Today Ford is the fourth largest car manufacturer in the world. Over the past 100 years it has grown from producing approximately 150 - 200 cars a year to becoming a major force in automotive production, producing over 6.5 million cars in 2007. The company now has around 100 plants and facilities and employs about 245,000 people worldwide. Ford also owns Volvo cars and has a small stake in Mazda and Aston Martin. Ford’s former UK subsidiaries Jaguar and Land Rover were sold to Tata Motors in March 2008.
In Britain, Ford cars are a firm favourite with the buying public, with the company leading the British car market for over 30 years. In fact the Ford Focus has been the top selling car since its release in 1998 and it is joined by the Fiesta in the country’s top three sellers.
Incorporated into the Ford company ethos is a strong sense of responsibility to its customers, employees and society. With this in mind Ford has designed and implemented policies that actively support social and environmental protection programmes. These include obtaining the stringent environmental standard ISO 14001 certification for all its facilities worldwide, and sponsoring ‘Don’t drink and drive!’ initiatives.
Ford also predominantly features in motorsport having their own Formula of racing, Formula Ford. This very technical formula has proven to be an important stepping stone for many Formula 1 drivers including Jenson Button, Damon Hill, David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher.
Ford of Europe’s primary motorsport interest is in the World Rally Championships in which it has featured since the beginning of the world championship in 1973. Ford has enjoyed much success in recent years winning the manufacturers titles in 2006 and 2007 with Finnish drivers Marcus Grönholm and Mikko Hirvonen.