 3-Ton
M1918 tank, and the 1916 ambulance.
[edit]History of the blue oval
The Ford oval trademark was first introduced in 1907. The 1928 Model A was the first vehicle to sport an early
version of the Ford script in the oval badge. The dark blue background of the oval is known to designers
as Pantone 294C. The Ford script is credited to Childe Harold Wills, Ford's first chief engineer and designer.
He created a script in 1903 based on the one he used for his business cards. Today, the oval has evolved into
a perfect oval with a width-to-height ratio of 8:3. The current Centennial Oval was introduced on June 17, 2003
as part of the 100th anniversary of Ford Motor Company.
[15]

[edit]Post-World War I developments
In 1919, Edsel Ford succeeded his father as president of the company, although Henry still kept a hand in
management. While prices were kept low through highly efficient engineering, the company used an old-
fashioned personalized management system, and neglected consumer demand for improved vehicles. So,
while four-wheel brakes were invented by Arrol-Johnson (and were used on the 1909 Argyll),
[10]
they did not
appear on a Ford until 1927. (To be fair, Chevrolet waited until 1928.)
[10]
Ford steadily lost market share
toGM and Chrysler, as these and other domestic and foreign competitors began offering fresher automobiles
with more innovative features and luxury options. GM had a range of models from relatively cheap to luxury,
tapping all price points in the spectrum, while less wealthy people purchased used Model Ts. The competitors
also opened up new markets by extending credit for purchases, so consumers could buy these expensive
automobiles with monthly payments. Ford initially resisted this approach, insisting such debts would ultimately
hurt the consumer and the general economy. Ford eventually relented and started offering the same terms in
December 1927, when Ford unveiled the redesigned Model A, and retired the Model T after producing 15
million units.
[edit]Lincoln Motor Company
On February 4, 1922 Ford expanded its reach into the luxury auto market through its acquisition of the Lincoln
Motor Company, named for Abraham Lincoln whom Henry Ford admired, but Henry M. Leland had named the
company in 1917. The Mercury division was established in 1938 to serve the mid-price auto market.
[16]
Ford
Motor Company built the largest museum of American History in 1928,The Henry Ford.
Henry Ford would go on to acquire Abraham Lincoln's chair, which he was assassinated in, from the owners
of Ford's Theatre. Abraham Lincoln's chair would be displayed along with John F. Kennedy's Lincoln limousine
in the Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village in Dearborn, known today as The Henry Ford. Kennedy's
limousine was leased to the White House by Ford.
[edit]Fordlndia
Main article: Fordlndia
In 1928, Henry Ford negotiated a deal with the government of Brazil for a plot of land in the Amazon Rainforest.
There, Ford attempted to cultivate rubber for use in the company's automobiles. After considerable labor
unrest, social experimentation, and a failure to produce rubber, and after the invention of synthetic rubber, the
settlement was sold in 1945 and abandoned.
[edit]The Great Depression
During the great depression, Ford in common with other manufacturers, responded to the collapse in motor
sales by reducing the scale of their operations and laying off workers. By 1932, the unemployment rate
in Detroit had risen to 30%
[17]
with thousands of families facing real hardship. Although Ford did assist a small
number of distressed families with loans and parcels of land to work, the majority of the thousands of unskilled
workers who were laid off were left to cope on their own. However, Henry Ford angered many by making public
statements that the unemployed should do more to find work for themselves.
This led to Detroit's Unemployed Council organizing the Ford Hunger March. On March 7, 1932 some 3,000 -
5,000 unemployed workers assembled in West Detroit to march on Ford's River Rouge plant to deliver a
petition demanding more support. As the march moved up Miller Road and approached Gate 3 the protest
turned ugly. The police fired tear gas into the crowd and fire trucks were used to soak the protesters with icy
water. When the protesters responded by throwing rocks, the violence escalated rapidly and culminated in the
police and plant security guards firing live rounds through the gates of the plant at the unarmed protesters. Four
men were killed outright and a fifth died later in hospital. Up to 60 more were seriously injured.
[18]

[edit]Soviet Fords and the Gorki
In May 1929 the Soviet Union signed an agreement with the Ford Motor Company. Under its terms, the Soviets
agreed to purchase $13 million worth of automobiles and parts, while Ford agreed to give technical assistance
until 1938 to construct an integrated automobile-manufacturing plant at Nizhny Novgorod. Many American
engineers and skilled auto workers moved to the Soviet Union to work on the plant and its production lines,
which was named Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod (GAZ), or Gorki Automotive Plant in 1932. A few American
workers stayed on after the plant's completion, and eventually became victims of Stalin's Great Terror, either
shot
[19]
or exiled to Soviet gulags.
[20]
In 1933, the Soviets completed construction on a production line for the
Ford Model-A passenger car, called theGAZ-A, and a light truck, the GAZ-AA. Both these Ford models were
immediately adopted for military use. By the late 1930s production at Gorki was 80,000-90,000 "Russian Ford"
vehicles per year. With its original Ford-designed vehicles supplemented by imports and domestic copies of
imported equipment, the Gorki operations eventually produced a range of automobiles, trucks, and military
vehicles.
[edit]World War II
The Ford Motor Company had dealings with the Nazi regime prior to the Second World War, and continuing on
during the beginning of the War up until the U.S. entrance. In 1936, a Ford executive visiting Germany was
informed by a Nazi official that Ford's Cologne plant manager was a Jew (he had one grandparent who was
Jewish), prompting discussions at Ford offices in both Germany and the U.S. Heinrich Albert, Ford's Germany-
U.S. liaison, insisted that the manager be fired. The manager was replaced by Robert Schmidt, who would play
an important role in Germany's war effort.
[21]

Henry Ford had said war was a waste of time, and did not want to profit from it.
[12][22]
He was concerned the
Nazis during the 1930s might nationalize Ford factories in Germany. Ford established a close collaboration with
Germany's Nazi government before the warso close, in fact, that Ford received, in July 1938, the Grand
Cross of the German Eagle medal from the regime. In the spring of 1939, the Nazi government assumed day to
day control of many foreign-owned factories in Germany. However, Ford's Dearborn headquarters continued to
maintain 52% ownership over its German factories. Ford factories contributed significantly to the buildup of
Germany's armed forces. Ford negotiated a resource-sharing agreement that allowed the German military to
access scarce supplies, particularly rubber. During this same period, Ford was hesitant to participate in the
Allied military effort. In June 1940, after France had fallen to the Wehrmacht, Henry Ford personally vetoed a
plan to build airplane engines for the Allies.
[23]

The situation changed after Pearl Harbor. The Ford Motor Company's Willow Run factory was organized for the
production of B-24 bombers although the production line was initially characterized by bungling and
incompetence.
[24]
Ford's efforts benefited the Allies as well as the Axis. After Bantam invented the Jeep, the US
War Department handed production over to Ford and Willys. Ford production was important to Nazi forces as
well: roughly one-third of the German Army's trucks, which played a crucial role in Germany's blitzkrieg
strategy, were produced by Ford.
[25]

After the US declared war in December 1941, Ford could no longer communicate directly with its factories in
Germany. However, indirect communications continued, in at least one case. Robert Schmidt, the Nazi
manager of the Cologne Ford plant, traveled to Portugal in 1943 in order to consult with Ford officials there.
The Treasury Department also investigated Ford for alleged collaboration with German-run Ford plants in
occupied France, but did not find conclusive evidence. After the war, Schmidt and other Nazi-era managers
kept their jobs with Ford's German division.
[23]

In the United Kingdom, Ford built a new factory in Trafford Park, Manchester during WWII where over
34,000 Rolls-Royce Merlin aero engines were completed by a workforce trained from scratch.
[edit]Post-World War II developments


A Ford Taurus, one of Ford's best-selling models. In its 21-year lifespan, it sold 7,000,000 units. It is the 4th best-selling car
in Ford's history, behind only the F-150, the Model T, and theMustang.
In 1943, a despondent Edsel Ford died of stomach cancer. Henry decided then to resume direct control of the
company, but this proved a very poor idea as he was 78 years old and suffering from heart problems and
atherosclerosis. His mental state was also questionable, and there was a very real possibility that the company
would collapse if he died or became incapacitated. The Roosevelt Administration had a contingency plan in
place to nationalize Ford if need be so that they wouldn't lose vital military production.
At this point, Ford's wife and daughter-in-law intervened and demanded that he turn control over to his
grandson
[26]
Henry Ford II. They threatened to sell off their stock (amounting to half the company's total shares)
if he refused. Henry was infuriated, but there was nothing he could do, and so he gave in. When Henry II, who
came to be called affectionately "Hank the Deuce," assumed command, the Company was losing US$9 million
a month and in financial chaos.
[27]

Henry Ford died of a brain hemorrhage on April 7, 1947. Mourners passed by at a rate of 5,000 each hour at
the public viewing on Wednesday of that week at Greenfield Village in Dearborn. The funeral service for Henry
Ford was held at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Detroit on Thursday April 9, 1947.
[28]
At the funeral
service, 20,000 people stood outside St. Paul's Cathedral in the rain with 600 inside,
[28]
while the funeral had
attracted national attention as an estimated seven million people had mourned his death (according to A&E
Biography).
Ernest R. Breech, head of Bendix Aviation,
[27]
was hired in 1946, and became first Executive Vice President,
then Board Chairman in 1955. Henry II served as President from 1945 to 1960, and as Chairman and CEO
from 1960 to 1980. In 1956, Ford became a publicly traded corporation. The Ford family maintains about 40%
controlling interest in the company, through a series of Special Class Bpreferred stocks. Also in 1956, following
its emphasis on safety improvements in new models, Motor Trend awarded the company its "Car of the Year"
award.
[29]

In 1946, Robert McNamara joined Ford as manager of planning and financial analysis. He advanced rapidly
through a series of top-level management positions to the presidency of Ford on 9 November 1960, one day
after John F. Kennedy's election. The first company head selected outside the Ford family, McNamara had
gained the favor of Henry Ford II, and had aided in Ford's expansion and success in the postwar period. Less
than five weeks after becoming president at Ford, he accepted Kennedy's invitation to join his cabinet,
asSecretary of Defense.
Ford introduced the iconic Thunderbird in 1955 and the Edsel brand automobile line in 1958, following a
US$250 million dollar research and marketing campaign, which had failed to ask questions crucial for
the marque's success.
[30]
The Edsel was cancelled after less than 27 months in the marketplace in November
1960. The corporation bounced back from the failure of the Edsel by introducing its compact Falcon in 1960
and the Mustang in 1964. By 1967, Ford of Europe was established.
Lee Iacocca was involved with the design of several successful Ford automobiles, most notably the Mustang.
He was also the "moving force," as one court put it, behind the notorious Pinto. He promoted other ideas which
did not reach the marketplace as Ford products. Eventually, he became the president of the company, but
clashed with "Bunkie" Knudsen as well as Henry II and ultimately, on July 13, 1978, he was fired by Henry Ford
II, despite the company's having earned a $2.2 billion profit for the year. Chrysler soon hired Iacocca, which he
returned to profitability during the 1980s.
In 1942, Elsa Iwanowa, who was then 16-years-old and a resident of Rostok in the Soviet Union, and many
other citizens of countries that were occupied by the Wehrmacht were transported in cattle cars to the western
part of Germany, where they were displayed to visiting businessmen. From there Iwanowa and others were
forced to become slave laborers for Ford's German subsidiary, which had become separated from the
Dearborn headquarters as a result of the U.S. declaration of war. "On March 4, 1998, fifty-three years after she
was liberated from the German Ford plant, Elsa Iwanowa demanded justice, filing a class-action lawsuit in U.S.
District Court against the Ford Motor Company."
[31]
In court, Ford admitted that Iwanowa and many others like
her were "forced to endure a sad and terrible experience"; Ford, however, moved to have the suit dismissed on
the grounds that it would be best redressed on "a nation-to-nation, government-to-government" basis.
[32]
In
1999, the court dismissed Iwanowa's suit. At about the same time, a number of German companies, including
GM subsidiary Opel, agreed to contribute $5.1 billion to a fund to compensate the surviving slave
laborers.
[32]
After being the subject of much adverse publicity, Ford, in March 2000, agreed to contribute $13
million to the compensation fund.
In 1979 Philip Caldwell became Chairman, succeeded in 1985 by Donald Petersen. Harold Poling served as
Chairman and CEO from 1990 to 1993. Alex Trotman was Chairman and CEO from 1993 to 1998,
and Jacques Nasser served at the helm from 1999 to 2001. Henry Ford's great-grandson, William Clay Ford
Jr., is the company's current Chairman of the Board and was CEO until September 5, 2006, when he
named Alan Mulally from Boeing as his successor. As of 2006, the Ford family owns about 5% of Company
shares outstanding.
[33]



Current Ford CEO Alan Mulally, who was hired by William Clay Ford, Jr. to restructure the company.
In December 2006, Ford announced it would mortgage all assets, including factories and equipment, office
property, intellectual property (patents and blue oval trademarks), and its stakes in subsidiaries, to raise $23.4
billion in cash. The secured credit line is expected to finance product development during the restructuring
through 2009, as the company expects to burn through $17 billion in cash before turning a profit. The action
was unprecedented in the company's 103 year history.
[34][dead link]

[35]

[edit]General corporate timeline


Henry Ford and the Quadricycle


1896 Quadricycle at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI


1903 Model A


Ford Model T ad - ca 1908


1930 Model A Fordor


The Ford Australia plant under construction in Geelong, Victoria,Australia, 1926


Mustang Serial #1 - The First Mustang
1896: Henry Ford builds his first vehicle the Quadricycle on a buggy frame with 4 bicycle wheels.
1898: Ford creates the Detroit Automobile Company; two and a half years later it is dissolved.
1901: Ford wins high-profile car race in Grosse Pointe, Mi
1901: The Henry Ford Company is incorporated but discontinued the following year only to be
reinvigorated by Henry Leland as the Cadillac Motor Company
1903: Ford Motor Company incorporated with 11 original investors. The Model A"Fordmobile" is introduced
- 1,708 cars are produced.
1904: Ford Motor Company of Canada incorporated in Walkerville, Ontario
1904: Henry Ford teams up with Harvey Firestone of Firestone Tires
1906: Ford becomes the top selling brand in the US, with 8,729 cars produced.
1908: Model T is introduced. 15 million are produced through 1927.
1909: Ford Motor Company (England) established, otherwise referred to as Ford of Britain
1911: Ford opens first factory outside North America in Manchester, England.
1913: The moving assembly line is introduced at Highland Park assembly plant, making Model T
production 8 times faster.
1913: Ford opens second world branch in Argentina as Ford Motor Argentina
1914: Ford introduces $5 ($116, adjusted for inflation) workday minimum wage double the existing rate.
1918: Construction of the Rouge assembly complex begins.
1919: Edsel Ford succeeds Henry as Company President.
1920: Ford temporarily shuts down due to low sales. After removing unnecessary administrative expenses
and waste, Ford reopens.
[36]

1921: Ford production exceeds 1 million cars per year, nearly 10 times more than Chevrolet - the next
biggest selling brand.
1922: Ford purchases Lincoln Motor Company for US $8 million ($111 million, adjusted for inflation).
1925: Ford introduces Ford Tri-Motor airplane for airline services, and a factory was built inYokohama,
Japan in February.
1926: Ford Australia is founded in Geelong, Victoria, Australia,
1927: Model T production ends, Ford introduces the next generation Model A, from the Rouge complex.
1929: Ford regains production crown, with annual production peaking at 1.5 million cars
1931: Ford and Chevy brands begin to alternate as U.S. production leaders, in battle for automobile sales
during the Great Depression.
1932: Ford introduces the one-piece cast V8 block. It makes the Model 18 the first low-priced V8-powered
car. In London Royal Albert Hall the Model 19, or as it was marketed Model Y, are introduced February 19.
The first of a long line of small European Fords.
[37]

1936: Lincoln-Zephyr is introduced.
1938: The German consul at Cleveland awards Henry Ford the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the
highest medal Nazi Germany could bestow on a foreigner. There is some evidence Ford had Nazi
sympathies, at least before World War II. He may have financed some Nazi activities, and was active in
anti-semitic efforts.
1939: Mercury division is formed to fill the gap between economical Fords and luxury Lincolns. Operated
as a division at Ford until 1945
1941: The Lincoln Continental is introduced. Ford begins building general-purpose "jeep" for the military.
First labor agreement with UAW-CIO covers North American employees.
1942: Production of civilian vehicles halted, diverting factory capacity to producing B-24
Liberator bombers, tanks, and other products for the war effort.
1943: Edsel Ford dies of cancer at the age of 49, Henry Ford resumes presidency.
1945: Henry Ford II becomes president.
1945: Lincoln and Mercury are combined into a single division.
1946: Ford sues the allies for damages done to his factories in Dresden during the infamous bombing, and
wins compensation.
[citation needed]

1946: The Whiz Kids, former US Army Air Force officers, are hired to revitalize the company. Automobile
production resumes.
1947: Henry Ford dies of cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 83; Henry Ford II becomes new chairman.
1948: F-1 Truck introduced. Lincoln Continental is introduced.
1949: The '49 Ford introduces all-new post-war era cars. The "Woody" station wagon is introduced.
1953 Ford Canada Headquarters and Car Plant opens in Oakville, Ontario
1954: Thunderbird introduced as a personal luxury car with a V8. Ford begins crash testing, and
opens Arizona Proving Grounds.
1956: $10,000 ($86.5 thousand, adjusted for inflation) Lincoln Continental Mark II introduced. Ford goes
public with common stock shares. Ford's emphasis on safety with is Lifeguard option package,
including seat belts and dash padding, earns the company Motor Trend's "Car of the Year" award.
[29]

1957: Ford launches the Edsel brand of automobiles in the fall of 1957 as 1958 models. Ford is top selling
brand, with 1.68 million automobiles produced.
1959: Ford Credit Corporation formed to provide automotive financing.
1959: Ford withdraws the 1960 model Edsels from the market in November 1959.
1960: Ford Galaxie and compact Ford Falcon introduced.
1960: Robert Mcnamara is appointed President of Ford by Chairman Henry Ford II.
1960: Ford President Robert McNamara appointed Secretary of Defense by President elect John F.
Kennedy.
1962: Ford of Britain launches first generation of the Ford Cortina. It would dominate the mid-size family
segment in Europe for the next 20 years.
1964: Ford Mustang the car that started the "pony car" class, Ford GT40 challenges Ferrari and Porsche
at LeMans.
1965: Ford brand US sales exceed 2 million units. Ford of Germany and Ford of Britain jointly launch the
first generation Ford Transit range of panel vans.
1965: Ford Galaxie 500 LTD debuts, advertised as quieter than a Rolls Royce
1966: Ford Bronco sport utility vehicle introduced.
1967: Ford of Europe is established by merging the operations of Ford of Britain and Ford of Germany.
1967: Ford opens Talbotville car plant in St. Thomas, Ontario
1968: Lincoln Mark Series is introduced as the company's first personal luxury car to compete with
the Cadillac Eldorado. Ford of Europe launches first generation Ford Escort.
1970: Ford Maverick are introduced. Ford establishes Asia Pacific operations. Ford of Europe launches
the third generation Cortina/Taunus - merging the two previously independent product lines under a
common platform.
1972: Retractable seat belts introduced.
1973: Ford US brand sales reaches an all time high of 2.35 million vehicles produced.
1974: Ford Mustang II debuts as a smaller more economical pony car.
1975: Ford Granada and Mercury Monarch introduced, Maverick continues
1975: Ford of Europe launches the second generation Escort.
1976: Ford of Europe launches the first generation Ford Fiesta
1977: Ford of Europe launches the fourth generation Cortina/Taunus
1978: Ford Motor Company celebrates 75th anniversary. Continental Mark V and Thunderbird available
with "Diamond Jubilee Edition" packages. Fiesta is imported from Europe as an entry into the economy
segment.
1979: Ford acquires 25% stake in Mazda. Ford becomes the final American automaker to
introduce downsized full-size cars with radically smaller Panther platform.
1980: Ford of Europe launches the third generation Escort, it is voted European Car of the Year for 1981.
1981: The Lincoln Town Car and Ford Escort are introduced. Fiesta discontinued in North America.
1982: Ford of Europe introduce the Ford Sierra, ending production of the stalwart Cortina/Taunus after 20
years and four generations.
1984: Ford Tempo and Mercury Topaz are introduced.
1985: Ford Scorpio launched by Ford of Europe. Replaces Granada as its full-size offering and is
voted European Car Of The Yearfor 1986, Ford's second COTY win in the 1980s. Merkur brand launched
to market the Sierra and Scorpio models in North America.
1985: Purchases First Nationwide Financial Corporation, a savings and loan. Sold in 1994 after large
losses.
1985: Ford Taurus introduced with dramatic "aero design" styling, along with Ford Aerostar minivan.
1986: Ford of Europe launches the second generation of the Transit van family. Ford Capri ceases
production.
1987: Ford acquires Aston Martin Lagonda and Hertz Rent-a-Car.
1988: Ford Festiva, built in Korea by Kia is introduced.
1989: Ford acquires Jaguar. Mazda MX-5 Miata is unveiled. Third generation Fiesta is launched in Europe
- and establishes itself as the fastest selling generation of Fiesta to date - 1 million units in less than two
years.
1989: Acquires Associates First Capital Corporation, a finance company. In 1998, it is spun-off to Ford
shareholders.
1990: Ford Aerostar is Motor Trend's Truck Of The Year, while Lincoln Town Car is Motor Trend's Car Of
The Year.
1990: Merkur brand of automobiles production discontinued. Ford of Europe launches fourth generation
Escort.
1991: Ford Explorer is introduced, turning the traditionally rural and recreational SUV into a popular family
vehicle.
1992: Ford Taurus becomes America's top selling car, displacing the Honda Accord. Ford of Europe
announces first generation Ford Mondeo, the first product of the global CDW27 platform
1993: Ford launches Mondeo in Europe, and announces its North American derivatives - the Ford
Contour and Mercury Mystique
1994: Ford Tempo and Mercury Topaz are discontinued - replaced by Ford Contour and Mercury
Mystique* 1994: Ford Aspirereplaces Festiva, becoming the first car in its class to offer standard dual air
bags and optional 4-wheel ABS.
1995: Ford's first front-wheel-drive V8 sedan is introduced, the 4.6L V8-powered Lincoln Continental. Ford
of Europe launches fourth-generation Fiesta.
1995: New front-wheel-drive Ford Windstar minivan is introduced. Aerostar remains in production.
Redesigned Ford Explorer released, now with standard safety features such as dual air bags, 4-wheel
ABS as standard equipment.
1996: Ford certifies all plants in 26 countries to ISO 9000 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards.
The V12-powered Jaguar XJS is discontinued.
1996: Controversially redesigned "Ovoid" Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable are introduced. Exit of Chevrolet
Caprice leaves full size fleet market to Ford Crown Victoria.
1996: Ford increases investment stake in a troubled Mazda Corporation to a controlling interest of 33.4%.
1997: Full size 4-door SUV Ford Expedition introduced replace the Ford Bronco.Mercury
Mountaineer introduced. Redesigned Ford Escort and Mercury Tracer also introduced.
1997: Ford Aerostar production ends, along with Ford Probe, Ford Thunderbird, Mercury Cougar, Mazda
MX-6, and Ford Aspire, without immediate replacement.
1997: Sculpted redesign of Ford's top-selling F-150 pickup, overcomes controversy to set sales records.
1998: Lincoln Navigator creates domestic luxury SUV class. Mark VIII is in its final year, introduces HID-
headlamps.
1998: The Focus replaces the ageing Escort in Europe and quickly becomes one of the best-selling cars of
the segment. Is launched in North America for the 2000 model year.
1999: Ford acquires Volvo car division from Volvo. Bill Ford becomes Chairman of the Board,
replacing Jacques Nasser.
1999: A smaller sporty Mercury Cougar is reintroduced with front-wheel drive.
1999: Jaguar Racing Formula One team is formed, with Jackie Stewart at the helm.
1999: Ford splits its full-sized pick-ups into two distinct models (the first to do so) with the introduction of
the Ford F-Series Super Duty (F-250 - F-550). Ford Excursion (based on Super Duty) is introduced, and
has the distinction of being the largest SUV sold anywhere.
2000: Ford purchases Land Rover brand from BMW. Lincoln LS and Jaguar S-Type are introduced, along
with a refreshed Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable. The Lincoln LS becomes the 2000 Motor Trend Car of
the Year. Escort is discontinued in Europe. Third generation Transit platform is launched in Europe.
2001: Retro-styled Ford Thunderbird is introduced, based on the Lincoln LS/Jaguar S-
Type DEW98 platform, and is also named Motor Trend Car of the Year for 2002.
2002: Fifth-generation Fiesta is launched by Ford of Europe.
2002: Lincoln Continental is discontinued after a roughly fifty year run. Jaguar X-Type is introduced (first
AWD Jaguar). Escort van production ends in Europe, marking the end of the Escort name after a 24-year
production run. Ford Transit Connect production begins at Ford-Otosan in Turkey.
2003: Ford Motor Company's 100th Anniversary. The Ford GT is released, along with limited Centennial
editions of some Ford vehicles.
2004: Jaguar Racing team sold to Red Bull GmbH. Ranger sales decline, losing the title as top-selling
compact pickup. The similarMazda B-series pickup is withdrawn from the US market. The Ford Escape
Hybrid, the first gasoline-electric hybrid SUV, is introduced. Major redesign of the Ford F-150 and
introduction of the Lincoln Mark LT. Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans are introduced,
replacing the Ford Windstar and Mercury Villager.
2005: Ford Mustang redesigned with retro styling reminiscent of the 1960s models. The Ford Five
Hundred, Mercury Montego, andFord Freestyle are introduced. Mercury Sable production ends, and Ford
Taurus production is limited to rental car, taxi, and other fleet sales.
2006: Ford Taurus ends production after a 20-year run. Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, and Lincoln
Zephyr introduced. Ford announces major restructuring program The Way Forward, which includes plans
to shut unprofitable factories. Bill Ford steps down as CEO, remains as Executive Chairman. Alan
Mulally elected President and CEO. Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans are discontinued
without replacement. Ford mortgages all assets to raise $23.4 billion cash in secured credit lines, in order
to finance product development during restructuring through 2009.
[34][dead link]
According to J. D. Power and
Associates quality surveys, theFord Fusion is rated higher in quality than its chief rivals, the Toyota
Camry and Honda Accord.
[citation needed]

2007: Ford reports losses of $12.7 billion for 2006. Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX introduced. The Lincoln
Zephyr is replaced with theLincoln MKZ. A redesigned Ford Expedition (including the longer wheelbase
"EL" version) and Lincoln Navigator are introduced. Ford unveils the Ford Interceptor and Lincoln
MKR concept cars, and a pre-production Lincoln MKS is introduced. The Ford Five Hundred,Ford
Freestyle and Mercury Montego nameplates are dropped and replaced with the previously retired Ford
Taurus, Ford Taurus X, and Mercury Sable nameplates.
[38]

2008: Ford of Europe launches sixth-generation Fiesta, based on the Verve concept car.
2007: Ford sells Aston Martin to a British consortium led by Prodrive chairman David Richards,
[39]
and
announces plans to sellJaguar and Land Rover.
2008: Ford sells Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors.
Sources:
General Timeline (through 2002): Ford Motor Company 2002 Annual Report
Production figures: U.S. Automobile Production Figures
2009 Ford announces that it will leverage more of its European line-up for the North American market.
The Turkish-built Transit Connect compact panel van is the first exponent of this strategy, followed by
the sixth-generation Ford Fiesta subcompact.
2010 Ford sells Volvo Cars to Geely Automobile. Third generation Ford Focus unveilied - as with the
first generation car, it will return to using a single platform for all markets - will be released in North
America as a 2012 model.
2011: Mercury production ends. Ford Ranger, Ford Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town Car are
discontinued. Ford Focus Electricunveiled.
2012: Fourth generation Mondeo/Fusion previewed at the Detroit Motor Show, thus reuniting Ford's
mid-size platform for Europe and North America for the first time since the CDW27 1st gen
Mondeo/Contour/Mystique of 1994. Fourth generation Ford Transit/Tourneo announced.
[edit]Criticisms
Further information: Firestone and Ford tire controversy, The Battle of the Overpass
Throughout its history, the company has faced a wide range of criticisms. Some have accused the
early Fordist model of production of being exploitative, and Ford has been criticized as being willing to
collaborate with dictatorships or hire mobs to intimidate union leaders and increase their profits through
unethical means.
Ford refused to allow collective bargaining until 1941, with the Ford Service Department being set up as an
internal security, intimidation, and espionage unit within the company, and quickly gained a reputation of
using violence against union organizers and sympathizers.
[40][41]

Ford was also criticized for tread separation and tire disintegration of many Firestone tires installed
on Ford Explorers, Mercury Mountaineers, and Mazda Navajos, which caused many crashes during the
late 1990s and early 2000s (decade). It is estimated that over 250 deaths and more than 3,000 serious
injuries resulted from these failures. Although Firestone received most of the blame, some blame fell on
Ford, which advised customers to under-inflate the tires in order to reduce the risk of vehicle rollovers.
[edit]Alleged Nazi collaboration
Further information: Henry Ford
Other accusations were that the company collaborated with the German Nazi regime and relied on
Germany. The German Fordcompany used slave labor in Cologne between 1941 and 1945 and it had
produced military vehicles such as jeeps, planes, and ships used by a fascist regime. Many of these
allegations were made in a series of United States lawsuits in 1998. The lawsuit was dismissed in 1999
because the judge concluded "the issues...concerned international treaties between nations and foreign
policy and were thus in the realm of the executive branch."
[42][43]

Detractors point to Henry Ford's outspoken anti-semitism, including his newspaper, The Dearborn
Independent, which published The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Defenders of the company argue that the Ford German division, Fordwerke, had been taken over by the
Nazi government after it rose to power, claiming that it was not under the company's control, though Henry
Ford, according to court records, did stay in touch with the company. Although Ford's initial motivations
were anti-war, the company was heavily involved in the United States Allied war effort after the outbreak of
war.
[43]

[edit]Argentine "Dirty War"
Further information: Dirty War
Ford's Argentine subsidiary was accused of collaborating with the Argentine 19761983 military
dictatorship, actively helping in the political repression of intellectuals and dissidents that was pursued by
said government. No result was proven and the company denied the allegations.
In a lawsuit initiated in 1996 by relatives of some of the estimated 600 Spanish citizens who disappeared
in Argentina during the "Dirty War", evidence was presented to support the allegation that much of this
repression was directed by Ford and the other major industrial firms. According to a 5,000-page report,
Ford executives drew up lists of "subversive" workers and handed them over to the military task-forces
which were allowed to operate within the factories. These groups allegedly kidnapped, tortured and
murdered workersat times allegedly within the plants themselves. The company denied the allegations.
In a second trial, a report brought by the CTA, and the testimonies of former Ford workers themselves,
claimed that the company's Argentine factory was used between 1976 and 1978 as a detention center,
and that management allowed the military to set up its own bunker inside the plant. The company denied
the allegations.
[44][45][46]

[edit]Support for US-backed coups and death squads in Latin America
In the mid-1960s, executives from 37 corporations, including Ford, organized themselves into the Business
Group for Latin America. The group also included delegates from U.S. Steel, DuPont, Standard
Oil, Anaconda Copper, International Telephone and Telegraph,United Fruit, and Chase Manhattan
Bank. David Rockefeller, whose family had extensive holdings in Latin America going back to the 19th
Century, coordinated the group's activities and served as its liaison with the White House.
[47]

The idea was both to influence Washington's hemispheric policy and to apply direct pressue at the source,
funding campaigns of friendly Latin American politicians, helping allies hold down prices, and providing
financial guidance to cooperative regimes. When lobbying proved insufficient, members of the group,
either individually or in concert, worked with the CIA to foment coups, as they did inBrazil in 1964
and Chile in 1973.
[48][49][50]

Some went further. A number of multinational corporations, including Ford, Coca-Cola, Del Monte,
and Mercedes-Benz have been accused in recent years of working closely with Latin American death
squadsresponsible for hundreds of thousands of killings throughout the hemisphere in the 1970s and
1980sto counter labor organizing.
[51][52][53]

[edit]Ford Pinto
Further information: Ford Pinto
In September 1971 the Ford Motor Company launched the Pinto for the North American market. Through
early production of this model it emerged that design flaws could result in fuel tank explosions when the
vehicle was subject to a rear-end collision. Some sources even allege this safety data was available to
Ford prior to production, but was ignored for economic reasons.
[54]
Either way, a major scandal followed
with the leaking to San Francisco magazine Mother Jones of the notorious "Ford Pinto Memo", an internal
Ford cost-benefit analysis showing that the cost of implementing design changes to the subcompact's fuel
system was greater than the economic cost of the burn injuries and deaths that could be prevented by
doing so. Subsequently some have played down
[55]
the importance of this case, as Pinto explosion fatality
estimates range widely from 27 to 900,
[54]
with the lowest figures being allegedly in line with comparable
fatality statistics for other car models.
In the related Ford Pinto product liability case Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Co., 119 Cal. App. 3d 757 (4th Dist.
1981) the California Court of Appeal for the Fourth Appellate District reviewed Ford's conduct and upheld
compensatory damages of $2.5 million and punitive damages of $3.5 million against Ford. Of the two
plaintiffs, one was killed in the collision that caused her Pinto to explode, and her passenger, 13-year-old
Richard Grimshaw, was badly burned and scarred for life.